Widowed at 16, Sarah Kennedy's marriage left her with a bitter taste for men. Her biggest concern has been for her 15-year-old brother, Connor. But with the dangerous Culpepper Clan nearby, she now worries for herself as well. As if in answer, a badly wounded Case Maxwell is deposited at her door. Accustomed to tending injured hawks, she tends him with care. But Case has far deeper scars than Sarah can see. He seeks revenge against the Culpeppers for reasons he can never forgive or forget, until Sarah teaches him how to love again. A warm, satisfying read.


From Publishers Weekly
Bestselling paperback romance novelist Lowell (Autumn Lover) makes her first foray into hardcover with this smoothly written post-Civil War western romance. Shortly after the death of her parents in a flood, 14-year-old Sarah Kennedy, now responsible for herself and her younger brother, Conner, becomes a mail-order bride, marrying a brutal older man who drinks and demands painful sex. Widowed two years later, she strives to maintain her farm in the Utah wilderness, where she lives with Conner, an outlaw named Ute and an ex-prostitute known as Big Lola. When she meets Case Maxwell, who is hunting down the Culpepper gang for murdering his niece and nephew, Sarah is still quite certain that she hates sex. But after he is shot in her backyard, she can't help surreptitiously peeking at Case's bulging loincloth while she's patching up his handsome, bullet-riddled body. While he finds her equally irresistible, he firmly resists the idea of marriage or children. His desire for revenge against the Culpepper gang is matched by Sarah's quest to find a silver treasure that she knows is buried near her property. Case agrees to help Sarah find the cache, but suddenly there is a crisis when Conner falls into the hands of the vicious Ab Culpepper. Case proves himself a hero, and the finale is a rousing, old-fashioned shoot-'em-up worthy of Louis L'Amour. Though the dialogue is sometimes sappy, Lowell keeps her entertaining story moving briskly. (Nov.) FYI: Lowell also writes SF fantasy under the name Ann Maxwell and, as A.E. Maxwell, she coauthors mystery and suspense novels with her husband, Evan Maxwell.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
A top romance author's hardcover debut. First printing: 175,000 copies.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
This steamy love story is the intertwined tale of ranch owner Sarah Kennedy, a lovely 20-year-old widow, and Civil War veteran Case Maxwell. Merlington's low, sultry voice adds to the sexual tension in the novel and ably reflects action and emotion. Unfortunately this performance is marred by a loud background hiss, and Merlington's voice is so low that the listener must adjust his stereo system to hear the tale. M.B.K. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Booklist
The author of several best-selling romance novels, including Forget Me Not (1991) and Only Love (1995), remains true to her fans and her genre in this epic historical novel. The action takes place in the wild stone canyons of Utah, and Lowell does a pretty good job of conveying the severe, wild beauty of that countryside. Set in the time period immediately following the Civil War, the plot revolves around beautiful, lonely Sarah Kennedy and hardened, bitter ex-soldier Case Maxwell. Orphaned at the age of 13 and married to a drunken, abusive older man at the age of 14, Sarah has resolved never to love again (after her abusive husband dies) and spends her time looking after her younger brother and tending to wounded hawks. Coincidentally, Case has also resolved never to open his heart again ever since his family was murdered by a gang of outlaws. Then, while out hunting the aforementioned outlaws in the Utah countryside, Case meets Sarah, and after battling the bad guys and winning . . . Well, you can figure it out. Kathleen Hughes


From Kirkus Reviews
Lowell's first hardcover romance--as well as Avon's--is a solid if unexceptional effort by a prolific writer in the genre. Sarah Kennedy's parents die in a flood, and, at 14, Sarah takes her younger brother Conner and answers the ad of a man looking for a wife in Utah Territory. New husband, Hal, however, is coarse and abusive, and when he's killed, Sarah doesn't mourn him. She stays on at Lost River Canyon ranch with former prostitute Lola and the outlaw Indian, Ute, whose life she saved (she also rescues hawks and eagles). They search among the red canyons for the hoard of Spanish silver Sarah's no-good husband found before he died, when onto the scene comes battle-weary and soul-sore Case Maxwell (from Lowell's paperback Autumn Fire). Poor Case hasn't laughed or loved, or wanted to, since Ab Culpepper savaged and killed his niece and nephew after the Civil War. Now he's vowed to kill the Culpeppers, all of whom have moved to Utah and settled in as Sarah's neighbors. When Case is badly wounded in a shootout with the them, Sarah nurses him back to health (naturally, he has a wonderful body), and so he stays on at the ranch because he wants to protect her--and because, for some reason, he just can't make himself leave. It's the call of the land, he thinks, or maybe just his dumb old ``handle'' leading him around. After lots of sexual tension and cloaked vulnerability, Case shows Sarah that sex can be swell. Genre romance is like Olympic figure skating: The music and costumes change, but there are always the same double lutzes and triple salchows. Lowell (who as A.E. Maxwell also writes mysteries with husband Evan) performs creditably, but rings no changes on the genre. Formula work, well done. (First printing of 175,000) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.



"Elizabeth Lowell is great!"


Book Description
Orphaned at thirteen, a mail-order bride at fourteen, widowed at sixteen, Sarah Kennedy has learned to depend upon no one but herself--reserving all her love for her younger brother Conner, and for the wounded hawks she heals and returns to the air.A hardened Civil War veteran, personal tragedy has taught Case Maxwell three things: to be a patient, deadly fighter, to love nothing that can die; and that justice is blind. But when a confrontation with his sworn enemies, the Culpepper clan, leaves him near death, Case finds himself, like many another damaged wild creature, under the tender, unwanted care of Sarah Kennedy.Destiny has brought the healer and the warrior together to brave chilling risks and dangerous truths in a hard, magnificent land--two souls haunted by a perilous present and the bitter ghosts of the past. But the intense emotion both Case and Sarah fear--the passion that burns like fire in the very heart of winter--is the only thing that can truly save them, as together they seek the courage to face the greatest risk of all: love.Orphaned at thirteen, a mail-order bride at fourteen, widowed at sixteen, Sarah Kennedy has learned to depend upon no one but herself--reserving all her love for her younger brother Conner, and for the wounded hawks she heals and returns to the air.

A hardened Civil War veteran, personal tragedy has taught Case Maxwell three things: to be a patient, deadly fighter, to love nothing that can die; and that justice is blind. But when a confrontation with his sworn enemies, the Culpepper clan, leaves him near death, Case finds himself, like many another damaged wild creature, under the tender, unwanted care of Sarah Kennedy.

Destiny has brought the healer and the warrior together to brave chilling risks and dangerous truths in a hard, magnificent land--two souls haunted by a perilous present and the bitter ghosts of the past. But the intense emotion both Case and Sarah fear--the passion that burns like fire in the very heart of winter--is the only thing that can truly save them, as together they seek the courage to face the greatest risk of all: love.


About the Author
Elizabeth Lowell is the award-winning author of numerous historical and contemporary novels, including the New York Times bestsellers Forget Me Not, Only Love, A Woman Without Lies, Autumn Lover, and, Winter Fire. Her most recent major accomplishment is a four-book series of suspense novels featuring the unforgettable Donovan family -- Amber Beach, Jade Island, Pearl Cove and Midnight in Ruby Bayou -- all of which were immediate New York Times bestsellers. There are more than fifteen million Elizabeth Lowell, books currently in print. Ms. Lowell, lives in the San Juan Islands with her, husband, with whom she writes mystery novels under a pseudonym.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Orphaned at thirteen, a mail-order bride at fourteen, widowed at sixteen, Sarah Kennedy has learned to depend upon no one but herself—reserving all her love for her younger brother Conner, and for the wounded hawks she heals and returns to the air.

A hardened Civil War veteran, personal tragedy has taught Case Maxwell three things: to be a patient, deadly fighter, to love nothing that can die; and that justice is blind. But when a confrontation with his sworn enemies, the Culpepper clan, leaves him near death, Case finds himself, like many another damaged wild creature, under the tender, unwanted care of Sarah Kennedy.

Destiny has brought the healer and the warrior together to brave chilling risks and dangerous truths in a hard, magnificent land—two souls haunted by a perilous present and the bitter ghosts of the past. But the intense emotion both Case and Sarah fear—the passion that burns like fire in the very heart of winter—is the only thing that can truly save them, as together they seek the courage to face the greatest risk of all: love.Orphaned at thirteen, a mail-order bride at fourteen, widowed at sixteen, Sarah Kennedy has learned to depend upon no one but herself—reserving all her love for her younger brother Conner, and for the wounded hawks she heals and returns to the air.

A hardened Civil War veteran, personal tragedy has taught Case Maxwell three things: to be a patient, deadly fighter, to love nothing that can die; and that justice is blind. But when a confrontation with his sworn enemies, the Culpepper clan, leaves him near death, Case finds himself, like many another damaged wild creature, under the tender, unwantedcare of Sarah Kennedy.

Destiny has brought the healer and the warrior together to brave chilling risks and dangerous truths in a hard, magnificent land—two souls haunted by a perilous present and the bitter ghosts of the past. But the intense emotion both Case and Sarah fear—the passion that burns like fire in the very heart of winter—is the only thing that can truly save them, as together they seek the courage to face the greatest risk of all: love.

Author Biography:

Elizabeth Lowell is the author of numerous historical and contemporary novels, many of which have been New York Times bestsellers, including four masterful works of romantic suspense featuring the Donovan family. Ms. Lowell lives in Anacortes, Washington, with her husband with whom she writes mystery novels under a pseudonym.

FROM THE CRITICS

Johanna Lindsey

Elizabeth Lowell is great!

Publishers Weekly

Bestselling paperback romance novelist Lowell (Autumn Lover) makes her first foray into hardcover with this smoothly written post-Civil War western romance. Shortly after the death of her parents in a flood, 14-year-old Sarah Kennedy, now responsible for herself and her younger brother, Conner, becomes a mail-order bride, marrying a brutal older man who drinks and demands painful sex. Widowed two years later, she strives to maintain her farm in the Utah wilderness, where she lives with Conner, an outlaw named Ute and an ex-prostitute known as Big Lola. When she meets Case Maxwell, who is hunting down the Culpepper gang for murdering his niece and nephew, Sarah is still quite certain that she hates sex. But after he is shot in her backyard, she can't help surreptitiously peeking at Case's bulging loincloth while she's patching up his handsome, bullet-riddled body. While he finds her equally irresistible, he firmly resists the idea of marriage or children. His desire for revenge against the Culpepper gang is matched by Sarah's quest to find a silver treasure that she knows is buried near her property. Case agrees to help Sarah find the cache, but suddenly there is a crisis when Conner falls into the hands of the vicious Ab Culpepper. Case proves himself a hero, and the finale is a rousing, old-fashioned shoot-'em-up worthy of Louis L'Amour. Though the dialogue is sometimes sappy, Lowell keeps her entertaining story moving briskly. (Nov.) FYI: Lowell also writes SF fantasy under the name Ann Maxwell and, as A.E. Maxwell, she coauthors mystery and suspense novels with her husband, Evan Maxwell.

Library Journal

A top romance author's hardcover debut. First printing: 175,000 copies.

AudioFile - Miriam B. Kahn

This steamy love story is the intertwined tale of ranch owner Sarah Kennedy, a lovely 20-year-old widow, and Civil War veteran Case Maxwell. Merlington's low, sultry voice adds to the sexual tension in the novel and ably reflects action and emotion. Unfortunately this performance is marred by a loud background hiss, and Merlington's voice is so low that the listener must adjust his stereo system to hear the tale. M.B.K. cAudioFile, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

Lowell's first hardcover romance—as well as Avon's—is a solid if unexceptional effort by a prolific writer in the genre.

Sarah Kennedy's parents die in a flood, and, at 14, Sarah takes her younger brother Conner and answers the ad of a man looking for a wife in Utah Territory. New husband, Hal, however, is coarse and abusive, and when he's killed, Sarah doesn't mourn him. She stays on at Lost River Canyon ranch with former prostitute Lola and the outlaw Indian, Ute, whose life she saved (she also rescues hawks and eagles). They search among the red canyons for the hoard of Spanish silver Sarah's no-good husband found before he died, when onto the scene comes battle-weary and soul-sore Case Maxwell (from Lowell's paperback Autumn Fire). Poor Case hasn't laughed or loved, or wanted to, since Ab Culpepper savaged and killed his niece and nephew after the Civil War. Now he's vowed to kill the Culpeppers, all of whom have moved to Utah and settled in as Sarah's neighbors. When Case is badly wounded in a shootout with the them, Sarah nurses him back to health (naturally, he has a wonderful body), and so he stays on at the ranch because he wants to protect her—and because, for some reason, he just can't make himself leave. It's the call of the land, he thinks, or maybe just his dumb old "handle" leading him around. After lots of sexual tension and cloaked vulnerability, Case shows Sarah that sex can be swell. Genre romance is like Olympic figure skating: The music and costumes change, but there are always the same double lutzes and triple salchows. Lowell (who as A.E. Maxwell also writes mysteries with husband Evan) performs creditably, but rings no changes on the genre.

Formula work, well done.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

Elizabeth Lowell is great! — Johanna Lindsey