Out of nowhere Comanches attack—and sixteen-year-old Jane narrowly survives the slaughter of her family and the kidnapping of her baby sister. Driven by grief and fury, she rides headlong into Indian territory, seeking vengeance. But the odds are stacked against a young girl on the trail, and Jane soon realizes she must disguise herself as a boy to join forces with a tough company of cowhands on a cattle drive to Dodge City. The harrowing trek pits her against tough drovers, raging rivers, ruthless soldiers, and ends in a bloody reckoning that forces Jane to discover her surprising capacity for love, survival—and revenge.
This is James Robert Daniels first book, and what a powerful debut it is. Enthralling, tragic, heart-warming, humorous and brutal. Daniel’s prose pulled me into the story from the opening scene and didn’t loosen its grip until the final words. At times this is a dark tale but there is a lot of hope, of lightness in the mix too.
Jane’s hatred for the Comanches who slaughtered her family and stole her sister is intense, and she’s prepared to accept whatever the cost to achieve her quest to free Sally without complaint, even if that means her own death.
A major part of the story is a cattle drive. Jane disguising herself as her dead twin brother, soon to be known as The Comanche Kid, is a great plot element, and I was waiting, and waiting to see if the cowboys would see through her masquerade, especially when they decide that The Kid needs to lose his virginity with a whore. This part of the story being compelling reading, how would Jane deal with this situation without revealing herself to be a girl rather than the boy her companions believe her to be?
One of the major strengths of this book is the authors’ ability to portray emotions, be they hate, despair, fear, frustration, love and anguish. Daniels perfectly captures all of these including the confusing emotions Jane experiences as she begins to fall in love with one of the cowboys yet cannot act on it without revealing the truth about herself.
The action scenes are superbly described, gunfights, stampedes, or cavalry attacks on Indian camps, all making me feel that I was there, sharing the exhilaration and fear that these deadly situations evoked.
There has been a lot of praise heaped on this book, and I can only say that it is all warranted. This really is a terrific read; one no western fan should miss.
Sounds like a good read. I'll add it to my TBR pile.
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