What Price Paradise

Pregnant. Abby can’t believe it. She finally gives her virginity to the man she’s been in love with for almost ten years and she ends up pregnant. Abby doesn’t know how she’s going to survive. Her job provides her with a meager income, barely enough for her to get by on alone. There’s no way a baby and all its accoutrements will be able to survive on the paycheck from her job as a waitress at Delly’s. The solution comes in the way of Tate McCollum, the man she loves and the father of her baby. Tate knows that Abby’s pallor and weak stomach aren’t from a virus. Almost as soon as he lays eyes on her again, he realizes she is pregnant. The only right thing to do is to marry. He will take care of Abby and make sure their baby is safe. If he has to put aside his dream of marrying Diane Prentis, the woman he’s been in love with his entire life, then so be it. Tate was raised to respect and honor his responsibilities, and right now his responsibilities are to Abby and their unborn child. And if he can’t get the thought of having a willing and loving Abby making love with him again out of his head, well, that’s just something he’ll have to work on.

Though Abby is reluctant to agree, she knows she has no choice. Until she finishes her G.E.D. courses, she can’t get a better job and make a better living for herself and the baby. A small part of her though wants to be with Tate, wants to give them the chance to be together and perhaps become a family. Abby enjoys living at his ranch, keeping his house, and spending time with Buddy, Tate’s younger brother. Though awkward at first, their life together is becoming easier, more comfortable, and the flow of desire is growing again. But there’s still the problem of Diane lurking in both of their minds, and there’s still the idea that Abby is just one more responsibility piled on to Tate’s shoulders. What will it take for these lonely people to realize that love is waiting for them, if only they can set aside their preconceived ideas about each other?

What Price Paradise is a moving and emotional tale between two people who have always had heavy burdens laid upon them. Abby carries the stigma of being the daughter of the town whore, while Tate carries the responsibilities and hardships of the ranch, along with the attitudes and ideas his father thrust upon him while growing up. Neither of them quite knows how to act married, what they should be doing and feeling, so the reader gets the experience of following Abby and Tate’s follies, their highs, and their lows, along with everything in between. Their relationship is by no means smooth, but it is honest, it is realistic, and it is very loving, even from the first. I felt from the moment that I started this story that these two characters were soul mates, and though their path to happiness has a few curveballs, it is truly a beautiful journey that you won’t want to miss out on. Though the plot line is somewhat familiar, some would say generic, the author nonetheless moves beyond the basic with a delightful cast of characters, an emotional love story, and the growth and decline of not one but two relationships. Katherine Allred has truly written a moving story that will have you glued to the pages.

Reviewed by: Sarah W