Runaway (Hardcover)

I've recently read "Runaway" the 1st book in her MacKenzie series by Heather Graham.

From School Library Journal

The turbulent life in the unsettled Florida of 1835 unfolds as Tara, running from a false accusation of murder, hastily marries Jarrett, an acquaintance who wins her in a poker game. He turns out to be wealthy plantation owner who befriends the Indians. She has trouble coping: war breaks out with the Indians, frightening her terribly. Her busy husband doesn't believe in explanations, and the newlyweds fight frequently, enjoying making up and falling helplessly in love. Their relationship is complex but characterization is realistic. Tension is relieved through subtle touches of humor especially with the pranks they play on one another. Her background remains a mystery, even to her husband, until almost the last chapter, an exciting climax that is nicely resolved.

From Library Journal

A prolific author of historical and contemporary romances (e.g., Spirit of the Season, Delacorte, 1993), Graham here begins a new multivolume family saga. Set in Florida during the 1830s, the story follows Tara Brent, who is running from a murder charge. She meets Jarrett McKenzie, who rescues her from her pursuers by marrying her and taking her to his plantation on the Florida frontier. At first frightened by the wilderness and the natives she sees as "savages," Tara learns to love Jarrett, his home, and the people he loves.

From AudioFile

Set in Florida in the early 1800's, this is a tale of the war between the Seminole and Osceola Indians and the white settlers. White man, Jarrett, and Tara, his wife, try to keep the peace with the Indians. But peace isn't forthcoming as Tara's past continues to haunt and terrify her until the startling conclusion in the cypress swamps. Juliet Mills reads the story in a light British accent. She has an evident lisp in the first half of the story, which distracts the listener. Also, the accents, particularly the French ones, aren't consistent throughout the story. In addition, the tone of Mills' voice doesn't always match the actions described, causing the listener to wonder how she feels about what she's reading.

From Booklist

A trumped-up murder charge sends Tara Brent running from Boston to New Orleans and into the arms of a gambler in a waterfront saloon. Little does Tara know--as she escapes into the night, pursued once again by the henchmen of the real murderer--that her rescuer will take her as his wife to his plantation deep in the wilds of Florida. Graham manipulates this exciting scenario to introduce Tara and Graham's readers to the Florida of the 1830s, where a battle rages between Seminoles and white settlers. Tara's gradual acceptance of her savage surroundings and her aggravating spouse occurs only after she accepts the Indians as individuals and friends.

From Kirkus Reviews

This big-time bodice ripper from Graham (One Wore Blue; And One Wore Gray, not reviewed) is the first in a five-part saga about Florida. With her dedicated libido, Graham lights up the sweet savage swamps of the middle peninsula circa the early 19th century. She handles all the compulsory elements well; it's a great trick to give readers exactly what they want and still present something fresh and exciting. Her hero, Jarrett McKenzie, the grandson of an Irish lord, wins Tara Brent in a New Orleans poker game. He wants her at first sight, when he spies her across the crowded room of a waterfront brothel. Virginal Tara is blond and perfect; Jarrett is dark and perfect (``He was as natural and assured as a beast in the wild. The moonlight fell upon the sleek bulge of his forearm and shoulder for just a moment. Oh, God!''). To hide Tara from villains who have accused her of murder, Jarrett undresses her (he is astoundingly good with early American underwear) and flings her naked into his bed. He can see her in the dark because he was raised by Indians (he also is called White Tiger). Impressed, he marries her and takes his reluctant bride to his wild but well- appointed plantation near Tampa, where she will never have to cook a meal (another reason this is women's fiction), just as the Seminole chief, Osceola, declares war on the American government. There is a plot where somehow Tara and Jarrett work out their problematic relationship and the reader learns about the Seminoles, including Jarrett's muscular half-brother, Indian chief James McKenzie, also called Running Bear. But it's ultimately beside the point. Jarrett is a bit pushy for the '90s: He has an obsidian-dark glare and no sense of boundaries. Or maybe he's just so big that his boundaries overlap everyone else's. Even so, in Graham's hands, phallic Florida rises. We pant for more.

Product Description

Caught up in a bloody confrontation between the Indians and white settlers in 1830s Florida, Tara Brent meets part-Seminole Jarrett MacKenzie and his family and, learning about the injustices they suffer, becomes dedicated to their cause.