Barbara L. (Barbllm) reviewed on 11/20/2009 + 241 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 2

I have a very idealized, romanticized vision of the Old West and what it must have been like to live and explore there. I blame this on "Little House on the Prairie" primarily, but it always seemed very exciting to live in a relatively unexplored world. Valerie Hansen is a good author and I've enjoyed some of her other books, but this one isn't her best.

The plot centers on a wagon train heading to California during the heady days of the Gold Rush. The train's nefarious Captain, Ramsay Tucker, has plans for 16-year-old Charity Beal that involve stealing her inheritance. Her 19-year-old sister, Faith (I assume that there's a third sister, Hope, somewhere) has promised to see Charity safely to California to find their father following their mother's untimely death from a tornado.

Aiding Faith is mountain man Connell McClain, who is heading west to search for his missing fiancee, Irene. Connell blends in well as he was part of an Indian tribe for awhile and even married an Indian woman (who was killed during a raid). Hansen adds a nice touch of rivalry here, as Faith must deal with the fact that while she's attracted to Connell, he's engaged to Irene.

As another reviewer pointed out, Irene and her Indian suitor are more interesting characters than Faith and Connell. Charity is simply an idiotic teenage girl who elicits no sympathy from the reader. It's a decent read, with a lot of details concerning life in the Old West and Indian tribal customs, but it's not a keeper.

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