Savage Heat

Savage #7

by Cassie Edwards

Ever since the sweltering summer day when Zoe Hawkins pinned on her father's tin star, she'd sworn to uphold the law in rough-and-ready Gracemont, Oklahoma. But how could the lovely sheriff maintain order when she couldn't even subdue her own wayward feelings for the mighty Kiowa chief, White Shadow? Every time he showed up at the jail to bail out his wild young braves, Zoe forgot the oh-so-correct colonel she was supposed to marry, and longed to surrender to forbidden desire.

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Historical, Westerns, Native American

395 pages, Paperback

First published February 28, 1998

About the author

Edwards began writing romances in 1982 and released her 100th novel, Savage Skies, on August 28, 2007. Although her earlier books were classic historical romances, the vast majority of her novels involve Native American tribes. Edwards's grandmother was a full-blooded Cheyenne. Her first 99 books sold a combined 10 million copies as of August 2007, with her more recent novels averaging sales of 250,000–350,000 copies.

Edwards has won the Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award and the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award, as well as being named one of Affaire de Coeur's top ten favorite romance writers. Edwards has a reputation for meticulously researching the proper anthropological backgrounds of each tribe she writes about.

Edwards and her husband Charles, a retired high school biology teacher, have been married for over 50 years. They have two sons, Charles and Brian, and three grandchildren. The family lived in St. Louis, Missouri for over thirty years, but now reside in Mattoon, Illinois.

Reviews

[Claire Ernst · Rating 2 out of 5]

This reads like a high schooler’s fanfiction about Native American life. That isn’t to say it’s poorly written— the writing is fine and it clearly had an editor and the benefits of traditional publishing. Every aspect of the plot and the way the characters interact, however, is completely bonkers.

First off the story starts with them already in love— lame! There’s so much to explore about this forbidden romance and how it might blossom, but it just… isn’t. There’s the caricature of an evil outlaw who likes to shoot deputies— why? One sentence worth of reasoning, not really developed. There’s Zoe’s promotion to sheriff after her dad dies— why? One sentence of completely unbelievable reasoning, and she doesn’t even like the job or want to keep it up. The whole kidnapping plot? Bonkers— and the way everyone involved with the kidnapping behaves from the getgo is so unbelievable that you can hardly read it. The final few chapters are hilariously fanfiction esque with their insistence on giving every single side character a love interest and baby.

The premise has the makings of a perfectly fun romance novel— lady sheriff in a love triangle between the Indian hating colonel and the Indian chief? With outlaw hijinks and forced marriage? It could be a fun adventure. But it just isn’t.

Oh, and even within the genre of white women writing Native American romances with questionable research, this one is a standout. Ho, I think maybe quite offensive.

[Jeanne (love2cook) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A historical romance between White Shadow, chief of the Kiowa tribe, and Zoe Hawkins, daughter of the Sheriff of Gracemont, Oklahoma. White Shadow's mother, Soft Bird had once loved a white man Timothy Livingston; colonel in the United States Calvery. He had used her until she bore him a son, then forced her from his home and away from her new son. When she finds her way back to the Kiowa village, she has one request from her now chief son to capture her firstborn son and make him learn the Kiowa ways and then she will tell him that she is his mother. It is an interesting story with bigotry, murder, corruption, love, and passion—a different read from the Indian's point of view instead of the white man's.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good. I just didn't care for the way the story started after they had already met and were in love. I believe it would have been much better if they would have stuggled with their attraction and feel in love later in the story.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good

[Denise Koopman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 7 of 35 in the Savage series. My opinion this book was not one of my favorites.