Abigail Pheeney and Robert Forrester met and quickly married. Each had a personal agenda to live with. Abbie was a prostitute who was running from an abusive man. Her friend, Mattie, had left with her but followed her own way once Abbie married Robert. Robert wanted to work for Mr. Winton but he required his foreman to be married. When Robert married Abbie they immediately secured the position and the cabin at Kolorah Station. This was a wonderful place for them to start over until Abbie found out her biggest nightmare, Darcy, was Mr. Winton’s nephew.

What happened when her abuser kidnapped her changed their lives forever. That was not, however, the end of their troubles. The Australian bush was not well policed in the 1860’s. In order to survive, Robert left Abbie in one town and worked out of two or three others trying to make a living as a bushranger. That left Abbie vulnerable in more ways than one.

I was not quite sure I was going to enjoy this book. However, let me quickly assure you that it was addictive. I love her writing style and her ability to grab the readers’ attention and never let go. There were many differences in her style, one of which was that it was not sexually explicit. I loved the subtle ways of her presented sensuality cases, but it was not something which could not be read by anyone.

The characteristics given to these many involved personalities were well written. There were good versus bad, warmth pitted against cold hard killers. The myriad of supporting cast members were amazingly poignant. This was not the normal fall in love, have a small problem, then happily ever after storyline.

There were times I could not imagine how this book would end. There were shocking conclusions which made me love the book.

Overall rating:
Sensuality rating: Mildly sensual

Reviewer: Brenda Talley
October 13, 2008