Autumn Wind
by Marie Hall
My review:
“Autumn Wind” is a clever historical western set during the time when gold rush fever and extension of rail lines dominated current events. Author Marie Hall has created a vibrant story full of unique characters and interesting situations, punctuated by laughter, romance and even some spanking. I discovered this is part of a series that was previously unfamiliar to me. It is definitely a stand-alone, though, because I enjoyed it very much on its own, without having read the book before it.
Tae has been a Pinkerton detective for more than a decade. He’s ready to retire and taking over ownership of a saloon he bought majority interest in, with an unknown partner. Autumn is a strong-minded young Irish woman. She’s a talented musician and music teacher. Traveling west on her own in search of her brother. She and Tae are brought together by something Tae does that causes a forced marriage between them. Autumn is not satisfied with having been married by s judge; her religion and culture don’t consider that a true marriage., Tae agrees to not consummate the marriage until they find her brother so he can give his blessing for them to have a church wedding.
At that point the relationship between them becomes even more of an adventure. Prejudice, misogyny, violence, danger, chaos, courage, passion, friendship and love all have a part in this story. The author does a fantastic job expressing thoughts and dialogue in language that fits the main characters; Tae thinks and speak in terms of trains and the railway, and Autumn does so in terms associated with music. It makes for an extremely entertaining read. I truly found myself interested in the plot and the characters from start to finish with this book.