West Of Glory (Author Spotlight)

When investigative reporter Daisy Southerland comes home to Tamarack, Alberta, to take over as editor of the family newspaper, all she wants is a simpler lifestyle. However, even though she'd thought she'd be in for a somewhat tamer life, she still has the drive to investigate inconsistencies in a story. So when her first story is about a shootout at the reservation, leaving both parties, one of them a Mountie, dead, she is determined to find out the truth, rather than follow the rest of the town's inclination to ignore the questionable circumstances of the double killing.Ben Goodstriker is suspicious when he learns his cousin is one of the victims and accused of killing a Mountie. To clear his cousin's name, he agrees to work with Daisy to uncover the facts of the case. However Ben and Daisy find time to do a little more than work, sparks fly and you can guess the rest. Then Daisy disappears and now Ben has to find the truth himself if he wants to find the woman he loves. But can he find her before it's too late?Ms. Bowen has written an excellent mystery with plenty of suspects that kept me guessing. It's a good romance as well. The characters seemed to walk away with the book, so real did they seem. The writing is superb and I for one will be looking out for the next book penned by Judith Bowen.

Daisy Sutherland may not be in the big city anymore, but she still carries the drive to investigate inconsistencies even when warned away. So when a constable in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and a resident of the local reservation both die in a shooting incident, Daisy becomes determined to uncover the truth, rather than follow the rest of the small town of Tamarack, Alberta's inclination to ignore the questionable circumstances of the event.The shootout near the Blackfoot reserve leaves local residents stunned, but no less than Ben Goodstriker. He cannot make sense of the circumstances regarding the death of his cousin, and eventually agrees to work with Daisy to uncover the truth. When Daisy suddenly disappears, Ben devotes himself to finding the truth and the woman who has captured his heart. In her first single title release, author Judith Bowen pens a fascinating mystery in WEST OF GLORY. Her background in investigative reporting lends the novel a feel of authenticity and immediacy. Moreover, the strength of the mystery and a plethora of suspects will pique the reader's interest, despite the slow pace of the beginning. Indeed, Bowen once again demonstrates her keen eye for capturing the nuances of the heart and the power of a story well told. WEST OF GLORY comes highly recommended.

WEST OF GLORY: Judith Bowen slides easily into her first single title release from Harlequin, bringing with her the places and characters she introduced in her Superromance series, MEN OF GLORY, and weaving them into this more complex story of Daisy Sutherland, a city journalist returning to her childhood home and finding small-town life not quite as she remembered it. Two men are dead, and no one seems interested in uncovering the truth behind the killings except Daisy, who courts public censure not just because she won't leave well enough alone, but because, in the course of her investigations, she falls in love with the native Indian who happens to be related to one of the dead men - and that, in the opinion of some, just isn't socially acceptable. Once again, the author's intimate knowledge of southern Alberta's ranch country, and the people who live and work there, gives her novel the ring of authenticity that no amount of second-hand research can ever achieve. An excellent read all round. Five stars on this one, Judith!