Bitter Springs

24/26Justice Has a Price-but Love Demands an Even Greater One in The Last Renegade, by Jo Goodman, a Western Historical Romance Adventure Bitter Springs, Wyoming - 1888 Kellen Coltrane arrives in Bitter Springs carrying a stranger's Colts-and a story Raine Berry never expected to hear. The widow who owns the Pennyroyal Hotel hired the legendary "Nat Church" to protect her town from the powerful Burdick family. Instead, she's met by a man who claims Church was murdered on the way. Bitter Springs needs a defender. Jurors from the Burdick trial are turning up dead, the marshal has been killed, and a corrupt new lawman ensures justice won't come from the badge. Reluctantly, Kellen steps into the role he never asked for, determined to honor a dying man's promise. Raine doesn't trust him-but she can't ignore the safety he brings… or the dangerous pull growing between them. When a marriage of convenience becomes the only way to keep her safe, the lines blur between necessity and desire. As threats close in, Kellen and Raine must stand together-before the Burdicks' revenge destroys everything, including their fragile new love. Perfect for fans of Diana Palmer, Lorraine Heath, and Kaki Warner. Awards: Top Ten Best Romances 2018 Library Journal Best Romance, All About Romance 2008 Annual Reader Poll Romantic Times Career Achievement Award Top Ten Romance of the Year 2011, Library Journal #5 in the Top 100 Romances of All Time, Dear Author Starred reviews, Publishers Weekly. Reviews: "A romance to savor." ~Library Journal "Goodman has a real flair…Witty dialogue, first-rate narrative prose, and clever plotting." ~Publishers Weekly "A master storyteller" ~The Romance Dish "Jo Goodman is a master at historical romance." ~Fresh Fiction

A Detective on a Mission, a Schoolteacher with Secrets-Love Takes Them Both by Surprise in True to the Law Bitter Springs, Wyoming - 1889 Private detective Cobb Bridger arrives in Bitter Springs with one assignment: find Tru Morrow and keep her in sight until the wealthy Mackey family can confront her. They claim she stole something valuable-though they refuse to say what. Cobb doesn't like the secrecy, but he takes the job. Tru has started over as the town's schoolteacher, unaware that the polite stranger she bumps into has been hired to track her down. Their early encounters turn unexpectedly warm, and soon Cobb doubts she could be guilty of anything-especially as he learns more about the Mackeys' true motives. When her accuser, Andrew Mackey, arrives, Cobb tries to protect Tru-only to discover she's far from helpless. But Mackey's obsession quickly turns violent, leaving her drugged and her home in flames. Cobb risks everything to save her, yet the truth that surfaces afterward is even more explosive than the fire itself. Perfect for fans of Diana Palmer, Lorraine Heath, and Kaki Warner. Awards: Top Ten Best Romances 2018 Library Journal Best Romance, All About Romance 2008 Annual Reader Poll Romantic Times Career Achievement Award Top Ten Romance of the Year 2011, Library Journal #5 in the Top 100 Romances of All Time, Dear Author Starred reviews, Publishers Weekly. Reviews: "A romance to savor." ~Library Journal "Goodman has a real flair…Witty dialogue, first-rate narrative prose, and clever plotting." ~Publishers Weekly "A master storyteller" ~The Romance Dish "Jo Goodman is a master at historical romance." ~Fresh Fiction

A Marriage of Convenience Becomes a Fight for Love-and for Their Lives-in In Want of a Wife Bitter Springs, Wyoming - 1891 Jane Middlebourne escapes an unkind home in New York by agreeing to a mail-order marriage with Wyoming rancher Morgan Longstreet. But when she arrives in Bitter Springs, Morgan discovers the photograph she sent was swapped by her cousin to undermine her escape. Unsure whether to trust each other, they spend a day deciding their future-and find themselves unexpectedly drawn together. They marry and return to Morgan's Morning Star ranch, where Jane quickly proves her strength and capability, winning over the ranch hands and easing Morgan's guarded heart. What begins as a practical union deepens into something tender neither expected. But when Morgan's criminal brothers return, determined to force him into a bank robbery, they use Jane as leverage-threatening the fragile peace she's built and the love quietly growing between them. Now Jane and Morgan must decide not only how far they'll go to protect each other, but whether the bond they're building is strong enough to become the forever they never dared hope for. Perfect for fans of Diana Palmer, Lorraine Heath, and Kaki Warner. Awards: Top Ten Best Romances 2018 Library Journal Best Romance, All About Romance 2008 Annual Reader Poll Romantic Times Career Achievement Award Top Ten Romance of the Year 2011, Library Journal #5 in the Top 100 Romances of All Time, Dear Author Starred reviews, Publishers Weekly. Reviews: "A romance to savor." ~Library Journal "Goodman has a real flair…Witty dialogue, first-rate narrative prose, and clever plotting." ~Publishers Weekly "A master storyteller" ~The Romance Dish "Jo Goodman is a master at historical romance." ~Fresh Fiction