num_pages: 591
description: Clementine Kennicutt a ladylike New Englander aches to leave her home and her oppressive father. So when Gus McQueen a cowboy with laughing eyes and big dreams presses her to elope with him to his Montana ranch she is ready. But nothing has prepared her for the harsh realities of frontier life or for the unpredictable hankering of her heart--and least of all for the fact that almost from the first moment she sets eyes on Zach Gus's dashing ne'er do-well brother she knows he's the one she was destined to love. Brought up to be a lady Clementine determines not to let the frontier--or her marriage--defeat her. She devours life befriending the town prostitute defending Indians and suppressing her heart's desire until Zach forces her to face him and make her choice. On a vast canvas dotted with memorable characters and one rousing adventure after another--shootups storms a mine explosion an attack by a rabid wolf Penny Williamson has created an irresistible work of fiction that combines the heroic and gritty appeal of westerns like Lonesome Dove and Streets of Laredo with the romantic enchantment of The Thorn Birds..
language: English
title: Heart of the West
publisher: Simon & Schuster