Laura Marie Altom, Marrying the Marshal

Marrying the Marshal

Laura Marie Altom

Harlequin American, Jan 2006, $4.99, 248 pp.

ISBN: 0373751036

An elated Caleb Logue plans to ask his pregnant girlfriend Allie Hayworth to marry him. However when he shows up with the ring, he finds she is gone. She left him a note saying she lost the baby, and before that him. He is stunned to say the least, and his father, a former US Marshal, and now small town Oregonian sheriff, searches for Allie, but fails to find her.

Nine years later his superior assigns Portland based Deputy US Marshal Caleb Logue to protect Judge Allie Hayworth over his objections. When Caleb arrives he is stunned to see her with her eight year old son Cal. After recovering from the initial shock that left him paler than the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man, Caleb needs to know why, and demands time with his child. Allie has hated Caleb since she felt he abandoned her once she informed him she was pregnant, but feels guilty not telling him of his son. Though irate, he still loves her and wants to be Cal's father. First he must keep her safe from a real threat while persuading her that they belong together as a family.

Though a little communication nine years ago would have meant no story, fans will enjoy this second chance at love suspense thriller. The storyline contains two interrelated subplots: the real threat to the judge and the efforts of Caleb, once he somewhat calms down, to convince his beloved to accept him in the lives of her and their son. Caleb and Allie come across as real people with their human mistakes. Laura Marie Altom provides a warm character-driven family drama with just the right amount of external suspense to enhance the novel.