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Loving Eliza (South Dakota Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Ruth Ann Nordin (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1,170 ratings
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Eliza left her life of prostitution to become something she could never be back in Omaha: a lady. Her plan is to remain single for the rest of her life, but when she arrives in South Dakota, she runs into John Evans. And he’s not about to let her remain single if he has anything to do about it.

As soon as John sees Eliza, he falls in love with her. Not only is Eliza the most beautiful young lady he’s ever seen, but she isn’t put off by the fact that he’s mute. Since his mail-order bride didn’t come, then he sees no reason why he can’t marry Eliza and make a home with her.

Eliza, however, knows very well why they can’t be together. She used to be a prostitute. John is a sweet man who’s never even kissed a woman. He deserves a virgin who can give him her innocence and a future with children. Eliza can do neither one for him. But while she insists he waits to see if his mail-order bride is coming after all, she is taken in with his sweetness and charm until she’s torn between doing what is best for him and what her selfish heart wants.

*This is the first book in the South Dakota Series.

Book 1: Loving Eliza
Book 2: Bid for a Bride
Book 3: Bride of Second Chances
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  1. Book 1 of 3
    South Dakota Series
  2. Print length
    238 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    December 14, 2009
  6. File size
    1760 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Author

This is the current edition of the book.

About the Author

Ruth Ann Nordin has written over 100 books, most of them being Regencies and historical western romances. As fun as writing is, she has also learned that time with family and friends is just as important. She has also learned that writing for passion is the best reason to write since it is what sustains an author's work for the long haul. That's why she's been able to keep writing for as long as she had. It's hard to believe she started out in ebooks back in 2009. How time flies.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0030MIF5C
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ (December 14, 2009)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 14, 2009
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1760 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 238 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1,170 ratings

About the author

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Ruth Ann Nordin

Ruth Ann Nordin

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Ruth Ann Nordin lives in Montana with her husband and four sons. When she's not playing wife and mother, she's reading and writing. She has written about 120 books, and almost 100 of those are romances. Her romances include Regencies, historical westerns, and contemporaries.

To find out more about her and her books, go to https://ruthannnordinauthorblog.com/.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
1,170 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

callalilies
5.0 out of 5 stars The SWEETEST hero!
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2011
Verified Purchase
This is my 3rd book by Ruth Ann Nodin and I was hesitant to read it after being extremely disappointed with The Wrong Husband but I took my good feelings from Eye of the Beholder and the synopsis of this one and gave it a go and I'm SO GLAD I did!

Loving Eliza is one of the sweetest love stories I've ever read. John is a born mute who's been brushed off as dumb his entire life and thus received no formal education in writing or reading. As the 3rd of 4 brothers he's been dealing with being different up against perfect sons all his life.

He places an add for a mail order bride with the help of his oldest brother who's the most compassionate to his disability. He makes sure any would be brides know of his disability. One would be bride bites and he's all set to welcome his future wife when the train arrives only she doesn't show up. Eliza however does step off the train and for John it's love at first sight of the pretty redhead. She's not his would be bride Daphne but he keeps on motioning to the church wanting her to know he understands she's not his bride but that he wants to marry her instead.

You'll LOVE John's persistence in trying to get Eliza to marry him. Anytime they have a good day he makes a gesture towards her left hand in yet ANOTHER plea to marry him.

You'll love John for that and his sweet character and you'll find yourself loving the heartbreaking character of Eliza as well. Women in the old days had it so bad when it came to their virtue so as an ex-prositute starting her life over in a new town FAR from home, Eliza deems herself unworthy of a blank slate and nice soul like John when her past is so degrading and immoral. But John learns to love Eliza for HER in spite of her past and that's what makes this story so so good.

Overall, PICK UP this book! Take it from one VERY picky reader and trust me when I say you won't be disappointed.
2 people found this helpful
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bookaddict
4.0 out of 5 stars Sweet story
Reviewed in the United States on July 13, 2010
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This was my first time reading this author. I liked the premise of the book and the characters. I didn't LOVE the book but it was enjoyable. It's a quick read. I read this is an afternoon. The story ended well but the book should have ended sooner in my opinion. It seems like there was an additional chapter that wasn't really necessary or that was just lacking. Other than that I liked the book and the characters.
9 people found this helpful
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Donna feibusch
5.0 out of 5 stars An Awesome Read!
Reviewed in the United States on July 7, 2013
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I really enjoyed reading this book about Eliza & John, they were truly inspirational to each other and to those around them. Eliza has just arrived by stage-coach and is looking forward to a second chance on life, only to discover the lady she is meeting is pushing up daisy's at the local cemetery. It seems she had a terrible fall two days ago and died. So while she's trying to figure out what to do, she meets an amazingly good looking gentleman that insists that she read the letter in his hands. He's almost rude about getting her attention, without saying one single word, using hand gestures, she finally relents and reads the letter. It turns out he's waiting for his mail-order bride a lady named Daphane to arrive, but according to Eliza she wasn't on the coach, it was just herself and Charity who is the Sheriff's mail-order bride and her aunt, that's it. John insists that Eliza come and work for him, he has a separate building she can live in and she can clean and cook for him, this solves her problem as to where to work and eat. Read this book it was truly inspiring, and it will make you laugh and cry. Enjoy reading it.
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RegencyReader
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book
Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2010
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I've read most of the books by this author, and I will say, she sometimes does stories that nobody would think to do, and this was one of them. A mute hero and a former prostitute for the heroine!

The heroine was first introduced in a pervious book, His Redeeming Bride, as a prostitute in a saloon who gets a second chance when she meets a preacher who helps her by sending her to North Dakota to live with and work for his sister. That's where the books picks up (I think all we know from His Redeeming Bride is that she's met a preacher who is going to help her, but we don't know how, yet). I was actually a little wary of reading this book because I didn't much care for her character in the previous book, however, she redeems herself very early on.

Not only are the two main characters very likeable, the supporting characters are as well (except the two you're not supposed to like). This is an excellent story of looking past superficial flaws and finding the good beneath.

And, as a plus, the hero is sweet and the heroine is sensible. What more could you ask for?
5 people found this helpful
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Alli W
3.0 out of 5 stars A cute, quick read.
Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2014
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I read Loving Eliza last week and it was a quick, easy read. Ms. Nordin does a wonderful job of drawing the reader in quickly and endearing Eliza to us.

Eliza was a prostitute in the bustling city of Omaha, but now she's in South Dakota to work for the sister of a pastor friend of hers. Except the woman has passed away unexpectedly, leaving Eliza unsure what to do next. She's approached by the town mute, John, who mistakes her for his mail-order bride. Once Eliza explains she is not the bride and it seems the bride is nowhere to be found, Eliza agrees to work for John until she can find another job and his actual bride arrives.

Over time the pair grow comfortable together and John is obviously in love with Eliza, even to the point of trying to take her to the local church whenever they are in town. But Eliza's past is a secret and she says she is unworthy of marrying such a wonderful man.

John's brother, Troy, tries in vain to court Eliza, much to John's dismay and Eliza's attempts to dissuade him. And as soon as Eliza admits her feelings for John, his mail order bride arrives! Eliza leaves and works for the town's grouch who eventually discovers her secret past and threatens to tell everybody.

I won't give away spoilers except to say that this is a story of true love - so you can imagine what happens in the end, but it's not without some twists and turns.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick, sweet love story. Ms. Nordin is a fabulous writer!

You can read more reviews on my blog:
[...]
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Top reviews from other countries

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Geovana
5.0 out of 5 stars Amei!
Reviewed in Brazil on July 2, 2018
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Eu, particularmente, sou adepta de histórias com personagens diferentes e essa história foi muito linda, envolvente do começo ao fim. Um mocinho muito fofo e uma mocinha que, apesar do passado dela, tem coragem e determinação para seguir em frente com a cabeça erguida.
Esse livro tem tudo, personagens bons, personagens maldosos, um dose grande de fofura e momentos hilários e até alguns tristes. Eu com certeza recomendo!
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Catherine
4.0 out of 5 stars Delightfully entertaining!
Reviewed in Canada on May 29, 2018
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Wonderful story with solid characters, drama, and life lessons. Enjoyable, easy read. Buying the next book in the series today.
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WestieR
5.0 out of 5 stars Truly Enjoyable!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 25, 2013
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I really enjoyed this book. It was heart-warming and wonderful to read. Page after page this book is a nice easy read that has you engrossed in the truly loveable characters.

Eliza has worked in a saloon as a prostitute, she has come to South Dakota to start over. Upon her arrival she learns that the person she is supposed to work for has died and she is no longer needed.

John is awaiting the arrival of his mail order bride, but the only woman to arrive is Eliza. He is drawn to her immediately and tries to propose to her, but Eliza fearing what she was in the past does not believe she is worthy of such a thing. John is not perfect either he can not read or write and is mute. But he is kind and gentle and does everything he can within his community to help.

John offers Eliza a job and in the meantime plans to convince Eliza to marry him. Eliza is convinced that once his mail order bride arrives she will be without a job but for the time being she needs a place to stay.

The friendship blossoms between Eliza and John and although he does not speak, there is no problem between him and Eliza in communicating. The romance between the two characters is a wonderful thing to read.

As with any good romance story there are bumps along the way and I do not want to spoil it for you!

For me one thing I really like about Ruth Nordin's book is they tend to have a slight tie together with other books. We first meet Eliza in the story of Neil's story His Redeeming Bride. So you get a sneak peak as to what life has been like for her and what inspired her to change her course before this novel begins.

This story is well worth a read and will go in my books to read again pile!
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carolann a.
4.0 out of 5 stars Good story
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 12, 2020
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Good story, uplifting about how people overcome stgma.
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Linda Gilmore
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent story
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 9, 2020
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I really loved this story. So much heartache for Eliza but she found her true love in the end. This was an amazing story and well worth reading. A book I will read again and again. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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