Western Womens Fiction

Margaret "Peggy" Thomas and her husband, James, lead a simple and peaceful life; she tends to the farm while he works as sheriff in the nearby town of Bleak Knob. Their evenings are spent doing the thing they love most - being together. One afternoon, after picking up fabric at the general store, Margaret watches helplessly as James is gunned down on the sidewalk in front of her. Days of mourning turn into weeks and then years, filled with little more than grief and alcohol.

One minute, Rhett Lockhart is a love-‘em-and-leave-‘em bull rider with a slow, sexy smile, a swagger, and not a care in the world. The next, he learns his freewheeling days are over: A baby has been abandoned in the hospital, and there’s no question: He’s the father. But from the first moment he gazes into his daughter’s eyes, he knows the moment has come to say "no" to no strings. It’s time to grow up. Standing in his way is the baby’s foster mother, Tara Alzate, who doesn’t quite believe Rhett is ready to change his ways.

Thomas McCabe is on his way to a brilliant career as a lawyer when, in 1837, he gives everything up to take a job with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Sent to live with a tribe in the wilds of Missouri, McCabe soon saves the life of a young brave. Subsequently, yet grudgingly, he is accepted by the Cheyenne, until he falls hopelessly in love with the beautiful, and betrothed, Night Bird Woman. Determined to marry her, McCabe must prove himself to the tribe.

Men with…more. More powerful. More heart. More guts and grit and sometimes…dimensions beyond. That’s the Marshalls, brothers Quinn and Josh and their cousin Case: strong, handsome and sexy protectors who will tackle evil in any of its forms to guard and keep safe those they love. This set includes Texas Refuge, Texas Star, and Texas Danger.

When her tinsmith father and brothers head West, Polish immigrant Marie Kotlarczyk has no choice but to go along. Family, after all, is family. The Dakota Territories are anything but welcoming to the Kotlarczyks, and as the months trip by, Marie must pick up the hammers she’s secretly desired but also feared. When she faces the skeptical people of Flats Town, the demands of the local Army commander, and her public failures, her inner voice grows destructively, forcing Marie to decide exactly who she is and what it means to be a woman smith.

Producer Thalia Thorne's career is on the line. She's promised to lure James Robert Bradley back to the limelight, no matter what it takes. But once in Montana, she sees that J.R. has built a new life for himself - as a real-life cowboy - and Thalia finds it hard to resist the man he's become. Then a blizzard strikes. Suddenly they're alone, with only body heat to keep them warm. When the snow melts, she'll have to choose: Go back to the big city - or sacrifice everything for the man she can't let go.

When some pretty little thing shows up at my doorstep with a suitcase, claiming she rented my house for the summer, I waste no time informing her that my house isn't for rent. Some Internet jack*ss scammed her out of all her money, but that's not my problem. Only when I find her sleeping in her car a couple days later, I can't turn my back. I make her an offer: room and board in exchange for working on my ranch. She agrees, and I open my doors to a girl who sings too loud, sticks her nose where it doesn't belong, and distracts me with her tight jeans and those full lips.

When her pregnant sister is restricted to bed rest, Samantha Evans leaves the traffic-choked streets of Philadelphia for the majestic mountains and wide-open plains of Wyoming to help her. And while Samantha can appreciate the natural beauty of the land, she has no plans to stay - even if she's intrigued by Jake Tanner, a wealthy rancher who's left a trail of broken hearts in his wake. But when a blizzard strands them together, Samantha begins to understand how powerful the pull of the West - and Jake - can be.

The present: His daughter, fifth generation Texas Ranger Caitlin Strong, finds herself on the trail of that same cargo when skeletal remains are found near an excavation site in the Texas desert. She’s also dealing with the aftermath of a massacre that claimed the lives of all the workers at a intelligence company on her watch. These two cases are connected by a long buried secret, one that men have killed and died to protect. Caitlin and her outlaw lover Cort Wesley Masters must prove themselves to be as strong as steel to overcome a bloody tide that has been rising for centuries.

The only person I ever needed was my brother. It was us against the world, especially after our parents died. He was my rock. My life. My safe place. My home. Until they came storming in to claim me. Alex Holland and Ripper Hastings are everything a woman could want. Powerful, protective, and hotter than sin.

The Strange Husband is the story of a newly married couple from the state of New York, who decided to make their home in the Oregon Territory in 1848. Shortly after beginning their journey on the Oregon Trail, sickness causes Callie, the wife of John Wideman, to be delirious at times. After being separated from the rest of the wagon train, they meet a stranger. After a while Callie feels that the man who claims to be her husband is indeed not her husband, but the stranger. Is her mind playing games with her or is it really happening?

Annabelle Hart thought owning the family ranch would be everything she ever dreamed of and more. The Montana wilderness has always flowed like blood through her veins, but she can’t understand why her heart feels so empty inside. Three years after leaving Montana to become a wild land firefighter, Colton Brooks still dreams about the girl he left behind at Hart Ranch. He prays for her happiness, believing she deserves someone better than him, but doubts he will ever love again.

Ryan Havens appears to be a cowboy who's down on his luck. He's angry, frustrated and looking for a fight when he meets Erica Smyth. She's a barmaid with limited skills who has two drunken brothers harassing her. Ryan comes to her rescue, but the ensuing brawl leaves him injured and her jobless. They reluctantly agree to work together and share expenses for the next few weeks. What neither of them wants the other to know is their true identity. Each plays the part of a chameleon, constantly changing as the situation demands.

The story is about a big city girl who takes a job on an Oklahoma ranch. She meets and gets temporarily stranded with loner Curt Hayden, the foreman, and a man with a past that has made him wary of love.

Sometimes it's tough to be Lucy O'Rourke. Disasters of all sorts seem to seek out this globe-trotting photographer. Whether it's on a raft in Cataract Canyon, a crocodile attack on the Amazon, a hurricane in the Gulf Stream or even the two-legged kind (men), Lucy just can't seem to help making the wrong choice at precisely the wrong moment. This collection of eleven linked stories features the unique blending of romance and adventure that is the trademark of Pam Houston.

Suburban housewife Rebecca Long has lived the American dream for several years. When her world suddenly comes crashing down around her after the sudden death of her husband and she is left to fend for herself and her two young children, she makes a drastic change and moves her family across the country. Settling on the Texas ranch of her aunt and uncle, she accepts a job keeping the books for neighboring rancher Seth Winters, leaving behind the life she's grown accustomed to.

Sheltered from her own desires for so long, Hayley Thompson wants to experience life. A new job at Gray Bear Construction is a start. The work she can handle. It's her boss - reclusive, sexy Jonathan Bear - who's scrambling her mind and her hormones. No matter how successful he becomes, Jonathan's reputation will always precede him. And his type of woman is usually nothing like prim, innocent Hayley. Yet he can't resist unleashing the fire beneath her pent-up facade - even if seduction means losing his heart.

Sometimes even good girls need to be a little bad.... Marla Jean Bandy might be down, but she's not out. Even though her no-good ex-husband left her for another woman - a Bookmobile -driving librarian 20 years her senior - Marla Jean won't settle for another lonely night. She's not ready for Mr. Right, but why not have a little fun with Mr. Right Now? The only wrench in her plan is her childhood crush, Jake - and the memory of the one toe-curling kiss they shared on a hot summer night years ago....

Rainbow Valley, Texas, has always been a refuge for animals, and Shannon North, director of the local shelter, intends to keep it that way. But with donations drying up and more pets in need of a loving home than ever before, Shannon's beginning to fear she's not the savior the shelter needs. When a tall, dark, and handsome cowboy from her past comes to the rescue, she knows that accepting his help may come with a high price: her heart.

Casie Carmichael is hardworking but softhearted. She has a broken-down mare, two lambs, three lost teens, a busted-up bronco rider, and a whole lot of trouble. Casie has returned home to Hope Springs, South Dakota, to sell the family’s tumbledown ranch with the hope of returning to Sioux Falls and her very practical fiancé. But leaving Hope Springs isn’t quite as easy as she thought it would be, especially since her barn seems to have a homing beacon leading every stray in the territory straight to it.