Title: To Hell You Ride
Author: Julia Talbot
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (2nd Edition)
Length: 102 Pages
Category: Historical, Western
At a Glance: Sir Edward rubbed me the wrong way, but it was hard not to like Big Roy. Julia Talbot really captures the old western setting for Telluride, Colorado, in 1890.
Reviewed By: Maryann
Blurb: Big Roy is a hard-rock miner with a not-so-secret love for the theater, so when he hears a new troupe of actors are coming to the Telluride Opera House to put on a Shakespeare play, he saddles his mule and makes the trek into town to see it. The play doesn’t disappoint, but the beautiful lead actor, Edward Clancy, certainly does. Clancy is rude and arrogant, and Roy figures he’d never have a chance with such a man. He’s wrong, because Clancy needs some entertainment himself, being stuck in a hellish mining town for the long, snowy winter. Come spring, though, Clancy knows he’s going to want to move on, and he thinks Roy will be easy to forget. Then tragedy hits, and Clancy has to rethink his entire life. Can these two strike gold?
Review: Big Roy Marsh is a big man, not very good looking, but he’s sweet, reliable, respectful and very likable. He’s got a dangerous job working in the mountains as a miner. When he has time off from the mines, he makes the long and hard trek into the town of Telluride to enjoy the live plays at the Opera House. He has a love for the plays by Shakespeare.
When Andy Laury, who runs the newspaper, can’t make the play, he asks Roy to help with a review. Big Roy is more than delighted with the actors and the play—except for Sir Edward Clancy. Although Sir Edward’s acting skills were superb, which Roy gives him credit for, the actor’s personality is the pits. And Roy knows firsthand how rude and arrogant Sir Edward is. Sir Edward doesn’t like the review, so he seeks out Big Roy and confronts him about it. He’s afraid Roy is ruining his reputation.
Big Roy becomes enamored of Sir Edward even though he knows he doesn’t fit in Sir Edward’s world. He also knows that Sir Edward has affairs with other men. Roy really tries to accept that there may never be a true relationship between them, but he wants a connection with the actor.
Julia Talbot really captures the old western setting for Telluride, Colorado, in 1890. This easy to read novella has a little suspense, danger, drama, heartbreak and humor. It was hard not to like Roy’s character. He’s just a simple and loving man, with a southern drawl that brings lots of emotion to the story. Sir Edward was definitely snooty and rubbed me the wrong way with his cavalier affairs and making Roy feel less than, but he redeems himself to a certain degree, which really made this an extreme opposites attract story.
You can buy To Hell You Ride here:
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