Heart of Thunder Book

I've read Johanna Lindsay's entire backlist- the good, the bad, and the ugly. I have her entire backlist in 1st printing even. When I heard there was a sale on some of her digital editions. I grabbed a few. Heart of Thunder was one of them.

I decided a bit ago to work my way through some of my old favorite author's backlist because I never got reviews up for them. Starting HoT, I realized I didn't remember a thing about it. Now finished with my re-read, I realize why. I think subconsciously I must have wanted to forget it. Forget that an author who wrote some of my most beloved romances, could "go there" on so many levels.

The heroine, Samantha Kingsley Blackstone is a rich girl making her way back home to the hacienda she was born to in Mexico. Along the way she runs into Hank Chavez who instantly falls for her. Only she's in love with her bff's brother. To bad for her because bff's brother is, as Hank put it, an "hombres puta", (no lie- man. whore. Literally). Samantha has no gaydar so she tries to use Hank to make him jealous. This causes deep resentment in Hank when he discovers it... because he was set to marry her.

Enter forced seduction scene #1. Only it wasn't so much. Because though Hank starts off angry, and okay headed into territory few like to see in their romance novels anymore- unless its your particular kink- he softens and she willingly joins in on her forced seduction. However she changes her mind afterward. She shoots him as he rides off and continues to refer to it as rape throughout the book.

She confronts her bff and brother, then heads out for home. By this time I'm seriously not liking this spoiled, selfish, bitch. She's so pissed that Hank Chavez led her down the path of destruction, she sends out wanted posters up and down the territory. (Which is a thread left dangling for the record.) But For some reason, rather than rage at what happened to her, it just makes her out to be a brat throwing a temper tantrum.

Samantha eventually makes it home to Mexico only to find out some bandido has been harassing her Dad and stealing from their land. She promptly finds herself kidnapped and held for ransom only to find out, surprise surprise Hank Chavez is the bandido- and even more bizarrely it has nothing to do with her and everything to do with the land.

Hank? Well, him I could almost stand. He's handsome and not as nasty as Samantha claims him to be- the "mystery" as to why he's harassing her father is pretty obvious. But his dealings with her, and even the fact he still wants her even though SHE HATES him (but I want him!) makes him TSTL.

Anyway, me thinks the lady protests too much. Plus Samantha is always reassuring the reader she's brutally honest with herself (read, "I WANT HIS BOD") but she certainly is with no one else in the story.

The plot is contrived from her continued "You disgust me- but I waaaant you" to the reason he marries her. ::rolleyes:: (C'mon you wanted it all along, what came with the marriage was only the icing on the cake.)

The last quarter of the book turned out to be a little more interesting as it moves to England and introduces a brother I don't believe was ever spoken of before in the novel and yet another side plot of his fiancé looking to harm Samantha. (Scratching my head as to why this was added as it's a plot line in and of itself.)

sigh. Awful heroine. Cringe worthy relationship. Annoying dialogue. Disjointed plot. Wtf, JL. W.T.F

meh.