Adventure in the West with a great Native American hero
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 16 years ago
Cholla is an Apache scout who helped convince Geronimo to give up fighting the army and go to a reservation because he believed it would be better for the Apache people. The army repaid Cholla's help by forceably shipping him on a train to Florida with all of the other Apaches. While on the train, one of the soldiers with whom he served and had a history with tries to kill him. Cholla attacks him back in self-defense then jumps off the train because he is afraid he will be hanged. He is in unfamiliar territory without a gun and still has chains on his hands and feet. He needs to find a farm where he can sneak into a barn to try to remove the chains. The only goal in his mind is to reach his Apache homeland in Arizona - no matter what it takes. Sierra is a widow living along near St. Louis on her farm. At least she will be living there until tomorrow, when she is being thrown off the farm because of a mortgage her dead husband took out before he left that she is unable to pay. Her husband was an army officer who volunteered to go west so he could try to find gold. He was killed by Apaches a few months before but she doesn't really miss him very much. She only married him because her grandfather thought it was a wise match and they needed help on the farm. Her husband was mean to her, in bed and out. She is all alone and doesn't know what to do now that her husband and grandfather are both dead, since she is being thrown off her land and has not place to go, no family and no job prospects. She sees a train going by full of Apaches and feels no sypathy for them, after all these are the Apaches that killed her husband and brought her to this desperate point. Cholla comes upon Sierra's house after dark and decides to try to find tools to take off his chains in the barn because he doesn't see a dog or men around. Sierra hears a noise in the barn and goes out to investigate. Cholla takes her prisoner because he knows she would flee to a neighbor and bring the army, so it was either take her captive or kill her. Sierra is scared to death of the Apache, she thinks it's only a matter of time before her kills her. Cholla makes her load up her wagon and take him over the bridge on the Mississippi River. He decides to keep her around as a possible hostage and to enact some revenge - her husband, who Cholla served with out west, was responsible for raping and killing an Apache girl so he decides to get revenge by seducing Sierra and leaving her at a fort pregnant with a half-breed which would make her an outcast. Sierra has no idea of what her husband had done, but she is afraid that Cholla will kill her the second he doesn't need her anymore. The couple slowly gets to know each other during the long trip from St. Louis to Arizona despite the mutual distrust and unspoken issues. They give into the intense physical attraction between them pretty quickly but keep an emotional distance that is harder to bridge. Sierra starts to see Cholla as a proud, strong m
This is my favorite Georgina Gentry book!
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 19 years ago
I LOVED this book! It was so good! The one review goes into great detail and that is what I liked--the story as well as the continuous friction between them that created sparks. Cholla (Chaw ya) was attracted to her from the beginning and Sierra ends up loving him along the way, with a few close calls that he might not make his journey back home. He saves Sierra numerous times from being raped along the way, and she even saves him once, too. There is even a cute scene where she manages to escape, she nearly gets raped & he's back saving her and claiming her as his captive again--she can't figure out if he's glad to see him or her luck ran out, then realized he had a close call with another woman (he mistook the woman for being Sierra) & is jealous over it. He ends up seducing her time & time again. Some funny writing, then onto more action & adventure and he nearly takes her every night. Great sex writing, too!
Excellent history, Great love scenes, Exciting adventure
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 21 years ago
Betrayed by the army that he served for years, Apache scout, Cholla is herded on to a train with hundreds of other Apaches to be forced to live thousands of miles from their home land of Arizona. Cholla decides he would rather die trying to return home on foot than to live on a reservation in Florida. He escapes the train and sets out on a 1500 mile trek to his home land. Desperate for food and a horse, he comes upon the ranch of young widow, Sierra. And so the adventure begins....True to her style, Georgina Gentry has packed this book with historical fact and real people. The earth comes alive, traveling from Missouri all the way to Arizona. Although the trek is tough, romance blossoms. There were some parts of the story that lagged. I found my self skimming pages here and there, where the story veered away from the main couple. But these slow parts didn't last long.There were also a couple of coincidences in people who met that made it seem like the world must consist of very few people for their paths to have crossed. However the storyline itself was very believable. The characters very alive. The struggles realistic.Gentry fires the book up with sensual and romantic love scenes. Bold, but not disturbing.It did get a bit annoying that it took until the last pages of the book for the couple to admit they loved one another. I spent several chapters wishing they would get over it and be happy together, even as there continued to run from the army. Overall, worth while read. Great story and high adventure. Terrific ending!
Exciting - Could not put the book down!
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 23 years ago
Excellent book, I read this book in a day in a half. Every single moment the book was exciting, always something happening. One thing I really loved about the book - was the honor Cholla had and he would not take Sierra without her permission. The book was not only exiciting but had history entwined in the story. I loved it!
One of the best books ever!
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 23 years ago
This is by far one of the best books I've read! Not your typical "cheesy" romance novel! This book is full of history, and I was rooting for Cholla the entire time!
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