Review: Delightful Historical Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 08 13, 2012
Today, I'm reviewing the cute and fun historical romance, Colorado Silver, Colorado Gold. Terry Irene Blain has managed to take a scenario that is somewhat predictable in historical romance and turn it on its head.The story centers on Julie, a young woman fleeing to Durango, Colorado to escape the secrets she left behind in Philadelphia.Durango is also home to another new transplant, the dashing Wes Westmoreland. He is an undercover Wells Fargo agent, posing as a man-of-all-trades looking for work in the town's silver and gold smelting companies.Julie has also found comfort in the smelters, working in the office for her uncle. Set in the late 1800s in a gold mining town in the West, Colorado Silver, Colorado Gold has the potential to be another dime store romance. Luckily, there is no discounting Blain's sheer talent. Her ability to craft deep characters catapults the story from ordinary to a damn good read.Julie is whip smart, albeit a bit sheltered. She is strong and savvy and unwilling to accept that she should walk two feet behind her man. She is also flawed, afraid of everyone uncovering her secrets or learning that she is not always so sure of herself. Her attraction to wild man Wes scares her, forcing her to hid behind proper social behaviors to avoid giving into her growing passion.Wes is equally damaged, having grown up a saloon kid, he is used to being used and dismissed. It makes him wary of his attraction to Julie. He also knows his time in Durango is limited, and fears that starting a relationship will damage his position with Wells Fargo. After all, working undercover is not so conducive to putting down roots.I will admit at times the story was slow. Unlike some romances, Julie and Wes' relationship is not a passionate blaze. Instead it builds slowly, with the romantic apex coming near the end of the story. The slow parts are minimized by Blain's talent to transport her readers to a new time and place. I could clearly picture dusty, Durango as it was in the late 1800s.Blain also has a knack for building adventure and mystery into the romance. It reads beautifully giving this story an edge of the plethora of poorly written, predictable romances on the market today.Disclaimer: I was gifted a copy of this book for review, however all opinions are my own.