Book picks similar to
Desperate Hearts by Alexis Harrington


romance
historical-romance
western
historical

No Place for a Lady


Maggie Brendan - 2009
    After the death of her father, Crystal is relieved to be leaving the troubles of her Georgia life behind to visit her aunt's cattle ranch. Despite being raised as a proper Southern belle, Crystal is determined to hold her own in this wild land—even if a certain handsome foreman named Luke doubts her abilities.Just when she thinks she's getting a handle on the constant male attention from the cowhands and the catty barbs from some of the local young women, tragedy strikes. And saving the ranch from a greedy neighboring landowner means Crystal must take charge of a cattle drive, ready or not. Can she rise to the challenge? Or will she head back to Georgia defeated?

Brighter than Gold


Cynthia Wright - 1990
    Spirited Katie MacKenzie helps her father run a saloon and writes articles for the local newspaper about the Griffin, a Robin Hood-style highwayman who robs the unscrupulous mine owners and gives back to the townspeople. Irresistibly roguish Jack Adams, an adventurer with a dark secret, rides into the sleepy Sierra town one summer day and changes everything.A powerful attraction smolders and burns between Jack and Katie despite their efforts to resist, but when a tragic death occurs during one of the Griffin's stagecoach robberies, Katie is haunted by thoughts of revenge. Can Jack reconcile his life in Columbia with his surprising true identity in San Francisco... and will this couple find their way to happiness in spite of the dangerous secrets that separate them? Journey back to Civil War-era California with Jack, Katie, and historical characters like Samuel Clemens for a passionate & adventurous romance that will keep you turning the pages to the very end!

Only Forever


Kimberly Cates - 1992
    Since the day when outlaws ravaged Garret's family homestead, he has shunned attachments, pouring his passion into his paintings of the unforgiving western wilderness. But as Garret braves the dangerous trail with Ashleen and the children, his heart begins to thaw. When evil forces threaten, will he ride away or make a home with this patchwork family he’s come to love?

A Mail-Order Heart


Janelle Daniels - 2016
    But when nine women arrive, all claiming to be mail-order brides for the same man, his once quiet life is thrown into chaos. Safeguarding them from aggressive suitors is nothing compared to the inner battle he faces over Clara, a woman who heats his blood… but can never be his own.But when Clara is kidnapped by the same person who’s sabotaging their mine, Sawyer must choose between the life he knew and the future he craves.

Beauty and the Bounty Hunter


Lori Austin - 2012
    Catching one lowlife after another, she continues her search for the only man she really cares to locate. The one whose voice she will never forget; the man who murdered her husband. She'll stop at nothing to find him. Con artist Alexi Romanov taught Cat every trick she knows. He is a master of deceit, disguise, and desire. He's difficult to trust, and even more difficult to resist, but he has news she can't ignore. The man she's after has placed a bounty on her head. To get him before he gets her, she'll have to team up with Alexi again...and just like before, the two of them together are nothing but trouble.

Flame


Connie Mason - 1997
    Although the proud Yankee was prepared to face any hardship on her journey to Fort Bridger, she was horrified to learn that single women weren't welcome on any wagon train. Desperate to cross the plains, Ashley decided to pay the first bachelor willing to pose as her husband. Then the fiery redhead came across a former Johnny Reb in the St. Joe's jail, and she couldn't think of any man she'd rather marry in name only. But out on the rugged trail, Tanner MacTavish quickly proved too intense, too virile, too dangerous for her peace of mind. And after Tanner stole a passionate kiss, Ashley knew that, even though the Civil War was over, a new battle was brewing -- a battle for the heart that she might be only too happy to lose.

Moonlight and Magic


Rebecca Paisley - 1990
    But when she sets a “werewolf trap”, she finally snares the one thing she’s been praying for—a handsome “knight” who can protect her from the ruthless land baron who has been lusting after her property.It has not been a good day for Sterling Montoya. He had awakened next to a naked, screeching stranger, been chased across hostile Apache territory by her shotgun-toting father and had become the reluctant guardian for a newborn babe… And now he was the prisoner of a beautiful, but batty, would-be sorceress—a stunning, Shakespeare-spouting enchantress whose passionate touch promises Sterling heaven…until he realizes that whenever she’s around, all hell breaks loose.Can Sterling break the tender spell Chimera casts over his hungry heart or will he discover her love is the one enchantment too magical to resist?

Chasing Rainbows


Victoria Lynne - 1997
    . . only to land in his arms.The crowd cheered as the bandit was hanged--until his hat flew off, revealing the truth: the condemned man was a woman.  But the noose was loose, the rope was frayed, and within seconds Outlaw Annie fell to the ground, rescued by the tall, dark stranger who rode by her side as they hightailed it out of town.  She'd never met her match until then, in this disturbing outsider who stirred unfamiliar passions as he tried to tame the wildest woman in the West.Jake Moran couldn't tell Annie the truth: he was a wanted man, using her as bait to lure the infamous Mundy Gang, the only ones who could clear his name.  Jake was a gambler, but nothing could have prepared him for this hellion he'd agreed to escort to a distant town.  She said she wanted to go straight.  But she went straight for his heart, a place no woman had ever touched before, as he battled guilt and desire for the innocent temptress who led him into the most dangerous wilderness of all--love.

Written in the Stars


Nan Ryan - 1992
    Her bareback-riding feats drew huge crowds in Denver, but Diane's was not the only new act. The "Redman of the Rockies," a captured "savage," was a sensation with his hard-muscled body, harshly handsome features, and dark eyes glittering with icy fury. Mesmerized by the caged wild creature, Diane recklessly turned him loose, only to be swept up and spirited away into the Rocky Mountains....Cruelly captured, his magnificent body put on display for taunting crowds, he thirsted for revenge. When the violet-eyed beauty set him free, the Redman carried her off as bait to catch his captors. But Diane's shining spirit and shimmering loveliness enchanted her abductor. Taking her to a land of golden days and silver nights, gradually revealing the many mysteries of his true identity, the "savage" found himself captive to a love that was Written in the Stars

A Taste Of Fire


Hannah Howell - 1988
    Now, in "A Taste of Fire", she spins a poignant tale of promises made and kept, as a deathbed vow sends a feisty young woman to find the Texas cattle rancher she must save from danger...and claim as her beloved.Antonie Ramirez could ride and shoot as well as any man—and better than most. Now, the headstrong beauty had come to Texas to honor her father’s last words: find the cattle rancher named Royal Bancroft and repay him for saving their lives long ago.Royal Bancroft didn’t who was behind the outlaws trying to drive him off his land, but he would fight to the death rather than lose it. Yet with his sister and brother kidnapped, he felt defeat run through him like a chill wind… until a girl with cornsilk and a steady gunhand rode into his life.Antonie was wild, hard, and hurting inside, and Royal knew from the moment he saw her that, if he tried to tame her, he’s break her spirit. Instead, he would let her ride with him as an equal partner, fight beside him for a future, and come to him as a woman on fire for blazing love…

Courting Miss Hattie


Pamela Morsi - 1991
    She was certainly spirited and delightfully sweet natured, and she'd managed to run her family farm almost single-handedly. But wasn't a twenty-nine-year-old lady farmer too old to catch a husband?An Irresistible Suitor.All his life handsome, black-haired Reed Tyler had worked Miss Hattie's farm--and dreamed of one day settling down on his own piece of land with the pretty young woman he'd sworn to marry. Hattie was someone he could tell his hopes and troubles to--someone he looked on as a sister. So he thought, until the idea of Ancil Drayton calling on her made him seethe. Until the night a brotherly peck became a scorching kiss... and Reed knew nothing would bank the blaze--and that his best friend was the only woman he would ever love.From the Paperback edition.

Paper Roses


Amanda Cabot - 2009
    Leaving the past behind in Philadelphia, mail-order bride Sarah arrives in San Antonio ready to greet her groom, Austin Canfield, a man she has never met but whose letters have won her heart from afar. But there is one problem--he has died. And Sarah cannot go back East.As Sarah tries to reconcile herself to a future that is drastically changed, Austin's brother, Clay, struggles with his own muddled plans. Though he dislikes working on the family ranch and longs for a different life, Clay is driven to avenge his brother's death. But something between them is growing and neither Clay nor Sarah is ready to admit it. Book 1 of the Texas Dreams series, Paper Roses will sweep readers into the Hill Country with a tale of love and loss, closed doors and beautiful possibilities that will leave them wanting more.

Blaze


Susan Johnson - 1986
    To Blaze Braddock, beautiful, pampered daughter of a millionaire, it was a chance to flee stifling codes of Boston society. But when Jon Hazard Black, a proud young Absarokee chief, challenged her father's land claim, Blaze was swept up in a storm of passions she had never before even imagined.Taken hostage by the Indian warrior, Blaze Braddock surrendered to the dreams of a defiant people -- and found love in the arms of a man who had sworn to be her enemy... This book is intended for mature audiences.

Dark Stranger


Heather Graham Pozzessere - 1988
    All she had left to fight for was her ranch--but she had to give up her independence to do it. She needed Cole Slater's help, but in return she offered the only thing she had--herself. No questions. No answers. Just a bargain. From the author of Slow Burn.

Dear Penelope


Sharon Ihle - 2005
     Penelope is disappointed her fiancé isn't at the train depot, and sets out to find him only to discover he is about to marry another. Unable to afford a ticket home, Penelope convinces Sabastian that the Pearly Gates needs a hostess, then snags a part-time job setting type for the town's down-on-its-luck newspaper. Sabastian wishes he'd said "no" to the effervescent Penelope as there isn't a pair of boots she can't trip over, including her own, and she' just as good at setting type. When Penelope decides to help one of the paper's love-addled readers, the 'Dear Penelope' column becomes a booming success. Finally, life is good until Penelope's father arrives to drag his unwed daughter home. Leaving Penelope no choice, she asks Sabastian to marry her. But a marriage of convenience can be anything but...convenient. REVIEWS: "Brilliant, funny and mesmerizing." Affaire de Coeur Also by Sharon Ihle: THE PROUD ONES, in series order The Bride Wore Feathers The Half-breed Bride THE INCONVENIENT BRIDES, in series order: The Bride Wore Spurs Marrying Miss Shylo The Marring Kind The WILD WOMEN Series, in order" Untamed Wildcat Wild Rose Wild Hearts THE LAW AND DISORDER SERIES, in order: To Love a Scoundrel The Outlaw was No Lady A Lawman for Maggie The Law and Miss Penny ABOUT SHARON IHLE: Sharon Ihle is the bestselling author of more than a dozen historical romances set in the American West. A lifelong Californian, Sharon recently moved from the sunny beaches of San Diego to the frozen plains of North Dakota. Hard to believe, but it's true.