The Last Renegade

Berkley Sensational

The Last Renegade
Jo Goodman
2012

The Summary
"As the owner of the Pennyroyal Saloon and Hotel, Lorraine Berry is privy to almost everything that goes on in Bitter Springs, Wyoming--including the bloodshed plaguing its citizens.  With all of the good men dying at the hands of a local rancher and his three sons, Raine hires a shootist to be the town's protector.  But her handsome new employee is more than a hired hand; he's a man who keeps his guns close and his secrets closer.

"After a chance encounter on the train, Kellen Coltrane travels to the Pennyroyal to carry out a dying man's last wish.  But once he meets the hotel's fiery-haired proprietor, Coltrane finds himself assuming the role of the shootist's accomplice and agrees to protect Bitter Springs.  And as he learns more about Raine's own tragedy, Coltrane can't deny his growing desire for the courageous widow, or the urge to protect her from the threat that draws near..."

The Good
Jo Goodman's novel is a western through and through.  It feels like an old western movie:  dashing heroes, fiery heroines, bad guys and good guys, gunfights and outlaws.  After reading so many historical romances set during the Victorian age or the Regency, The Last Renegade was a breath of fresh air.  It was nice to change things up.

Overall, The Last Renegade was a pretty good book.  I can't say I liked the relationship between Kellen and Lorraine.  Don't get me wrong, I was rooting for them to be together; however, after realizing she divulges her entire past to him, I kind of wish he'd offered her the same courtesy and, you know, remained honest with her.  I suppose I can see why he couldn't, but it bothered me a little.  (Personal problem, not a problem with the book, I know.)

I found I enjoyed my visit to Bitter Springs, Wyoming.  It's a quintessential outlaw western:  you have a powerful family that's trying to seize control of the town; a sassy, headstrong lady out for revenge; and a devastatingly handsome gunslinger out to protect a town he's grown to like (more or less).

It's interesting and it's familiar; that is, it's almost comforting.  Bad things might happen in Westerns--there are outlaws, there are murderers, there are bad people in the world--but you get the sense that everything, eventually, will turn out alright.

Besides which, I really liked the Collins family.  They were only secondary characters, but I absolutely adored Mr. Collins' grandsons, Finn and Rabbit.  They're troublesome, they're wily, they're honestly enough to give someone gray hair, but they're good kids and I really like them.  (They're also one of the reasons the mystery as solved in the first place.)

The Bad
Kellen plays his cards carefully, keeping them close to the vest; sometimes, to the detriment of everyone else--well, more accurately, readers.  I sometimes struggled to stay on top of Kellen's plans.  I mean, he obviously didn't share all his plans and ideas with Lorraine; likewise, he doesn't always make them apparent to readers.

He's very secretive and he doesn't tell you outright what he plans to do.  I had an inkling of what would happen, but, honestly, I was wrong just as often as I was right.  Although The Last Renegade did make me realize something about myself:  I'm good at predicting plot points, but I'm very bad at solving mysteries.

The Ugly
Rape.