Passion's Splendor

Outlaws, Scoundrels & Lawmen #2

by Carla Simpson

The lady in search of her past Laine has lived her life not knowing who her real family was before she arrived in Philadelphia as a small child, along with hundreds of children who filled the orphan trains that traveled to the East. All she has is the name that was written on a piece of paper pinned to her dress--Dalton--the name of a notorious outlaw gang written about in the dime novels, with prices on their heads, responsible for dozens of deaths in the lawless West.Now a man has entered her life who may have the answers to the questions she's had her whole life--Who is she? What happened to her family? How did she get there? If she's brave enough, strong enough to follow him into the dangerous Oklahoma Territory where the Dalton name means blood and death.A man who closed the door on his past Marshal Ranse McCandliss lost his family in the lawless, dangerous Oklahoma Territory far beyond the tame streets of Philadelphia or Washington D.C. where he tracks down a young woman with an unknown past. He once rode with the oldest Dalton brother, until his friend was killed and he narrowly escaped. Now, he is the law, determined to learn the truth about the lady, her connection to the notorious Dalton Gang, and hunt down the rest of the Daltons once and for all.When the lady is taken hostage, he's forced to go after her, following a trail into the lawless Outlet where every man makes his own law, and it's kill or be killed. It's a path that will test them both and their unwanted feelings for one another as time runs out for the Dalton Gang in bloody last gunfight.

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Historical

Paperback

First published June 1, 1987

About the author

Carla Simpson also writes as Quinn Taylor Evans.

Reviews

[Jaclyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Total page count: 528

Fun in spots, and the cover is great. Meh in how dated a lot of the language and attitudes are, but it was published in 1987, so I'll give it a pass.

Like Laine was so perfectly gorgeous with violet eyes and super slender and tiny and delicate but with gorgeous curves. A villain woman was described by how fat she was every few sentences (she moved her "ponderous girth" like 5 times in two pages or she had a "wide flat face" several times in a single page). And a Native American villain is called the S word a couple of times and had some really racist depictions, like, engaging in white slavery and selling poor innocent white women at auction. And like, fine, a Native American character can be a villain but like, the descriptions of his "cruel" actions and "dark skin" compared to the "pale skin" and "slender throat" of the white women in the space just sets up this whole Other framing that's super cringe. Again, 1987, so I'll give this author some grace, but it just got really heavy-handed and hard to excuse.

The melodrama got a bit ridiculous at times (Laine must've been in mortal danger dozens of times in a chapter.) And when kidnapped by a bad guy, every thing he does is done "cruelly" to her "soft, delicate, slender" arm or neck or whatever. Or he "cruelly" stuffs a "filthy rag" between her "soft, trembling lips". Like ok, we get it. And I get that melodrama can be fun, but after a while, it's just like, OMG enough.

I'm also meh on the women vs women hate, like the mean girl other woman who wants to marry Ranse and is jealous of Laine. Because of course she'd never been as slender as Laine even as a kid. 🙄 and like, she's just incompetent with her mean girl antics and every other man in the place is so naturally entranced by Laine's beauty that other woman just never stood a chance at all.

And ok we get her hair is red "copper like a brand new penny" and it obviously drives all the men and boys wild coz redheads are so ridiculously rare.

And a lot of that I could kinda excuse coz whatever, different times, different writing styles. But then Laine has some TSTL moments that's just annoying. Like going after the Dalton outlaws herself coz they may be her relations. And actually following a shady guy down an unknown path -- alone! -- coz he promises to take her to them. (Said shady guy turns out to be the cruel dude with the filthy rag who kidnaps her, big surprise. 🙄)

And then when Ranse sets up a trap to catch the Daltons during a planned robbery, Laine follows him there so she can talk to the Daltons herself about her past. And some shopkeeper tells her to hide in his shop coz people are shooting guns outside, but no, of course she gets away from him and walks right up to the Daltons.

Literally, she walks into the center of a gunfight, and just stares at them until one of them takes her hostage and holds a gun to her head as she "fights back her fear." And like, girl, what did you expect???

It also just got really long. Like omg, how many more terrors must happen???

Anyway, 2 or 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 coz it was published in 1987, and despite the bits I complained about, other parts of it were also silly, sexy fun.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating tale. A young woman arrived in Philadelphia many years ago with nothing but a note with her name pinned to her collar. She is taken in by a wealthy widow and sent to the right schools with all her needs taken care of and her future provided for. Until one day a US Marshal comes to town and starts asking questions. That her last name Dalton and she seems to have connections to the infamous outlaws by the same name. Except she doesn’t know anything about her past no matter how hard he pushes. When work gets out she’s cut off and turn out. Her only chance is to clear her name and for that she needs the truth whatever it may be. So she sets out on her quest, her destination the untamed west. Will she find the truth? Or will prejudices against her name, entanglements with the Marshal, time and the dangerous territory keep her in the dark. Read on for a tale of Wild West wonder, love, danger and so much more. This story will draw you in from page one and not let you go until you finish. Absolutely fantastic!!.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Suzette · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great historical western with a fiery heroine. Laine is an orphan forced on a mission to discover who she is. Ranse is the handsome lawman who has set her on this track. The story goes from the settings of polite Philadelphia society to the untamed territory of Ohio. With train robberies and gunfights the reader is very entertained as Laine and Ranse go off on their adventures. All the while they are fighting their feelings for each other. There are some lovely surprises that were quite interesting.

[Bks43v3r · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

[Janyne Laing · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic read. It is very much a “western” with most of it taking place in Guthrie, Oklahoma. I really liked both characters. Ranse was especially striking to me in that he is so different from other heros from this author and even within this series. It is rare that you have a hero realize pretty early on he’s in love and really fight for her the rest of the book even if she ignores or rejects him. I will say that the first half was incredible- the pacing, the action and the development. The second half kind of hit a bit of a lull for me. The parts with Ginny just felt like ‘where are we going with this and can we figure this Dalton thing out faster’? I do think you really see the heroine develop though in these chapters. Loved the developed relationship with Addison and the reveal in the end that ties this all together. Some favorite moments were the train robbery in the beginning, the scene where Ranse gives up his badge and says “I’ve made my choice”, and the final scene on the train car. Great storytelling and emotional unravelling in the last two chapters. I also really liked that we kind of ended on a train where all this started. This is a long book at 500 pages but it flew by and so much happened! The champagne scene in Washington seemed light years away from where we ended up. I read the original 1987 paperback and I’m really curious to know what edits were made to the re release? Let me know in the comments if anyone has insight. I’m obsessed with this author and can’t wait to read her entire backlist.

[FD · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laine is an orphan who was lucky enough to be taken in by a wealthy lady. A good education, a trust fund, an inheritance, plans to go to college, life looks good for her until Ranse, a US Marshall visits her at her school because he thinks she is a relative of the infamous Outlaw gang the Daltons. Everything comes crashing down for Laine. Not knowing what to do next, and also curious about the Daltons because of never having had a family, she forces Ranse to take her on his quest to find the Daltons. Against his will, Ranse takes her with him. Eventually they find the answers, but also themselves and each other
I think it's a good story, a nice plot, an attractive writing style which is a bit poetic at times, and I enjoyed the book.The atmosphere of the time in which it takes place is well represented
Still, I did find some things incomplete, or not quite logical, in the first place why the Marshall thought Laine would have anything to do with the Daltons.
From the last few chapters I find it becomes a bit more messy and illogical, and maybe a little too rushed

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Cindy C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Loved It! Suspenseful and Gripping! Right from the start Passion's Splendor takes off in this wild ride full of twist and turns that will keep you sitting on the edge of your seat! Carla Simpson has done a spectacular job bringing the Old West to life in the second in Outlaws, Scoundrels & Lawmen series. Laine and Ranse are so believable you feel every emotion that they are feeling throughout and imagine yourself as one of the characters or just part of their journey. The scenes are so strikingly detailed it paints an incredible backdrop that makes you feel like you are one with the story. With blaze of western justice, shootouts, drama, danger, adventure and a well written and very enjoyable novel.

[Linda F · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Page Turner

I love an author like this who understands we need to know why the h/h come to love and respect each other. What do they see in each other that speaks to them so deeply?
This is the second book in the series. Both books have great characters. Strong and smart, yet flawed and vulnerable h/h . Great sense of time and place. And story and action that keep you turning pages.
There are technical problems that I hope will be addressed in future novels: misplaced punctuation, typos, paragraphs out of sync, random bold faced font, and one misplaced page that seems like it was meant to be deleted.
These technical problems didn't stop me from enjoying the story. I look forward to reading more by this author.

[Mariko Tsubaki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laine has always been searching for answers to her past. Marshal Ranse McCandliss thinks he has a lead. They join forces to find the truth. This was a good historical romance with a touch of mystery.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.