Considering how her other 8 lives have ended in a terrible tragedy, it's understandable that the heroine does not want to reincarnated again. So, she throws a temper tantrum in front of the reassignment board demanding she not be put into another body unless her terms are met. One, she wants to remember her previous lives. Two, she wants to be rich and healthy. Three, she does not want to fall in love. The board members hum and haw over her stern demands but soon relent and accept. They send her back, into the body of a woman in the 1800's. This woman whose body the heroine now inhabits was apparently a sickly creature with no backbone or true personality for her own. Those around her look stunned she is even alive. But the heroine has a lot more surprises in store for those who knew this woman.
The heroine is not the shrinking violet and she certainly is not the type to mince words. She refuses to relent to their treating her as an invalid and the first day in this new body is spent confusing those around her. Apparently this woman never ate or really spoke to anyone besides her fathers widow or her brother. The hero, this farm boss in charge of the heroine's vast country estate isn't the type of man the heroine usually looks to as attractive but she has to admit this rugged man is quite the specimen. Too bad he's obnoxious and stubborn and arrogant. He fights with her constantly, seeming to think he knows her better than she knows herself. But the heroine secretly enjoys their arguments and as her fiancé is the sort of sneaky little man who has alternative motives, the hero is looking even better. But the heroine is stubborn herself and arrogant. She demands that the hero accompany her on a tour of her land to understand the stability and worth of the cattle she owns. It's on this trip that the hero and heroine grow closer.
The hero refuses to succumb to the temptation of this woman, knowing he can not offer her marriage. He's confused by her complete personality transformation and even more disturbed by the sexual feelings he's now developed for her. She is brash and stubborn and she is magnificent. And he sees her in his dreams. Looking deep into his eyes, she realizes the hero is the man she's loved and lost 8 times now. But she is determined that this time, this man will be different and that they will finally have their happily ever after.
Well, this was great. I loved so much about it and what I loved outweighed what I didn't by a large margin. I loved the time travel/ reincarnation theme. I loved the historical old west cattle ranch setting. I loved the hero who was a rugged cowboy with loyalty to his employer - both the sickly fragile one and this new vibrant creature. He could argue with the heroine easily and knew how to push her buttons but for sure, she usually got the best of him. He was confused by her manner of speech and her unladylike behavior but horribly turned on by her lust for life and her bold intentions towards him. What I didn't like was the heroine. I found her to be far too stupid and arrogant for her one good. She stormed into her new life determined to ignore every piece of advise given to her and to completely disregard any attempt to 'fit in'. She thought she knew it all and nobody could tell her anything she didn't already know herself. She was frustrating and very unlikeable as a person for the most of the book and now that I think of it, I never really got to the point where I forgave her. The problem is, overall the book was lovely. However, when you really really dislike a major character it's hard to justify a 5 star rating. 4 Stars is sufficient and I believe fair. This author is quite talented and I haven't encountered a book yet that I didn't like so that's a major plus. If the heroine was more humble and patient I would have loved this book a whole lot better but as it stands it was still a very nice story.