4 out of 4 stars
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Her husband is dead. She is pregnant. What else is a girl to do but take a long drive through the Arizona desert? Suzanne had finally felt like she could enjoy life again. While driving through the desert, singing along with some rock music, she felt her recently upturned life begin to look less bleak and hope for the future began to blossom. It wasn't until it was too late that she saw a man riding a horse in the middle of the road. The next thing she knows, Suzanne is waking up with a horrible headache astride a horse with the very same mystery man! Who is this beautiful man? Where is she? Most importantly, WHEN is she? Suzanne has no idea of the hardships that are to come for her in the Wild West United States in the year 1860.
Cody Black Fox had no idea what that thing was that came down the road towards him and then exploded. What he did know was that he had to bring this woman with the beautiful blonde hair back to his village. He owed his chief a new white slave after he helped one escape to the safety of the fort, even if Chief Tall Deer did not know it. But could he bring himself to offer her to a cruel and twisted man, or should he take her to the fort of the white men? Being a half-breed, Cody was basically shunned by both the white man and the Chiricahua tribe, making him the subject of hate and blame. When his heritage threatens Suzanne's life and the life of her unborn child, Cody knows he cannot stand peacefully by and let her suffer because of him. His decision made, Cody carves his way through the territory and into the Rocky Mountains leaving behind a trail of death and destruction all in the hopes of saving Suzanne and returning her to her time so that she can give birth in her world. But can he really let her go?
For the Love of Suzanne by Kristi Hudecek-Ashwill is a time-traveling romance novel that I found impossible to put down. In fact, I couldn't set it aside until 4:00 am when I had read the final page. The amount of details and character complexities which Hudecek-Ashwill constantly supplies throughout the story made it a vivid picture playing out in my mind. In the very beginning, we crash into a world of abuse and fear and then are catapulted through a series of events so fantastical that they are difficult to believe. However, as Suzanne and Cody's emotions and actions unfurled before me, I looked past the strangeness that is a time-traveler tale and embraced a story of love, hope, and tenderness.
An underlying current throughout the story was the historical timeline of the Native Americans during the 1860's and how difficult life was for them. I appreciated Hudecek-Ashwill's history lesson that added a real-life charge to the genre of time-travel romance that is sometimes too over-the-top for me to really enjoy. While I found the end a bit predictable, if the story had concluded differently I would have been heart-broken. Overall, I give this book 4 out of 4 stars.
Reader warning: This story includes detailed scenes of spousal abuse and rape so please read with caution.
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For the Love of Suzanne
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