Silken Bondage

by Nan Ryan

The riverboat’s newest showgirl has no idea what she’s getting into

Raised on a houseboat, Nevada Hamilton has spent her whole life on the river. At night she sings for her father and his friends, and when they go to bed, she gazes across the water at the paddleboat gambling palaces, dreaming of the day when she can take her place on one of their stages. When her father is killed in a bar fight, Nevada must pursue her dream. She puts on her make-up, dons her finest dress, and walks into the greatest adventure a young girl could ever imagine.

Her first night on the job, she meets world-class gambler Johnny Roulette, who quickly falls for the delicate, innocent Nevada. Depending on how the dice fall, she could win Johnny’s heart forever—or she could break her own heart in two.

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Historical

400 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Nancy Henderson is the middle daughter of a Texas rancher and postmaster. She's been married for many years to Joe Ryan, a television executive. Hisoccupation has taken them from border to border and coast to coast. Fortunately, writing is something that can be done anywhere - and Nan shouldknow. The Ryans have lived in Washington, California, New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, Missouri, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and their own home state of Texas. Nan says it was fun to move around the country and honestly believes that it has helped her writing. The library and the Internet offer a great deal of information on any given place, but there is nothing quite likeactually living in a locale where a book is set.

She began her writing career in 1981. She flirted with writing mysteries, but never finished any. Then, as fate would have it, she saw an article in Newsweek magazine entitled "From Bedroom to Boardroom." It was an interesting story on the women who were writing romance novels. Nan was intrigued. She had never read a romance. She bought a couple, read them, and knew she'd found her calling. She sat down at the Smith Corona typewriter and began her own romance. The first one never left her house. It is burieddeep in a trunk and Nan says it will never be shown to anyone. Her second book sold and she's been writing since. Twenty-two romance novels later, shestill enjoys writing and realizes she's been blessed to have found what she loves to do.

The winner of numerous awards, Nan Ryan says one of the nicest things ever written about her was printed in the St. Petersburg Times. Correspondent AnnV. Hull wrote: "Romance novelist Nan Ryan could step right into the pages of one of her paperbacks. Tall and slender, with smokey eyes and pearly skin,Nan Ryan looks like movie star Jessica Lange's older sister. Ryan writes the most imaginative and bold love scenes, some of which would surely shock herformer teachers at Abilene Christian University."

Reviews

[DelilahW · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nan Ryan is hit or miss. In general, she's a great writer and really makes a scene come alive. But the endless descriptions of Nevada's (the heroine) physical appearance got exhausting. Countless paragraphs devoted to her tiny body with womanly curves, tiny feet, tiny head, tiny waist, tiny stature. But of course generous breasts and hips. Oh, here's another couple pages devoted to Nevada's tiny hands and tiny body and tiny face and tiny nose and....you get the picture. Lord I thought I'd never get through it all. I guess there was a story in there between long excerpts on Nevada's tininess and beauty and sentences like "from the tip of her small well-formed head to her tiny doll-like feet and little curling toes". She is an innocent river rat that loses her virginity to a shallow gambler. He realizes his mistake and tries to do the noble thing by adopting her as his ward so to speak. Being 18 years old and completely dim-witted about life, she has fit after fit and becomes a real annoyance to everyone in earshot when Johnny won't pay attention to her. Nevada fits very well into the TSTL category. Johnny was alright but not the uber-alpha male Nan Ryan usually writes.

All in all, eh.

[Ana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Simply awful. Johnny is a user and Nevada is a twit.

[Gwen Hight · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silken Bondage

A love story that finally has a happy ending A gambler that knew he was handsome was able to wrap some women around his finger Nevada fell for him and she was his good luck shoot story

[LuvBug · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started out so good and ended so bad! There is no way I believe that the hero loved the heroine in the end. He did not show his feelings for the heroine through out the whole book and yet you are suppose to believe he loves her! The ending plot was also TSTL.

[Polly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a quick read - not what I expected, but good!