Montana Wildfire by Rebecca Sinclair

This was a real bodice-ripping (quite literally) page-sizzler!

Amanda Lennox's job is to accompany a precocious little brat from Boston to Pony in Montana to reunite him with his wealthy father.  Her wilderness expertise is somewhat questionable and she manages to find herself not only way off route in Idaho, but also in dire need of assistance when she gets stuck in a freezing cold stream-bed.  Her unruly charge manages to find help in the form of Jake Chandler, a half-white, half-Indian (Injun), cynical 'hunk' of a man.

Sparks fire immediately between Amanda and Jake and while they are hurling abuse at each other (shrouding the inevitable magnetism they feel for each other), the obnoxious little scamp is kidnapped.  Jake and Amanda have to fight the undeniable attraction they have for each other and collaborate to find the boy, so that Amanda can deliver him safely to his father.

I found the story rather slow – 30-40% into the book Jake and Amanda were still dancing around each other, with only one thing in the way – she is a Bostonian 'lady' with spunk and independence, he is a 'half-breed' with a colossal chip on this shoulder and I did get rather impatient wishing they would just get on with it.  I did, however, like the author's style and was very impressed by her rich and sumptuous vocabulary;  she finds endless ways to describe a copper-skinned, lean-hipped, taut-stomached, inky-haired, sooty-eyelashed, chisel-jawed hunk and reasons why Jake and Amanda should not give into their carnal desires.  Her portrayal and conception of the pair were immaculate – there was a very African Queen (Bogart-Hepburn - for those old enough to remember!) aura about their relationship – and I liked them both as characters – they both had a rebellious, non-conformist nature.  However, the book was just too long for the depth of plot.  It could have been half the length and still have delivered the same amount of heat and passion with no loss of intensity. The skill of the author is evident whether the book is 200 pages long or 400.

The book had me wanting more, not of the plot or characters, but most certainly of Rebecca's writing.  It is luxuriant, expressive, warm, flamboyant and gratifying.  I would certainly like to read more from this author.