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Book Review of King of Hearts (Gamblers, Bk 2) (Zebra Ballad Romance)

King of Hearts (Gamblers, Bk 2) (Zebra Ballad Romance)
reviewed on + 204 more book reviews


Good old-fashioned "western" story. Lottie is running a stage station and raising her deceased sister's children while letting everyone believe she is an unwed mother. The children's father is actually her outlaw brother-in-law who rides with a gang robbing and murdering innocent citizens. Wade, the hero, pretends to be a drunk and a gambler down on his luck when he is really a US Marshall tracking Lottie's brother-in-law's gang. Wade gets thrown off the stage on purpose just before reaching the stage station. Lottie doesn't keep drifters and means to send him on his way but he manages to get beneath her defenses when he helps with chores and the children take to him almost immediately. The brother-in-law comes back several times to see his children and until Wade figures out how he fits in the picture, Wade goes through the gamut of emotions. He ends up actually liking Ambrose but he knows he has to cause pain to Lottie and the children by taking him back for trial.