If
there's one thing I love, lovelies, it's a sexy western. Today I'm
welcoming fellow Breathless Press author K.E. Shade, and her new
release, An Outlaw in Her Bed.
An Outlaw in Her Bed
Published: July
11, 2014
Breathless Press
western romance
When
Ella realizes that her mysterious guest, Travis, has a deadly past, she has to
come to terms that it may just be the cause of her husband's untimely death.
Ella Gilby lost her husband to the perils of living in the
wilderness of the new frontier. When her son finds a wounded man in the barn,
she does what any Christian woman would do for a needy soul. She takes him in
until he's able to move on, but never expects the attraction to blossom between
them.
Brantwijn's Burning Question: What drew you to the Western Genre for this story?
I don't know why I decided to write a western. One thing's
for sure, I love watching them. From the Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns to
my ultimate favorite Tombstone (I'm your Huckleberry), I love the mystique of
that whole time period in history. Though I have to laugh when the saloon scene
comes along and someone gets tossed out the window. The likelihood of a glass
window in the west was slim to none. Transporting glass was next near
impossible. Still, it makes for a good effect even if it's not historically accurate.
Since I've written using many settings between fantasy and
historical and everything in between, the idea for An Outlaw in Her Bed just
sprang up. The best thing was I got to do my favorite about writing—research!
From western slang to what kind of gun existed in the time period, all the
details were important for me. Hollywood can get away with inconsistences,
writers should strive for something better. I plan on writing more just because
there's nothing sexier than a man tipping his hat while he utters
"ma'am" with a twinkle in his eye. Rawr.
A Foreplay and Fangs Review
I had the privilege to read an advance copy of An Outlaw in Her Bed, in
response for an honest review. I have a special place in my heart for
Westerns: I adore them. So when K.E. Shade announced her upcoming
release, I jumped at the chance to read it!
I'll be introducing a new system of reviews for new releases. I'll be rating the book in three parts: Storytelling, Technical, and Passion. The Storytelling aspect of any book pertains to how much the story appealed to me, including the setting, the characters, and plot. The Technical aspect pertains to literary analysis; for those of you who don't know, I spent 4 years learning to appreciate and analyze literature and writing techniques, including classical, contemporary, poetry and argumentative. It's impossible for me to read a book without considering its effectiveness in from a technical standpoint. Passion is probably self-explanatory: how did the tale measure up with heat, eroticism, and romance?
Storytelling: 5 Enthusiastic Cries of Joy
The story is the strongest part of An Outlaw in Her Bed. From the first chapter, that special flavor of a Western Romance immersed
me. There was definitely thought and research put into this story, as
well as a degree of interest on the part of the author which clearly
shows. This is a good thing: when the author is genuinely interested in
the subject he or she is writing about, it draws the reader in, as the author shares this interest with enthusiasm. This book did something very special: it took me back to a moment in time full of romance and comfort. As I read, I couldn't help but feel as I do, snuggled on the couch, watching a classic western with my husband. That's exactly the sort of feeling a romance book should inspire. So I give the book my highest recommendation, for story.
Technical: 3 Flirty Little Winks
I find that many romance novellas are lacking effective technical structure. An Outlaw in Her Bed held
up well in terms of syntactical and literary structure. K.E. Shade
produced an excellent, natural flow in terms of language, which is
essential to telling a story (if it doesn't "sound" natural, it doesn't
read natural). The one place where I thought it fell short was the
pacing. This is a flaw I find in many short romances. Perhaps romance
writers are seduced by the suitability of the genre to novella-length
stories, however, quite often I find authors skipping over areas that
really call for more time and focus. In the case of Outlaw, I
feel a few details were cramped into the story which could have been
ultimately removed, or given more focus. One of the bigger sins of the
romance genre as a whole is the dismissal of time passing with phrases
such as 'several weeks passed' or 'some months later'. Things happen in
that time, and in many cases, in romance, that is the time when
the little details begin to build into the bigger love story. A side
effect of this is that authors are then pressured to build up a lot of motivation in a little time. Outlaw does,
unfortunately, suffer a bit from this. The characters are driven
together much more quickly than feels natural, and in doing that the
author pressured herself to use what I think of as 'excuses': phrases
like, "it surprised her to feel so strongly about him so quickly' or
'How could he be this drawn to a woman he'd just met' (Please note these
are not direct quotes, only generic examples).
While this
rushed sense did disappoint me, I never felt 'kicked out' by it. I feel
the story suffered a bit from missing details that could have fleshed
out the characters much more, as they deserved to be (terrific
characters, by the way, loved every one of them). Ultimately, the book
still held up. I give the technical aspect an average score.
Passion: 4 Delighted Moans of Pleasure
Outlaw took a more "true-romance" style approach to the love scenes: softer language, tender images, and emotive response over physical. For a western, I feel it fit perfectly. It wasn't a roaring erotic read, but given the style of the book I feel anything more risque would have been awkward and drawn away from the romance (which is, in this book, the leading plot). I would have given Outlaw a
full five out of five, but I feel the love scenes could have taken it
just a step further, to be truly immersive for me as a romance reader.
By this I don't mean 'raunchier', but given more time to build up, and
afterwards, to wind down. Besides that minor point, though, the romance
was sweet, fitting and genuine. One of the most important aspects of
romance.
Final Score:
A Well-Satisfied 4 out of 5!
I recommend this book for fans of tender romance and good, strong genre fiction.
Excerpt:
With a
gasp of breath, Travis bolted upright in the bed. Sweat drenched his body. The
pitcher Austin had fetched sat on the table beside the bed, beads of moisture
running down the side. He'd fallen asleep and remembered...what? Travis groaned
and grabbed up his tin cup. Tremors rippled through his fingers. He cursed.
Then,
on a whisper of the wind, her heavenly visage blossomed in his head. The
shaking subsided and he filled the cup. His thirst took over. Before long, the
pitcher was empty yet the heat still burned within. To make matters worse, his
bladder had reached its capacity.
Soft
moonlight filtered through the wavy glass windows as he made his way through
the living area and into the kitchen. His footsteps were light. No telling if
the others had turned in for the night. The door creaked, and he stepped out
into the chilly night air. His urgency hit him full force. Mindful of the dark,
Travis headed toward the back of the house for privacy. Each bush along the
barn called to him, but the very first one got the honors. Relief spread
through him as he did his business. He jerked at the sound of a coyote in the
distance. They were close, but nothing to worry about with him heading back
inside.
As he
rounded the house, something caught his attention along a small picket fence.
He hurried along, the mournful howl of the coyotes ever closer.
"What
in..." Lying next to a mound of dirt was Ella sound asleep. Travis scooped
her up. She was surprisingly light. The moonlight framed her face. So peaceful
like an angel. He took her inside. The scent of her hair tickled his nostrils.
A faint smell of wood fire from cooking and the fine sandy earth from the grave
lingered. She was heaven and hell all wrapped into one.
He took
her into the bedroom and onto the bed. At the doorway, he hesitated. Her legs
were all askew. The boots she wore had mud caked on them. He sighed and went
back to her side. No sense leaving her with more cleaning in the morning. One
by one the boots came off. Not content with leaving her in a dress worse for
wear, he searched around her bedroom for her night attire. It hung off the side
of a beautiful screen. He tossed it to the bed and lifted Ella to a sitting
position.
"Ma'am?
Sorry, Ella?" He brushed away the few strands of hair from her face.
"I don't think you want to sleep in your dress." Her head rolled to
the side. Again her intoxicating scent hit him full force. His breeches
tightened, and a lump formed in his throat. Closing his eyes, he fumbled with
the clasps and buttons on the back of her dress.
"Lord,
forgive me," he whispered. "Wake up and save me from doing
this." Ella did not respond. Continuing his dubious task, he shimmied her
arms out. She fell from his arms back onto the bed. Bared in front of him were
her unblemished breasts. Unable to contain his growing erection, heat burned in
his veins and fueled its ascension. Yet he never looked away, much to his
embarrassment. Ella was a fine sight to behold. Though she wore her tan lines
well, the pale flesh she kept hidden from the world enticed him to touch, nip,
and taste. He reached over for her nightgown, and guided her head through. His
elbow grazed her nipple. A slight moan whistled through his lips. What wicked
thoughts brewed in his head? He worked quickly to slide her arms through the
sleeves. The rest of the dress crumpled to the floor.
Tucked
under her blankets, she posed no threat to his aching trousers. At the doorway,
he stared at her sleeping peacefully. Slumber would elude him this night. Her
flesh would torment his dreams if he dared lie down. He'd form a plan to keep
his distance from her so that his want to touch her soft skin would not boil
over to unwanted advances. The woman had lost her husband and didn't need some
stranger pawing at her.
Back in
his room, Travis propped himself up against the wall trying to conjure up the
image he had when he'd fallen asleep previously. Time ticked by, and the pink
glow of a new day stretched into his room. Only one thing slid across the
recesses of his mind: Ella half undressed resting peacefully on her bed.
"I am surely bound for hell." He jumped off the bed
and headed outside. Perhaps dunking his head in the trough would clear his
unclean thoughts away.
Purchase Links:
K.E. is offering a very special giveaway. She's offering up a $10 Breathless
Press gift certificate, an ecopy of An Outlaw in Her Bed, and a handcrafted
frame complete with a signed cover art. Just click below to enter. Make sure
you follow the instructions!
