Small Town Stilettos is a great title that makes sense when you read the book by Sagan Morrow. First, we have city girl Margaret “Peggy” Malcolm travelling to a small town called Fort Edwin. Margaret’s not a stranger to Great Aunt Eleanor’s sense of humour: she was keen on some of the after-death requests her aunt made before she passed. But it was not as funny at the receiving end of it.
She was prepared for some surprises until she realized it was a get married clause. Not only she has to say, “I do in 120 days, she has to persuade the poor groom to say it too! I cackled when the lawyer Arnold informed her she can leave it all behind, but it will go to Charity.
Just not any Charity, her mean and nasty relative, Charity. You can totally see the irony in the name. Not only the money will be given to mom’s evil cousin, her future husband’s portion would go to a forest research institute that encourages logging.
120 days with complications
En route to Fort Edwin, where her late aunt’s estate was, she met Matthew Blaine. It triggered some serious questions about who this guy was, and why did Margaret leave town? Matthew had also turned into a city slicker, and they caught up a little. As a rom-com genre, not surprising to know that the dude she had to marry was another guy in her past: Logan Finley.
The only hint of a past relationship was that they were a sort of like Three Musketeers when they were younger. Before Margaret dropped “Peggy” to become Margaret. To make matters more interesting, Logan is the opposite of Matthew in many ways.
Not just romance
Part of the charm of the book is that Margaret is a strong and sassy girl with a good head on her shoulders. She worked as a designer for Not Cool Girls (NCG) to make clothes that fit people of all sizes. Margaret had plans for the inheritance. It would be seed money to allow small towns to have better clothing option and range, and a unique idea (hence the cool book title)
To do that, Logan needed to be onboard. They both had to stay “I do” in front of a priest in 120 days. While there is no deception, they are struggling with other aspects of the relationship. The book’s focus is not only on physical attraction, but on real-life issues like personal beliefs and cohabitation.
Verdict
I am looking forward to book two. At the moment, this feels more like a Margaret scheming and plotting to have a cake and eat it too. Logan is a traditional and conservative guy, not the “wife should be at home” kind, but more “commitment is forever” type. Clashes are inevitable, as Margaret’s inability to know what she wanted in a life partner will come back to bite her.
Small Town Stilettos is not just a small town romance, it is a girl’s guide to finding what truly works in your own life. And maybe you should not have indulged in your aunt’s pranks so often…
PS: It is coming out July 25, 2023! I got the ARC for a fair review.
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This sounds delightful…I love that it’s more than just a small-town romance.