Mariah loves her fiancé, Seth Travers. But when Seth leaves to make his fortune in Montana, ahead of her arrival, she starts thinking for herself. Finally arriving by steamboat, Mariah learns that Seth has taken ill and sent his best friend, Creed Devereaux, to escort her to Virginia City. Mariah wants nothing to do with the rough-edged bounty hunter who's just killed a half-breed murderer in front of her. But an unexpected detour sends the pair through dangerous mountains... alone. Forced together, their loyalties to Seth are put to the test while their path converges with a man who has Creed dead in his sights. AWARDS: RITA Nomination, Romance Writers of America REVIEWS: "An action-packed, sensual love story, brimming with danger and peopled with an unforgettable mismatched couple who overcome all odds to find true happiness." ~Harriet Klausner, Romantic Times WILD WESTERN HEARTS, in series order Holt's Gamble Renegade Bride Renegade's Kiss Chase the Fire

Kierin McKendry is indentured to J. Talbot, a ruthless saloon owner, until Clay Holt wins her in a rigged poker game. When Clay tries to collect his winnings, he's attacked by Talbot's men and badly injured. Clay never expected Keirin to take him to the wagon train on which he was due to leave, or that she would lie about being his wife and nurse him back to health while on the trail. But, Keirin isn't interested in a man consumed by avenging his wife's murder. She's pursuing her father, who sold her for a ticket to the California gold fields. However, posing as a married couple, spending night after night together, is fanning Keirin and Clay into a different kind of blinding passion that's blazing the way for Talbot, who will kill to have what's his. Previously Titled: Passion's Prize AWARDS: Best First Historical, Romantic Times REVIEWS: "...lively plot, believable characters and exciting adventures with a sensual love story." ~Marilyn Dickman, Romantic Times WILD WESTERN HEARTS, in series order Holt's Gamble Renegade Bride Renegade's Kiss Chase the Fire

During the Battle of the Wilderness, Union Major Chase Whitlaw shoots a Rebel soldier, just as they're both cut down by a terrible explosion. As the Reb lies dying, he begs Whitlaw to return a locket to his wife, Libby, in New Mexico and tell her he loves her. Chase half-heartedly agrees, until Libby's picture in the locket becomes his touchstone, helping him to survive his injuries. In New Mexico, Chase finds Libby in desperate straits and offers help instead of truth. Libby's horse ranch, plagued by unexplained accidents, is failing. Until the arrival of the war-scarred stranger, a neighbor's unwelcome offer of marriage was the only way to save her son's inheritance. But now, she has Chase. Working side-by-side, their passion becomes undeniable until Chase's truth is revealed. Now, Libby must decide: forgive or say goodbye forever. REVIEWS: "...a splendid tale of strong men, stubborn women, wild horses and a love that heals as it grows." ~Melinda Helfer, Romantic Times WILD WESTERN HEARTS, in series order Holt's Gamble Renegade Bride Renegade's Kiss Chase the Fire

*Formerly titled FIREBLOSSOM* Daniel "Fox" Matthews, sent to Little Bighorn by the president to keep an eye on hot-headed General Custer, is haunted by guilt for a battle outcome he couldn't prevent. The raucous gold town of Deadwood, South Dakota seems like the perfect refuge, although it's located in the Black Hills, sacred land to the same Sioux Indians who decimated Custer's troops. Madeleine Avery, raised to be a lady in Philadelphia, is appalled when she arrives in Deadwood with her family. Slowly she unbends, coaxed out of her shell by a powerful attraction to Fox and a journey into the world of the Sioux Indians. IN A RENEGADE'S EMBRACE is a compelling tale of cultures colliding and the bittersweet, tender journey of Fox and Maddie as they discover the secrets of their own hearts. REVIEWS: "By including historical figures like Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickok, Custer and Crazy Horse, Cynthia Wright adds depth and color to an absolutely wonderful novel!" ~ ROMANTIC TIMES "Wright weaves history and fiction together skillfully. Maddie is a proper lady who must learn to unbend. Fox is the presidential adviser who's undercover and trying to live with a decision that left him alive while Custer's men died. Like 'Dances With Wolves,' IN A RENEGADE'S EMBRACE paints the Sioux as an idyllic people faced with the end of life as they know it. Wright creates sympathetic Indian characters and populates Deadwood with an array of real-life eccentrics. IN A RENEGADE'S EMBRACE again shows why Wright is one of the country's most popular romance novelists." ~ THE SIOUX FALLS ARGUS LEADER Author's note: Maddie's grandmother, Susan Hampshire O'Hara, is the daughter of Lion & Meagan from TOUCH THE SUN. She also appears in HER DANGEROUS VISCOUNT as a young woman.

From four acclaimed authors come four all-new novellas featuring the rugged men of the West and the women who want them… From Jodi Thomas...Callie has done a lot of crazy things, but it’ll take one more to prove she isn’t nuts: find a husband, fast! Her only requirement: he has to be taller than she is and swear not to have her committed during their ruse of a marriage. From Jo Goodman...Felicity Ravenwood was raised to be independent-minded, but when this runaway bride opposes her father’s choices, it is up to Nat Church to bring her around. But he doesn’t count on springing her from jail, holding her hostage, or falling head over boot-heels in love. From Kaki Warner...Two strangers on a train have more in common than they know—both have hidden purposes and ties to a Nebraska bank robbery. But when their schemes unravel, they find a bigger surprise awaiting them than either could have imagined. From Alison Kent...When runaway New York socialite Maeve Daugherty joins her father’s bodyguard Zeb Crow on his personal mission of revenge, what was a slightly scandalous new life as a bookkeeper for an infamous San Antonio brothel becomes downright dangerous. But that’s not stopping Maeve from having the time of her life.

HE MAY BE HER ONLY HOPE. SHE MAY BE HIS LAST CHANCE. Miranda Wentworth never imagined becoming a mail-order bride. Now marriage to a stranger is her only hope of finding a home where she and her two younger brothers can escape the brutality of the Chicago orphanage where they live. With any luck, she can even start a family of her own, once the three of them are settled at Jacob Creed’s Texas ranch. But Miranda has one gigantic concern: Her husband-to-be knows nothing about the brothers she’s bringing along. What if he calls off the deal when he discovers the trick she’s played on him? Jake Creed is hanging on to his Texas ranch by his fingernails. His nemesis, Alexander Blackthorne, is determined to ruin him. Jake will never give up, but he’s in desperate trouble. His wife died six months ago in childbirth, along with their stillborn son, and his two-year-old daughter needs a mother. The advertisement Jake wrote never mentioned his daughter—or the fact that he has no intention of consummating his marriage. He’s determined never to subject another wife to the burden of pregnancy. But Jake doesn’t count on finding his bride so desirable. He doesn’t count on aching with need when she joins him in bed. And he never suspected his bride would have plans of her own to seduce him. The passionate Westerns in Joan Johnston’s Bitter Creek series can be enjoyed together or separately, in any order: TEXAS BRIDE • WYOMING BRIDE • MONTANA BRIDE • SINFUL • SHAMELESS • BLACKTHORNE’S BRIDE • SULLIVAN’S PROMISE