Written in the Cards by Lauren Linwood-a review

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Written in the Cards by Lauren Linwood-a review

Written in the Cards

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk/

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 20, 2014

Maggie Rutherford jilts her too-perfect society groom at the altar and flees New York for the American West, where she turns her travels into dime novels that she writes and illustrates under the pen name Lud Madison.

After the Civil War, veteran Ben Morgan marries his childhood sweetheart and takes her to homestead on the Great Plains. Losing her and their unborn child in an Indian attack, Ben detaches from emotion and becomes a roaming gambler. When he kills a cheating opponent in self-defense, the man’s gunslinger brother swears revenge upon Ben.

Ben hides on a cattle drive and brings in a herd to Abilene, where a waiting Maggie wants to find a rough and tumble cowboy to interview for her next story idea. Sparks fly as the dangerous drover and popular novelist wind up living in the same household, running a general store east of Abilene. But with Black Tex Lonnegan hot on his trail, will Ben run from his growing attraction to Maggie and the gunfighter’s promise of death–or will he make a stand for his life–and love?

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REVIEWS:  If, by some chance, you haven’t read the other fine books by Lauren Linwood you really must begin now!

This is a wonderfully romantic story of the Old West! Old towns like Abilene, Easton bursting with the flavor of the Old West. Gamblers, gunfights, cattle drives and so much more.

Ben Morgan is introduced in the first chapter as a man, damaged by war, who has taken his young (not so eager) bride out west to begin a life as a farmer. While he’s away getting supplies, his wife (pregnant with their first child) is brutally killed by Indians. The stunning reality of this chapter amazed me, yet the details were not hammered out to the point of nausea as some would tend to do.

The heroine is a strong and talented woman, born to wealth, but with an independent nature and heart. She leaves a Lech at the altar, heads west to adventure and a successful writing career. Margaret E. Rutherford (aka: Maggie) is a lovely young woman with imagination and incredible talent, who meets Ben Morgan while in Abilene after a cattle drive. She interviews him about life on the trail for her next best-selling dime novel.

How Ben becomes a gambler, then has to run from a lethal gunslinger and takes off on a cattle drive, only to meet Maggie after the drive in Abilene is so well written you actually feel the dust and your heart races at the danger.

Of course, these two are fated to find each other, and do in Easton a small town outside of Abilene. Ms. Linwood weaves this intricate yet flowing tale of two fated lovers in her usual wonderful twisty style, mixing their past adventures into the present tale with well written dialog and descriptions.

It’s so great to feel the adventure and yet so much reality of the Old West that you feel your rear hurt from the saddle and you just know you need to shower the dust off yourself! While at the same time the thrill of new love and romance (and yes some nice steamy lust) keeps your heart pumping.

I won’t give you anymore spoilers, this is just too good, you have to experience this adventure for yourself! It’s well worth the time to read and enjoy.

Grab your favorite beverage, a few tissues…you’ll be in for a great adventure with humor, danger, romance, steamy love scenes, some incredible sadness and a magnificent HEA! Enjoy everyone; I certainly did as I couldn’t put this one down!

Copy supplied by the author

Reviewed by Georgianna

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28 thoughts on “Written in the Cards by Lauren Linwood-a review”

    • Sassy – I love to write in this time period! It has so much to offer and lets me combine love & adventure in unique ways. I hope you’ll give WRITTEN IN THE CARDS a read. I’ve also written 2 other western historicals…and plan to write many more.

    • I love a great modern day cowboy story, too, Barb, but my writing heart is in historicals. I write medieval & westerns. Had a blast creating this story of a women who writes dime novels and the cowboy/gambler she falls hard & fast for!

    • I loved this cover, Rose. I thought it really looked like Maggie & Ben when I saw it. I think it captures their love story. Covers by Ramona has done all 4 of my historical romances. She is awesome!

  5. Thanks again to The Reading Café and Georgi for being so generous in hosting me today! You have supported me on my writer’s journey, and I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to create thoughtful & thorough reviews.

    • Thanks Lauren, your writing is exciting, twisty, full of surprises and that wonderful romance that I love so much! Please keep up the great stories, I just love them! Thanks!

    • Alicia – Not many authors are writing in this era nowadays. Modern cowboys have taken things over, or historical authors usually write during the Regency era. I still like to go back in time and explore what was happening in the West and how it could affect relationships. Give CARDS a try & tell me what you think!

      • I have found your stories quite amazing, romantic and… well yes, sometimes incredibly hot! The conversations and personalities are unique and I’ve come to love them! I even love (to hate) the villians.

  7. great review Georgianna. Nothing like a good historical romance to spend a lazy weekend with. I’ve recently got back into historical romances and am enjoying them, and I do love me some sexy cowboys. 😉 Congrats on the new release Lauren.

    • Thank you, Marcie. I read all kinds of romance, but I do love curling up with anything historical in just about any era! I’d love to try a time travel someday, but Diana Gabaldon’s done such an amazing job of it, she’s scared me off for now. I especially love historicals by Amanda Quick, Julia Quinn, Sabrina Jeffries, and Eloisa James.

    • Thank you, Iraida! I thought it was a good twist to have the heroine be the writer. At first, I was going to make Ben the author, but Maggie strongly objected to that. She thought she was smart & creative and would do a better job. I’m glad I listened to her because it freed up Ben to be a roaming gambler!

      • Iriada, it was an excellent and wonderful story. I love the twists Lauren puts into her stories, they’re not just blah…blah… They have wonderful and interesting characters, incredible danger, great imaginative solutions! Can you tell I’m a fan? LOL

    • I hope you will give it a shot, Mari! I think the American West offers so many possibilities for plotting. I’ve had 3 published so far, and they’ve all been very different – a heroine falsely accused of murder; a hero who wins a famous whorehouse in a card game; and this one with a lady author who writes dime novels. My editor just bought another yesterday (YEA!), and it’s about a Texas Ranger whose father was a famous outlaw. Give CARDS a try and please tell me what you think about it!

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