The Outlaw's Heart

September 9, 2019
Sandas concludes her Runaway Brides historical western trilogy (after The Cowboy’s Honor) with this emotionally satisfying tale set in 1883. After Evelyn Perkins’s cruel husband, Matthew, threatens to kill her for displeasing him, she begins planning to escape to the West, where her cousin and her best friend have already found love and happiness. After she flees, a case of mistaken identity gets her kidnapped from her westbound train by a band of outlaws that includes Gabriel Sloan. They plan to ransom her, but she refuses to go back to her husband, and Gabriel feels responsible for her. Gabriel was kidnapped from his Native American tribe by white missionaries and is now a loner who doesn’t feel at home anywhere, but Evelyn’s quiet strength breaks through his emotional barriers. Trust doesn’t come easily for either of them, and as they give in to their feelings, Matthew comes hunting them. Sandas raises the emotional stakes and continually ratchets up the sexual tension and sense of danger. A stellar cast of supporting characters (including two couples from earlier installments) adds dimension. Fans of historicals will devour this suspenseful romance, and series fans will be sorry to see the trilogy end. Agent: Nalini Akolekar, Spencerhill Assoc.

October 1, 2019
Sparks fly between a Boston socialite on the run and a quiet outlaw after a case of mistaken identity in this American historical romance. Evelyn Perkins feels like she's finally escaped from her abusive husband--until she's kidnapped from a train in Wyoming territory. At first, she assumes her husband has found her, but it's revealed that the outlaws had meant to grab a woman named Sarah Cummings. Now they must decide what to do with Evelyn. A ransom agreement would mean Evelyn's whereabouts would be revealed to her husband, and she's determined to avoid that at all costs. Gabriel Sloan is a man of few words. Stolen from his Cheyenne tribe as a child, he and Evelyn share the trauma of a sanctuary ruined, and he volunteers to be Evelyn's escort to his fellow outlaws' hideout. As Evelyn and Gabriel ride together across the West, they discover they're being tracked; a darkening cloud of danger hangs over the couple. Because both main characters are reserved and prefer addressing their feelings privately, their romance is rather slow, with things being thought rather than said. The setting and building of the cast receive far more attention, making this the slowest of slow burns, to the book's detriment. Previous couples in Sandas' (The Cowboy's Honor, 2019, etc.) Runaway Brides series make important appearances as they usher Evelyn and Gabriel to their happy ending. Fans of the series will appreciate the callback, but newer readers may find them to be an unnecessary distraction. Evelyn and Gabriel are a lovely and well-matched couple; they deserve more page time. A tender and compassionate romance that requires some patience.

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