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The Shamrock Trinity #2
York, the Renegade: A Loveswept Classic Romance
Tombstone and Dodge City have nothing on Hell’s Bluff. In #1 New York Times bestselling author Iris Johansen’s scorching tale set in a rough-and-tumble mining town, passion takes a man and woman on one wild ride.
Knocking on a stranger’s door in the middle of the night—and in the middle of a storm—isn’t Sierra Smith’s idea of a good time. But she doesn’t need a warm welcome in York Delaney’s town, just the chance for her traveling troupe to perform . . . then they’ll move on. So where does the seriously gorgeous alpha rancher get the idea that Sierra needs protection? All her life, Sierra’s craved a place to belong. No matter what feelings York reawakens in her, that place couldn’t be Hell’s Bluff, could it?
After roaming the world for seven years, York has come home to the land he’s bound to by ties deeper than blood. He’s supposed to be soothing his restless spirit, not chasing after a big-eyed waif. But Sierra ignites a hunger he left behind long ago. Somehow, he must find a way to keep her in his life. Because if she leaves—taking his zealously guarded heart with her—there’ll be hell to pay.
Includes a special message from the editor, as well as excerpts from these Loveswept titles: Tempting a Devil, The Story Guy, and Friday Night Alibi.
Knocking on a stranger’s door in the middle of the night—and in the middle of a storm—isn’t Sierra Smith’s idea of a good time. But she doesn’t need a warm welcome in York Delaney’s town, just the chance for her traveling troupe to perform . . . then they’ll move on. So where does the seriously gorgeous alpha rancher get the idea that Sierra needs protection? All her life, Sierra’s craved a place to belong. No matter what feelings York reawakens in her, that place couldn’t be Hell’s Bluff, could it?
After roaming the world for seven years, York has come home to the land he’s bound to by ties deeper than blood. He’s supposed to be soothing his restless spirit, not chasing after a big-eyed waif. But Sierra ignites a hunger he left behind long ago. Somehow, he must find a way to keep her in his life. Because if she leaves—taking his zealously guarded heart with her—there’ll be hell to pay.
Includes a special message from the editor, as well as excerpts from these Loveswept titles: Tempting a Devil, The Story Guy, and Friday Night Alibi.
247 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 1986
39 people are currently reading
368 people want to read
About the author
Iris Johansen
229 books7,371 followersIris Johansen is a New York Times bestselling author. She began her writing after her children left home for college. She first achieved success in the early 1980s writing category romances. In 1991, Johansen began writing suspense historical romance novels, starting with the publication of The Wind Dancer. In 1996 Johansen switched genres, turning to crime fiction, with which she has had great success.
She lives in Georgia and is married. Her son, Roy Johansen, is an Edgar Award-winning screenwriter and novelist. Her daughter, Tamara, serves as her research assistant.
IRIS JOHANSEN is The New York Times bestselling author of Night and Day, Hide Away, Shadow Play, Your Next Breath, The Perfect Witness, Live to See Tomorrow, Silencing Eve, Hunting Eve, Taking Eve, Sleep No More, What Doesn't Kill You, Bonnie, Quinn, Eve, Chasing The Night, Eight Days to Live, Blood Game, Deadlock, Dark Summer, Pandora's Daughter, Quicksand, Killer Dreams, On The Run, and more. And with her son, Roy Johansen, she has coauthored Night Watch, The Naked Eye, Sight Unseen, Close Your Eyes, Shadow Zone, Storm Cycle, and Silent Thunder.
http://www.irisjohansen.com
She lives in Georgia and is married. Her son, Roy Johansen, is an Edgar Award-winning screenwriter and novelist. Her daughter, Tamara, serves as her research assistant.
IRIS JOHANSEN is The New York Times bestselling author of Night and Day, Hide Away, Shadow Play, Your Next Breath, The Perfect Witness, Live to See Tomorrow, Silencing Eve, Hunting Eve, Taking Eve, Sleep No More, What Doesn't Kill You, Bonnie, Quinn, Eve, Chasing The Night, Eight Days to Live, Blood Game, Deadlock, Dark Summer, Pandora's Daughter, Quicksand, Killer Dreams, On The Run, and more. And with her son, Roy Johansen, she has coauthored Night Watch, The Naked Eye, Sight Unseen, Close Your Eyes, Shadow Zone, Storm Cycle, and Silent Thunder.
http://www.irisjohansen.com
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 7, 2024
The heroine is a circus performer with Liza Minelli eyes who wanders into an old West town that has been created by a history-obsessed tycoon solely to insulate himself from the modern world. The town comes complete with a mine, an antique bordello-turned-mansion, still adorned with red lanterns, and a mansion-turned-bordello, named The Soiled Dove. There are no women allowed in this town except for the prostitutes, dressed in complete Old West regalia, who service the miners who work in the town's only industry.
The hero is obsessed by the heroine's BIG, BIG EYES because they remind him of an Apache ancestress whose portrait adorns his bordello-turned-mansion. When the heroine decides to work as a waitress at The Soiled Dove, he is furious. He follows her there and finds her balancing on the decorative bird swing gracing the bordello's ceiling (I guess all that circus training helped).
Honestly, the world building in this was crazy but hilarious.
The hero is obsessed by the heroine's BIG, BIG EYES because they remind him of an Apache ancestress whose portrait adorns his bordello-turned-mansion. When the heroine decides to work as a waitress at The Soiled Dove, he is furious. He follows her there and finds her balancing on the decorative bird swing gracing the bordello's ceiling (I guess all that circus training helped).
Honestly, the world building in this was crazy but hilarious.
September 16, 2017
"York, The Renegade" is the story of York and Sierra.
The couple meets when Sierra, part of a performing troop and a wanderer comes to plead with York, who apparently owns the whole town, to allow her boss to perform in it. Later, he rescues a ailing Sierra from a disaster and brings her to his house.
What started as a great book dwindled somewhere midway. The hero is described as beautiful/peacock, the heroine plain with haunting eyes. Their initial chemistry and banter was really sweet, especially him taking care of her. However, by midway we know the H obviously cares for the h- however still continues to push her away- yet not letting her go. I was annoyed by the mixed signals.
Liked Duece and Kathleen, as well as the love between the brothers. The three books in the Trilogy are running parallel, so we have incidences of the first book which make sense now.
Overall, an average read.
Safe
2.5/5
The couple meets when Sierra, part of a performing troop and a wanderer comes to plead with York, who apparently owns the whole town, to allow her boss to perform in it. Later, he rescues a ailing Sierra from a disaster and brings her to his house.
What started as a great book dwindled somewhere midway. The hero is described as beautiful/peacock, the heroine plain with haunting eyes. Their initial chemistry and banter was really sweet, especially him taking care of her. However, by midway we know the H obviously cares for the h- however still continues to push her away- yet not letting her go. I was annoyed by the mixed signals.
Liked Duece and Kathleen, as well as the love between the brothers. The three books in the Trilogy are running parallel, so we have incidences of the first book which make sense now.
Overall, an average read.
Safe
2.5/5
August 15, 2018
More a 3.5. York, the middle brother, was ill all his life and struggles with a sense of belonging in his family and in his role in life. As a result, he's kind of the renegade, the one who goes off exploring and prefers to avoid ties that would hold him down. So when Sierra Smith, a feisty young woman with haunting eyes, comes into his life, he desperately wants her and wants to take care of her, but he knows he's going to hurt her, so he keeps trying to push her away. Sierra wants to avoid the hurt she knows York is going to dole out unintentionally, but there comes a point when she realizes its too late and its better to take the gamble. But is York's lack of faith in his ability to stick stronger than her ability to convince him he can?
So I notice a huge difference between the styles of Kay Hooper and Iris Johansen. Kay's story with Rafe was pretty sedate and romantic, while this one was loaded with sexual tension and angstiness. York is a right honorable hero with a sense of integrity - he knows he's going to hurt Sierra and does what he can to avoid it, even if it means small hurts in the immediate future. Anything to avoid the major heartache he knows is coming. But he doesn't seem to realize it's his own self-fulfilling prophecy that's at fault. Nor do his reasons for pushing Sierra away feel anything but contrived when she's able to convince him with the snap of her fingers and he admits he wasn't going to be able to let her go anyway. So why all the emotional drama? I mean, it made for good reading and everything, but I wondered why he had to keep tormenting her with the push/pull. Sierra was also a pretty neat heroine - she had self-esteem issues, but she was bold and brash and unwilling to sit still for a minute. And she was also pretty good at communicating for herself. She didn't allow for misunderstandings and wasn't prone to self-pity or passive aggressive behavior. She was a pretty straightforward, take action kinda gal. My absolute favorite character here though was Deuce, who could have just as easily also been the romantic lead. He had a sparkling, charming personality and made a great supporting character with a bit of comic relief.
The thing that made this story most unique was the historic setting in a modern timeframe. Hell's Bluff is kinda like a Disney World without the tourists. It's a re-established ghost town where the miners basically live, eat and play. Everything is provided, even entertainment at the local brothel, the Soiled Dove. And yes, the population are all men because women aren't allowed...unless they're working at the Soiled Dove. In true essence of an historic western town, these women are of course prostitutes. This has me wondering whether this town was in Nevada. My guess is yes because it's the only state I know of where prostitution is still legal, but it was never mentioned. I'm not sure I really liked the idea of this aspect of history being used in the present, what with no other women being allowed in the operation (no women in the mines? management? etc. This is the 1980s, not the 1880's). But it definitely made this setting unique from all other stories I've read.
So I notice a huge difference between the styles of Kay Hooper and Iris Johansen. Kay's story with Rafe was pretty sedate and romantic, while this one was loaded with sexual tension and angstiness. York is a right honorable hero with a sense of integrity - he knows he's going to hurt Sierra and does what he can to avoid it, even if it means small hurts in the immediate future. Anything to avoid the major heartache he knows is coming. But he doesn't seem to realize it's his own self-fulfilling prophecy that's at fault. Nor do his reasons for pushing Sierra away feel anything but contrived when she's able to convince him with the snap of her fingers and he admits he wasn't going to be able to let her go anyway. So why all the emotional drama? I mean, it made for good reading and everything, but I wondered why he had to keep tormenting her with the push/pull. Sierra was also a pretty neat heroine - she had self-esteem issues, but she was bold and brash and unwilling to sit still for a minute. And she was also pretty good at communicating for herself. She didn't allow for misunderstandings and wasn't prone to self-pity or passive aggressive behavior. She was a pretty straightforward, take action kinda gal. My absolute favorite character here though was Deuce, who could have just as easily also been the romantic lead. He had a sparkling, charming personality and made a great supporting character with a bit of comic relief.
The thing that made this story most unique was the historic setting in a modern timeframe. Hell's Bluff is kinda like a Disney World without the tourists. It's a re-established ghost town where the miners basically live, eat and play. Everything is provided, even entertainment at the local brothel, the Soiled Dove. And yes, the population are all men because women aren't allowed...unless they're working at the Soiled Dove. In true essence of an historic western town, these women are of course prostitutes. This has me wondering whether this town was in Nevada. My guess is yes because it's the only state I know of where prostitution is still legal, but it was never mentioned. I'm not sure I really liked the idea of this aspect of history being used in the present, what with no other women being allowed in the operation (no women in the mines? management? etc. This is the 1980s, not the 1880's). But it definitely made this setting unique from all other stories I've read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 7, 2018
Well, this wasn't even really funny. I totally liked Duece though.
At least York fell in love with her big, big dove eyes and not long legs or ample bosom. Some concession.
At least York fell in love with her big, big dove eyes and not long legs or ample bosom. Some concession.
September 24, 2019
I still like Johansen's writing but I now think it's possible that many of her Loveswept plots were weak. Of course, this was another one of her early works (1986). You have the tortured hero and again, the virgin ingenue.
The good thing about this book is that the hero admits to both himself and the heroine early on that he is attracted to her like no other, and that never before has he felt this way. He is also tender and protective towards the heroine. The not so good thing about this book is that the hero keeps trying to save the heroine from himself (as well as herself, since she returns this attraction in spades), repeatedly pushing the heroine away because he's trying to resist temptation. His reason for doing it was a deep-rooted belief that he would eventually break the heroine's heart. The basis of that belief was extremely flimsy to me, when it was revealed. Like... meh.
Now this heroine has spunk -- good for her -- but she spends a fair amount of time in the book being helpless and needing to be rescued. And feeling hurt at the hero's rejections. Also, she is one of those "I won't be a charity case" heroines, but because she has been ill, she can't really do much, so she brainstorms and decides to offer her body to the hero in order to even the score between them, as he is letting her live in his house for free while she recuperates. She figures she's giving him something he wants and the only thing that she can give, especially as he has told her he is wildly attracted to her. But, you know, eww and I did not like. What kind of convoluted reasoning is that!
Overall though, much better than the book I read two days go (no douchebag hero).
The good thing about this book is that the hero admits to both himself and the heroine early on that he is attracted to her like no other, and that never before has he felt this way. He is also tender and protective towards the heroine. The not so good thing about this book is that the hero keeps trying to save the heroine from himself (as well as herself, since she returns this attraction in spades), repeatedly pushing the heroine away because he's trying to resist temptation. His reason for doing it was a deep-rooted belief that he would eventually break the heroine's heart. The basis of that belief was extremely flimsy to me, when it was revealed. Like... meh.
Now this heroine has spunk -- good for her -- but she spends a fair amount of time in the book being helpless and needing to be rescued. And feeling hurt at the hero's rejections. Also, she is one of those "I won't be a charity case" heroines, but because she has been ill, she can't really do much, so she brainstorms and decides to offer her body to the hero in order to even the score between them, as he is letting her live in his house for free while she recuperates. She figures she's giving him something he wants and the only thing that she can give, especially as he has told her he is wildly attracted to her. But, you know, eww and I did not like. What kind of convoluted reasoning is that!
Overall though, much better than the book I read two days go (no douchebag hero).
October 12, 2019
Delaney's,
This series by three authors, is good enjoyable read, I read it years ago when it was first published, reread the series more than once but not in the last 20 yrs. I have been reading some of Iris Johansen's stories, and reminded what makes them so good, are the characters, the insight into why we do things, and the emotional journeys all lives take. Add good story fun characters, and it's a win for the reader.
This series by three authors, is good enjoyable read, I read it years ago when it was first published, reread the series more than once but not in the last 20 yrs. I have been reading some of Iris Johansen's stories, and reminded what makes them so good, are the characters, the insight into why we do things, and the emotional journeys all lives take. Add good story fun characters, and it's a win for the reader.
October 20, 2021
DNF @ 34% coz boring rom/chars/writing/dialogue. h's description as a Liza-Minelli look-alike ruined the h' image for me. I'm not a fan of Liza Minnelli and all I could picture in my head with h was Liza Minnelli. Plus the rest was pretty meh, including an average sexual chemistry between H&h. I did like that H was attracted to h's hard-working & non-materialistic & stubborn character and saw past her "not pretty" looks.
June 14, 2019
Completely caught up on all recent books. Going back and reading ones from the 1980's that I had not read. So very much enjoy her books and the characters.
August 14, 2021
Written in the 80s and didn't age well. Boring story.
May 18, 2012
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August 24, 2012
Cute short book with a love story.
February 6, 2013
enjoyed this series.
April 8, 2014
guilty pleasure romance.
April 1, 2016
I didn't enjoy it as much as Rafe.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews