The general synapses for this book is: Hurt, betrayed, secret pained widow needs hunky, generally likeable Indian (feather) to lead her herd of cows so she can save her poor farm. Okay, that was a very cynical synapses, but I really thought this book was boring, and made me want to strangle the lead female character many many times.
So, the main female character is Susanna Copeland. She is a widow to an abusive, lazy man. She needs to find a man who will be her trail boss for her herd of cattle. Of course, this is the good 'ole west, and the majority of men won't work for a woman. In desperation, she goes to a jail to hire a guy, and pay for his bail (I'll get into the hero in a minute). At first, I kind of got Susanna. She was desperate, and needed a trustworthy guy who was capable of actually getting her cattle to Kansas. But she never developed as a character, and continued her way of thinking throughout the book, despite numerous conversations with the "hero". She wanted to be included in decisions, hey I understand, but she would butt in even though there was no real point to it. I'm a strong woman myself, and don't like being bossed around. However, when someone does know more about a subject than myself, I will listen and learn from said person. So, perhaps I have my own personal bias, but it really did take away from the story.
Okay, the main "hero", I get. Eagle Jack Sixkiller is a hot Indian who is used to getting his way with the ladies, and is somewhat spoiled. But, he isn't a total a$$, and is actually rather patient with Susanna. I would have strangled her 1/4 of the way through the book. So kudos to him for sticking with her, and also for not just throwing up his hands and saying "F- you I'm outty!". His character does develop somewhat, and he does start caring about Susanna. He has his stolen horse to find, but he doesn't just run off to find said horse. It's an interesting side-plot. Overall, he's cocky enough to be badboy-ish, but not so much that he actually treats the heroine badly.
Those are the characters the story revolves around. I think if the heroine was changed with someone who wasn't TSTL (Too Stupid To Live), it would be a semi-decent book. Not romance book, but book. If you are like me, and like a little steam and heat (not sizzling and almost burnt), but just enough, this is not the book for you. Any romantic scene is so vague and short, you just don't know if anything ACTUALLY happened!
Another sticking point is that you never really the sense that they love eachother at the end of the book. Yes, there is the typical, girl goes away - boy chases girl down and says he loves her. But it just doesn't seem real. More like a "Oh, book is running kinda long, annnnnd they fall in love, the end." Tied up neatly in 3 pages. Wham bam, thank you ma'am.
The side characters bring a bit of humor, and are enjoyable. But even they can't really save this book for me. I didn't find it humorous, or even tear jerk worthy. I'm giving the book 2 stars because even though I could barely get through it, the parts about herding the cattle were interesting, and the hero wasn't so bad.
