Denim and Lace

Rogues and Desperadoes #5

by Patricia Rice

A feisty, denim-clad beauty, Samantha Neely makes her way across California in the 1860s to confront a handsome mining tycoon with a bad reputation, a man she believes murdered her missing father

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Westerns, Audiobook

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published June 24, 1996

About the author

With several million books in print and New York Times and USA Today's bestseller lists under her belt, former CPA Patricia Rice writes emotionally-charged contemporary and historical romances which have won numerous awards, including the RT Book Reviews Reviewers Choice and Career Achievement Awards.

Her books have also been honored as Romance Writers of America RITA® finalists in the historical, regency and contemporary categories.

A firm believer in happily-ever-after for good reason, Patricia Rice is married to her high school sweetheart and has two children. A native of Kentucky and New York, a past resident of North Carolina and Missouri, she currently resides in Southern California, and now does accounting only for herself.

She also writes under the pen name Jamie Quaid

Reviews

[Jultri · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75/5. I loved the beginning. Gun-toting, tom-boyish heroine who can outshoot, outride, outwit any male makes for a fun romantic lead. It slowed down in the second half and Samantha lost her spunk for a while, once she got goaded into wearing dresses by Sloan.

[Aղցela W. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty good book that I listened to on audio. Emmanuel Neely is a free-spirited inventor who has a strong sense of wanderlust. In his absence, the eldest daughter Samantha has always taken care of her mother and her twin sisters. The family moves from Tennessee to California Emmanuel has written to tell them about their new home in the Sierra Mountains. When they arrive in the town of Talbott the owner of the town Sloan Talbott tells them no women are allowed but they must stay and wait for her father. This was a good book Sam dresses in pants and can shoot better than any man. Sam and Sloan lock horns. Turns out these two have a lot of chemistry. I am looking forward to reading or listening to more from this author.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

Loved it from the start to the end!

He was bully. He banned womenfolks living in his town/land until Family Neely came to lived at Adobe, they had deed to. Neely family had driven thousand miles from Tennessee, looking for their father.

But the Bully wouldn't hear of it, tried to wager, and finding a way to have them removed from his land.

After what Sloan put Sam through by lying, deceived her with false priest and false wedding. Not cool!

He's an ass but after reading what happened to him. I could understand, but I don't condone what he's done to Sam.

*You rule Samantha Neely+Montgomery!*


Sloan ♥️ Samantha

[Misfit]

Awful. Just awful.

[Terryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read. He literally owns the whole town and mountain so when a couple of wagons appear with women he goes to run them out of town. The town is only full of men. She and her family have come to this town in search of her father and also by the fact that he had purchased a home here. Both he and she are forever at each other and after she wins a shooting competition with him her family are allowed to stay for a certain length of time. Forever fighting with him and baiting each other he relents and offers to help her seek her father for a night of pleasure. She agrees. This night of pleasure increases to two and then he offers marriage. The marriage is a sham as the priest is not real. She eventually finds out and is horrified and angry. Over time she discovers that he had been married before and had feared going into a marriage again. Someone is also trying to kill him. When a landslide nearly kills her he finally admits being in love and offers real marriage. HEA ending. Lost of twists and turns.

[Diane Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book. I am a fan of Patricia Rice, but this one is not quite like the others I have read -- partly because it is a Western. It's an older book and I think that shows a bit. The MCs were quite adversarial throughout most of the story, particularly the hero - Sloan Talbot. At times it was difficult to see why Sam was attracted to him. Sam was tough as nails, but also a little naive and somewhat TSTL.

I listened to the audiobook. Frankly, the only time I liked the narrator's voice was when she read the narrative parts. Sam's voice was very child-like. Sloan's voice came across as twangy and sarcastic. These factors really hurt my enjoyment of the story.

The book was fun in parts and I gradually warmed up to the romance.

[Jeanne (love2cook) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Historical at its finest. Samantha Neely oldest daughter and her family have traveled west to find her father. When they come to a small town, they find it's only made up of men, led by one Sloan Talbott. Sloan Talbott wants to keep it that way. Sam challenged him saying she has a deed to the big house right in the middle of the town. Of course, the men of the town are excited to have four women and stumble over each other to make them welcome. This is the most handsome, sinfully dangerous man she'd ever met. Sloan called Sam a ragtag redheaded tomboy, but she taunted him by day and haunted him by night. She made him crazy. He wanted her and yet he didn't need a woman like Sam seeing what kind of a man he really was. He was fighting an uphill battle. Who would win? A very good read.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting take on the post-Civil War West, this book explores a relationship growing between Sam and Sloan which never goes in an expected direction with the expected reactions. Most of us read books pretty much knowing or thinking we know what is coming next. This one will test the reader over and over and surprise more than justify what we expect of the next few pages. Personally I found it exhilarating and enjoyed both Sloan and Sam immensely.

[Sherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure I wanted to read a story about 1868 California, but I listened and gradually became more engaged in the story. The story conflicts were well paced and all the murder attempts at Sloane actually worked to bring him and Sam together.

[Marieta Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't usually like Western., I enjoy Patricia Rice books. I'm glad I read it. The mystery, romance, and laughter was all there.

[Virginpat · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5. Ça change de la régence

[Jerry Jares · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emmanuel Neely is a free-spirited inventor who has a strong sense of wanderlust. In his absence, the eldest daughter​ ​Samantha has always taken care of her mother and her twin sisters. The family has left their war-decimated Tennessee for California; Emmanuel has written to tell them of their new home in the Sierra Mountains.

However, when they arrive in the town of Talbott, they meet the awful owner of the town (and everything in it) -- Sloan Talbott. He has one ironclad rule -- absolutely no women. The Neely's are not particularly impressed with no. They decide they must stay in Talbott until Emmanuel comes back.

Samantha dresses in trousers and shoots better than most men. It doesn't take long for Sam and Sloan lock horns. I don't really want to tell too much more about the story; it is fun and funny (Sloan and Samantha are evenly matched). The reason this book did not receive a 5-star rating had to do with the ending. During the last few chapters, ​a​ ​major character is injured and the author used a device that seemed fairly pointless. I thought it really damaged the overall quality of the novel. ​Overall, the story is a delight.​

[Miss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this was a bag of a surprises really... first, I'm not sure exactly how I ended up with a copy - I don't remember buying it but there it was, on my bookshelf (I think it may have been part of a bulk buy on the final afternoon of the Lifeline Bookfair where you can often get a bag books for $10-$15). Second, I was surprised to find that it was set in 1868 - the blurb doesn't say anything to suggest that it might not be a modern day story. Third, I kinda mostly enjoyed it!

I'm no historian so I don't know how accurate that aspect of the book was, but the characters were reasonably interesting and the story mostly kept me engaged. I thought that the ending dragged a bit, and I really felt that the author could have delved into some of the characters and their relationships a bit more, but aside from that it wasn't too bad.

Don't get me wrong. this is not a "must read" or anything - It was just much better than I was expecting. I give it 2.75 stars... not quite 3 but better than a 2.5

[LJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Denim & Lace - G
Rice, Patricia

Samantha Neely thought might have to kill Sloan Talbott. After traveling 2000 miles, she finally had her chance to confront the man she believed capable of murdering her missing father. Sloan called Sam a ragtag redheaded tomboy, but her honeyed voice taunted him by day and slipped into his dreams at night. With his own private demons, Sloan didn't need Sam revealing what kind of man he really was.

Good humor, enjoyable story.

[Rita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much of the book was spent with the protagonists in an adversarial relationship. I did not enjoy the constant fighting and the bad behavior of the "hero". It ended well, but I won't be reading this one again.

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

kindle

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Execellent characters!!