WHISPERS ON THE PRAIRIE, by Vickie McDonough

Sarah Marshall didn't want to leave the bustling city of Chicago to accompany her aunt and uncle over the Santa Fe Trail to the New Mexico Territory. She had close friends in Chicago, and loved the comforts of city life. But her uncle insisted she come along to care for her ailing aunt. Since they'd taken Sarah in when her parents died, he claimed she owed him obedience. Sarah's intention was to travel with them as far as Kansas City, where other family members planned to join them on the trek. Then she'd return to Chicago.
 Ethan Harper's family operates Harpers' Stage Stop, a waypoint on the Santa Fe Trail. Ethan carries a burden of guilt for his part in the death of his older brother's wife, so has made it his mission to find his brother a replacement wife.
 When several unfortunate occurrences strand Sarah and her aunt at Harpers' Stage Stop, Sarah is consumed with plans to find a means to return to Chicago. For his part, Ethan sees Sarah as a good match for his widower brother.
 McDonough has done a wonderful job of handling a cast of varied characters, making each one unique and likeable. While reading this book I felt I knew the Harper family. In Whispers on the Prairie, descriptions of the stage stop, the prairie landscape, and the Trail were perfectly done. The reader feels part of the story every step of the way.
 Whispers on the Prairie is "prairie romance" at its best! I hated to see this story end, but thankfully this is the first book in the Pioneer Promises series, so I look forward to reading more about the Harper family in Books 2 and 3, releasing in 2014.
 My thanks to the author and Whitaker House for providing my review copy.