Devil on horseback
1980
- historical romance
- western romance
- adventure
- mystery
- suspense
- ranching
- frontier
- native americans
- family
- love
The story
How could she tell Alex the truth? When Joanna Thomas heard from Liz, an old school friend, about the housekeeping job at her brother's ranch, Joanna accepted it to prove that she could succeed on her own. A course in gourmet cooking hadn't really prepared her for the enormous task, but that was only part of the problem. Alex Harper thought the matchmaking Liz had sent her as another marriage candidate. Everything might have turned out all right - except that Joanna fell in love with Alex!
What it’s like
Wide open ranch country in the early American West, with the sweep of dry plains and big skies and the quiet routines of a working homestead: kitchen work, long days in the saddle, evenings that stretch out under lamplight. The voice is warm and brisk, the sort of mid-century romance prose that keeps a steady pace and lets the setting do much of the atmosphere. Its vibe is wholesome and yearning, with a thread of unease running under the romance: small misunderstandings, a question of who can be trusted, and a mystery that tightens the stakes without turning dark. The emotional register is hopeful and tender, following a capable young woman who wants to prove herself and finds her plans complicated by the man she is trying to win over. Intensity is low: romantic tension and suspense rather than graphic violence or explicit content. It suits a slow weekend afternoon, a comfort read with a cup of tea, or an easy book to pick up between other things. It is for readers who enjoy old-fashioned romance with a frontier backdrop, a dash of mystery, and a love story that builds gradually.
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