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Love's Promise
Engaged to the son of a wealthy rancher, Rio McKinnon is torn between her fiance+a7, whom she has known since childhood, and Wyatt Culver, a passionate and mysterious loner. Original.
412 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1996
18 people want to read
About the author
Karen A. Bale
42 books14 followersKaren A. Bale grew up in southern California and graduated from the University California Riverside. She has written seventeen historical romances, including the successful seven-book Sweet Medicine’s Prophecy series. She has done freelance work for several years, including helping to write two nonfiction books. Karen still resides in southern California, ten miles from the Pacific Ocean.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 26, 2016
This review is of “Love’s Promise” by Karen A. Bale.
The Story: “Love’s Promise” is set in Zeno, Nevada. It is here that we meet the heroine of the book, Elizabeth “Rio” McKinnon. Rio lives with her father, James, and her twin brother, Travis. (James’ wife and the twins’ mother, also named Elizabeth, passed years earlier.) It is understood that Rio will marry a neighboring rancher, John MacGregor. What Rio doesn’t know is that John doesn’t really love her; he is being pushed by his father, Charles, to marry Rio to get the McKinnon land and for other reasons. Charles hires a gunslinger, Wyatt Culver, the hero of the book, to force the McKinnons’ off their land. Wyatt, however, dislikes Charles and decides to go to work instead for the McKinnon family. He and Rio start having romantic feelings for each other.
There are flies in the ointment, however, for both Rio and Wyatt. Despite being beaten up by Wyatt for trying to rape Rio, John is insistent that she marry him. Wyatt, meanwhile, has an old love in his past he can’t let go of. Wyatt leaves to go back to Boston and his old flame, Rebecca Bradley. Back in Nevada, meanwhile, MacGregor intensifies his attacks on the McKinnon ranch, and the reasons for Charles’ hatred of the McKinnon family is revealed. Travis takes a job as a rider for the Pony Express, is shot and Rio takes his place.
Later, John blackmails Rio into marrying him by claiming that he will hurt her father. This leads to more tension between Rio and Wyatt. Eventually, MacGregor is dealt with, Rio’s marriage to John is dissolved, and Rio and Wyatt have their Happily Ever After.
Upside: Rio and Wyatt are fairly strong characters.
Downside: Although Rio and Wyatt are fairly strong characters, they are not written deeply by Ms. Bale; the romance between them is hardly believable. Both Rio and Wyatt at times behave in a very childish fashion. The resolution with MacGregor is highly unsatisfying, and it felt like Ms. Bale didn’t know what to do with the characters some of the time.
Sex: The sex scenes are hot by Ms. Bale’s standards, but are still very 1970’s Harlequin like.
Violence: Slaps, assaults, burning down barns, and an occasional shooting. None of the violence is graphic.
Bottom Line: It’s sad to read an author who is running on empty. That is the case with Ms. Bale and “Love’s Promise”.
The Story: “Love’s Promise” is set in Zeno, Nevada. It is here that we meet the heroine of the book, Elizabeth “Rio” McKinnon. Rio lives with her father, James, and her twin brother, Travis. (James’ wife and the twins’ mother, also named Elizabeth, passed years earlier.) It is understood that Rio will marry a neighboring rancher, John MacGregor. What Rio doesn’t know is that John doesn’t really love her; he is being pushed by his father, Charles, to marry Rio to get the McKinnon land and for other reasons. Charles hires a gunslinger, Wyatt Culver, the hero of the book, to force the McKinnons’ off their land. Wyatt, however, dislikes Charles and decides to go to work instead for the McKinnon family. He and Rio start having romantic feelings for each other.
There are flies in the ointment, however, for both Rio and Wyatt. Despite being beaten up by Wyatt for trying to rape Rio, John is insistent that she marry him. Wyatt, meanwhile, has an old love in his past he can’t let go of. Wyatt leaves to go back to Boston and his old flame, Rebecca Bradley. Back in Nevada, meanwhile, MacGregor intensifies his attacks on the McKinnon ranch, and the reasons for Charles’ hatred of the McKinnon family is revealed. Travis takes a job as a rider for the Pony Express, is shot and Rio takes his place.
Later, John blackmails Rio into marrying him by claiming that he will hurt her father. This leads to more tension between Rio and Wyatt. Eventually, MacGregor is dealt with, Rio’s marriage to John is dissolved, and Rio and Wyatt have their Happily Ever After.
Upside: Rio and Wyatt are fairly strong characters.
Downside: Although Rio and Wyatt are fairly strong characters, they are not written deeply by Ms. Bale; the romance between them is hardly believable. Both Rio and Wyatt at times behave in a very childish fashion. The resolution with MacGregor is highly unsatisfying, and it felt like Ms. Bale didn’t know what to do with the characters some of the time.
Sex: The sex scenes are hot by Ms. Bale’s standards, but are still very 1970’s Harlequin like.
Violence: Slaps, assaults, burning down barns, and an occasional shooting. None of the violence is graphic.
Bottom Line: It’s sad to read an author who is running on empty. That is the case with Ms. Bale and “Love’s Promise”.
May 12, 2019
Ultimately this one felt more like and empty promise rather than a promise kept.
Read my full review on my blog: http://castoffcovers.blog/2019/05/12/...
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Read my full review on my blog: http://castoffcovers.blog/2019/05/12/...
Follow my blog castoffcovers.blog
Follow me on Instagram and Twitter @castoffcovers
August 27, 2012
Interesting historical romance with twists.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews