Fireblossom

Rogues Go West #2

by Cynthia Wright

* Special Author’s Cut Edition – a Matthews/Hampshire Novel
Originally published by Ballantine Books

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 horrified 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.

FIREBLOSSOM is a fascinating story of cultures colliding and the bittersweet, tender journey of Fox and Maddie as they discover the secrets of their own hearts.

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Westerns, Historical, Western Romance, Historical Fiction, Ebooks

364 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 23, 1992

About the author

Cynthia Wright is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, best known for her Rakes & Rebels series, 16 intertwining historical romances starring the irresistible Raveneau & Beauvisage families. Her other acclaimed series are Crowns & Kilts and Rogues Go West. Romantic Times Magazine hails Cynthia's novels as "Romance the way it was meant to be."

Cynthia lives in northern California. She enjoys riding a tandem bike and taking road trips in an airstream trailer with her Colombian-born husband, Alvaro & their corgi, Watson. She is also devoted to her two teenage grandsons who live nearby.

You are invited to visit Cynthia's website (where you can sign up for her newsletter and peruse the Books Page):
http://cynthiawrightauthor.com/

You are invited to join Cynthia's private Facebook reader group here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/98606...

View her "Behind the Books" boards on Pinterest:
http://pinterest.com/cynthiawright77/

RAKES & REBELS: The Raveneau Family series:
1 - SILVER STORM (André & Devon)
2 - HER HUSBAND, THE RAKE: a sequel novella (André & Devon)
3 - SMUGGLER'S MOON (Sebastian & Julia)
4 - THE SECRET OF LOVE (Gabriel & Isabella)
5 - SURRENDER THE STARS (Ryan & Lindsay)
6 - HIS MAKE-BELIEVE BRIDE (Justin & Mouette)
7 - HER IMPOSSIBLE HUSBAND (Justin & Mouette)
8 - HER SECRET ROGUE (Anthony & Frederica)
9 - HIS FIERY ANGEL (Benedict & Camille)
10 - HIS RECKLESS BARGAIN (Nathan & Adrienne)
11 - TEMPEST (Adam & Cathy)

RAKES & REBELS: The Raveneau Family intertwines with RAKES & REBELS: The Beauvisage Family series:
1 - STOLEN BY A PIRATE: a prequel novella to RESCUED BY A ROGUE (Jean-Philippe & Antonia)
2 -RESCUED BY A ROGUE (Alec & Caro)
3 - TOUCH THE SUN (Lion & Meagan)
4 - SPRING FIRES (Nicholai & Lisette)
5 - HER DANGEROUS VISCOUNT (Grey & Natalya)

CROWNS & KILTS: The St. Briac Family
1 - YOU & NO OTHER (Thomas & Aimee)
2 - OF ONE HEART (Andrew & Micheline)
3 - ABDUCTED AT THE ALTAR (Christophe & Fiona)
4 - RETURN OF THE LOST BRIDE (Ciaran & Violette)
5 - QUEST OF THE HIGHLANDER (Lennox & Nora)

ROGUES GO WEST
1 - BRIGHTER THAN GOLD (Jack & Katie)
2 - IN A RENEGADE'S EMBRACE (Fox & Maddie)
3 - THE DUKE & THE COWGIRL (Geoff & Shelby)
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Reviews

[Misfit · Rating 2 out of 5]

SPOILERS AHOY

"The Madeleine Avery of yore would have been appalled by the mess Maddie had made of her life. Here she was, in a rickety wagon, dusty and sweaty, without even a chamber pot, making a journey to an Indian village with a man to whom she had given her virginity and who claimed to want absolutely nothing to do with her... and yet she felt as if she were awash with happiness. She felt free, liberated from all the stringent standards of behavior her mother had instilled in her since childhood."

That pretty much says it all right there, but I'll give you a brief recap of the plot anyway. Madeleine (Maddie) Avery is the pampered daughter of a very old upper crust Philadelphia family. She has traveled with her younger brother and grandmother to live with her father in Deadwood, Dakota Territory. The hero of this piece is Daniel “Fox” Matthews. The President sent Daniel to keep an eye on Custer, but the two butt heads and Daniel's sent packing just before the massacre at Little Big Horn, and that's Daniel's Big Secret - no one saw Custer banish him so everyone will think he was a big coward, so he's come to Deadwood sort of incognito. I am sure you are scratching your head at this Big Secret same as I was - makes no sense to me either.

Anyhoo, Daniel is attracted to the beauteous Maddie, but he shuns her for fear of how she'll react to his Big Secret and he hangs with some of the local *soiled doves* instead (yes, that term was used a couple of times, but then so was "pard" and "injin"). Maddie's father has some health issues, and he reveals a big secret from his past (lived with the Indians, illegitimate daughter), and asks Daniel to make sure his daughter is safe. Daniel sympathizes with the plight of the Indians and loads up a wagon of supplies and guns (!!), plus he plans to bring one of the local *soiled doves* who resembles Maddie along for some comfort. Maddie gets wind of this and manages to substitute herself for the look-alike, all with the help of her eighty-year old Philadelphia born and bred grandmother. You would think someone would worry about her virtue and appearances and all, but nooooo.

"Because I want to meet my half-sister!" Maddie cried. "I have wanted to go ever since Father told us about Yellow Bird and Sun Smile. I knew you wouldn't take me if I asked you, and I knew Father would forbid it, so Gramma Susan and I took matters into our own hands."

Now Daniel's no prize of a hero either:

"Why don't you return to the wagon and sort your ribbons, or whatever it is that you do before breakfast, and I'll join you shortly. After I am dry and fed, I'll decide what to do with you."

Lovely, yet according to the book description Daniel "received the 1992 K.I.S.S. Hero Award (Knight in Shining Silver) from ROMANTIC TIMES." Why, I can't fathom...

Back to Maddie and sisterly love, once they get home Maddie does an about face and starts making comments like this:

"Poor Father." She stole another look into the depths of the wagon, where her half-sister had hunched in silence for more than three days. If not for her smell they might have forgotten she was even present.

"How can I come to love—truly love someone who—who behaves like a rabid dog?"

How are you supposed to sympathize with a character like that? And Daniel's no prize either, but even worse than trying to like such an unlikeable pair is that there is no chemistry between them whatsoever, and the love scenes are just cheesy sex. According to the author's notes she did do a lot of research on the history of Deadwood, but for this reader it was so heavy-handed that I felt like I'd been closeted with a person who had just dumped a bottle of perfume on herself. While I really, really appreciate that the author wanted to write a story that focused on the plight of the Indians during the westward expansion, and why I'm awarding a second star to my rating, but there's just too much wall-paper in it for my tastes. YMMV.

[Katerina · Rating 1 out of 5]

A complete waste of time and money.

If I really wanted to read about North America in 1874, General Custer, the Lakota nation, the Siouxs, Benjamin Franklin, Calamity Jane, Crazy Horse, the Battle of Little Bighorn and the history of the Black Hills, this book wouldn't have been my first choice....

But right now, I feel like I have become an historical expert for this time period and you can ask me anything there is to know about.
This author made sure to provide me with all the facts and details...
But please don't ask me something about the romance part of the story. It was rather irrelevant here; I already forgot the names of the "main" characters.They stumbled through the setting, talked a little, and in the end got married. See, nothing worth writing about....completely forgettable!

[Mermarie]

Freebie today.

Stepback. :)

[Morgan · Rating 1 out of 5]

The massive amount of backstory in the prologue killed it for me.

[Nola Arganbright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

Another great historical romance by Cynthia Wright! Based on the Black Hills of North Dakota, in a time of native American and Settler unrest the story gives the reader a glimpse of many historical facts and characters.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the historical aspect of it, but I didn't enjoy the rest of the story that much.

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

IN A RENEGADE'S EMBRACE, formerly known as FIREBLOSSOM, is the second of Cynthia Wright's Western Rebels/Rogues Go West series. Unlike BRIGHTER THAN GOLD, it does have ties to Wright's past books. Madeleine Avery's grandmother, Susan Hampshire O'Hara, is Lion and Meagan's daughter from TOUCH THE SUN. It is 1876, their mother has died, so Maddie Avery and her brother Benjamin travel west with their grandmother to live with their father in Deadwood, South Dakota. Deadwood is a far cry from what they are used to in Philadelphia and it takes Maddie some time to adjust. Daniel “Fox” Matthews has been sent by President Grant to keep an eye on General Custer to make sure he does not get overly ambitious. This seems to be a fool's errand and Fox is sent away by Custer, unable to prevent the General and his calvary from attacking the Sioux in the Battle of Little Bighorn. Fox's frustration with the army, his sympathies for the Sioux, and his guilt over being not able to prevent the massacre leads him to hide out in Deadwood. While they initially do not get along, Fox is soon able to draw out Maddie and their passions ignite. They set off on an information-gathering mission with the Sioux and Maddie's experience is transforming.

Once again, Cynthia Wright brings the past alive. Readers gets a solid feel for time and place as they experience both sides of what went on during the Indian Wars. Colorful, real-life figures, such as General George Custer, Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and Crazy Horse, serve as minor characters and add depth to the story. I thoroughly enjoyed my re-read of IN A RENEGADE'S EMBRACE, especially Fox, Maddie and bits of western history that I was not as familiar with. For those of us who fell in love with Fox and Maddie, happily, you can see more of them in their daughter Shelby's story, the last book in the Western Rebels/Rogues Go West series, THE DUKE AND THE COWGIRL aka WILDBLOSSOM.

Modern times brings us very cool things and something that I've recently been able to enjoy with all of Cynthia Wright's books is her many Pintrest boards. Happily, she has one for each of her books and the reader can see photos of settings and people that inspired her books. Here is the one for IN A RENEGADE'S EMBRACE https://www.pinterest.com/cynthiawrig...

[Lillian Cummings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daniel "Fox" Matthews had no choice but to ride off from the battle, his pleas had fallen on deaf ears and now he is trying to put his life back in order. And he has found the perfect place Deadwood, South Dakota but nothing really goes to plan when he meets Maddie Avery. Maddie has arrived with her brother and her grandmother and she is surprised at what she finds. Fox is a good man but he really gets to her and she isn't looking for love and definitely not with him. But her heart wants him no matter how hard she fights it, will it lead her to the one man that doesn't want her? Fox knows that he needs to keep away from Maddie she is going to be too much trouble and when he finds out that she has hidden away in his wagon, he knows that he is doomed. Will they be able to work through these trying times together? A great read.

[Mallory · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the banter between Fox and Maddie in this book. Their relationship, although very rocky and uncertain at first, (fire)blossomed into something admirable.

Similarly, I did not care for Fox's character for most of the book (i.e., after the preface and up until he was with the Sioux tribe). But he ended up being a great character.

I also learned a lot from this book, which I always appreciate. Though it was disheartening to read about the racism in the early settlement of the West, it was a good reminder that us white people did take their land and we made them suffer for it. The main characters were noble in their fight against racism, but they were ultimately outnumbered by the bigoted.

[Dana Redding · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a Renegades Embrace

Fox was an advisor to Custard during the land clearing of native Indians for the president. A scout told Custard that there were more Indians than he could battle, he was not going to listen to his scouts. Fox ask Custard to reconsider his actions but he told Fox to leave and not to come back.

Deadwood is where Fox ended up. Maddie her brother and grandma arrived to live with her father. Her mother died and he sent for his children. Ben who is Maddie’s brother has a tendency to wander around and when Fox see’s this young boy spying around the unsavoury place he takes him home,

What a wonderful story. Tells a little about history and the growth of Deadwood. I truly enjoyed reading this book.

[Barbara Packard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A funny and heart wrenching story.

Daniel Fox Matthews spent his youth with his dad in the Dakota territory with the Lacota Indians. He tried to make General Custer wait for more troops before splitting what men he did have into three troops. There were thousands of Indians waiting for him. Custer had told Dan to get away from him and not to come back. At the same time Madeleine Avery, her younger brother Benjamin and grandmother Susan O'Hare were on their way to Deadwood in the Dakota territory to be with her father, Steven Avery. As soon as Dan going by the name of Fox arrives in town he meets up with Benjamin Avery. Fox takes him home and meets his sister Madeleine. And what a story from there! Well worth the read.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed but was confused, turns out this book sells under two names and it turns out I have them both. I'm not a Deadwood fan, so I imagined it was a town other than Deadwood, of course all the famous people who lived in Deadwood made an appearance in this book, again not a fan of Deadwood. But I enjoy this author so I finished the book.

[Jan Perry-Rhys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating historical read

Excellent historical romance ! I particularly enjoyed the stories of the historical figures. The couple's stay with the Lakota was very revealing. Ms Wright's skillful writing combines a sometimes difficult relationship with tense times in history. Hard to put down!

[Lila · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every kind of character imaginable had a legitimate place in the writing of this story. That made it fun even while tragedies were happening. This is now called Book 2 of the Rogues Go West series. This story was so believable that I am intending to read another book, historical, related to that season in the Black Hills and badlands.

[Teresa Champagne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good romance

Cynthia Wright is a new author to me and I am glad I have her a try. The romance was sweet and hot and the storyline was thrilling. Loved the background that have the history of the Lakotas and the town of Deadwood. Will get more novels by Cynthia because of history which makes it feel like real life.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bkackmailed

When Maddie, her grandmother and her brother came west to be with her father, little.did she know how much her life was going to change. From Vrazy Horse, the Lakota Indians, Little Bighorn, Custer. Wild Bill Hickox, Clamity Jane, and a sister she didnt know about that was half Indian.

[Kathy Brickert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful

A true example of what historical romance should be! Love this author! This was really a re-read for me, but it had been so many years I enjoyed it all over again! Love the history and the description of the Black Hills! Wonderful read!

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just couldn’t stand this book. It dragged on. I normally love these types of stories but not this time. The heroine was pathetic. At 78% I actually stopped reading it. I think this is a first for me. I never ... not finish but it was so boring.

[sharon sobzak · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable

A romance set amidst the Indian wars of 1875. The characters are creative but I feel sadness that bias and justification for greedy and cruel behaviors still continue today.

[John Boles · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a Renegade Embrace

I have not read a story by Cynthia Wright that I have not enjoyed, including this one. The adventure, suspense and intrigue in this story brought it to life. I would recommend this book to anyone.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a Renegade’s Embrace (Rogues Go West Book 2)

As Maddie moved to a remote area with her family she was upset. Later meeting Dan she fell in love. Later visiting the Indians and called fire blossom she liked their ways. This amazing author has a way of challenging people.

[matthew t mccarthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book!

This was my first book that I read by this author and I am hoping she will do more historical western romance fiction. It was such a good story, kept me interested from start to finish.

[Marilyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

This is one that tells how the Indians were treated how our government chose to treat them fairly.they were treated horabley

[Barbara Olaewe · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok

This was not the best story from Cynthia Wright. It was ok. There were amazingly vivid accounts at times. But it fell short when compared to other novels I have read.

[Renate Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story shows how we need to understand and appreciate the different cultures

[Billie Kasper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Western

Easy to follow Maddie and Fix romance while seeing the horrible fate of the native Americans. It gives a glance into the other side of American advancement

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a tremendous book, combining romance with so much history of the area.

[Elizabeth Lennon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Author writing block

Story plot very sporadic and unbelievable. Sadly the scenes didn't fit together with the characters. The characters were flaky at best.

[Tasha Brynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Normally, Cynthia Wright is a no-brainer for me. She writes well-researched, historical romance, with deep, well-rounded, main characters, who are influenced by and influence the historical situations she places them in. She has a knack for including the historical stuff with a deft touch, which reveals her understanding of not only the events described, but the far-reaching implications. Having said that, I spent 50% of “In A Renegade’s Embrace” far from happy.

The heroine, Maddy, almost turned me off of the entire book, all by herself. She is supposed to be a prim and proper lady, who discovers her true, passionate nature in the ‘wild west.’ How she came off was judgmental and holier-than-thou, not to mention a stick-in-the-mud fun-killer, though. Maddy thinks poorly of every single person she meets in Deadwood, AZ, and, while I understand the author’s purpose (clash of cultures), Maddy doesn’t see a single good thing about anyone, except the Hero. Of course, he’s depicted as the only decent man she meets in Deadwood, but that’s partly because she thinks she’s too good to mingle with the common folk in town, let alone ‘ladies’ like Calamity Jane. This goes beyond culture shock and ignorance. Maddy is downright mean, hateful, arrogant, and narrow-minded. But, of course, Fox, the Hero, falls for her, because she’s gorgeous and a ‘real’ lady. Let me tell you something–‘real’ ladies don’t make people feel unwelcome, which was what Maddy did, when one of the older, eccentric women tries to make friends with her. Of course, it’s okay, because Maddy is so much better than everyone else that you can’t expect her to make friends with these low-class degenerates.

I didn’t like Fox, the Hero, much better. The whole guilt-ridden, self-destructive, self-loathing, woe-is-me, pity-party lasted way longer than it should have, leading to a very slow, dragging, frustrating read.

But, at 50% of the way through, Fox and Maddy visit the Lakota, and Ms. Wright’s talents begin to shine again. Although she paints an idyllic and idealized scene of the Native American way of life, it’s done with a sense of respect, which balances out the sentimentality nicely, and Maddy finally stops acting like a complete jerk. After that, I ripped through the remaining pages of the book in record time, experiencing the sense of wonder and interest, which I’ve come to expect from Ms. Wright’s works. There were still some points where I was unpleasantly reminded that this was not her best effort, however, including an awkward shoe-in of the nickname ‘Madness,’ which had never been mentioned before and was never mentioned again, and some editing errors, which I’m not used to seeing from Ms. Wright.

Altogether, this isn’t enough to put me off of Ms. Wright’s books–she’s written far more that I like than dislike–and I will not hesitate to read her other offerings, but this was a sad ‘miss’ for me.

[Mhollie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my second read of this book. I read the paperback when it was originally published in 1993 and now I did the re-read of the Author’s Cut Kindle version, given to me courtesy of the author, Cynthia Wright.

Straight-laced Madeline Avery is intent on making a home for her family in the rough Dakota Territory town of Deadwood and she’s bringing her stiff-backed ladylike ideas with her. Let’s just say she has some rude awakenings.

Daniel “Fox” Matthews’ soul is torn between what his conscience and heart tell him and what his country and the people of Deadwood expect. He hides a secret that could break him and everything he holds dear.

Through a mission of mercy, Maddie and Fox find themselves while living amongst the Lakota people. Maddie slowly loosens her high ideals and comes to actually prefer the free life of Lakota. Something Fox already preferred from his years with them. Do they stay in the Lakota village and watch while the Native Americans’ life is chipped away by the gold and land hungry whites? Or, do they take their chances in Deadwood, knowing Fox’s secret could be found out?

A lovely look at the Lakota people and their doomed struggle to maintain their land and dignity amidst the heartwarming discovery and bloom of love between Maddie and Fox.

For me, having Native American roots, I appreciate that Ms. Wright showed the pride and determination the Lakota people. Thank you.