Leigh Bristol

Book #2 Sunrise series Under The Blazing Amber Skies Of Texas Theirs Was A Reckless Passion For Jessica, born into poverty and her father's cruelty, the offer of marriage from rich rancher Daniel Fielding seemed like a miracle. And when her father shot her fiance in cold blood on her wedding day and kidnapped her, it was more than a crime... it was the shattering of her dreams. Little did Jessica know that Daniel's rough and wild cowboy brother Jake was coming to rescue her, the same brother who believed her a scheming fortune hunter. Burning with vengeance, Jake Fielding rode hellbent for leather across the Western plains; only to burn with desire when he found her-his brother's betrothed, and his own destiny. Jessica had run from danger and death to bliss and betrayel. Now, in Jake's arms, the fire of each forbidden kiss could sweep her towards a lifetime of lies, a showdown of blood and tears-or an eternity of love.

Book 1- Sunrise Series A Southern Belle ... A Rugged Frontiersman ... Destined For Passion And Obsession Elizabeth was as elegantly beautiful as her family's lavish plantation; Jed was as rough and brutal as the lawless Texas land he loved. She belonged to a world out of reach to a rugged frontiersman who had no family, no fortune and only his dreams of a cattle empire carved from the wild Texas' hills. But when his kisses raked fire across her alabaster skin, when her gown fell to the mossy ground and powerful hands left her moaning as they explored her flesh as no man ever had, then she was his ... so hungry for his touch she would pursue him to the farthest frontier, so wanton in her desire, she would pay any price for the savage rapture of their love.

From Publishers Weekly Bristol ( Hearts of Fire ) embeds a tender romance within a brooding, complex tale of destiny, courage and resourcefulness. Set in 19th-century Sydney during the height of the forced transportation to Australia of British convicts (who, upon their arrival, were indentured to English merchants and gentry), the novel follows a wronged servant girl, Gladys, who is deported after defending herself from a rapacious earl. Fate intervenes to give her a new identity that provides a chance to help others equally innocent. But the force of events inevitably brings her back together with the earl and the artist who risked his own reputation to thrash her attacker, and once again places her future in their hands. Bristol tells her story with impressive economy, conjuring a character with a few telling details and building suspense through a succession of underplayed incidents. Her compassion and warmth for the underdog contrasts sharply with the asperity in her presentation of decadent nobility.

"Nine autobiographical essays by a pioneering female journalist who became part social worker, part roving documentarian; well-known storyteller; playwright; and essayist on National Public Radio's All Things Considered--photographing and writing about the people and places that fascinated her"--Provided by publisher.