TEXAS TRIUMPH

Author: Elaine Barbieri ISBN: 0843954094 5/2005 HISTORICAL Publisher: DORCHESTER
Time Period: 1869

Buck Star was a handsome cad with a love-‘em-and-leave-‘em attitude that had broken more than one heart. But when he lost his head over a conniving beauty young enough to be his own daughter, he jeopardized all he valued, even the lives of his own children. Ever since leaving his father’s Texas Star ranch, the daring Pinkerton agent and his lovely partner Vida Malone made it their business to ferret out the truth. But the twisted secrets he began to uncover after a mysterious message called him home might be more than anyone could untangle: a half sister he'd never heard of, a Haitian servant who is an expert in mixing Voodoo potions, a hateful stepmother with a penchant for devious plots and a hand in every kind of trouble. Saving his father would require all his cunning and courage, as well as the aid of the most exasperating and enticing woman ever to go undercover or drive a man to distraction.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

From page one of TEXAS TRIUMPH our lead characters had such chemistry, such ease at being with each other, that I knew this was going to be one heck of a love story. I am delighted to say that I was not wrong. From the very first sentence of the book, the sexual tension between Taylor and Vida is practically tangible and kept my attention throughout the entire story.

It is very rare to find a couple that is so uninhibited, especially in a historical setting. It was a welcome change of pace to have Vida not care if Taylor saw her when she first woke up, or when she was not wearing the proper amount of clothing. She was free to be herself with him, and that was shining right through every page. I also liked how Vida was very tough, yet still made a wonderful damsel-in-distress when the time arose. It was great to see these two sides of our heroine.

Taylor is a wonderful hero in that he wants to fix everything. You gotta love a man like that. There is just nothing that he cannot fix, including a deceitful witch of a stepmother and her nasty servant, or a crotchety old man for a father who doesn’t want anything to do with him. He goes at things with both guns blazing, leaving no doubt that he will have the results that he desires.

Taylor and Vida, along with a wonderful, intriguing storyline, made for a very enjoyable time while reading TEXAS TRIUMPH. This being the third in a trilogy, all my questions were answered and I was very happy with the end results, even if while getting there my stomach stayed tied up in knots! My only disappointment was in knowing that this family’s story had come to its end, as I truly grew to love each one of the characters, including grumpy ol’ Buck.

Kristal Gorman