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Arizona Saga #1
Arizona Bride
Book by F. Roseanne Bittner
494 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1985
141 people want to read
About the author
Rosanne Bittner
84 books622 followersI am a USA-TODAY best-selling author with 41 years, 76 books, and numerous writing awards behind me. My major genre is historical romance. I have always written for standard publishers but am now writing strictly for Amazon so I have more freedom to write real history. My most recent publication is SHADOW TRAIL, the 6th book in my Outlaw Hearts series. I also wrote and published my first full-length contemporary story, DANCING BENEATH YOU, in September 2022, a romance involving mystery and a depiction of reservation life in the Badlands of South Dakota. My best sellers are my SAVAGE DESTINY series (7 books) and my OUTLAW HEARTS series. See my website (www.rosannebittner.com) for details on all my books - most available for Kindle and in print. I am known for great love stories filled with real history and high emotion. I have also written many Native American stories, all based on real history.
I love American history. For those of you who have not yet read my books, my stories are generally set in the American West of the 1800s and feature vividly described, historically accurate settings that span the US from Missouri to California, from Canada to Mexico. Many of my books portray the poignant history of our Native Americans, and though the characters are my own, I use real historical locations and events in all my novels. I have also written about the French & Indian wars, American Revolution, the War of 1812, the war with Mexico (the Alamo), and the Civil War.
National magazine ROMANTIC TIMES has called me the "Queen of Western Romance" and an "emotional powerhouse." My husband and I have traveled the west for nearly 40 years and I have visited just about every location mentioned in my books.
Visit my website at www.rosannebittner.com and my Facebook Author page. And be sure to join Rosanne Bittner's Heart of the West Street Team! Happy reading!
I love American history. For those of you who have not yet read my books, my stories are generally set in the American West of the 1800s and feature vividly described, historically accurate settings that span the US from Missouri to California, from Canada to Mexico. Many of my books portray the poignant history of our Native Americans, and though the characters are my own, I use real historical locations and events in all my novels. I have also written about the French & Indian wars, American Revolution, the War of 1812, the war with Mexico (the Alamo), and the Civil War.
National magazine ROMANTIC TIMES has called me the "Queen of Western Romance" and an "emotional powerhouse." My husband and I have traveled the west for nearly 40 years and I have visited just about every location mentioned in my books.
Visit my website at www.rosannebittner.com and my Facebook Author page. And be sure to join Rosanne Bittner's Heart of the West Street Team! Happy reading!
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 27, 2015
Just like her fabulous Savage Destiny Series, Jake Series, & Blue Hawk Series, Rosanne Bittner holds nothing back when she writes from her heart. Arizona Bride was another emotional roller coaster and one of her best novels. I was so torn and my heart gripped for all characters in this book. Exceptional beyond comparison. This is why she is The Queen Of Historical Romance. 5 Stars for this great novel!
December 31, 2016
This review is of “Arizona Bride” by Rosanne Bittner.
The Story: “Arizona Bride” begins in 1855 in Charleston, what is now West Virginia. Among the residents of Charleston is the Fitzgerald family, consisting of patriarch Jonathan Fitzgerald, a banker and widower, and his two children, daughter Shannon, the heroine of the book, 14 at the beginning, and son Bobby, 11. Shannon is madly in love with Army Captain Bryce Edwards, 23 at the beginning. They fall in love and remain so through the years to follow. However, as always with Ms. Bittner’s books, the road to true love is extremely bumpy.
As the years go by, the Fitzgerald fortune is stolen by Jonathan’s unscrupulous lawyer, Jonathan suffers a stroke and dies, Shannon is nearly raped-twice-shoots and kills her rapist, and Bobby is killed fighting in Kansas. Shannon then sets out to Arizona and Bryce. Things aren’t much better there, however; Bryce is severely wounded in a battle with Apaches, and believed to be dead. Shannon is accosted-again-and is saved from another attempted rape by Apache leader Saguaro. Shannon and Saguaro become lovers, get married and she becomes pregnant by him, eventually giving birth to a son, Chaco. Shannon discovers Bryce is alive when she is giving birth to Chaco, and eventually, is forced to decide between staying with Saguaro and Chaco, and going with Bryce.
Shannon decides to stay with Saguaro, for Chaco’s sake. This, however, creates peril as she is kidnapped by Ute Indians, who sell her to a Mexican white slaver. Bryce rescues Shannon from the slaver, takes her back to the Army fort where he is stationed, and nurses her back to health, although her path back is not smooth at all. Eventually, Saguaro dissolves his marriage to Shannon, realizing that there is no hope for the Apache people, gives Chaco to Shannon and Bryce to raise, and Shannon and Bryce have their Happily Ever After, or as much as one can in Ms. Bittner’s books.
Upside: The same things can be said about Ms. Bittner’s books: She creates word pictures that hang in the memory. The three primary characters in “Arizona Bride”, Shannon, Bryce and Saguaro, are fully realized characters. I felt every one of their emotions deeply, and that, as always, is one of the strengths of Ms. Bittner’s writing.
Downside: Sadly, yet another, less positive example of Ms. Bittner’s writing was on display in this book as well. In “Arizona Bride”, Shannon is nearly raped three times and is raped and brutalized repeatedly by her Mexican slaver. I will say this again: I have major issues with the level of misogyny displayed in Ms. Bittner’s books. Her writing is certainly strong enough to stand on its own merits. I do not understand why she or her publishers have felt the need to have the frequency and level of violence against women-in particular the heroines of her books-that Ms. Bittner does.
I really felt Ms. Bittner rushed through Shannon’s family storylines, and, while I understand it to some extent, I would have liked for Ms. Bittner to have taken a little more time and rounded out the Virginia story. The book reads as though Ms. Bittner needed to move the scenario to Arizona and came up with the quickest way to get there, which is very clunky to me.
Sex: Again, Ms. Bittner’s love scenes are hardly imaginative, and aren’t hot at all. Pretty basic stuff.
Violence: As usual in Ms. Bittner’s books,there is a high level of killing and other forms of violence, which is fairly graphic.
Bottom Line: By this point, anyone who reads one of Ms. Bittner’s books knows what to expect from her work. Depending on one’s point of view, that is either a good or bad thing. For me, it’s mostly a good thing. “Arizona Bride” is not really a five-star book (although I’m giving it that rating.) It has parts worthy of that rating, and parts that fall short of it. It’s not Ms. Bittner’s best work, in my opinion, but the worst book she writes is still streets better than a lot of other author’s work.
The Story: “Arizona Bride” begins in 1855 in Charleston, what is now West Virginia. Among the residents of Charleston is the Fitzgerald family, consisting of patriarch Jonathan Fitzgerald, a banker and widower, and his two children, daughter Shannon, the heroine of the book, 14 at the beginning, and son Bobby, 11. Shannon is madly in love with Army Captain Bryce Edwards, 23 at the beginning. They fall in love and remain so through the years to follow. However, as always with Ms. Bittner’s books, the road to true love is extremely bumpy.
As the years go by, the Fitzgerald fortune is stolen by Jonathan’s unscrupulous lawyer, Jonathan suffers a stroke and dies, Shannon is nearly raped-twice-shoots and kills her rapist, and Bobby is killed fighting in Kansas. Shannon then sets out to Arizona and Bryce. Things aren’t much better there, however; Bryce is severely wounded in a battle with Apaches, and believed to be dead. Shannon is accosted-again-and is saved from another attempted rape by Apache leader Saguaro. Shannon and Saguaro become lovers, get married and she becomes pregnant by him, eventually giving birth to a son, Chaco. Shannon discovers Bryce is alive when she is giving birth to Chaco, and eventually, is forced to decide between staying with Saguaro and Chaco, and going with Bryce.
Shannon decides to stay with Saguaro, for Chaco’s sake. This, however, creates peril as she is kidnapped by Ute Indians, who sell her to a Mexican white slaver. Bryce rescues Shannon from the slaver, takes her back to the Army fort where he is stationed, and nurses her back to health, although her path back is not smooth at all. Eventually, Saguaro dissolves his marriage to Shannon, realizing that there is no hope for the Apache people, gives Chaco to Shannon and Bryce to raise, and Shannon and Bryce have their Happily Ever After, or as much as one can in Ms. Bittner’s books.
Upside: The same things can be said about Ms. Bittner’s books: She creates word pictures that hang in the memory. The three primary characters in “Arizona Bride”, Shannon, Bryce and Saguaro, are fully realized characters. I felt every one of their emotions deeply, and that, as always, is one of the strengths of Ms. Bittner’s writing.
Downside: Sadly, yet another, less positive example of Ms. Bittner’s writing was on display in this book as well. In “Arizona Bride”, Shannon is nearly raped three times and is raped and brutalized repeatedly by her Mexican slaver. I will say this again: I have major issues with the level of misogyny displayed in Ms. Bittner’s books. Her writing is certainly strong enough to stand on its own merits. I do not understand why she or her publishers have felt the need to have the frequency and level of violence against women-in particular the heroines of her books-that Ms. Bittner does.
I really felt Ms. Bittner rushed through Shannon’s family storylines, and, while I understand it to some extent, I would have liked for Ms. Bittner to have taken a little more time and rounded out the Virginia story. The book reads as though Ms. Bittner needed to move the scenario to Arizona and came up with the quickest way to get there, which is very clunky to me.
Sex: Again, Ms. Bittner’s love scenes are hardly imaginative, and aren’t hot at all. Pretty basic stuff.
Violence: As usual in Ms. Bittner’s books,there is a high level of killing and other forms of violence, which is fairly graphic.
Bottom Line: By this point, anyone who reads one of Ms. Bittner’s books knows what to expect from her work. Depending on one’s point of view, that is either a good or bad thing. For me, it’s mostly a good thing. “Arizona Bride” is not really a five-star book (although I’m giving it that rating.) It has parts worthy of that rating, and parts that fall short of it. It’s not Ms. Bittner’s best work, in my opinion, but the worst book she writes is still streets better than a lot of other author’s work.
February 8, 2017
May 2016 reread: I'm still lovin' this story even more so the more I read it! I learn/remember something new each time that makes me adore Shannon and swoon over Bryce all the more. Well, and Saguaro isn't hard to swoon over either. ;)
__________
I greatly enjoy books written by Rosanne Bittner, and this one made it to my list of favorites!
It's not a super easy (light-hearted) read - I was totally wrapped up into Shannon and felt like I experienced each of the tragedies she experienced. I couldn't help but understand the decisions she made (and believed I'd make the same), and felt my heart breaking with hers though the toughest ones. However, the strong, powerful love Bryce and Shannon had for each other proved to be strong enough to conquer anything they faced!
This book is staying on my keeper shelf, and will probably fall apart from being re-read so much! I hope it becomes available on my kindle soon!
Arizona Ecstasy is a sequel to this book - it continues the story of Bryce and Shannon and their boys. I loved getting to know more about their lives!
__________
I greatly enjoy books written by Rosanne Bittner, and this one made it to my list of favorites!
It's not a super easy (light-hearted) read - I was totally wrapped up into Shannon and felt like I experienced each of the tragedies she experienced. I couldn't help but understand the decisions she made (and believed I'd make the same), and felt my heart breaking with hers though the toughest ones. However, the strong, powerful love Bryce and Shannon had for each other proved to be strong enough to conquer anything they faced!
This book is staying on my keeper shelf, and will probably fall apart from being re-read so much! I hope it becomes available on my kindle soon!
Arizona Ecstasy is a sequel to this book - it continues the story of Bryce and Shannon and their boys. I loved getting to know more about their lives!
February 26, 2017
This has been one of my all-time favorite reads. Shannon Fitzgerald has lived her young life as a charmed Virginia Belle. Her future with her betrothed Captain Bryce Edward's keeps being delayed and neither would ever have believed their destiny and how it will intertwine with an Indian chief. Excellent read.
May 4, 2019
This is not my favorite book by this author; this is one of Rosanne Bittner's early novels. Army officer Bryce Edwards meets Shannon Fitzgerald when she is 14 and is enchanted with her. Shannon lives in Virginia before the Civil War.
Bryce waits for Shannon to grow up because he wants to marry her. Trouble comes to Virginia as the Civil War looms closer and their plans to marry are delayed when Shannon's father becomes very ill. After his death, Shannon is attacked by a plantation-owner and she kills him with her derringer. She runs to Bryce in Arizona but must do so carefully, because she is running out of money and she is afraid of being sent back to Virginia for killing a wealthy and powerful man.
I was disappointed by the last 100 pages, or so. I thought Shannon being sold to a Mexican landowner to be a bit over the top. Also, Seguaro's last fight was too unrealistic. Otherwise, the story was a page-turner.
Bryce waits for Shannon to grow up because he wants to marry her. Trouble comes to Virginia as the Civil War looms closer and their plans to marry are delayed when Shannon's father becomes very ill. After his death, Shannon is attacked by a plantation-owner and she kills him with her derringer. She runs to Bryce in Arizona but must do so carefully, because she is running out of money and she is afraid of being sent back to Virginia for killing a wealthy and powerful man.
I was disappointed by the last 100 pages, or so. I thought Shannon being sold to a Mexican landowner to be a bit over the top. Also, Seguaro's last fight was too unrealistic. Otherwise, the story was a page-turner.
January 17, 2016
Just like her fabulous Savage Destiny Series, Jake Series, & Blue Hawk Series, Rosanne Bittner holds nothing back when she writes from her heart. Arizona Bride was another emotional roller coaster and one of her best novels. I was so torn and my heart gripped for all characters in this book. Exceptional beyond comparison. This is why she is The Queen Of Historical Romance. 5 Stars for this great novel!
November 26, 2023
One of my favorite Historical Fiction Books 📚
May 23, 2024
She is such a good writer of historical romance
August 25, 2016
3 and a half stars
I could easily have given this book a 4-star rating had I not been so disappointed by the last quarter. I just couldn't quite swallow how Shannon, the heroine, flipped from one man to the other with scarcely a breath. First she loves Bryce to distraction, then it's Saguaro, then it's Bryce again, and poor Saguaro gets hardly a second thought when he became inconvenient. I think that in the last quarter of the story she behaves like an immature child with no backbone and easily explains away her love for Saguaro as 'gratitude'.
Also a big disappointment was Bryce's attitude to sex, which may be realistic as far as 'manly behaviour' goes, but which is far from romantic. It certainly did not make him stand out as an honourable man. I hated how he used whores throughout the whole book, while hankering for the so-called love of his life. He never did stop whoring, even when his favourite gal was available to him. This really made me want to puke, and I didn't like his character one bit! His whoring ways really took a lot away from his attraction. Saguaro was more of a man than he was, come to that ... faithful and true to his woman until the end. Anyway, one man just had to win the woman in the end, and I will allow that the author had to find a way to explain all the knots away, didn't she? She just didn't do it to my liking, that's all.
Of course, this is just a matter of opinion, as otherwise, the novel was good. Just not a great read.
I could easily have given this book a 4-star rating had I not been so disappointed by the last quarter. I just couldn't quite swallow how Shannon, the heroine, flipped from one man to the other with scarcely a breath. First she loves Bryce to distraction, then it's Saguaro, then it's Bryce again, and poor Saguaro gets hardly a second thought when he became inconvenient. I think that in the last quarter of the story she behaves like an immature child with no backbone and easily explains away her love for Saguaro as 'gratitude'.
Also a big disappointment was Bryce's attitude to sex, which may be realistic as far as 'manly behaviour' goes, but which is far from romantic. It certainly did not make him stand out as an honourable man. I hated how he used whores throughout the whole book, while hankering for the so-called love of his life. He never did stop whoring, even when his favourite gal was available to him. This really made me want to puke, and I didn't like his character one bit! His whoring ways really took a lot away from his attraction. Saguaro was more of a man than he was, come to that ... faithful and true to his woman until the end. Anyway, one man just had to win the woman in the end, and I will allow that the author had to find a way to explain all the knots away, didn't she? She just didn't do it to my liking, that's all.
Of course, this is just a matter of opinion, as otherwise, the novel was good. Just not a great read.
abandoned
January 3, 2018I’m on a role for 2018! Second book dropped in 3 days by Bittner.... Not the way I want to start a new year.
Yet I just can’t finish this. When a romantic hero refers to our heroine as his “possession”, especially when she’s 16, I’m done. Then on top of that, post assault, he starts having sex with her and that’s supposed to make everything instantly better?! And keep in mind, she’s still only 16!!!
No way does she have the emotional maturity to process any of that; the author doesn’t portray her as such, either. She’s portrayed so far as what she is, a kid. No way should our hero be doing this!! And he’s 25, he should know better...
So yeah, needless to say, I think I’ll stay away from Bittner for awhile. Maybe I’m starting to see things in a new light for her...
Yet I just can’t finish this. When a romantic hero refers to our heroine as his “possession”, especially when she’s 16, I’m done. Then on top of that, post assault, he starts having sex with her and that’s supposed to make everything instantly better?! And keep in mind, she’s still only 16!!!
No way does she have the emotional maturity to process any of that; the author doesn’t portray her as such, either. She’s portrayed so far as what she is, a kid. No way should our hero be doing this!! And he’s 25, he should know better...
So yeah, needless to say, I think I’ll stay away from Bittner for awhile. Maybe I’m starting to see things in a new light for her...
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews