I usually stick to the lords and ladies of England when it comes to any historicals that I read but every once in a while something else will catch my eye. And I have to say I’m really glad that something was this book.

Things have been really, really hard for both Tally and Clay (and their friends). Horrible circumstances and maybe some bad decisions by themselves and/or others have led them down a difficult path. Clay’s life as an outlaw has left him with a price on his head but he’s intent on starting over and creating a new life for himself. One that involves a woman to share it with. Unfortunately Tally has her own demons to fight and she brings a bit of trouble with her to Devil’s Crossing.

I loved that both Clay and Tally are determined to find a way to have a good life. They don’t turn away when things get difficult, or if they do they quickly figure out that they need to stand up for themselves and what’s right even when it’s challenging. Neither of them are coming to this relationship whole but they know they want better and they are willing to work at it. There are people that depend on them and they are making a new family, a new life, together and it requires them to learn to trust each other and work together.

Broday doesn’t make things easy for anyone here but she definitely gives readers a page-turner of a story. With every new hardship or threat that comes knocking at their door, Clay and Tally do their best to meet it head on. They’ve had rough times in the past and the future isn’t coming easy, but they are going to face it together. Moments of danger kept me glued to the pages but so did the more tender moments as they work together to make a family of their little band of misfits. It’s as heart-warming as it was suspenseful, and I look forward to having Broday take me for another ride.

(Note: This is the first in this series, which is a spinoff of an existing one. It can stand alone but I’m curious how much I would have already known about these characters if this wasn’t the first book I’d read by this author. I don’t think it impacted much but may have added some depth.)

**Review given honestly and freely after receipt of a reader copy. This opinion is completely my own and was not influenced in any way.**