THE MAVERICKS

Author: Leigh Greenwood ISBN: 0843952377 12/2005 HISTORICAL Publisher: DORCHESTER/Leisure
Time Period: 1888 Arizona Territory

The bawling of the longhorns, the lonesome night watch beneath a vast, starry sky—they got into a man's blood until he knew there was nothing better than the life of a cowboy...except the love of a good woman. Hawk and Zeke had been inseparable ever since boyhood—two loners, outsiders, as free as the wild horses as they chased across the Arizona desert. So when they joined up with two misplaced dancehall girls on the trail, they reacted about the same way as unbroken mustangs to the saddle. Kicking and bucking at every step of the way, the bachelors were gentled by soft touches and warm caresses until each found himself riding the range with a brand-new partner.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

I believe that this is the first time I have read a book where the blurb just does not do the book justice. I didn't know really what to expect when I sat down to read Leigh Greenwood's THE MAVERICKS. Going by what the blurb says, I assumed I'd be reading about two men who are traveling with two women across the desert. To really break the book down, that is what it's about. However, there is so much more to this story. Leigh Greenwood writes a highly enjoyable western romance that in the end, leaves you wanting more.

The two heroes of THE MAVERICKS are Hawk and Zeke. Hawk is a half-breed and Zeke was a former slave. They were both adopted by a loving ranch couple and have remained brothers since. They're on a journey to transport valuable breeding mares across the desert to their own ranch that they just purchased. There they plan on breeding the mares and selling their foals or fillies. What they didn't expect was accidentally coming across a broken wagon and four saloon dancers not having a clue how to fix it. This is where we meet the two heroines, Josie and Suzette.

After one of the saloon dancers leaves with a man to get married, and dropping off another one at her parent's ranch, Josie and Suzette find themselves relying on Hawk and Zeke to help them make it across the desert to the nearest town so that they can resume their dancing act. Josie and Suzette aren't without their share of issues. Josie has major trust issues, which stems from how she was treated by her white slave owner father (who married her mother, who was a slave), and Suzette needs to acquire a lot of money to make sure that her younger sister gets a good education and marries well.

There is instant attraction between Hawk and Suzette. That's all fine and good, but it's the sexual tension between both headstrong Zeke and Josie that makes the trek through the desert interesting. I truly loved Hawk, Zeke, Josie and Suzette. All of them have emotional and psychological issues that they must deal with (don't we all) in order for them to truly open up their hearts and accept the love that is right within their reach.

I am really surprised by how much I enjoyed reading Leigh Greenwood's THE MAVERICKS. He writes with such detail that I felt like I was trudging through the desert heat, too. His characters were so well written I felt like I had known them all their lives. THE MAVERICKS is a great story of four people finding love among the sand and danger of the Arizona desert. Even if you're not a big fan of western romances, I'm laying a claim that you may just like this book!

Julie Kornhausl