Wendy the Super Librarian‘s review of Cowboy Christmas by Carol Finch, Elizabeth Lane & Pam Crooks
Historical romance anthology released by Harlequin Historical 01 Oct 09

Holiday time means two things.  1) Harlequin starts churning out the Christmas-themed books and 2) Wendy’s wallet starts quietly sobbing.  It doesn’t help matters that Harlequin has a habit of offering up a western historical anthology.  So I started Cowboy Christmas with some anticipation, settling in for what I hoped would be a solid, heartwarming collection.  Unfortunately, none of the stories inspired more than just an “Meh, it’s OK” reaction from me.

A Husband For Christmas by Carol Finch

Victoria “Tori” Thurston enjoys her life in a tiny west Texas town where she runs her own bakery.  Her parents are major movers in Fort Worth society, which means they have the perfect potential husband picked out for her.  Naturally Tori isn’t overeager to abandon her business to wed some stuffed shirt, so she tells her parents it’s too late, she’s already married to local marshal, Logan Daniels.  However now she’s really in the soup.  Her parents expect her home for Christmas and they want to meet this mysterious husband.  Now all she has to do is convince Logan to play her husband for a quick holiday visit home.  Surely that won’t be too difficult.

This is the humorous story in the anthology, and Finch does a nice job keeping the proceedings fairly light and fluffy.  Unfortunately she skims over a lot of the sticker details in order to achieve that goal.  Tori has always played second fiddle to her gorgeous older sister.  She has a good relationship with The Chosen One, but her parents, while not mean-spirited, are offhandedly neglectful of the more enterprising Tori.  None of this family baggage is really addressed, other than for Tori to realize that her sister’s life isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.  I also was disappointed there wasn’t more than a passing western flavor to this tale.  Honestly the author could have plucked these characters up and dropped them anywhere else in time or place and the story wouldn’t have changed all that much.

Grade = C







The Homecoming by Elizabeth Lane

Clay McAllister has spent the last three years in prison because of his reckless, stupid younger brother.  All he wants is to return to his ranch, his wife Elise and their young son.  When he arrives though, he discovers the ranch in disrepair and Elise less than happy to see him.  Why had Buck never returned home, delivering the money they made on their last cattle drive together like Clay had begged him to?

I love holiday stories that center around redemption and forgiveness.  However, this one hinges on one of the more insulting plot devices around – The Character Who Won’t Read Letters That Explain Everything.  Yep, you guessed it.  Clay wrote his wife faithfully from prison and she marked them all Return To Sender without reading them.  So naturally while she thinks she knows what happened, she really doesn’t.  Honestly, who the hell does this?  It makes absolutely no sense.  Also, while there is more than enough conflict to keep this story chugging along, there’s really too much conflict to keep this story chugging along.  If ever a story was begging for a full-length treatment, this one is it.

Grade = C







The Cattleman’s Christmas Bride by Pam Crooks

Allethaire “Allie” Gibson is returning to Montana in disgrace.  She’s been accused of embezzling money from a fundraiser she was spearheading back in Minneapolis, and she needs to see her father in Montana to explain her innocence.  That’s when the train is held up by outlaws and they find a whole wad of cash in her trunk!  But she’s innocent!  Before the authorities on the train can take her in for questioning, she’s saved by local rancher,Mikolas “Mick” Vasco who was nearby when he heard the train stop in the middle of the tracks.  He spirits Allie away, determined to help her clear her name.  There’s one small wrinkle though – a few years back Mick was one of the men who kidnapped Allie for ransom!

This is a sequel of sorts to the author’s previous book, The Cattleman’s Unsuitable Wife.  If you haven’t read that story, this one is a bit rocky.  Mostly because the majority of the conflict is a holdover from that book.  Once the author catches the reader up to speed, it sails along at a smoother clip, but too much is glossed over.  Namely the heroine’s compulsion for drinking brandy in secret and the small matter of the stolen money, which is apparently going to be fodder for a future book.  Which ultimately makes this story nothing but a placeholder between books.  If you’re a fan, you’ll likely want to read this one.  Otherwise, there’s not a whole lot here for newcomers.

Grade = C

All in all these stories never rated above OK for me.  This anthology was a quick pleasant read, but it didn’t set my world on fire.  If you’re hooked on Crooks’ series, this one is probably worth a look.  Otherwise, while it’s a decent diversion, it didn’t have a whole lot of staying power.

Overall Grade: C

Summary:

Twelve days of Christmas—three heartwarming romances!

A Husband for Christmas by Carol Finch

To reassure her overprotective parents, Victoria Thurston must convince the town marshal to be her “holiday husband.” But the magical, festive air—and Tori’s luminous green eyes—make it very difficult for Logan Daniels to keep to their marriage in name only!

The Homecoming by Elizabeth Lane

Brooding rancher Clay McAllister paid his reckless brother’s dues in a tough Kansas jail. Now Clay must win back his beautiful wife, Elise. And, after three years apart, some yuletide passion is just what Clay and Elise need to reignite the fire that still smolders between them….

The Cattleman’s Christmas Bride by Pam Crooks

With her reputation cruelly slandered, Allethaire Gibson is forced to flee to the snowy Montana mountains. There the dazzling socialite unexpectedly finds a Christmas romance with a man who has fought for respect just as she has—rugged cattleman Mikolas Vasco!

Read an excerpt – Finch Story, Lane Story, no excerpt found for Crooks story

Other books in this series:

Oh Cowboys. . . How they are loved so. Pam Crooks has promised a signed copy of Kidnapped By the Cowboy and a cowboy fan for someone that shared a story about racing and getting adrenaline going.

The lucky winner in the contest is

Maureen

Congratulations! Be sure you email Sybil at redwyne @ gmail .com your physical address about getting your prize! Congrats again to our lucky winner.

Wendy the Super Librarian‘s review of Kidnapped By The Cowboy by Pam Crooks
Historical romance released by Harlequin Historical 1 June 08

Over the years, I’ve made no secret of my love and devotion for Harlequin Historical westerns. As a general rule, I buy all of them as they become available, and save them in my TBR for when I’m in need of a comfort read. This is how Kidnapped By The Cowboy came to be on my wish list. Unfortunately, after a bang-up prologue, I found myself increasingly annoyed by two characters who didn’t actively use their brains.

T.J. Grier is a man with a ruined reputation. He was once a respected cowboy on the C Bar C ranch, a favorite of owner Carina Lockett. However that all changes the night that Carina’s young son, Danny, is killed in an altercation. T.J. happens upon the scene of the crime after the fact, and desperate to protect someone, takes the blame for young Danny’s death. He’s thrown in jail, but not convicted due to lack of evidence. Now the damage is done, and he’s effectively labeled a child murderer.

Callie Mae Lockett will never forget the night her beloved brother died. She loathes T.J. with every fiber of her being. So imagine her dismay when she learns that her mother gave T.J. some prime land on the family ranch prior to Danny’s death. Callie Mae needs to get that land back because the good townsfolk want to use it for horse racing and other amusements. Callie Mae would rather eat worms. Determined to get back that land, she and her fiancé, Kullen, ride out to T.J.’s spread to talk to him. Naturally, all hell breaks loose.

In the ensuing drama, T.J.’s prize-thoroughbred breaks free. T.J. was counting on that horse to restore his reputation. In the heat of the moment, he kidnaps Callie Mae, and forces her to ride off with him to find the horse. He is also desperate to learn the truth behind Danny’s death, and is determined to show Callie Mae he’s not the monster she thinks he is.

The main issue with this story is the conflict. T.J. is bent out of shape because everyone thinks he’s a child murderer, and he’s stung by the fact that the girl he’s always loved thinks he’s scum. Um, hello?! He confessed to doing it! He said he did it! Of course the dead boy’s sister isn’t going to like you anymore! Geez, get a clue.

Callie Mae doesn’t fare that much better, mainly because it takes her a little too long to see the truth smacking her in the face. The events prior to T.J. kidnapping her should have told her beyond a shadow of a doubt that something was rotten in Denmark. Yet she continually fights it. Even after a large chunk of the truth comes out regarding the night Danny died, she still doesn’t fully admit to herself that everything she thought she knew was all based on lies. After a while I wanted to tell the girl to wake up and smell the coffee already.

There’s some back-story here related to the first book in this series, Untamed Cowboy, but the author does a decent job of bringing the reader up to speed. There were a few moments of series-info-dumping, but these moments were very brief, and on the whole, this story read fast and easy. Fans of the first book will likely enjoy this return visit with past characters, but it never registered above “OK” for this reviewer.

Grade: C

Summary:

TAKEN! Callie Mae Lockett had once trusted TJ Grier, cared for him even, but then her brother was killed and TJ took the blame. Now he wants a chance to clear his name, even if that means kidnapping Callie Mae….

REDEEMED?

Alone in the wilderness with TJ, Callie Mae should feel afraid. Instead, she is attracted to this rugged cowboy and begins to believe in his innocence. But the truth will be dangerous for both of them and, with time running out, can TJ clear his name and claim his woman?

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

by Pam Crooks

First off, I have to thank Sybil and her gang for taking Harlequin Historicals under their romance-lovin’ wings and giving us such a wonderful opportunity to talk about our books. We love you, Syb!

Okay – here we go. From the time man learned to climb on a horse, his competitive nature has instilled in him a love for racing. Wagering inevitably followed. Be it the thrill of the game, or the lure of riches in whatever form, and for whatever reason, cowboys all over the world have loved to race.

My hero in Kidnapped By the Cowboy, TJ Grier, is no different. For him, to right a wrong that ruined his reputation, the need for racing consumes him. He’s placed all his hopes and dreams in one horse. He has a point to prove, a new life to make. But when that horse is heartlessly taken from him, he kidnaps Callie Mae Lockett to find him and the truth that has haunted them both.

While I was writing this book, I learned just how much racing and competition was a part of the western culture and a cowboy’s life. Indeed, it has spanned centuries, as early as the Moorish occupation of Spain, and spreading its enthusiasm to Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Mexico, and so on, and finally to America. Charros (upper-class horsemen) and vaqueros (working cowboys), gaucho or llanero—it didn’t matter. Cowboys lived and breathed racing, in one form or another.

We all know about bull riding and barrel racing, but I was amazed at some of the um, more unusual racing games they played. Here’s a few:

• The rooster shoot. Despite its name, this one had nothing to do with a rooster. The men lashed their right wrists together with rawhide thongs while mounted in the saddle. At a signal, the horses began to race side by side until one rider pulled the other off his horse. The winner was the man who was the strongest and most able to keep his seat. Yeesh!

• Roping grizzly bears. Oh, my. This one was especially popular in Colorado, Wyoming and Montana. Several cowboys would lasso the bear around his feet and neck, choking off his air to subdue him. They’d then trail him back to town, taunting him along the way, baiting him to charge. Once in town, they’d find a wild bull and pit them against each other. Spectators cheered to see the bear kill the bulls until he eventually succumbed himself from being gored so many times.

• Chicken pulling. Now I wrote about this game in my book, The Mercenary’s Kiss. Using a rooster, duck or chicken, cowboys would either tie the bird to a tree or–more commonly–bury the chicken in the ground up to its neck. Horsemen would race up to the bird, and whoever plucked it out of the ground was chased by the other riders. The first rider to cross the finish line with the bird in hand was the winner–and got to keep the chicken as his prize. (In Mexico, the vaqueros took the winnings a step further–by grandly presenting the fowl to the woman he most wanted to impress.)

Like I said, these are only a few of the games and contests cowboys enjoyed–some far more violent than others. And quite unusual, eh?

How about you? Are you a racing fan? What do you love to race, either watching or participating? Is there something else that you do that really gets the adrenaline going?

Join in the discussion and be eligible to win an autographed copy of Kidnapped By the Cowboy and a hunky cowboy fan!

Kidnapped by the Cowboy is a follow up to Pam’s Harlequin Historical Untamed Cowboy.

And since I am reading this at the time I am putting this post together, I can tell you, tis grand. Well at least to the halfway point, I will let you know what I think when I am done . For now here is the summary, enjoy an excerpt and we will have Pam Crook’s guest post at 11 am!

Kidnapped by the Cowboy by Pam Crooks

Callie Mae Lockett is betrayed by the man who claims he’s responsible for her young brother’s tragic death. She chooses another to help carry on her precious legacy, the C Bar C Ranch , and he’s the farthest thing from a cowboy she’s ever met.

TJ Grier has always been one of the C Bar C’s best cowboys, but one horrible night destroys all he’s ever known.

Desperate to prove his innocence, he steals Callie Mae away, and together they plunge into danger to solve the secret that has torn them apart.

She’d learned to live in the shadows.

They became her refuge when her mind wouldn’t rest. When the pain reared up like an angry demon to thrash at her insides and make her bleed. Set her heart to pounding and her body shaking and her fears turning hauntingly real.

Like now. Late at night.

The pain always came then. When it was dark and she was alone. Forcing her body to crave the whiskey that was slowly killing her.

But her soul needed comfort, her memories needed numbing.

Her mistakes forgiven, most of all.

Another swig of rotgut helped her breathe, and she leaned her head back against the rough siding of the horse barn. The scent of fresh-cut wood surrounded her, soaked into the fragile threads of her awareness.

The timbers were new. So new they had yet to feel the pelting from a summer rain or be dressed in their first coat of paint. They came together to form a structure the likes she’d never seen, and the new barn, the grandest of gifts, would last a lifetime.

Like the C Bar C ranch and its legacy.

Her gaze lifted to the house sprawled in the distance, perched like a giant beast on the hill. Every window had a light shining through it, and the night carried strains of laughter and music.

A party given by Carina Lockett-McClure and her husband, Penn, to celebrate their daughter’s return from a summer spent in Europe. Folks from all over the Texas Panhandle came to see Callie Mae and welcome her back home, all the while flaunting their money, fancy clothes and high-society ways.

They wouldn’t know about pain and shadows. They wouldn’t need whiskey to help them survive.

She tried to feel contempt and failed. Her mistakes had always been her own.

She lifted the bottle again, but her tongue found only a trickle of liquor left.

It didn’t matter. She had more.

She was careful not to toss aside the empty container, evidence of her addiction. Instead, she tucked the bottle under her arm while using the other to brace herself against the side of the barn, her palm hardly aware of the roughness of the wood. Her gait was steadier this way. More sure. And she easily moved through the darkness toward the back door.

But suddenly, something didn’t feel right.

She froze, her senses sluggish, her mind working to figure out why.

The faint sounds of music and laughter were barely discernible now. She swept an uneasy glance around her, but the silence, the moonlight, revealed nothing.

Only the scent of so much lumber seemed real.

She shook off her unease and knew it was her guilt from the whiskey that made her feel that way. She kept moving down the side of the barn, and rounding the corner, she halted again, this time her attention caught by tiny flickering lights in the distance. A couple of dozen, at least. Torches spread out along a makeshift track.

The C Bar C outfit was indulging in some late-night horse racing, it seemed. This far from the main house, distracted by their guests, Carina and Penn wouldn’t see. If they did, they wouldn’t approve. Racing, drinking and gambling were against the rules. Most likely, the outfit was doing a little of all three.

Their secret would be safe with her. She’d enjoyed the vices a time or two herself in her younger days. Who was she to tell them it was wrong?

She shifted her attention to the door, unlocked as she’d known it would be. She fumbled with the latch. The new hinges squeaked from her pull, and the door swung open.

She slipped inside. The C Bar C horses hadn’t been stabled yet, but lighting a lantern would be a surefire way of alerting someone she was up to no good, and even drunk, she wasn’t that stupid. She knew where to go, the exact place where she’d hidden a brand new bottle of Old Fitz.

She left the door partially open, needing what little moonlight seeped inward to find her way. Gathering her courage, she veered left, down a narrow corridor toward a small apartment tucked behind the last stall. No light shown beneath the closed door, and cautious relief swept through her. She was foolish to be here, doing what she was doing. If anyone saw her, TJ especially . . ..

Behind her, the hinges squeaked again.

She froze.

“TJ? Are you in here?”

Her heartbeat dipped at the young voice calling hesitantly into the darkness. The barn door opened wider. Moonlight spilled in. She pressed back against the wall, deeper into the shadows.

“Hey, TJ?”

Danny McClure, Penn and Carina’s ten-year-old son, stepped inside, holding a lantern. He set the lamp down, then squatted, struck a match, and lit the wick. Golden lamplight flared around him, and he straightened.

He was still dressed in his grey knee pants and coat, white shirt and tie. Which meant he’d come straight from his sister’s party. All the way from the main house.

Alone.

To see TJ?

Her whiskey-numb mind strove to figure it. TJ wouldn’t have asked Danny to come. Not like this. Carina would never have allowed it, besides, even to see one of the best wranglers in her outfit.

Penn wouldn’t, either.

Which meant they didn’t know Danny was here.

“I can take you to him.”

She started at the unexpected voice, and Danny’s dark head whipped toward the sound, a low drawl sliding smooth through the darkness. Footsteps approached. Out of the shadows, a man appeared. Short, wiry. In no hurry.

A shiver of unease crept down her spine.

She knew all the ranch’s cowboys, had cooked for them down at the bunkhouse one time or another. If she didn’t know their names, she knew their faces.

And this one she’d never seen before.

At least, she didn’t think so.

He wore his hat funny. Down over his face. On his nose, almost. Even in the dark.

Her heart began a slow, troubled thud . . . while her whiskey-numb brain churned to place him.

To understand.

Danny cocked his head. “Who are you?”

The man halted. He smiled.

“A friend,” he said.

“Of TJ’s?”

His shoulder lifted in a careless shrug. “Something like that.”

“Where is he?”

“I’m a friend of your father’s, too,” the man said. He smiled again.

She didn’t like the looks of that smile. She’d seen it too often from the men in her life. Men who never meant the things they said. Who only smiled like that when they wanted something.

Something wrong.

She swallowed and tried not to be afraid. For herself. For Danny. She didn’t want to listen to what the nagging voice in her head tried to tell her.

“The lady said he’d be here waiting.” Frowning, Danny took a sideways step, as if to check for himself the shadows behind the stranger.

But the stranger took a step, too. So he couldn’t.

“TJ’s not here,” he purred.

“He’s not?” Danny’s expression turned nervous. “Guess she was wrong, then, huh?”

He was trying to be brave, she realized, but apprehension threaded his words. She could feel his fear, building with her own. Higher with every pulsating second.

She didn’t want him to feel the fear. To see how ugly life could be. Danny McClure was only a child, his world fiercely protected. Filled with love and happiness.

“I’ll take you to him, Danny-boy. We’ll find TJ together.” The stranger reached toward him, slow and easy.

Her heart pounded harder.

The warning voice shouted louder.

Nobody called Danny McClure ‘Danny-boy’. Ever. He despised the nickname. He always had, and every cowboy on the C Bar C–every single one–knew it, honored it, and obeyed that one little rule.

Never call Danny ‘Danny-boy.’

The stranger broke the rule. Because he didn’t know. Because he wasn’t C Bar C. And if she didn’t do something to help Danny, if she didn’t listen to that voice screaming inside her head, insisting there was no one else, no one else, no one else . . ..

Oh, God. Oh, God.

She eased away from the wall, curled her fingers around the tall neck of the whiskey bottle tucked under her arm.

“Come with me,” the man said. “Let’s find TJ, Danny-boy.”

“No!” he shouted and leapt back, but the stranger was bigger, faster, and he grabbed Danny’s arm with a curse.

The rage broke free. She burst from the shadows with a wild shriek. “Leave him alone!”

The stranger whirled toward her.

Danny’s eyes widened in recognition, and if he said anything, if he called out her name, she didn’t hear it, not when she was driven by the raging voice of fear inside her.

“Let him go. Let him go!” She hurtled toward them, her arm lifting, her grip on the bottle desperate. The stranger twisted, shielding himself against her blow, but still she swung, hard, as hard as she could, and the glass crashed against his head. His hat flipped to the ground. He staggered back, and Danny broke free.

“Run, Danny!” she shouted.

The stranger bellowed, and he lunged for the boy, but Danny reacted, swinging the lantern to fend him off. The man’s arm came up, deflecting the blow. The lantern sailed to the ground and shattered.

“Go, Danny!” she yelled, frantic, insistent, and she came at the stranger again, throwing herself at him with all the strength she had. He knew her now, knew that she was there, and he pushed her off easily, as if she weighed nothing at all.

She catapulted to the ground with a jarring thud, but not before the jagged edges of the whiskey bottle still gripped in her fist slashed across his jaw. He blinked, momentarily stunned. The skin fell open, and a long line of crimson streamed down his face.

Flames exploded from the shattered lantern and licked hungrily at the nearest stall, their fiery hunger frenzied, insatiable, for fresh lumber.

She stared, horrified.

Until a flurry of movement pierced the horror. Danny running for the door, and the stranger going after him, snarling his rage.

She scrambled to her feet, flung aside the piece of glass, her fear for Danny tearing through her. She had to save him, or he’d be taken from them all, and she stumbled down the narrow corridor, swathed in firelight, to the small apartment and the shotgun she knew was there.

TJ always kept the only weapon he owned propped in the corner, and she found it easily, her fear building, giving her strength. The flames burned, blinding and fierce, yet somehow she managed her way through to the outside.

She ran until she found them, heading toward the main house. The shadowed shape of the stranger, giving chase to the boy. She’d never learned to shoot, not really, and oh God, it was so dark, but she had to try.

For Danny, she had to make the stranger stop.

She halted, took aim, her eye on the man’s back. Just then, he turned, a quick glance over his shoulder for anyone in pursuit.

Seeing her, his step faltered.

She fired.

* * *

Time ceased to exist.

Her mind had lost its function, the ability to comprehend anything but the terrible mistake she’d made.

It was how TJ found her. Numb and mindless. On her knees in front of the unmoving shape. Guilty of one more wrong in her life.

TJ was the one thing she’d ever managed to get right, but he looked appalled at what she’d done. Stricken with grief.

Fear choked at her insides. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. She knew only that she didn’t deserve to live.

From somewhere on the fringes of her comprehension, horses’ hooves thundered. Voices yelled. Flames roared into the sky.

Shadows hid her, but not for long. The darkness would never be her salvation again.

“Let me handle this,” TJ said. He dragged in air, his voice unsteady but his words rough with urgency. “Don’t say anything to anyone. Y’hear me? Don’t say anything.”

She whimpered and tried to understand, to know what he intended to do.

“Go,” he said and gave her a firm nudge. “Get away from here.”

Confusion swirled through her sluggish brain. “But–.”

“Go, damn it.”

The fear in her responded to his command, the need for him to take care of her when she was so weak, and trusting him, like she’d always trusted him, she fled into the night.

Harlequin Historical is a registered trademark of Harlequin Enterprises Limited. As such all excerpts are copyrighted © by said publisher, and all rights are reserved by the publisher.

Shannon C.’s review of Untamed Cowboy by Pam Crooks
Western romance published by Harlequin Historicals 1 Jul 07

I really like westerns. Admittedly, I’ve not read many books in the genre, but I count LaVyrle Spencer’s The Endearment as one of the best romances I read when I first found the genre. For me, the appeal of the western romance is that it involves characters who have to be strong and tough and show what they’re made of. It is, in fact, the dirt that I love when it comes to westerns.

Pam Crooks gives a very satisfying western read in Untamed Cowboy. We have two strong characters, Penn McClure, a former Secret Service agent bent on revenge against the counterfeiters who killed his fiancee, and Carina Lockett, a strong, spirited cattle rancher who wants nothing more than to have a good legacy for her daughter, Callie Mae. When Callie Mae is kidnapped, Carina must rely on Penn’s help to drive her cattle from Texas to Dodge City in hopes she can get her daughter back.

If this is the kind of offering that Harlequin Historical puts out, I think that Sybil will have gotten herself a new fan, because I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Carina and Penn come off as very likeable characters, and I very much liked watching their attraction develop on the cattle drive. I particularly liked Karina, because after my last few books, which have featured completely bland and boring heroines, she was a nice breath of fresh air. I understood her desperation to get her daughter back, and her determination to do right by her men. I liked that she did what needed to be done, but she didn’t stomp her feet and declare that dad blame it, she was as good as any man! She just did what she had to do.

McClure is an awesome hero, too. He’s the kind of alpha that I like — quick to take charge but not an asshole. I also understood his need for revenge and his willingness to do whatever it took to get that revenge. In another author’s hands, that need for revenge might have made him a thoroughly unpleasant character, but the revenge angle wasn’t milked for all it was worth, and in the end I liked that Penn and Carina had similar goals.

The romance worked well here. Carina and Penn slowly come to be friends, and when they finally consummate their relationship, it’s a great love scene. I also really loved the end of the book and the decisions that the characters made. I also have to mention, while I’m gushing about the characters, that I really liked Callie Mae. She’s not the stereotypical saccharine romance child, and is, at times, kind of a brat. But I liked that she, too, experienced some growth and development by story’s end.

The action moves along at a steady pace, with all kinds of adventures to liven things up. Every scene felt necessary to the story, and the author certainly didn’t waste any words. I was hooked from the first page until I finished the book with a happy sigh.

This book wasn’t perfect. I was a little disappointed that the major villain was so flat, especially given the fact that his accomplices are drawn as much more nuanced characters. I also thought that Carina should have given Callie’s grandmother the swift boot to the ass that old bitch so rightfully deserved. I also wasn’t really sure why people didn’t make more of a big deal about Carina’s being a woman. Penn’s the only one who ever really seems to notice, and I wondered about that.

I wasn’t completely blown away by this book, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Definitely recommended for fans of western romance.

Grade: B

You can also read Gwen’s review for another take on this book.

     Summary:

     Carina Lockett is driven to build a legacy for her young daughter, and she doesn’t need a man to help her do it. But when her precious child is lured away and held for ransom, she must swallow her pride and ask for Penn McClure’s help.

     Penn McClure has no intention of playing cowboy for any woman, especially one as strong-willed as Carina. But driving a herd of cattle to Dodge City is no easy task. And he has a score to settle with the man waiting for them at the end of the trail.

     Along the way, he discovers Carina is pure female–and that her legacy has become his own.

    Read an excerpt here.

Sybil’s review of A Western Winter Wonderland by Cheryl St.John, Jenna Kernan, Pam Crooks
Western Historical Romance released 01 Oct 07 from Harlequin Historical

First posted 10/19/07

A Western Winter Wonderland is a delightful holiday anthology. Cheryl St.John, Jenna Kernan and Pam Crooks are three of Harlequin Historical’s top authors for the line today. Each of them often take common Harlequin plots and themes and create angst-filled western tales that are wholly their own and highly enjoyable.

CHRISTMAS DAY FAMILY by Cheryl St.John

Marvel Anne Henley’s days are spent running her boarding house and taking in sewing. She knows there could be something better out there but we learn in the first scene she isn’t willing to trade her current life for the title ‘WIFE’ just for the sake of the title, nor is she expecting anything more of her life then being a spinster. And she is fine with it, content even. Marvel wasn’t expecting anything or anyone like Seth Paxton and his children to walk into her life. Nor would she have ever dreamed a younger, handsome, exciting doctor would not only want her to have a happily-ever-after but found her vital to his finding one.

I adore Cheryl St.John’s storytelling. She has a gift for creating wonderful characters with true-to-life charm and can tug on your heartstrings without the need of a large sign that says ‘Pull Here’. Since the setting is a boarding house we meet a few different people but they don’t take away from Marvel and Seth’s screen time. It is always nice to see the man chasing after the woman, when it can be done without demeaning either character. Seth is a man and, although he is only 26, he had to put away childish toys and take on the responsibilities of family and being a doctor. Experiences gained from these jobs give him the tools to understand, appreciate, and cherish Marvel.

Marvel having sacrificed her youth to care for her ailing father, taken on the demands of turning their home into a boarding house and make ends meet, knows all about the ‘workings’ of life and family.  She doesn’t have the understanding of the love and support that comes with being a wife and mother. It is a joy to watch these two discover what can come next in life if you take the chance. This would be an A+ but Cheryl St.John or her editor must have decided to change the hero and his first wife’s name. Where as Seth (who in the summary was Nate-his son’s name) was correct in the book, his first wife was Sarah and later became Laura.

Grade: A-

Read the summary and excerpt

FALLEN ANGEL by Jenna Kernan

Abby March is in the process of trying to keep her small family of two together, fed, clothed, sheltered and still give her young son something of a Christmas. She is bound and determined Daniel will have the Christmas tree he has been begging for and is close to accomplishing it. But her problems only get worse when she is shot by Ford Statler.

Ford is after yet another bounty. He has been chasing death since his wife and child were needlessly taken from him.  He blames himself or not being there to protect the two most important people in his life and vows to never be in that position again.

Jenna Kernan does a great job of taking some very well used themes and creating interesting characters. I loved Abby. She has been knocked down repeatedly and keeps getting back up. Ford is easy to understand but you still want to slap him and tell him to wake up and see what is in front of his face.

It is somewhat unbelievable in places as I am not sure Abby’s reputation could have overcome her staying with him in the hotel, even sick. I don’t know if her job or her small room would have been there after a long absence. And at one point Ford asks Abby if there is anyone he could ‘call’ for her. Of course this is a time for Christmas miracles and it is still a lovely story.

Grade: C

Read the summary and excerpt

ONE MAGIC EVE by Pam Crooks

Sonja Kaplan has a very important and very secret job with the army, one that has sadly left her reputation in tatters. So when Chet Lattimer’s son Beau shows up asking the Bird Lady to doctor the pup he found, she is torn between wanting to help him and wanting to send him away.

Chet is intrigued by Sonja but tries not to pay attention to his thoughts or the gossip about her and those men from the army that keep showing up at her home. Learning from the nasty, mean-spirited gossip (who watches his son during the day) that his son is with Sonja causes more emotion in him then he knows what to do with. He has a job, a ranch, a family to deal with and doesn’t have time for the details of Christmas or love.

Pam Crooks story suffers from the page count being almost a good 20 pages less than the other two stories. We are left wanting to know more about these characters. Chet and Sonja are so richly drawn but there is so much left we want to know.  I was left with such a longing to know what is next.

There is still an ending and a believable HEA but I would have so loved to have those extra pages. I never know if that is a good or bad thing in a novella. Again, we have a great woman in her time, struggling to do the best she can and somehow handle the loneliness that comes with her position in the world and her secrets.

Grade: B

Read the summary and excerpt

Each of the novella’s in A Western Winter Wonderland have three things in common: heroines who are independent, who are trying, with varying degrees of success, to take care of themselves, and who have a secret or two. The stories are quietly passionate and the door does close for the most part, but it leaves no question of a HEA and does completely give a view of the romance. And it looks like there are some pretty great cookies to be had.
This is an enjoyable read and one I would highly recommend if you are looking for a sweet novella filled with the joys of Christmas. In fact each author has more than a few stories I would highly recommend as well, so this is a great chance to try them out and see if they meet your taste too. I can’t speak for the cookies *g*. Do tell me if you try them.

Overall Grade: B

[summary and excerpts are linked below each review above]

Okay – I’m going to show my age here, but does anyone remember the movie, The Three Lives of Thomasina? It was released in the early 60′s by Walt Disney, and the film sticks in my mind as being special because it was the first one I ever saw in a real theatre.

I still remember getting out of the car and walking across the parking lot. It was nighttime and cool, and I was very excited. I loved that movie. It starred Karen Dotrice (she played Jane in Mary Poppins) as Mary. When her precious cat, Thomasina, runs away and is injured, she and her friends take the sick cat to see a woman they believe is a witch with healing powers. Mary’s recently widowed father (a vet) tangles with the woman, and they become attracted to one another. Thomasina is instrumental in bringing them all together, the adults fall in love, get married and live happily ever after. Of course.

I’d always relished the concept of a character shunned by the community but somehow saves the day and is loved by all in the end . (My second book with Leisure, Lady Gypsy, has this same plotline.) When I had the opportunity to be part of Harlequin Historicals next Christmas anthology with long-time pal, Cheryl St. John and Jenna Kernan, I chose this concept for my story, titled One Magic Eve.

The recipe I included and wove into the story is the yummy rosette, another fond memory from my childhood. The fragile cookies are made by dipping festive-shaped irons into thin batter and then fried; when cooled, they could be dusted with powdered sugar or their edges dipped into a glaze. The fried cookies were a special treat my Sicilian grandmother made for us during the holidays, but it’s a cookie favorite throughout the world.

You’ll find our individual writing styles makes each story in Western Winter Wonderland unique. We hope you’ll be inspired by our tales of the joys of family, love and Christmas traditions you find within the pages.

So, tell us. Do you love holiday anthologies as much as we authors love writing them? Any favorites? Have you had rosettes before? I’d love to hear!

Take a minute to post a comment (until midnight CST), and I’ll put your name in a drawing for a special copy of Western Winter Wonderland, signed by all three of us!

Excerpts:
Christmas Day Family by Cheryl St.John
Fallen Angel by Jenna Kernan
One Magic Eve by Pam Crooks

A Western Winter Wonderland by Cheryl St. John, Jenna Kernan, Pam Crooks

The final story in A Western Winter Wonderland is from Pam Crooks and the following is the first chapter and a great start to the story. When you finish you can go reread Cheryl St.John’s and Jenna Kerna’s excerpts or just order the book. And don’t forget we will have a nifty guest post from the trio on Oct 1st along with a contest!

ONE MAGIC EVE by Pam Crooks

Lonely Sonja Kaplan doesn’t want to spend another Christmas alone. While she has her secret government work to fill her days, she longs for a husband to fill her nights.

Chet Lattimer doesn’t know the first thing about being a father when the six-year-old son he didn’t realize he had bursts into his life. Worse, it’s Christmas, and there’s no one to help him celebrate except the mysterious woman the gossips call the Bird Lady.

But a little boy hungry for love helps them all find truth and peace, and together they revel in the magic of Christmas.

EXCERPT

December 23, 1886, Montana Territory

“She’s the Bird Lady, Beau. She ain’t gonna know nothin’ about doctorin’ a pup.”

Sonja Kaplan’s pencil stilled over the page of her inventory record book as the boy’s voice drifted in through the pigeon loft’s small window.

Beau? Chet Lattimer’s son?

“How do you know?” a younger voice–Beau’s–hissed back.

“’Cuz I’m older ‘n smarter than you, and I know a bird ain’t nothin’ like a pup.”

“So what? She’s expert at trainin’ pigeons, ain’t she? Maybe she’ll know somethin’ about pups, too.”

“Aw, Beau, that’s just plain stupid.” Disgust roughened the other boy’s tone. “But bein’s I brought you all the way out here so’s you can ask her, then you go right on ahead. Just pay me my penny first.”

Sonja frowned. These boys had ridden out to see her? Rarely did folks stop by to visit. Almost never. Were they by themselves? And what’s this about a penny?

She set her record book and pencil down on the ledge holding the rows of nest boxes, then pulled her knitted shawl closer around her shoulders, pushed open the narrow door and quietly stepped outside.

It didn’t take long to find the pair, huddled against the opposite side of the loft. Clearly, they’d had no idea she’d been inside, eavesdropping upon their scheme. And they had no idea she was outside, standing behind them now.

Strangely reluctant to confront them.

She well knew her reputation in their small frontier community. That she was very much an outcast because of her work–covertly training homing pigeons for the United States Army. They didn’t understand. No one did, except for the grateful soldiers, and because of the townspeople’s ignorance, their suspicions grew into malicious gossip and–.

Well, it didn’t matter. Not really.

But she guessed her less-than-respectable reputation had something to do with these young boys sneaking onto her small parcel of land and hiding against the loft, out of sight from her cabin just across the yard. It was why they didn’t come forward and knock on her door like any visitor should.

Were they afraid of her?

Or of what they’d done, coming out here to see her, against the certainty of their parents’ disapproval?

And since no rig waited in the drive, only a lone pony in the shadow of the pines near by, it was evident they’d come alone.

She recognized Herbie Grinnell, the nine-year-old son of one of Chet Lattimer’s ranch hands. Herbie’s mother watched over Beau during the day since Beau, several years younger, didn’t have a mother of his own anymore. Herbie helped keep him occupied, Sonja supposed, with mischievous escapades like this one.

Except Beau had seemed genuinely anxious to talk to her. Only then did she notice the furry bundle he struggled to keep in his arms while rooting in his trousers pocket for the penny Herbie demanded.

The bundle growled and squirmed, loosening the small blanket Beau kept around him. Sonja glimpsed a stain of bright crimson on the covering from an injury the animal sustained, the reason Beau had ridden out to see her. She made a sound of sympathy.

Both boys whirled, and their faces paled.

“It’s her!” Herbie choked, but not before he snatched the penny from Beau and fisted his hand around it. “The Bird Lady!”

Sonja wasn’t sure what they’d expected to find–a woman covered in feathers perhaps?–but she took a careful step forward.

“And you’re Herbie Grinnell, aren’t you?” She smiled to assure them she was quite normal.

“You know who I am?” Looking alarmed, he bolted to his feet. But he looked guilty more. “You ain’t gonna tell my ma I came out here, are you? She won’t like it, bein’s what folks say ‘bout you and all.” He took a wary stride backward, then another. “Please don’t tell her, else I’ll be in a heap of trouble.”

Sonja’s smile wavered, but she managed to keep it in place. “I have no reason to say anything, Herbie. Your secret is safe with me. I promise.”

The chances of Sonja speaking with Esther Grinnell were slim, besides. A coincidental meeting in town, perhaps, and most likely, not even then. The woman, she’d learned, was a notorious gossip.

“C’mon, Beau. Let’s get out of here.”

“No.” Defiant, Beau shook his head and stayed right where he was. “Not ‘til I know she can help.”

“Suit yourself, then.” Herbie kept moving, backward, closer to the pony in the pines. “But I’m not stayin’.” Suddenly, he turned and broke into a full run.

“Wait!” Startled, Sonja called after him.

“Herbie, stop!” Beau called, too.

But the boy kept running, without a backward glance to the friend he’d left behind. He vaulted onto the pony’s back, dug in his heels and galloped off.

Sonja waffled between exasperation for his cowardliness to stinging hurt that one so young thought of her like he did.

Just like everyone else.

But there was no help for it. She couldn’t bring him back if she wanted to.

Which she didn’t. Not when little Beau worried her more.

Her gaze dragged back to him, still crouched beside the loft and staring dumbfounded after Herbie. Her heart squeezed. What was he thinking, being abandoned like this?

“Beau,” she said gently.

He turned wide eyes on her. Eyes thickly-lashed and a rich, deep brown. Like the sweetest of chocolates. He wore a child-sized version of a Stetson, which still seemed a mite too big for his head. The brim slipped down over his forehead. He pushed it up again to see her better.

“You know my name, too?” he asked.

She knelt beside him, entranced by those eyes, so much like Chet’s. “Of course, I do.” It became imperative that he not shun her like Herbie did, that he be assured she’d be his friend and wasn’t the strumpet everyone else around these parts thought she was. “Your papa told me about you.”

His face lit up. “You know my pa?”

She hesitated. “Yes.”

But not as well as she’d like.

Something curled in Sonja’s belly and nudged aside the loneliness she often felt living by herself with only the pigeons to keep her company. Something warm and arousing whenever she thought of Chet Lattimer, and was there anything more foolish?

His spread butted her land. He provided her the straw she needed for the birds, but she had little more dealings with him than that.

Yet, from the moment they’d met, she had a swift and disconcerting attraction to him that he didn’t seem to notice. And she didn’t dare reveal.

“He told me your full name was ‘Beauregard Charlemagne’, but you refused to be called anything but ‘Beau’,” she said softly. The child listened, his expression rapt, as if he’d forgotten the injured pup in his arms. As if he was hungry to hear all Sonja had to say about his father. “He told me you were six years old, and you’re one of the best cowboys he’s ever known.”

Well, she was stretching the truth a bit on that, but she figured the little boy needed to hear it, considering he’d only arrived in Montana Territory a few weeks previous. With no warning to the man who’d fathered him.

“Really?” Beau’s sweet face beamed with pleasure.

“Really,” she said, that pleasure wrapping ribbons around her heart.

Chet Lattimer was a handsome, rugged, blood-stirringly virile man. And aloof as could be. She suspected the feelings he had for his son, whatever they might be, were kept locked inside until he could come to terms with them.

The thought saddened her. This little boy clearly craved what Chet wasn’t ready to give. As far as Sonja knew, Chet Lattimer had never been married. Beau had no mother, of which Esther Grinnell didn’t count.

But he had her, she realized. Sonja. The Bird Lady he believed could help the injured pup. Beau had paid his penny and braved an illicit ride out to see her. His trust and hope in her could not be dismissed. She would do nothing to disappoint him.

Besides, Christmas was only two days away, and she couldn’t help thinking Beau Lattimer was an unexpected gift.

* * *

Chet pulled up in front of the Grinnells’ cabin with his thoughts riding on different roads. He didn’t dismount, but glanced up into the sky instead, and the dirty gray clouds forming thick and heavy. He could smell snow in the air, which meant he’d have to haul extra hay out to the cattle. Break up the ice in the tanks, too, so they’d have water. A few of his cows could calve early, and he’d need to bring them in to the home range where he could keep an eye on them if they did.

And then there was Beau to take care of. The son he never knew he had until he showed up on Chet’s doorstep, clutching the hand of a man claiming to know the boy’s mother before she died. Chet had been stunned to recall the one evening he’d spent with her, a flirtatious actress from a troupe traveling through town seven years earlier and whom he hadn’t seen since. The gruff troupe owner produced a worn page from a Bible showing him as Beau’s father, as well as a letter from the woman pleading that he take their son in for raising. The man was gone before Chet could fathom the turn his life has taken.

It’d taken a big turn, for sure. And he’d yet to decide if it was a good one.

Fatherhood didn’t fit into his plans, not when he had his ranch to run and troublesome Indians to fend off. He had no time to raise a child, had pitifully little knowledge of how, besides. And with Christmas coming, what was he expected to do?

He sighed. He needed a mother for the boy, no doubt about it. But unfortunately, females were few in this part of the country. Those that had settled in had already been claimed.

Except for Sonja Kaplan.

His thoughts locked on her and stayed put, which they tended to do when he least expected it. Sonja was a beautiful woman, fair-haired with eyes a soft shade of blue that could drag a man in and hold him captive before he even realized he’d been caught.

Trouble was, she was a strange one. Her obsession with those damn birds . . . he couldn’t figure it. Most women preferred to do something different with their time and talent–raise a family, sew, cook, tend a garden–and the way folks talked about her . . ..

Well, Chet refused to let himself get drawn in by malicious gossip. Truth was, though, she was alone out there in that cabin of hers with those pigeons. Understandable he’d be thinking of her like he was.

He was concerned about her, that’s all.

Concerned.

“Oh, Mr. Lattimer!” Looking surprised, Esther Grinnell stopped short coming out her front door. Her husband, Don, had worked for Chet for years. Both of them, honest and trustworthy. “I didn’t know you were out here.”

Chet’s thoughts scattered. The woman would think it odd to see him in her yard just sitting in the saddle, ruminating like he’d been.

“Sorry I’m late picking up Beau, Esther. Not enough hours in the day lately.”

He made a move to dismount, though his son was nowhere in sight. Usually the boy came running out to meet him.

She held up a work-roughened hand to stop him. A large woman, she wore her gray hair in a severe bun, and her smiles were few and far between. But she was clean, upright and dependable. Main thing was, she took good care of Beau. Chet knew the extra money he paid her was appreciated.

“Don’t bother gettin’ down, Mr. Lattimer,” she said. The tight set to her mouth showed displeasure. “He ain’t here.”
Chet tossed her a hard look. “What do you mean, ‘he’s not here’?”

“I’ll let Herbie explain.” She disappeared inside the cabin, but stepped right out again, dragging her son by his shirt sleeve. “Go on, boy. Tell him.”

Herbie’s downcast expression spelled guilt about something he was loathe to admit. And that something included Beau. Unease crawled through Chet.

“I’m listening,” he said sharply.

“We rode out to the Bird Lady’s place this afternoon,” Herbie mumbled.

Chet blinked. A five mile ride, one that took them off Lattimer land. Herbie knew better. Beau knew better.

“That’s right,” Esther said, grim. “To see that hussy, Sonja Kaplan.”

“Why? What business did you have with her, Herbie?” Chet asked, disregarding the woman’s jaded opinion of Sonja.

“We was just ridin’ out by the Yellowstone River ‘cuz we didn’t have nothin’ else to do, but then Beau saw a wild pup with his leg caught in the rocks. He was yippin’ and bleedin’ bad, the pup was, so we got him out. It was Beau’s idea to ask the Bird Lady to doctor him, Mr. Lattimer. Not mine. No, sir.”

Chet’s mind worked to put together the pieces. “So what’d you do? Leave him there?”

The boy hung his head. “Yes, sir.”

“With the pup?”

“Yes, sir.”

Chet breathed an oath. “Why?”

“Guess I got scared.”

He narrowed an eye, tried hard not to show his annoyance with the boy.

“She do anything to make you that way?” he demanded, his gut telling him Sonja would’ve done nothing of the sort.

“No, sir. But well, Ma says she’s strange, you know, bein’ around those pigeons all the time.”

Chet glanced up at the sky and those gray, darkening clouds. Nightfall would come early because of them. He thought of how narrow-minded Herbie Grinnell was, too, and how his mother’s gossip affected the boy’s thinking.

“I told Beau we had to go,” Herbie said. “Honest, I did! But he wouldn’t listen.”

“Didn’t mean you should’ve left him behind, did it?” Chet countered, letting his disapproval show.

“That’s not all, Mr. Lattimer.” Esther gave her son a firm nudge on the shoulder. “Go on. Finish the story, Herbie.”

Herbie dug in his pocket, pulled out a shiny penny, and held it out to Chet.

“Ma don’t want me to have this,” he muttered, looking guilty again.

“Tell him why,” Esther prodded.

“Beau paid me to take him out to the Bird Lady’s. Guess I don’t deserve it for runnin’ off and not bringin’ him home like I should, bein’s it’s Christmas and all.”

Chet gathered up the reins. He ignored the boy’s outstretched hand and hoped Beau hadn’t tried to make it home on his own. He’d get lost for sure, alone in the cold and dark, and Chet tried not to think of the consequences.

“Reckon Christmas doesn’t have a thing to do with it, Herbie,” he said, then turned his mount and rode hard toward Sonja’s place.

Harlequin Historical is a registered trademark of Harlequin Enterprises Limited. As such all excerpts are copyrighted © by said publisher, and all rights are reserved by the publisher.

A Western Winter Wonderland by Cheryl St. John, Jenna Kernan, Pam Crooks

Christmas Day Family by Cheryl St. John

Marvel Anne Henley’s life runs as regular as clockwork. Sometimes in the silence of her home she can hear the passing of days and months as years slip past. She doesn’t believe in magic or miracles or happy-ever-afters. She’s content running her boarding house and sewing dresses for the ladies of Patton Bend, Colorado. She agrees to board the new doctor for a few days, but when Nathaniel Hunter shows up with two small children and plans to stay for weeks, her household and her equilibrium are thrown into turmoil.

Nate is intriguing and vibrant and ready for a grand passion. She’s too old for him, but the attraction is tempting…disturbing. He makes her want more, makes her feel young. The little family brings new life and laughter to the old house, but Nate’s nearness taunts her secret out of its hiding place and forces her to face her past. It will take courage to bring her dreams back to life, but there’s no better time for healing than during the season of hope and rebirth. It’s not a miracle, but a simple change of heart that opens the door to their future.

FALLEN ANGEL by Jenna Kernan

When Ford Statler is ambushed, he never sees the woman caught in the crossfire until it’s too late. But his bullet brought her down, so it’s his responsibility to nurse her back to health and see that her boy has the best Christmas ever.

ONE MAGIC EVE by Pam Crooks

Lonely Sonja Kaplan doesn’t want to spend another Christmas alone. While she has her secret government work to fill her days, she longs for a husband to fill her nights.

Chet Lattimer doesn’t know the first thing about being a father when the six-year-old son he didn’t realize he had bursts into his life. Worse, it’s Christmas, and there’s no one to help him celebrate except the mysterious woman the gossips call the Bird Lady.

But a little boy hungry for love helps them all find truth and peace, and together they revel in the magic of Christmas.

I want! I have! And you can too because harlequin is super nifty and lets you order a month ahead. Even better right now you can get free shipping from September 1 until November 30. Of course if you send over $25 you can get free shipping anytime. I will be posting some suggestions over the next couple of days *g*.

But if you want to go ahead and order this now, click this link for free shipping. Woot!

Gwen’s Review of Untamed Cowboy by Pam Crooks
Historical romance published by Harlequin Historicals 1 Jul 07

This novel is set in late 19th century Texas, Kansas, and the Indian Territory in between. The hero is a cowboy named Penn McClure (very cowboy name), and the heroine is Carina Lockett (very cowgirl name). The basic plot is she’s a successful cattlewoman with a successful spread, a single mom trying to get her daughter back from a ne’er-do-well, and he’s a former government agent returning to his cowboy roots to wreak revenge on the counterfeiter who killed his fiancee. The two get to know each other and fall in love on a cattle drive from Mobeetie, Texas to Dodge City (interesting map here).

I’ll start by saying that I have not been a fan of Harlequin novels in the past. I wouldn’t go so far as to say I am a fan now, but I’m less of an “un-fan” than I was, I’ll admit. And those of you who know me, know that this isn’t my usual erotic romance fare. Nevertheless, I enjoyed this book.

This was an interesting book for me to read. I come from a long line of Texas ranch families and Texas farmers (7-8 generations back). I actually rode our horse, Buck (a big, beautiful palomino), on a wagon train for several days way back when. I’ve helped worm, feed, muck-out, birth, and basically tend to all kinds of critters, so reading a novel about a successful cattlewoman was interesting. It’s just not something you read every day. I felt the only “departure” from reality was no real mention of the day-to-day running of a large outfit – purchasing and breeding details, budgets, payroll, paperwork and more paperwork, even in the late 19th century. And the small detail of a female Treasury agent – did they have them in the 1880′s? But those are small sacrifices to make for a really good story.

I enjoyed the characterizations in this book. Carina’s relationship with her hands and others was wholly believable; it was nice to see a strong woman that men listened to and respected (except for her good-for-nothing ex-lover, father of her daughter). Her evolving relationship with Penn was also interesting and kept the pages turning faster and faster. Crooks manages to capture the banked passion adroitly with very few words.

For example, this passage just gave me chills it was so durn SEXY:

     Then, hardly before she realized it, McClure tied the ribbon on her camisole and re-fastened her blouse.

     The moment gone, her fingers fell away from his wrist, and he stepped back. Yet his gaze lingered over her, a fathomless pool of unspoken things between them. Desires and promises. Curiosities left unsatisfied.

     For now.

     He touched the brim of his Stetson, turned and walked away.

     And though he hadn’t told her so, Carina knew one thing for sure.

     Penn McClure wasn’t finished with her yet.

This type of writing will keep me coming back for more. Plus, there’s a lovely HEA at the end. Thank you, Ms Crooks. I highly recommend this to fans of western romance, and historicals in general.

Grade: B+

P.S. Pam – Tell Harlequin to pick a different cover mdoel next time. This guy looks like a dweeb. Here’s what a real cowboy looks like.

     Here’s the book blurb:

     Carina Lockett is driven to build a legacy for her young daughter, and she doesn’t need a man to help her do it. But when her precious child is lured away and held for ransom, she must swallow her pride and ask for Penn McClure’s help.

     Penn McClure has no intention of playing cowboy for any woman, especially one as strong-willed as Carina. But driving a herd of cattle to Dodge City is no easy task. And he has a score to settle with the man waiting for them at the end of the trail.

     Along the way, he discovers Carina is pure female–and that her legacy has become his own.

     Read an excerpt.

Cheryl St. John‘s Contest

The prize is a copy of a book from her backlist (winner choice but she doesn’t have Joe’s Wife or Colorado Gold). And the winner is:

Sue A.

Elizabeth Lane‘s Contest:

The prize is a copy of a book from her backlist or The Stranger (winners choice). And the winner is:

Maureen

Pam Crooks Contest:

The prize is a copy of UNTAMED COWBOY & HER LONE PROTECTOR. And the winner is:

Well I am not really sure… I have an email addy but not a name. I know silly me. So for right now we will call him/her KN. If you joined Pam’s mailing list, check your email *g*. Or if Pam has a first name I can post I will edit this later.

Thanks to authors for a great time and I hope you found a Harlequin Historical to pick up. And if not… don’t worry there are more coming out. I promise to let you know about the nifty ones *g*. I still have some Q&A questions they humored me by answering last week, reviews and I will have 8 Harlequin Historical novels to give away. (As soon as they get here. No idea what they are other than I do think there will be at least one copy of The Preacher’s Daughter) If you missed them, you can find all the posts here. I will use that tag for the posts this week as well

Untamed Cowboy by Pam Crooks

Carina Lockett is driven to build a legacy for her young daughter, and she doesn’t need a man to help her do it. But when her precious child is lured away and held for ransom, she must swallow her pride and ask for Penn McClure’s help.

Penn McClure has no intention of playing cowboy for any woman, especially one as strong-willed as Carina. But driving a herd of cattle to Dodge City is no easy task. And he has a score to settle with the man waiting for them at the end of the trail.

Along the way, he discovers Carina is pure female–and that her legacy has become his own.

I am not sure if this book ties into her last two Harlequin Historicals: Wanted! and The Lone Protector. We will have to ask her when she guests on Wednesday June 13, 2007. I have both books but haven’t read them yet and I can’t tell by her site. Although looking at her site what is next makes me sqqquueee!

ONE MAGIC EVE
Western Winter Wonderland
Harlequin Historicals

Christmas Anthology With Cheryl St.John and Jenna Kernan

Until Wednesday you can read an excerpt of Untamed Cowboy here. Or you don’t want to wait you can follow this link and buy the book now:

At over 180 HH novels in a range of setting and authors, I can honestly say some of my favorite novels call Harlequin Historical home as well as some of my favorite authors. Sadly some of faves seem to have moved on to other lines: Carolyn Davidson, Jillian Hart, Cheryl Reavis, Mary Burton and Merline Lovelace are all now writing for different lines in Harlequin. Even Elizabeth Lowell (as Lowell and as Ann Maxwell), Nicole Jordan and Heather Gramham have Harlequin Historicals on their backlist. And for a reason I still do not understand Deborah Simmons is not currently with the line and that makes me sad because I do believe she has more stories to tell. (Why do so many category authors have really bad websites?)

The truly amazing thing is even with so many authors gone, the current talent at Harlequin Historical keep showing us just how good historicals can be. As well as they continue to grown and bring in new talent. And as wonderful as some of my keepers are, I think we ain’t seen nothing yet.

We are lucky enough to have three grand Harlequin Historical authors with us this week: Cheryl St. John, Elizabeth Lane and Pam Crooks. Honestly I didn’t set out to have only western authors and had wanted to showcase more of the line but time being what is it… Fine if you must know the other two authors I had asked were westerns too. But hey since it turned out this way, you really should buy a western in the the next three days. Even if you have never tried one or wanted to because hey, it is a theme! go with it…

Have you ever tried a Harlequin Historical? Did you love it? Hate it? Remember the title? Read it once a year and sigh happily? What would you recommend? Tell us about your keepers. Or if you write for the line, tell us what is coming next! We are book!whores and we only need to know what is coming next that we should be wanting now.

And for the curious… here are the current writing guidelines from Harlequin

Historical Romances promise the reader richly textured, emotionally intense stories set in widely diverse historical time periods, from ancient civilizations up to and including the First and Second World Wars. Regency tales remain ever-popular and cover the range from drawing-room antics that scandalize the ton, to the salacious underworld inhabited by pickpockets and prostitutes, to the hazardous battlefields of the Peninsular War.

Other popular periods range from Viking invasions through to the turbulence of the Middle Ages, from Elizabethan England to 20th-century families at war. Western American and Australasian settings are also welcome, with highly dramatic and emotional stories unfolding in the wilderness at society’s edge.

The central relationship is the key driving force, set against an accurate backdrop. Readers should feel as if they are there. These novels are for born storytellers with a love of history, who have the ability to bring a period vividly to life, and to create characters that involve and absorb the reader from page one.

The Mercenary’s Kiss was a book I bought because I kept picking up the damn thing.

must have been the cover…

So the 5th time I had it in my hands I bought it. It wasn’t a bad book but it really isn’t anything to write home about.

It did make me giggle that I had read this right before I read The Latin Lover that Rosario penned for Romancing The Blog. NOT that it counts cuz the bad guy is the one peppering his speech with Spanish, twice right before raping the heroine. But silencio! and senorita are common and used right. I think.

Yes, I can see the dust as you all go run out and buy this. Honestly it isn’t bad but well, hmmm, I would like to find Wyoming Wildflower by Pam Crooks.

ok moving on…