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The Men of Pride County Series #2
The Outsider
The Men of Pride County
They left as boys, fired by visions of honor and glory. They returned as men, was-weary and with heavy hearts, yet determined to find love and rebuild their lives in the crumbled ruins of the South. these are their stories:
From the moment Hamilton Dodge set eyes on Southern beauty Starla Fairfax, the sparks flew. She was flirtatious, frivolous. . .everything that he was not. And yet he couldn't get her out of his mind. So he asked her to marry, never dreaming she'd say yes. After all, he was a Yankee who'd come to Pride County to rebuild his life, and she was one of the town's leading belles.
But Hamilton didn't fool himself--Starla agreed to be his wife in name only because she needed a strong man to protect her honor. Yet as their cool agreement gave way to the fires of passion, Hamilton realized he'd never rest until Starla became his wife--in every way.
They left as boys, fired by visions of honor and glory. They returned as men, was-weary and with heavy hearts, yet determined to find love and rebuild their lives in the crumbled ruins of the South. these are their stories:
From the moment Hamilton Dodge set eyes on Southern beauty Starla Fairfax, the sparks flew. She was flirtatious, frivolous. . .everything that he was not. And yet he couldn't get her out of his mind. So he asked her to marry, never dreaming she'd say yes. After all, he was a Yankee who'd come to Pride County to rebuild his life, and she was one of the town's leading belles.
But Hamilton didn't fool himself--Starla agreed to be his wife in name only because she needed a strong man to protect her honor. Yet as their cool agreement gave way to the fires of passion, Hamilton realized he'd never rest until Starla became his wife--in every way.
375 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 24, 2009
I'm very glad that the next installment of this series has a Northern heroine, because Ms. West is killing me with her nitwittish interpretation of post-Civil War Southern belles. The first book The Outcast featured the personality twin of Scarlett O'Hara, and this one was almost as bad, but for different reasons. However, I have to say that if you're going to read one of this series, you should probably start at the beginning.
Hamilton Dodge is a former Union lieutenant who has bravely marched into Pride County, KY, to help his friend Reeve get the local bank started up again. Neither man are much liked in the Southern-sympathizing town, and in the first book, Reeve is almost hanged and Dodge is shot in the back because of it. When he meets Starla Fairfax - a native of Pride County and friend to just about everyone - he's struck by her sassy manner and her exotic beauty, even if her brother Tyler was part of the group responsible for his injury. Starla, however, wants nothing to do with the brash Northern banker, no matter how refreshing it is to meet a man who's so honest with her. She's still dealing with the ramifications from a disaster that began with a betrayal by a man: she's pregnant. When Dodge finds this out, he proposes - he doesn't know if he'll ever be able to father children and he's been longing for someone to make a life with. And Starla agrees, because she has no where else to turn - certainly not back to her evil father, and she can't go back to the past that's following her either. But this marriage of convenience turns out to be bringing up some very inconvenient feelings in both them.
Starla is probably one of the most emotionally tormented heroines I've ever read about. She's been hurt by her father, her husband, and her lawyer, and she's now stuck as a woman alone with no where to turn except to her friends. All of that should have made her a sympathetic heroine, but there was just some things that really bothered me about her character. I don't want to spoil the plot, but there are things she says, does, and neglects to say or do that don't really make any sense in the story. She could avoided a lot of heartache by divulging even just a small crumb of the truth to anyone, but instead she takes it all on her own shoulders. I felt more bad for Dodge than anything else.
The history is incredible, and Ms. West knows how to accurately portray the divisions of lifestyles, and how some perverted the loyalty of others to push their own agendas. But the romance fell flat for me, there was just too much other stuff going on. C+
Hamilton Dodge is a former Union lieutenant who has bravely marched into Pride County, KY, to help his friend Reeve get the local bank started up again. Neither man are much liked in the Southern-sympathizing town, and in the first book, Reeve is almost hanged and Dodge is shot in the back because of it. When he meets Starla Fairfax - a native of Pride County and friend to just about everyone - he's struck by her sassy manner and her exotic beauty, even if her brother Tyler was part of the group responsible for his injury. Starla, however, wants nothing to do with the brash Northern banker, no matter how refreshing it is to meet a man who's so honest with her. She's still dealing with the ramifications from a disaster that began with a betrayal by a man: she's pregnant. When Dodge finds this out, he proposes - he doesn't know if he'll ever be able to father children and he's been longing for someone to make a life with. And Starla agrees, because she has no where else to turn - certainly not back to her evil father, and she can't go back to the past that's following her either. But this marriage of convenience turns out to be bringing up some very inconvenient feelings in both them.
Starla is probably one of the most emotionally tormented heroines I've ever read about. She's been hurt by her father, her husband, and her lawyer, and she's now stuck as a woman alone with no where to turn except to her friends. All of that should have made her a sympathetic heroine, but there was just some things that really bothered me about her character. I don't want to spoil the plot, but there are things she says, does, and neglects to say or do that don't really make any sense in the story. She could avoided a lot of heartache by divulging even just a small crumb of the truth to anyone, but instead she takes it all on her own shoulders. I felt more bad for Dodge than anything else.
The history is incredible, and Ms. West knows how to accurately portray the divisions of lifestyles, and how some perverted the loyalty of others to push their own agendas. But the romance fell flat for me, there was just too much other stuff going on. C+
April 26, 2021
✨Hidden Gem ✨
I genuinely loved this book. It was so unexpected. One of the best of the year by faaar.
Beta hero and bitchy heroine.
It was soooooo well written.
I genuinely loved this book. It was so unexpected. One of the best of the year by faaar.
Beta hero and bitchy heroine.
It was soooooo well written.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews