Hearts Afire
In 1893 New York, actress Sabrina Chadwick commits a cardinal sin by walking off the stage in the middle of a performance. Distraught over a failed romance, she hides behind her real name, Victoria Drumm, and returns to her hometown in Colorado to rebuild her life. Wealthy mine owner Lincoln Buchannan may not recognize Tori as a stage star, but he certainly recognizes her beauty—and the fact she is stranded in a town in the midst of gold fever. Offered a room in his mansion, she reluctantly accepts, hoping to track down her brother, a union organizer.
Tori comes to love her simple life away from the stage. Despite their differing loyalties, desire kindles passion between her and Link. Fears of partisan threats and violence menace not only their romance but their very lives. Can there be a way to satisfy the miners’ demands, avoid a strike, and bring peace to the town without bloodshed? Will their love survive when Tori’s past comes back to haunt her?
Sara Luck’s historically-based tale gives the reader an interesting look at the dawn of the union movement in the American West. I found the protagonists with their different backgrounds to be fascinating, especially the look into the New York stage and the Colorado gold mines.
