This novel evokes the hardship of travelling in the later
years of the Civil War, following a wagon train from
Savannah to Arizona as the families try to escape the
turmoil of the times. To begin with the people carry
civilisation with them and organise themselves according to
the rules they have lived by; but as the journey progresses
survival becomes the priority and the unthinkable becomes
reality.
MY SAVAGE HEART brings together Julie Marshall, driving a
wagon after her brother's family Conestoga, and the wagon
train leader Derek Arnhardt. Myles, Julie's brother, feels
responsible for the girl and they all struggle through
river crossings, heavy snow and family discord. Pregnant
women and children work hard and the wagon train has
already been reduced by sickness. Giving birth in the back
of a wagon is difficult but there is no other option, and a
man who seems just a loner on the trail reveals himself as
crazed when he enters San Angelo and gets whisky. A ball is
held here to welcome the pioneers, showing us the last
remnant of their previous lives.
The times are well evoked with a continuous drip-feed of
war news as the pioneers reach each town or fort. The South
is gradually losing and they would have no homes to return
to. One coloured man has accompanied his former owner as a
servant, but she treats him badly and when he vanishes her
automatic reaction is to demand that he is fetched back to
be whipped. The 'lady', a clearly unsympathetic character,
has a similar attitude to a squaw who aids the train,
calling her an animal and a savage.
The landscape is a major element in the tale, with mountain
passes, caves, saguaro, chaparral and Joshua trees, swollen
rivers and defiant forts. When the travelers feast on a
javelina they are delighted with the change from beef
jerky, cornmeal and potatoes. By the time the news that
the South has surrendered and Lincoln is dead reaches
Julie, she has been through Indian massacres carried out by
Cochise and the Chiricahua Apaches, and all she has left is
her love for Derek.
For those who love the outdoors, history or a romance
packed with danger, THIS SAVAGE HEART is a must-read.
Nothing—not the wild west, kidnapping, enslavement, or
mutual enemies—can keep them apart.
Though Julie Marshall and blockade runner Captain Derek
Arnhardt avowed their love in Souls Aflame, fickle fate
cruelly tore them apart before they could be wed.
Brought together again on a wagon train heading West, Julie
is astonished to learn that Derek is the wagon master
leading the expedition.
Their love renewed, they plan to marry when the wagon train
reaches its destination in Arizona, but once more fate has
other plans. When the wagon train is attacked by Indians,
Derek is captured and Julie is kidnapped by the sinister gun
runner.
Unable to live without each other, Julie and Derek brave
capture, torture, and the very untamed land that stands
between them and their happily ever after.
This Retro Romance reprint was originally published in
November 1984 by Avon Books.
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