Stages of the Heart by Jo Goodman – a Review
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Description:
Experience has taught Laurel to be suspicious of the men who pass through Morrison Station. She’s been running the lucrative operation that connects Colorado’s small frontier town of Falls Hollow with the stagecoach line since she inherited it from her father, and she’s not about to let some wandering cowboy take over the reins. But newcomer McCall Landry isn’t just any gunslinger. He seems to genuinely care for Laurel, and with his rugged good looks and mysterious past, he could be the one man to finally tempt her off track…
Call Landry doesn’t expect much from Falls Hollow. He doesn’t expect much from anything anymore. But Laurel Morrison took him by surprise when she put in a good word for him, a virtual stranger, after the stagecoach was robbed–and she keeps taking him by surprise. Charmed by her clever wit and fierce loyalty, Call finds himself falling hard. Now all he has to do is convince her he means to stay–in her bed, in her life, and in her heart.
Review:
Stages of the Heart by Jo Goodman is a western standalone novel that takes place in the Colorado frontier. This is a western historical romance that I really enjoyed, especially with the couple being so likable, as well as Goodman always writes wonderful stories.
We meet our heroine, Laurel Morrison, who runs a stagecoach line (Morrison Station) that connects through Falls Hollow. Laurel inherited this from her father, and both of her brothers were killed, leaving her alone to run the station. She has a very good group of people who help her, and she is determined to make sure she wins the contract for the future railroad tracks coming their way.
Call Landry, our hero, makes an overnight stop at the station, when a robbery is discovered, he agrees to help the driver to the next stop.. Call accepts a job from the head of the stagecoach to go back to Falls Hollow and investigate who stole the money. Call is happy to go back, as he couldn’t help but be very attracted to Laurel. In a short time, they will begin to work together to try and discover who was behind the robbery; along the way, they will both succumb to the fantastic chemistry between them. I loved Call and Laurel together, and got a kick out of the bantering between them. Will Call stay in Falls Hollow and Laurel? Will Laurel allow herself to trust her feelings for Call, and his feelings for her?
What follows is a sweet romance between Call, who had quickly fallen hard for Laurel, with him having to convince her that he was serious about his feelings for her and that he wanted to stay. Will Lauren believe him? They were so great together, as the romance was fun, humorous and their chemistry was sensual. The mystery of finding the robber, escalates after finding the body of the suspected robber. There were a number of suspects, which created the danger and tension. To say too much more would be spoilers, but I loved this wonderful couple, as well as some great secondary characters. Jo Goodman did an excellent job in creating a wonderful couple in Call and Laurel, and a story which had a lot of humorous banter, tragedy and an enjoyable romance. If you enjoy romance, a western and historical background, with a fun sexy couple, then you should read Stages of the Heart.
Reviewed by Barb
Copy provided by Publisher
Laurel drew her braid forward over her shoulder and fingered it. Up and down. Up and down. Working up to asking the question that had been uppermost in her mind. He seemed to know it, too, because he let her sit there in silence and didn’t feel a need to fill it. “Why are you doing this?” she finally asked. “Why did you accept the job?”
“There are a few different answers to that, all of them true, some of them truer than others. Are you sure you want to know?”
“I asked,” she said. “Yes, I want to know. I want to know the truest answer.”
“All right, but don’t make me sorry I told you. Don’t suddenly get up like you forgot something you have to do and disappear on me.”
“I don’t run.”
“Mm. Let’s see. Here it is: I took Mr. Stonechurch up on his offer because it was an opportunity to see you again.” Call waited to see if she would say something. She didn’t. She didn’t move either. She was so still that she might have been stone. “Are you breathing? Doesn’t seem as if you’re breathing.”
“Yes, I’m breathing.” In fact, her breath had caught for a moment and the next breath she captured was shallow. There was no reason to tell him that. “You must think a lot of yourself if you believe I’d be so flattered that I’d cease to breathe.”
Call shrugged. “I’ve seen it happen.”
“You’re either a liar or a braggart. Neither quality recommends your character.”
He chuckled low in his throat. “True. What about your heart? Did it skip a beat?”
Laurel smirked. “Uh-huh. Tripped right over itself.”
“You’re mocking me, aren’t you? I hear mocking.”
“I’m smirking, too.”
“Can’t see that. Not sure smirking is an attractive expression for you.”
“That’s unfortunate. I do it a lot.”
“Doesn’t put me off, though. I’m still glad I took the job.”
“That’s ridiculous, you know.”
“So you say. I’m satisfied.”
Laurel simply shook her head. “What are the other slightly less true reasons you took the job?”
“So we’re moving on, are we?”
“Yes.” She was firm on that.
“Well, you know I was looking for a job with Stonechurch Mining when this came along. I needed money, and I figured a job was a better way of getting it than thievery. Maybe I can rise a little in your estimation by telling you that stealing never occurred to me.” He waited to see if she would comment. She didn’t so he went on. “I didn’t have enough capital to buy into a poker game. Didn’t want to start riding shotgun again if I could avoid it. And I figured my prospects were limited for what the army trained me to do.”
Laurel peered through the darkness, trying to make out his features and gauge the truth of what he was telling her. “And what was that?”
“Kill.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah,” he said flatly. “You probably don’t want to know if I was any good at it.”
“No, Mr. Landry, I don’t. Your presence is testament enough to your talent for it.”
“Call,” he said.
“What?”
“My name. You keep calling me Mr. Landry, I’m going to stop answering to it.”
“I’ll think about it. Maybe I won’t say your name at all.”
“That’d be better than the other.”
“I’m not sure I understand your objection.”
He shrugged. “Isn’t it enough that I have one?”
Laurel considered that. “All right,” she said at last.
“Thank you.”
