I'm not the biggest fan of Rosemund, after what happened between her and Kindle at the beginning of this book, along with her continued deception so it was hard for me to read this story without wanting to just strangle her!! Plus I think Laura let Rosemund off a little too easy & Kindle too for that matter. Maybe she'll get her just deserts from Salter- one can only hope. Lol

I think the best books are the ones that can bring your emotions to the surface and this series did an exceptional job of doing just that.


The ending was fantastic but bittersweet. I'm not ready to let go just yet. I feel like there's still so much more of this story to be told. Crossing my fingers for a book 4 and 5 and 6...lol ( )

This was a really good conclusion to an interesting series. In this concluding novel, the story was focused almost entirely on Laura, which I really enjoyed. Kindle, while always present, took a backseat in this story and it actually worked for the better. This novel had 2 female protagonists (including Laura) and I really liked reading about how they fought and worked with each other throughout the course of the story. Again, the author did a great job maintaining the historical setting of the novel. All of the open ends were tied up really nice with this book. After all the negative things that occur in this novel, it still ended on a positive note, which I was happy about. This was definitely a successful Western historical fiction series and I would recommend to anyone who is a fan of this genre!

I received this novel as an advanced copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

For more reviews, visit: www.veereading.wordpress.com ( )

This is the third book in Melissa Lenhardt’s Sawbones trilogy and in my opinion, it was the best! After leaving readers of Blood Oath with a cliffhanger, Lenhardt completes the saga with another exciting tale of adventures for Catherine Bennett.

With her husband Kindle in a military prison, Catherine ends up traveling across the west with a former hooker, ending up in Cheyenne Wyoming where she gets a bit of a reprieve from being on the run. While there, several people discover who she really is, each having their own reasons for not turning her into the sheriff.

I loved the relationship that developed between Catherine and Rosemond, who was a hooker determined to have a fresh start at a respectable life. Each woman was fiercely independent and wary of the other. In spite of their mistrust, they helped each other and formed a unique sort of friendship.

As the story comes to an end, readers will find Catherine making her way back to New York in order to clear her name. The book was hard to put down--riveting right up until the final chapter!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books, Redhook for allowing me to read an advance copy and give my honest review. ( )

WESTERN/HISTORICAL THRILLER
Melissa Lenhardt
Badlands
Redhook
Paperback, 978-0-3165-0537-6, (also available as an e-book, an audiobook, and on Audible), 416 pgs., $15.99
June 27, 2017

SPOILER ALERT: Badlands is the third book in a trilogy. Proceed at your own risk.

Laura Kindle (previously Laura Elliston, originally Dr. Catherine Bennett) is on the run again from the law, Pinkertons, and bounty hunters, after the arrest of her husband, William Kindle. She and St. Louis madam Rosemond Barclay, who claims to be helping Laura at William’s behest, wash up practically penniless in the quintessential Western boomtown of Cheyenne, Wyoming Territory. Rosemond is determined to go legit, joining proper society and leaving her past behind; Laura waits to hear news of William’s court martial, creating yet another identity in another new place. But the past catches up to both women, and Laura knows she must finally confront the New York murder charge against her or forever be a dependent pawn in other people’s games.

Badlands is the final installment in Melissa Lenhardt’s historical thriller trilogy, the first of which, Sawbones (2016), I hailed as “a thoroughly original, smart and satisfying hybrid, perhaps a new subgenre: the feminist Western.” Badlands, worthy of the established characters and ethos, does not disappoint.

Laura’s first-person narrative begins with Lenhardt’s characteristic bang. Apart from the middle third when the pace flags along with Laura’s resolve, reflecting her exhaustion and despair, the action is fast, the plot twists frequent. Though Lenhardt does a good job of integrating necessary facts from the two previous books, Badlands does not stand alone; to get the full effect you should begin at the beginning. A novels-within-the-novels device is a welcome, humorous touch of tongue-in-cheek. As always, a shout-out is due for the cover art and design of this trilogy. All three novels are gorgeous.

Lenhardt’s characters are diverse and complex. Her women and their friendships get the attention they have always deserved but so rarely receive. Prodigious research is evident in the language, settings, and situations. An unsettling many of the era’s convictions regarding social justice and gender roles remain (bizarrely) controversial today. Lenhardt also breaks out vivid similes: “Between hands I would catch sight of Salter sitting across the room at a poker table, the prostitute draped over his shoulder like a poncho.” Like a poncho.

Badlands is every bit as tough and raw as the American Wild West (which smells of “body odor, blood, horse sweat, manure, and new lumber”) and proves more authentic as it denies the genre its myths and tropes, unsparingly exposing the options of women of the era with an unflinching eye. Badlands is not for the faint of heart; Lenhardt seems to be trying to shock us, but it doesn’t feel egregious—it feels like bold truth-telling.

Originally published in Lone Star Literary Life. ( )

Fans of the Wild West, the Open Range, and reading about women who fight to survive will love this pioneer telling by Melissa Lenhardt. Could not put this down because I had to know what was going to happen to Laura Elliston. The "Blood Oath" the previous installment ended with Kindle and Laura's separation. Laura's journey takes her to Wyoming where she struggles to evade the law, mend a broken heart and fight for her dreams. The conclusion will not disappoint so enjoy. "A copy of this book was provided to me by Orbit Books and author via Netgalley with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read and my comments here are my honest opinion." ( )