LIPS THAT TOUCH MINE

Author: Wendy Lindstrom ISBN: 0843955066 4/2005 HISTORICAL Publisher: DORCHESTER
Time Period: Victorian/Old West 1873

>With Claire Ashier's last guest went the last thread of her patience. The noise from the saloon across the street was driving off her boardinghouse patrons, and that would land her in the poorhouse. Desperate to shut down the den of vice, she threatened Boyd Grayson with her revolver, then led a band of temperance ladies against the handsome charmer. >But her foe, the owner of the rum hole known as the Pemberton Inn, was one of Fredonia, New York's leading men. He was brother of the sheriff, and a respected businessman. To Claire he was a seducer and libertine, which he proved immediately with one honey-brown glance. Boyd Grayson might have the most kissable mouth she'd ever seen, and eyes that encouraged her to trust him, but Claire knew firsthand that men who imbibed alcohol were dangerous. Like in the song, she'd sworn that "Lips that Touch Whiskey Must Never Touch Mine." She would never let Boyd kiss her because, deep in her heart, she feared he promised something more intoxicating and dangerous than alcohol. She had only to resist that first taste... >

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

The title of this sparkling, and character-driven historical comes from a Temperance song; "Lips that touch whiskey must never touch mine.". Ms. Lindstrom has done superb research on the era of Temperance when women marched against saloons to close them down because of the ravages of alcohol on the society of the times—the era of 1873 to about ten years later. (The beginnings of Temperance marches led into the marches for women to vote—reviewers note).

The story takes place in the real town of Fredonia, New York, and while Ms. Lindstrom has set her characters and story there and done her research, it's not overwhelming and gives enough sense of reality to make everything come alive for the reader. Lovers of historicals will delight in learning a few new things about a little known era.

Boyd Grayson owns a saloon, which puts him in direct conflict with the young widow, Claire Ashier who, owns a boarding house across the street and is losing boarders because of the raucous noise coming from his Pemberton Inn. She writes to Dr. Lewis to bring Temperance Marches to Fredonia, to save her livelihood and force Boyd to close down his saloon. Boyd is the youngest of four successful brothers; one is the Sheriff, and two brothers work in the family's sawmill. He has another livelihood if he so chooses, but Boyd is stubborn—stubborn and attracted to the fearless widow Ashier. Boyd has a secret about his father's death, which is giving him a bitter heart.

Claire Ashier has inherited her grandmother's house, which she fled from four years ago to marry a man whom she thought was charming and in love with her—only to find out he loved alcohol more and loved to beat her when in it's clutches. She's estranged from her family and her father has disowned her. She has a secret about how her husband died, and she's determined not to marry again. Claire has also found her grandmother's fifty year-old journal, and the journal pages, full of a devastating secret love, help Claire to heal from her past and find her way in her new life.

While there are a few moments in LIPS THAT TOUCH MINE that you want to shout at Boyd and Claire, "just talk about it!" and to Claire, "don't be so stupid!" they are few. They are far outweighed by the many moments in the book where Ms. Lindstrom showed their many layers of flawed but beautiful humanity, their ambiguous motivations that we all have, and their fears of failure and rejection. Indeed, this reviewer could imagine these characters brought to life in a movie—the story was so strong and deeply moving by the end of it. Nicole Kidman and Chris Bale, anyone?

Laurie Wood