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Sutton Family #1
Beautiful Bad Man
In 1866 on the empty Kansas prairie, two children shared a few desperate moments that changed their lives. For years afterward, each nursed a secret dream—that the other had grown into a special person—brave, good, kind.
When Norah Hawkins and Caleb Sutton cross paths again, dreams die. She is a bitter, suicidal widow. He is a gunman with little conscience and few scruples. Alternately angry, repelled, and attracted, the two form an uneasy partnership to hold land she owns and he covets against a marauding neighbor. Their bargain never included love, or did it?
When Norah Hawkins and Caleb Sutton cross paths again, dreams die. She is a bitter, suicidal widow. He is a gunman with little conscience and few scruples. Alternately angry, repelled, and attracted, the two form an uneasy partnership to hold land she owns and he covets against a marauding neighbor. Their bargain never included love, or did it?
316 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 28, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 360 reviews
June 10, 2023
You know the authors that churn out a new work every month or two? And the more they write, the lower the quality of the story and the more repetitive and formulaic they seem? I have so many authors who I used to read no matter what but now am pretty wary of even trying any of their new releases. These authors have chosen quantity over quality. They’ve gotten lazy and rely on their fan base to buy whatever they put out just because they’ve put their name on it. Inevitably I abandon these authors but still see their stuff on goodreads and their ratings, which were once high, are now just mediocre. But they seem ok with that as they keep churning out works in an almost robotic, automaton fashion. But then once in awhile you come across a gem. A diamond in the rough. An author who has taken care with her work, an author who puts thought, planning and research into each and every one of her stories. She has a distinct style, for sure, and her works are recognizable, but they are not formulaic, they are each an original work that you know you will come back to read over and over. The only problem with this kind of author, who takes such care, edits so well and has obviously put months and months of work into her book, is that she has so very few titles on her backlist. She has chosen to follow her muse, and only write the stories that call to her. These are works of passion, not greed.
Well Ellen O’Connell is one of these authors. I have read a few of her books now and each and every one of them has cleaved itself a new place in my heart. They’ve torn me down with their characters’ gritty and depressing lives but then built me back up with an unforgettable love story between two extremely forgettable people.
All that being said, this book was amazing. It was angsty, sad, anger inducing, dubious in its morality and had me rooting for the two mains and cursing the villain. This book should be a miniseries, it’s that epic. I loved Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold, possibly more than this one. But this story was much tighter and flowed better and I didn’t feel as overwhelmed by the melodrama. It was almost unputdownable.
Read this book. Follow this author and support her work. I hope she writes another book soon as it’s been years since her last release. I can’t imagine just finding her only to find out she’s retired.
Well Ellen O’Connell is one of these authors. I have read a few of her books now and each and every one of them has cleaved itself a new place in my heart. They’ve torn me down with their characters’ gritty and depressing lives but then built me back up with an unforgettable love story between two extremely forgettable people.
All that being said, this book was amazing. It was angsty, sad, anger inducing, dubious in its morality and had me rooting for the two mains and cursing the villain. This book should be a miniseries, it’s that epic. I loved Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold, possibly more than this one. But this story was much tighter and flowed better and I didn’t feel as overwhelmed by the melodrama. It was almost unputdownable.
Read this book. Follow this author and support her work. I hope she writes another book soon as it’s been years since her last release. I can’t imagine just finding her only to find out she’s retired.
August 28, 2024
-`♡´-✩°｡⋆ Wow! 4 Captivating and emotional stars! ✩°｡⋆ ˚₊·—̳͟͞͞♡
'Other men in the small restaurant sported suits, white shirts, and collars with ties. Compared to Caleb Sutton they all looked tame and - ordinary.'
"He's a bad one."
"Oh, Mabel, yes, he is. He's a very bad man, but he's a beautiful bad man."
୨୧° ♡ °୨୧
So, this is the second novel I've read from Ellen O'Connell and I must say that I find that she writes stories that are gritty and realistic- She's not an author who pulls any punches when she delivers novels that depict the harshness of life as it was back in these times. But amidst the chaos and violence she manages to deliver a story that is even more beautiful and emotionally stirring because of the fact.
ೃ⁀➷ 𝓠𝓾𝓲𝓬𝓴 𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂 ˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡ ˚
Norah Hawkins and Caleb Sutton meet under the most unusual and trying circumstances briefly as young adults. Years later, these two happen to meet again by a quirky twist of fate. Neither have actively thought of the other over the years but deep down inside both had wished the other had gotten the best out of life after their initial meeting.
˚₊· ➳❥ Norah, now a widow and left alone in her soddy home sullen, depressed and on the brink of starving herself to death for the lack of care for life.
˚₊· ➳❥ Caleb (Cal), now a gun for hire, so worn down from not giving a damn about people because all they have ever done is either die on him, treat him poorly or try to cause him harm - he's living recklessly.
When a bully of a landowner in the area is dead set on claiming the land that Norah occupies and owns, Caleb finds himself putting himself in the crossfire and killing men that he works for and with in order to keep Norah safe.
She soon comes to grip that this is The Boy from many years prior and they come up with a plan and form an alliance.
A partnership forged between two people who couldn’t be more different from each other even if they tried would seem to be a venture doomed for failure right from the very start. But that is exactly the opposite of what happens as Norah starts to discover those startling qualities about the man she married, the man that she slowly starts to fall in love with as Caleb unknowingly shows her just what it is like to be married to someone who truly appreciates Norah and all that she can offer in the truest fashion.
ೃ⁀➷ 𝓜𝔂 𝓣𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 ˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡ ˚
Through all of the dangers these two face together it brings the best out of each of them- Norah finds her way back to being the stubborn feisty girl she once was. Cal softens to only her and their animals- the ultimate beautiful bad man. And a romance that is so tender and beautiful that it will make your heart melt.. 😭
I can't recommend recommend this author enough!
ೃ⁀➷ 𝓠𝓾𝓸𝓽𝓮𝓼 ˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡ ˚
'She still believed everything she always had. She'd just added two truths- anything that hurt Caleb Sutton was wrong. Anything that kept him safe was right.'
"What are you reading?" She asked without thinking.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't interrupt, and I could look from myself when you're not reading, couldn't I?"
"You can read any of them any time you want." He looked down at the book in his hand again. "I don't suppose you have much time for it either, do you. This one is called Around the World in Eighty Days, and it's about a fellow who makes a bet he can do that and what happens when he tries."
With that, he flipped back to the first page and began reading aloud.
'This is the way it's supposed to be. Partnership, marriage. No matter what we call it, this is how it's supposed to be. I was wrong. I don't want him to leave. If he does, I'll never stop missing him.'
❛Before I ever got there when she was working on you, you told her. You said you always loved the Girl.❜
He pushed his fingers into her hair, cupping her skull in a way that meant a kiss was coming. ❛That was a boy’s love for a dream he didn’t think would ever come true. What I feel for you is a man’s love for a woman, a wife.❜
‿︵‿︵‿୨ ୧‿︵‿︵‿
'Other men in the small restaurant sported suits, white shirts, and collars with ties. Compared to Caleb Sutton they all looked tame and - ordinary.'
"He's a bad one."
"Oh, Mabel, yes, he is. He's a very bad man, but he's a beautiful bad man."
୨୧° ♡ °୨୧
So, this is the second novel I've read from Ellen O'Connell and I must say that I find that she writes stories that are gritty and realistic- She's not an author who pulls any punches when she delivers novels that depict the harshness of life as it was back in these times. But amidst the chaos and violence she manages to deliver a story that is even more beautiful and emotionally stirring because of the fact.
ೃ⁀➷ 𝓠𝓾𝓲𝓬𝓴 𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂 ˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡ ˚
Norah Hawkins and Caleb Sutton meet under the most unusual and trying circumstances briefly as young adults. Years later, these two happen to meet again by a quirky twist of fate. Neither have actively thought of the other over the years but deep down inside both had wished the other had gotten the best out of life after their initial meeting.
˚₊· ➳❥ Norah, now a widow and left alone in her soddy home sullen, depressed and on the brink of starving herself to death for the lack of care for life.
˚₊· ➳❥ Caleb (Cal), now a gun for hire, so worn down from not giving a damn about people because all they have ever done is either die on him, treat him poorly or try to cause him harm - he's living recklessly.
When a bully of a landowner in the area is dead set on claiming the land that Norah occupies and owns, Caleb finds himself putting himself in the crossfire and killing men that he works for and with in order to keep Norah safe.
She soon comes to grip that this is The Boy from many years prior and they come up with a plan and form an alliance.
A partnership forged between two people who couldn’t be more different from each other even if they tried would seem to be a venture doomed for failure right from the very start. But that is exactly the opposite of what happens as Norah starts to discover those startling qualities about the man she married, the man that she slowly starts to fall in love with as Caleb unknowingly shows her just what it is like to be married to someone who truly appreciates Norah and all that she can offer in the truest fashion.
ೃ⁀➷ 𝓜𝔂 𝓣𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 ˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡ ˚
Through all of the dangers these two face together it brings the best out of each of them- Norah finds her way back to being the stubborn feisty girl she once was. Cal softens to only her and their animals- the ultimate beautiful bad man. And a romance that is so tender and beautiful that it will make your heart melt.. 😭
I can't recommend recommend this author enough!
ೃ⁀➷ 𝓠𝓾𝓸𝓽𝓮𝓼 ˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡ ˚
'She still believed everything she always had. She'd just added two truths- anything that hurt Caleb Sutton was wrong. Anything that kept him safe was right.'
"What are you reading?" She asked without thinking.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't interrupt, and I could look from myself when you're not reading, couldn't I?"
"You can read any of them any time you want." He looked down at the book in his hand again. "I don't suppose you have much time for it either, do you. This one is called Around the World in Eighty Days, and it's about a fellow who makes a bet he can do that and what happens when he tries."
With that, he flipped back to the first page and began reading aloud.
'This is the way it's supposed to be. Partnership, marriage. No matter what we call it, this is how it's supposed to be. I was wrong. I don't want him to leave. If he does, I'll never stop missing him.'
❛Before I ever got there when she was working on you, you told her. You said you always loved the Girl.❜
He pushed his fingers into her hair, cupping her skull in a way that meant a kiss was coming. ❛That was a boy’s love for a dream he didn’t think would ever come true. What I feel for you is a man’s love for a woman, a wife.❜
‿︵‿︵‿୨ ୧‿︵‿︵‿
September 30, 2012
Review completed September 30, 2012
4.5 stars.
Cal's eyes are very dark but his hair is dark blond. Anyway, reading is a personal experience as well as a little fantasy of mine and my Cal has dark hair. <3 <3 <3
Preliminary thoughts about my rating
Beautiful Bad Man is another great historical western penned by the very gifted Ellen O'Connell. While I loved Beautiful Bad Man I just have to admit that Dancing on Coals and Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold are closer to my heart. In the end I felt that I had to draw a line and my decision to round down to four stars is a matter of the heart.
Spring 1866
Hubbell, Kansas
A girl, Norah Hawkins, is saving a skinny and neglected boy's life. The boy's name is Caleb Sutton. For years afterward, Cal cannot forget the Girl. Norah hoped that the boy would use the chance she'd given him wisely and would grow into a decent person--a brave, good and kind man. Was Norah ever wrong though.
November 1880
Hubbell, Kansas
When Norah and Caleb meet again they have no idea what they are in for. The Girl had grown into a bitter, self-pitying and suicidal widow. The grieving Norah is slowly starving herself to death. And Caleb is not the good man either; if anything, Norah is shocked that Caleb is a gunman with few scruples. Their feelings for one another are the opposite of empathic or appealing.
"Let me tell you something about those whores you think are all hell bound, Mrs. Hawkins. Any one of them I ever knew who wanted to die would have the courage to use a gun or a knife or even rat poison if she had to. Whatever their sins, they have more grit and gumption than you do."
Despite their animosities Caleb and Norah are forming an unusual partnership to defend her modest property when a rich perpetrator is trying to expel Norah from her land. But what they didn't ask for was love…
The bad guys.
It's quite simple, I love Ellen's writing! She brings her characters so beautifully to life and her narrative is very engaging. Sensitive characterization, good plot and dialogue make Beautiful Bad Man precious. The well thought-out plot and the love story have an authentic feel to it. That said, it's not a rose-colored love story and it's by far not an insta' love situation either. In fact, it's all about a mutual bargain in the beginning, however, as the story unfolds the need to care for one another grows into love--slowly yet steadily. As it is, difficult times demand for unorthodox measures. Then again, I *think* that such an arrangement could have been rather common in these times and I felt it really was believable.
I enjoyed to see Caleb and Norah together. I cannot deny it, Cal is a "bad" man yet very, very delicious. But. If you are willing to look beyond the ruthless gunman, you will recognize subtle hints that Cal is hiding some very good and decent qualities behind his somber armor that you wouldn't expect from a bad man in the first place.
Cal finds a peace he'd never known before in Norah's house. He can sleep without nightmares and he loves to tend to Norah's land. As a matter of fact, he wants to build something valuable for their future and at the same time Norah cannot deny anymore that life is worth fighting for. Thanks to Caleb she is finding back to love and happiness.
"You're beautiful."
"Don't spoil it by lying," she begged. "We both know pretty is the best I can do."
He shook his head. "Pretty is when your hair is pinned up, and your collar is buttoned up. Pretty is for those times. Beautiful is for times like this, good times, wild times, sharing secrets times."
Fair warning: The romance between Cal and Norah is lovely but if you are expecting steamy love scenes then you will end up disappointed. Read Ellen's books for a chance to discover an exceptional author who creates wonderful, multilayered and authentic characters who will stay with you long after you've finished their stories. Her writing is vivid and flows effortlessly. Simply put, this is excellent quality writing and so worthy of your time and money. Enjoy!
"That was a boy's love for a dream he didn't think would ever come true. What I feel for you is a man's love for a woman,
Norah had to promote her beautiful and very bad man from very bad to bad.
4.5 stars.
Cal's eyes are very dark but his hair is dark blond. Anyway, reading is a personal experience as well as a little fantasy of mine and my Cal has dark hair. <3 <3 <3
Preliminary thoughts about my rating
Beautiful Bad Man is another great historical western penned by the very gifted Ellen O'Connell. While I loved Beautiful Bad Man I just have to admit that Dancing on Coals and Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold are closer to my heart. In the end I felt that I had to draw a line and my decision to round down to four stars is a matter of the heart.
Spring 1866
Hubbell, Kansas
A girl, Norah Hawkins, is saving a skinny and neglected boy's life. The boy's name is Caleb Sutton. For years afterward, Cal cannot forget the Girl. Norah hoped that the boy would use the chance she'd given him wisely and would grow into a decent person--a brave, good and kind man. Was Norah ever wrong though.
November 1880
Hubbell, Kansas
When Norah and Caleb meet again they have no idea what they are in for. The Girl had grown into a bitter, self-pitying and suicidal widow. The grieving Norah is slowly starving herself to death. And Caleb is not the good man either; if anything, Norah is shocked that Caleb is a gunman with few scruples. Their feelings for one another are the opposite of empathic or appealing.
"Let me tell you something about those whores you think are all hell bound, Mrs. Hawkins. Any one of them I ever knew who wanted to die would have the courage to use a gun or a knife or even rat poison if she had to. Whatever their sins, they have more grit and gumption than you do."
Despite their animosities Caleb and Norah are forming an unusual partnership to defend her modest property when a rich perpetrator is trying to expel Norah from her land. But what they didn't ask for was love…
The bad guys.
It's quite simple, I love Ellen's writing! She brings her characters so beautifully to life and her narrative is very engaging. Sensitive characterization, good plot and dialogue make Beautiful Bad Man precious. The well thought-out plot and the love story have an authentic feel to it. That said, it's not a rose-colored love story and it's by far not an insta' love situation either. In fact, it's all about a mutual bargain in the beginning, however, as the story unfolds the need to care for one another grows into love--slowly yet steadily. As it is, difficult times demand for unorthodox measures. Then again, I *think* that such an arrangement could have been rather common in these times and I felt it really was believable.
I enjoyed to see Caleb and Norah together. I cannot deny it, Cal is a "bad" man yet very, very delicious. But. If you are willing to look beyond the ruthless gunman, you will recognize subtle hints that Cal is hiding some very good and decent qualities behind his somber armor that you wouldn't expect from a bad man in the first place.
Cal finds a peace he'd never known before in Norah's house. He can sleep without nightmares and he loves to tend to Norah's land. As a matter of fact, he wants to build something valuable for their future and at the same time Norah cannot deny anymore that life is worth fighting for. Thanks to Caleb she is finding back to love and happiness.
"You're beautiful."
"Don't spoil it by lying," she begged. "We both know pretty is the best I can do."
He shook his head. "Pretty is when your hair is pinned up, and your collar is buttoned up. Pretty is for those times. Beautiful is for times like this, good times, wild times, sharing secrets times."
Fair warning: The romance between Cal and Norah is lovely but if you are expecting steamy love scenes then you will end up disappointed. Read Ellen's books for a chance to discover an exceptional author who creates wonderful, multilayered and authentic characters who will stay with you long after you've finished their stories. Her writing is vivid and flows effortlessly. Simply put, this is excellent quality writing and so worthy of your time and money. Enjoy!
"That was a boy's love for a dream he didn't think would ever come true. What I feel for you is a man's love for a woman,
Norah had to promote her beautiful and very bad man from very bad to bad.
February 17, 2023
Absolutely recommend this book. Western written about Kansas farmers and a greedy cattleman forcing people to sell their property to him. The book well describes how honorable and kind people can be along with others who use piousness to commit evil. Caleb has survived by being a wolf not a rabbit in life. Norah has lost her will to live...together they become a steely couple forged through adversity and find love. This is book one in the series and I am looking forward to reading the next.
May 28, 2023
An exquisite, old-fashioned, slow moving, two broken people, love story. This might be my favorite of O’Connell‘s work yet. I love her simple imagery.
It’s so refreshing to read a story that doesn’t follow the same plot lines and overused tropes.
Norah was brave and hard working, like many women of her generation. I marvel at how those women survived the harsh landscape, wearing all of those skirts, dealing with a never ending bombardment of dirt, and having a period without decent feminine products! (Not to mention childbirth!!)
Caleb was a gunslinger, a hired hand. Starved and beaten as a teenager, Caleb had a rough beginning. Norah and Caleb met briefly when young, both hopeful the other would make a success of their life. When their paths cross again as adults, they are each a little lost.
Highly recommended for fans of old westerns with heart. Surprisingly, the love scenes are not ftb. They aren’t as graphic as we are used to, but are filled with passion, curiosity and tenderness.
Dew sparkled on every plant in the morning sun. Not for the first time, Norah marveled at how little the world around them cared about the problems of humans.
It’s so refreshing to read a story that doesn’t follow the same plot lines and overused tropes.
Norah was brave and hard working, like many women of her generation. I marvel at how those women survived the harsh landscape, wearing all of those skirts, dealing with a never ending bombardment of dirt, and having a period without decent feminine products! (Not to mention childbirth!!)
Caleb was a gunslinger, a hired hand. Starved and beaten as a teenager, Caleb had a rough beginning. Norah and Caleb met briefly when young, both hopeful the other would make a success of their life. When their paths cross again as adults, they are each a little lost.
Highly recommended for fans of old westerns with heart. Surprisingly, the love scenes are not ftb. They aren’t as graphic as we are used to, but are filled with passion, curiosity and tenderness.
July 8, 2023
Let me just start with saying that I love the title of this book. It’s just perfect 😍
Norah and Cal met for a brief, life altering moment when they were teenagers. Needless to say, they never forgot each other. When they meet years later they are disappointed in each other at first but then develop a friendship nevertheless.
This book was a lot heavier than Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold. Both Norah and Cal had gone through a lot and reading their stories was heartbreaking. Their life together wasn’t easy either; they were in constant danger in their own home and had a habit of grabbing a gun every time the dog got restless.
The writing was beautiful and the characters interesting and realistic, but there was too much violence and misery for my taste. This book was just too triggering to give it five stars.
Norah and Cal met for a brief, life altering moment when they were teenagers. Needless to say, they never forgot each other. When they meet years later they are disappointed in each other at first but then develop a friendship nevertheless.
This book was a lot heavier than Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold. Both Norah and Cal had gone through a lot and reading their stories was heartbreaking. Their life together wasn’t easy either; they were in constant danger in their own home and had a habit of grabbing a gun every time the dog got restless.
The writing was beautiful and the characters interesting and realistic, but there was too much violence and misery for my taste. This book was just too triggering to give it five stars.
April 2, 2016
Written August 15, 2015
4 1/2 Stars - Lovely, tender and just an amazing good Western HR
I finished this lovely story yesterday morning and I still feel that happy feeling in my heart. — A good one!!
Wow, this "old" paperback, as I bought already in March 2013, really made my days (evenings) this (working) week. Such a good romance. Highly recommended to m/f HR fans who wants to leave the British nobles and fancy castles for ordinary ranch people in the new continent some times. Loved it!!
*********************************************
Hubbell, Kansas 1880
When the by now bitter grieving widow Norah Hawkins and the stranger Caleb Sutton meet again years later have they trouble to even recognize each other. She is grey, skinny, suicidal and so very angry. He is a dangerous gunman with little conscience and few scruples. They are both dissapointed...
But he owes her and shed is in need.
These two make a deal, to form a partnership to hold the land she owns. Destroyed land and a small ranch a evil rich man in the neighborhood tries to take from her.
*********************************************
Beautiful Bad Man is a perfect title. So much I loved this amazing hero. The very best kind. ~ Grumpy, hard and freakish sexy. A genuine M.A.N - swoon worthy.
This story felt kind of believable (nearly authentic in ways of life..). Beautiful Bad Man is emotionally filled, has a light (often witty) dialogue, a bunch of interesting characters and it is all just wonderful heartwarming romantic.
I like, did indeed love, just everything about this book. It's hard to explain why but this was just absolutely wonderful in the midst of toil, gray everydays and dusty roads. People are both old, young, ugly, beautiful, poor and simple. They are also funny, sexy and brave. I cared (wnted them to find a lucky HEA life). I sobbed (about hard childhoods and life's unfairness then over 100 years ago). I giggled and laughed (when these lovebirds teased each other). ~ I simply enjoyed full heartily.
*********************************************
To end... ~ Beautiful Bad Man is a genuine "old styled" romantic novel without a lot of ruffles and excessive explicit erotica. Just enjoyable with simple words and a pleasant way to tell. It will be more books by Ellen O'Connell, she really impressed me here.
I LIKE - and want more western HR soonish
4 1/2 Stars - Lovely, tender and just an amazing good Western HR
I finished this lovely story yesterday morning and I still feel that happy feeling in my heart. — A good one!!
Wow, this "old" paperback, as I bought already in March 2013, really made my days (evenings) this (working) week. Such a good romance. Highly recommended to m/f HR fans who wants to leave the British nobles and fancy castles for ordinary ranch people in the new continent some times. Loved it!!
*********************************************
« In 1866 on the empty Kansas prairie, two children shared a few desperate moments that changed their lives. For years afterward, each nursed a secret dream—that the other had grown into a special person—brave, good, kind. »
Hubbell, Kansas 1880
When the by now bitter grieving widow Norah Hawkins and the stranger Caleb Sutton meet again years later have they trouble to even recognize each other. She is grey, skinny, suicidal and so very angry. He is a dangerous gunman with little conscience and few scruples. They are both dissapointed...
But he owes her and shed is in need.
These two make a deal, to form a partnership to hold the land she owns. Destroyed land and a small ranch a evil rich man in the neighborhood tries to take from her.
*********************************************
Beautiful Bad Man is a perfect title. So much I loved this amazing hero. The very best kind. ~ Grumpy, hard and freakish sexy. A genuine M.A.N - swoon worthy.
“The only way you'll beat me is by distracting me with the way you look peeking out from under that bonnet at me like that. It's cheating.”
“You look like a mysterious stranger under your hat brim yourself, so you're cheating too.”
“Not me. I'm not pretty.”
No he wasn't. He was beautiful. Heaven help her.’
This story felt kind of believable (nearly authentic in ways of life..). Beautiful Bad Man is emotionally filled, has a light (often witty) dialogue, a bunch of interesting characters and it is all just wonderful heartwarming romantic.
I like, did indeed love, just everything about this book. It's hard to explain why but this was just absolutely wonderful in the midst of toil, gray everydays and dusty roads. People are both old, young, ugly, beautiful, poor and simple. They are also funny, sexy and brave. I cared (wnted them to find a lucky HEA life). I sobbed (about hard childhoods and life's unfairness then over 100 years ago). I giggled and laughed (when these lovebirds teased each other). ~ I simply enjoyed full heartily.
*********************************************
To end... ~ Beautiful Bad Man is a genuine "old styled" romantic novel without a lot of ruffles and excessive explicit erotica. Just enjoyable with simple words and a pleasant way to tell. It will be more books by Ellen O'Connell, she really impressed me here.
I LIKE - and want more western HR soonish
September 17, 2013
5+ Stars
Edited Sept. 2013 to add: Congratulations to Ellen! In August 2013, Beautiful Bad Man won InD'Tale Magazines' American History division of their 2012 RONE awards...8/2013
Ellen O’Connell has once again crafted one of the very best Western Historical Romances I’ve had the pleasure of reading. She's my go to author for this genre and never disappoints. You can always count on superlative writing with a story that will keep you invested from beginning to end. But the pull for me are always her characters. They’re well fleshed, complex and its a joy to be a part of their unveiling as well as witness their transformation.
In Beautiful Bad Man her magical pen takes the reader back in time to 1866, Kansas and a desperate encounter between two children will ultimately change their lives forever. Fast forward years later and Caleb Sutton and Norah Hawkins cross paths once again. It’s another desperate meeting only now their roles are reversed.
They’d never forgotten the events that took place long ago on that Kansas prairie. Now, they both are disappointed with what they find about the other. Harsh reality swiftly brings disappointment and quickly shatters any remaining fairy tale illusions.
Caleb Sutton is a hardened gunslinger. From early on he’s had to fend for himself and the atrocities he’s endured made him into a survivor. He’s returned to Kansas as a hired gun for one of the meanest and most cowardly men in the area. His job is to help hustle chosen citizens from their land and this brings him face to face with the girl from his past. Realizing that the drab, suicidal widow he encounters is his courageous hero from long ago shocks him to the core. What has happened to change Norah Hawkins into a woman lacking spunk and the will to survive?
It's easy to become completely immersed in the world this author creates and to experience each emotion right along with the characters. Rarely do I read a romance where I like everything about the heroine but I can always count on Ms. O’Connell to produce intelligent, strong female leads with a backbone and an inner strength that I both admire and love. And she doesn’t disappoint with Norah Hawkins.
Norah can’t believe that the young boy from long ago is now a killer with seemingly no remorse and will lie, steal and cheat to achieve his goals. But what a beautiful, bad man he is!
... "I don't want to live another way. Look around you. Everyone you see is either predator or prey, wolf or rabbit. Wolf is better."...
Readers who prefer books to have great character development as well as the couple having a meaningful connection other than just sex will delight in the build-up of Caleb and Norah’s relationship. I fell in love with Caleb right along with Norah as each layer is revealed and we get to see the real man behind the gun. The man inside this bronzed, chiseled body will not disappoint! And while there are love scenes, you won’t need pages of description as their connection easily stands on its own.
.... "Eight years married, and she'd never known. Did other women know it could be like that, or did some live and die thinking that part of marriage a mild pleasure some times and a small chore others?...
And I love the humor throughout their journey...
.... "How about if we do it again right now?" She gasped, "We can't. It's broad daylight." He looked around as if checking to be sure she was right about that. "So married people don't do it in daylight?"
BBM is fast paced, loaded with adventure, has bits of unexpected humor scattered throughout and a beautiful love story that I’ll not soon forget. I savored each and every word and could easily pick this up very soon for a re-read.
I highly recommend this to everyone who loves this genre!
Edited Sept. 2013 to add: Congratulations to Ellen! In August 2013, Beautiful Bad Man won InD'Tale Magazines' American History division of their 2012 RONE awards...8/2013
Ellen O’Connell has once again crafted one of the very best Western Historical Romances I’ve had the pleasure of reading. She's my go to author for this genre and never disappoints. You can always count on superlative writing with a story that will keep you invested from beginning to end. But the pull for me are always her characters. They’re well fleshed, complex and its a joy to be a part of their unveiling as well as witness their transformation.
In Beautiful Bad Man her magical pen takes the reader back in time to 1866, Kansas and a desperate encounter between two children will ultimately change their lives forever. Fast forward years later and Caleb Sutton and Norah Hawkins cross paths once again. It’s another desperate meeting only now their roles are reversed.
They’d never forgotten the events that took place long ago on that Kansas prairie. Now, they both are disappointed with what they find about the other. Harsh reality swiftly brings disappointment and quickly shatters any remaining fairy tale illusions.
Caleb Sutton is a hardened gunslinger. From early on he’s had to fend for himself and the atrocities he’s endured made him into a survivor. He’s returned to Kansas as a hired gun for one of the meanest and most cowardly men in the area. His job is to help hustle chosen citizens from their land and this brings him face to face with the girl from his past. Realizing that the drab, suicidal widow he encounters is his courageous hero from long ago shocks him to the core. What has happened to change Norah Hawkins into a woman lacking spunk and the will to survive?
It's easy to become completely immersed in the world this author creates and to experience each emotion right along with the characters. Rarely do I read a romance where I like everything about the heroine but I can always count on Ms. O’Connell to produce intelligent, strong female leads with a backbone and an inner strength that I both admire and love. And she doesn’t disappoint with Norah Hawkins.
Norah can’t believe that the young boy from long ago is now a killer with seemingly no remorse and will lie, steal and cheat to achieve his goals. But what a beautiful, bad man he is!
... "I don't want to live another way. Look around you. Everyone you see is either predator or prey, wolf or rabbit. Wolf is better."...
Readers who prefer books to have great character development as well as the couple having a meaningful connection other than just sex will delight in the build-up of Caleb and Norah’s relationship. I fell in love with Caleb right along with Norah as each layer is revealed and we get to see the real man behind the gun. The man inside this bronzed, chiseled body will not disappoint! And while there are love scenes, you won’t need pages of description as their connection easily stands on its own.
.... "Eight years married, and she'd never known. Did other women know it could be like that, or did some live and die thinking that part of marriage a mild pleasure some times and a small chore others?...
And I love the humor throughout their journey...
.... "How about if we do it again right now?" She gasped, "We can't. It's broad daylight." He looked around as if checking to be sure she was right about that. "So married people don't do it in daylight?"
BBM is fast paced, loaded with adventure, has bits of unexpected humor scattered throughout and a beautiful love story that I’ll not soon forget. I savored each and every word and could easily pick this up very soon for a re-read.
I highly recommend this to everyone who loves this genre!
January 28, 2022
Not my favourite from this author but still, it's one of my all-time comforts reads. I love to read it...
a. When I am in the mood for some Western HR.
b. When I feel like reading a perfect marriage of convenience stories.
Or when I just miss Caleb and Noah….mostly Caleb 😍😍
Years ago, Caleb and Noah had a chance encounter, where Noah saved Caleb's life. Now, they have completely different lives but still, they had hoped for a perfect ending for each other. He always thought she is going to be a brave, beautiful girl instead she is now a bitter, suicidal widow. And, she imagined him to grow into a perfect Man instead when she meets him again he is a gunslinger, a killer, and a thief with little conscience.
This one is lighter than other works of the author because unlike other heroes of Ellen, Caleb is a white male and not a native. And, although Cord and Anne from Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold are always going to remain my fav couple by the author. But, Caleb and Noah are special to me too.
Not me. I’m not pretty.”
No, he wasn’t. He was beautiful. Heaven helps her. She had to remember he was also bad. Not evil maybe, but very bad. A liar, a thief, a killer.
"That was a boy's love for a dream he didn't think would ever come true. What I feel for you is a man's love for a woman, a wife."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reread-29/04/2021
It's a shame that Ellen O'Connell does not have any newly published books in recent years, So I keep rereading her older books.
This one is a beautiful love story against the backdrop of the wild West. A story of a chance encounter, then years later a friendship, and eventually a marriage of convenience.
A must-read for lovers of Old west historicals.
a. When I am in the mood for some Western HR.
b. When I feel like reading a perfect marriage of convenience stories.
Or when I just miss Caleb and Noah….mostly Caleb 😍😍
Years ago, Caleb and Noah had a chance encounter, where Noah saved Caleb's life. Now, they have completely different lives but still, they had hoped for a perfect ending for each other. He always thought she is going to be a brave, beautiful girl instead she is now a bitter, suicidal widow. And, she imagined him to grow into a perfect Man instead when she meets him again he is a gunslinger, a killer, and a thief with little conscience.
This one is lighter than other works of the author because unlike other heroes of Ellen, Caleb is a white male and not a native. And, although Cord and Anne from Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold are always going to remain my fav couple by the author. But, Caleb and Noah are special to me too.
Not me. I’m not pretty.”
No, he wasn’t. He was beautiful. Heaven helps her. She had to remember he was also bad. Not evil maybe, but very bad. A liar, a thief, a killer.
"That was a boy's love for a dream he didn't think would ever come true. What I feel for you is a man's love for a woman, a wife."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reread-29/04/2021
It's a shame that Ellen O'Connell does not have any newly published books in recent years, So I keep rereading her older books.
This one is a beautiful love story against the backdrop of the wild West. A story of a chance encounter, then years later a friendship, and eventually a marriage of convenience.
A must-read for lovers of Old west historicals.
November 14, 2022
THE BEST! Multiple RE-READ!
It's a re-read. 3 years ago it were 5 stars and now it's the same!
I prefer a wonderful reread to bad book. For me it's awesome and inspiring story.
It's historical romance.
There are triggers.
Mcs are both beautiful people, they are the team, they are partners in everything
Safe read. No cheating. No OP scenes.
Author, thank you for such unique and beautiful story!
Quotes from this book:
“That was a boy’s love for a dream he didn’t think would ever come true. What I feel for you is a man’s love for a woman, a wife.” If he kept saying things like that, he’d get himself promoted from very bad to bad. Maybe she’d even tell him. After this kiss and a few hundred more."
"He wanted to be home with Norah, hear only her voice, see only her face, eat only food she cooked. He wanted her beside him in the bed, her breath scented with cinnamon, her hair and skin with soap. He wanted to take all the fear and worry out of her face, to find ways to make her smile, make her laugh. He wanted to be strong enough to make love to her all day. Yes, love. He slept and dreamed of the Girl."
It's a re-read. 3 years ago it were 5 stars and now it's the same!
I prefer a wonderful reread to bad book. For me it's awesome and inspiring story.
It's historical romance.
There are triggers.
Mcs are both beautiful people, they are the team, they are partners in everything
Safe read. No cheating. No OP scenes.
Author, thank you for such unique and beautiful story!
Quotes from this book:
“That was a boy’s love for a dream he didn’t think would ever come true. What I feel for you is a man’s love for a woman, a wife.” If he kept saying things like that, he’d get himself promoted from very bad to bad. Maybe she’d even tell him. After this kiss and a few hundred more."
"He wanted to be home with Norah, hear only her voice, see only her face, eat only food she cooked. He wanted her beside him in the bed, her breath scented with cinnamon, her hair and skin with soap. He wanted to take all the fear and worry out of her face, to find ways to make her smile, make her laugh. He wanted to be strong enough to make love to her all day. Yes, love. He slept and dreamed of the Girl."
January 22, 2013
3.5 Stars. Just doesn't compare to Eyes.
February 25, 2022
Another great story from Ellen O'Connell. I continue to be surprised at how much I like her books. They just have a realistic feel that I like. The plot here had no element where I thought that OTT or implausible stuff happened to make me roll my eyes. That said, this had a range war/lots of people dying vibe straight out of genre westerns that some might have a problem with if they haven't read many books by Louis L'Amour, Zane Grey and the like. One of the things I liked here is that EO'C didn't back away from making him a "bad man." But he was a bad man in the tradition of Zane Grey et al. He was a "good" bad guy forced into a life of crime through no real fault of his own and who is "saved" by the love of the right woman. A typical ZG plot that I am pleased as punch to see reworked in a more strictly romantic vein here.
Great feel for the time period and loved both the hero and the heroine.
Great feel for the time period and loved both the hero and the heroine.
April 2, 2013
Ahhhh... Finally!!!
I savored this book as a very best chocolate!
The story flew like smooth silk and the descriptions were fantastic, the action coherent and the feelings real a strong.
I loved both Norah and Caleb.
Norah was almost dead inside when Caleb found her, but Caleb too was not very far away from there too! They help heal each other step by step and it was a joy to read it!
Every action had its reason why and every word coming out of their mouths was just perfect.
The descriptions of life as it was in the Wild West rung true too: it was like being there with them!
Simply fantastic story!!! One of the best I've read!
It merits more than 5 stars!
I savored this book as a very best chocolate!
The story flew like smooth silk and the descriptions were fantastic, the action coherent and the feelings real a strong.
I loved both Norah and Caleb.
Norah was almost dead inside when Caleb found her, but Caleb too was not very far away from there too! They help heal each other step by step and it was a joy to read it!
Every action had its reason why and every word coming out of their mouths was just perfect.
The descriptions of life as it was in the Wild West rung true too: it was like being there with them!
Simply fantastic story!!! One of the best I've read!
It merits more than 5 stars!
July 7, 2019
5 STARS
Loved this. I just can't seem to get enough of these true grit romances Ellen O'Connell has gifted us with. What a tough time many of these people of the period went through. The lifestyle, the sacrifice, the cruelty of many and the bleakness of their situations just astounds me. These survivors were true heroes. The men, the women and children... it makes us all realize that we have no real clue what hard living is. What these people could do with dirt. They built dreams on it.
What a sweet romance this was.
“...she was honest enough to admit she married him because actions other men would not conceive of to start with or carry out to finish with were ordinary for [him]... not that she ever wanted or needed a husband who would steal without compunction, but she wanted that toughness, that hard eyed indifference to what anyone else thought, to - danger.”
Loved this. I just can't seem to get enough of these true grit romances Ellen O'Connell has gifted us with. What a tough time many of these people of the period went through. The lifestyle, the sacrifice, the cruelty of many and the bleakness of their situations just astounds me. These survivors were true heroes. The men, the women and children... it makes us all realize that we have no real clue what hard living is. What these people could do with dirt. They built dreams on it.
“Either you get out of those clothes and get down here naked before I count to ten, or I’m ripping them off.” “This is your favorite dress!” “It looks gray today. One.” She scrambled to her feet and only made his deadline because the more she took off, the more slowly he counted. “There, you brute,” she said, kneeling beside him, intending to stretch at his side. “I’m naked, and I’m.... Oh. Ooh.”
What a sweet romance this was.
June 24, 2017
Instead of the Magnificent Seven, we have the Magnificent One.
The original 1960 theme for listening pleasure;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yulmg...
In a nutshell, bad cowboy helps the widow keep her land from the greedy land magnate.
The long version:
Cal and Norah first meet as children when Norah saves the almost starving Cal from being lynched by the drunk bunch of wannabe settlers. She prays that he will make something great of himself.
They next meet up years later and he is the beautiful, bad man that is working for the man who had her husband killed and has either burned out or bought out most of the farmers in the area. The evil magnate wants a huge empire. Norah has given up on life to the point that she is accepting of suicide by rape from the gang that has ridden up. When Cal sees who the woman is he steps in and saves her. He is completely and totally disgusted at what a wimpy washout she has become. While her fantasy is he would become a hero who would change the world, he had a similar fantasy about her and the sad colorless creature in front of him is not it.
He keeps checking up on Norah and finally insults her to the point she picks herself up by the bootstraps and walk back into the land of the living. She gets a job as housekeeper to a crabby old biddy as Cal ends up leaving his boss behind. Romance does not ensue but they become allies and friends and end up in a MOC where he can protect her farm. They do consummate the marriage and it's fine and dandy for both.
The evil magnate steps up his actions to get her land but Cal is on top of it with a very cool watchdog and the disapproving help of Norah. The underlying conflict is he is willing to act in ways she thinks are bad but expedient. Their relationship grows stronger, and they both adapt to each other. Along the way it becomes very obvious that while Cal is beautiful, he is not a bad man when it comes to innate code of honor and with Norah.
It has a few of the tropes I don't care for in most books, but am very willing to ignore as I just love Cal and Norah. The law abiding citizen trope where Cal is able to fight off myriads of hired bad guys and bounty hunters by himself, the I'm unworthy and damaged trope although he was.
I love Ellen O'Connell's characters. The men skirt the edge of bad, yes beautiful bad men, but with an internal code of honor. Her heroines aren't spineless, Mary Sue Martyr's that drain the joy out of life even though they will do what is necessary for their families to the point of sacrifice. O'Connell's writing is subtle, spartan, wryly humorous and lean, and she's very much a show not tell kind of writer. I enjoy it as her writing style matches up with her characters and the nature of the stories. Yes, there is a little sameness in her characters and plot, kind of like AC/DC. If you've heard one song, you've heard them all. Great if you like them.
The original 1960 theme for listening pleasure;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yulmg...
In a nutshell, bad cowboy helps the widow keep her land from the greedy land magnate.
The long version:
Cal and Norah first meet as children when Norah saves the almost starving Cal from being lynched by the drunk bunch of wannabe settlers. She prays that he will make something great of himself.
They next meet up years later and he is the beautiful, bad man that is working for the man who had her husband killed and has either burned out or bought out most of the farmers in the area. The evil magnate wants a huge empire. Norah has given up on life to the point that she is accepting of suicide by rape from the gang that has ridden up. When Cal sees who the woman is he steps in and saves her. He is completely and totally disgusted at what a wimpy washout she has become. While her fantasy is he would become a hero who would change the world, he had a similar fantasy about her and the sad colorless creature in front of him is not it.
He keeps checking up on Norah and finally insults her to the point she picks herself up by the bootstraps and walk back into the land of the living. She gets a job as housekeeper to a crabby old biddy as Cal ends up leaving his boss behind. Romance does not ensue but they become allies and friends and end up in a MOC where he can protect her farm. They do consummate the marriage and it's fine and dandy for both.
The evil magnate steps up his actions to get her land but Cal is on top of it with a very cool watchdog and the disapproving help of Norah. The underlying conflict is he is willing to act in ways she thinks are bad but expedient. Their relationship grows stronger, and they both adapt to each other. Along the way it becomes very obvious that while Cal is beautiful, he is not a bad man when it comes to innate code of honor and with Norah.
It has a few of the tropes I don't care for in most books, but am very willing to ignore as I just love Cal and Norah. The law abiding citizen trope where Cal is able to fight off myriads of hired bad guys and bounty hunters by himself, the I'm unworthy and damaged trope although he was.
I love Ellen O'Connell's characters. The men skirt the edge of bad, yes beautiful bad men, but with an internal code of honor. Her heroines aren't spineless, Mary Sue Martyr's that drain the joy out of life even though they will do what is necessary for their families to the point of sacrifice. O'Connell's writing is subtle, spartan, wryly humorous and lean, and she's very much a show not tell kind of writer. I enjoy it as her writing style matches up with her characters and the nature of the stories. Yes, there is a little sameness in her characters and plot, kind of like AC/DC. If you've heard one song, you've heard them all. Great if you like them.
October 12, 2016
4 Gunslinger & The Widow Stars!!
This was my first Ellen O'Connell book and I can guarantee you it won't be my last!!!
Norah Hawkins was a willful young girl who made a decision to disobey her father and save a boy caught stealing from their wagon train, that one decision marked a change in her life. Now 15 years later she is widowed and lives on her own on the Kansas prairie in her sod house with very little resources, life is hard for her especially since her land is wanted by a greedy ruthless land baron who's men have made her life hell.
Caleb "Cal" Sutton is many things, he's a gunslinger, he's a killer, he's ruthless, and he's emotionally closed down. Cal works for the man who wants Norah's land. When he is dispatched to cause more trouble for the widow along with other men, he realizes she's "the Girl" that saved him all those years ago and to repay her he takes a defensive stance against the rest of the men to save her.
From that point on they from a bond....he helps her where he can and is constantly in the background (mostly unbeknownst to Norah) making sure she stays safe. But her land and life are always in jeopardy unless she agrees to give up her land.
They eventually become unlikely friends and decide to marry. Cal is determined to keep the land and fight with every ruthless breath he has to keep it, he's determined to finally belong somewhere and finally have something of his own.
They have a tough fight ahead of them, all the while getting to know one another, get their land productive, survive a brutal environment and an enemy who's even more brutal.
Definitely looking forward to reading the rest of the series along with more books from this author!!
February 23, 2020
Well, well, well...!
This has been a giant surprise for me. For the first time in . . . uh, however many years it is, I find an author that gets five of the highest 4.5/5 stars ratings for five of her books in a row, one after the other. And it's just such a pleasant experience that I'd not thought to repeat soon. O'Connell is now there with the likes of Colleen McCullough, Sharon Kay Penman and Dorothy Dunnett in getting the same uninterrupted high rating, and she has a satisfied follower of her work in me now.
This has been a giant surprise for me. For the first time in . . . uh, however many years it is, I find an author that gets five of the highest 4.5/5 stars ratings for five of her books in a row, one after the other. And it's just such a pleasant experience that I'd not thought to repeat soon. O'Connell is now there with the likes of Colleen McCullough, Sharon Kay Penman and Dorothy Dunnett in getting the same uninterrupted high rating, and she has a satisfied follower of her work in me now.
March 27, 2013
(Content: Explicit sex, murder, violence, minimal swearing)
O'Connell is a superior writer, the author of Dancing on Coals (engrossing and unique, reviewed here).
This story is also good, even though not as tightly plotted. Relationship development is the great strength of Beautiful Bad Man. I loved watching trust and love grow from bitter despair and cold apathy. I enjoyed the secondary characters, too -- even the dog, Early.
SUMMARY: The story revolves around Cal Sutton (aka Caleb) and Norah Sutton (née Norah Grifford, aka Mrs. Hawkins). Norah sometimes thinks of Caleb as "the Boy" (the nameless, unknown boy Norah rescued when they were adolescents, in the prologue). To our bad-ass gunslinger, Norah is simply "the Girl" (the girl he has always loved and dreamed about). ♥
The plot itself is not original. A widow (Norah) is being run off her lands by a greedy rancher and his vile minions. A gunslinger comes to her rescue, becoming the new target. They get married and try to make a go of the broken-down ranch and the tentative relationship, standing together against outlaws and joining forces with the kind neighbors. When Norah gets pregnant, Cal must overcome fear of fatherhood, due to his perceived "bad seed" (cliché).
CHARACTERIZATION: ★★★★
(some inconsistency in Norah)
Explanation, with many plot spoilers:
Caleb's character was handled with far more consistency. O'Connell painted him as a "bad man" with a good heart. Willing to kill and actively on the attack, Cal played to win. He also consistently demonstrated a certain shrewdness about human nature and a solid work ethic. Instead of just telling us about his kinder qualities, O'Connell showed his nature through a variety of humane actions -- to animals, to Norah, to shopkeepers, and to his family (his cousin's three children), etc. O'Connell gradually unveiled his inherent integrity, but we never lost sight of the bad-ass. Kudos! Cleverly handled!
PLOT: ★★★
(some improbabilities and inconsistencies)
Explanation, with major plot spoilers:
RELATIONSHIP: ★★★★★ (Superior!) Some quotes:
Caleb hated seeing "the Girl" so apathetic and broken, so he re-kindled her spirit, complimenting her cooking, her sewing, buying her new dresses, etc. The once-suicidal widow felt beautiful and beloved again:
♥"Pretty is when your hair is pinned up, and your collar is buttoned up. Pretty is for those times. Beautiful is for times like this, good times, wild times, sharing secrets times."
Caleb liked horses and dogs more than people:
♥ "She didn't need to know it, but she was an exception. He liked her most of all."
Caleb and Norah, bonding, becoming a team:
♥ "Come on PARTNER, time to plant corn."
♥ "I can't stand the thought of you out here alone against hundreds of cows and a dozen or more men.... I could lay the fuse cord if you show me how."
So the bad-ass stays forever:
♥ "He found a peace he'd never known in Norah's house."
♥ "He wanted to be home with Norah, hear only her voice, see only her face, eat only food she cooked. He wanted her beside him in the bed, her breath scented with cinnamon, her hair and skin with soap. He wanted to take all the fear and worry out of her face, to find ways to make her smile, make her laugh. He wanted to be strong enough to make love to her all day. Yes, love. He slept and dreamed of the Girl."
O'Connell is a superior writer, the author of Dancing on Coals (engrossing and unique, reviewed here).
This story is also good, even though not as tightly plotted. Relationship development is the great strength of Beautiful Bad Man. I loved watching trust and love grow from bitter despair and cold apathy. I enjoyed the secondary characters, too -- even the dog, Early.
SUMMARY: The story revolves around Cal Sutton (aka Caleb) and Norah Sutton (née Norah Grifford, aka Mrs. Hawkins). Norah sometimes thinks of Caleb as "the Boy" (the nameless, unknown boy Norah rescued when they were adolescents, in the prologue). To our bad-ass gunslinger, Norah is simply "the Girl" (the girl he has always loved and dreamed about). ♥
The plot itself is not original. A widow (Norah) is being run off her lands by a greedy rancher and his vile minions. A gunslinger comes to her rescue, becoming the new target. They get married and try to make a go of the broken-down ranch and the tentative relationship, standing together against outlaws and joining forces with the kind neighbors. When Norah gets pregnant, Cal must overcome fear of fatherhood, due to his perceived "bad seed" (cliché).
CHARACTERIZATION: ★★★★
(some inconsistency in Norah)
Explanation, with many plot spoilers:
Caleb's character was handled with far more consistency. O'Connell painted him as a "bad man" with a good heart. Willing to kill and actively on the attack, Cal played to win. He also consistently demonstrated a certain shrewdness about human nature and a solid work ethic. Instead of just telling us about his kinder qualities, O'Connell showed his nature through a variety of humane actions -- to animals, to Norah, to shopkeepers, and to his family (his cousin's three children), etc. O'Connell gradually unveiled his inherent integrity, but we never lost sight of the bad-ass. Kudos! Cleverly handled!
PLOT: ★★★
(some improbabilities and inconsistencies)
Explanation, with major plot spoilers:
RELATIONSHIP: ★★★★★ (Superior!) Some quotes:
Caleb hated seeing "the Girl" so apathetic and broken, so he re-kindled her spirit, complimenting her cooking, her sewing, buying her new dresses, etc. The once-suicidal widow felt beautiful and beloved again:
♥"Pretty is when your hair is pinned up, and your collar is buttoned up. Pretty is for those times. Beautiful is for times like this, good times, wild times, sharing secrets times."
Caleb liked horses and dogs more than people:
♥ "She didn't need to know it, but she was an exception. He liked her most of all."
Caleb and Norah, bonding, becoming a team:
♥ "Come on PARTNER, time to plant corn."
♥ "I can't stand the thought of you out here alone against hundreds of cows and a dozen or more men.... I could lay the fuse cord if you show me how."
So the bad-ass stays forever:
♥ "He found a peace he'd never known in Norah's house."
♥ "He wanted to be home with Norah, hear only her voice, see only her face, eat only food she cooked. He wanted her beside him in the bed, her breath scented with cinnamon, her hair and skin with soap. He wanted to take all the fear and worry out of her face, to find ways to make her smile, make her laugh. He wanted to be strong enough to make love to her all day. Yes, love. He slept and dreamed of the Girl."
June 21, 2024
This woman writes the most beautiful damaged, raw, and troubled characters. She creates exquisit HR.
If I thought Eyes of silver eyes was amazing, this one was perfection.
If I thought Eyes of silver eyes was amazing, this one was perfection.
Read
July 29, 20234,0 ✨✨✨
This is my first book by this author, which came highly recommended, and I have to say, I wasn't disappointed.
The book doesn't have a fancy cover or title and her characters are ordinary, flawed people, living in an ordinary setting, and yet, they're quite compelling in their actions and feelings. It gave me so many feels. 💔❤️🩹😭
I didn't give it another ✨ bc I felt some aspects of the story were a bit rushed and could be better explored. Otherwise, I liked it a lot.
This is my first book by this author, which came highly recommended, and I have to say, I wasn't disappointed.
The book doesn't have a fancy cover or title and her characters are ordinary, flawed people, living in an ordinary setting, and yet, they're quite compelling in their actions and feelings. It gave me so many feels. 💔❤️🩹😭
I didn't give it another ✨ bc I felt some aspects of the story were a bit rushed and could be better explored. Otherwise, I liked it a lot.
January 26, 2023
Sigh of utter happiness after rereading a wonderful book. I’ve read this book a number it times and the love for it only grows.
#*#*#*#*#*#
I love finding new A books by new authors. And i equally love rereading A comfort reads. Some readers will read a book and even if they really enjoy the book, don't or perhaps very rarely go back and reread a book. I'm the opposite. I love to reread or rereread abook and so on. I last read Beautiful Bad Man in April of 2015 and here i just had to read it again. And it still gets 5 stars. Below is the review i wrote last year around this time.
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I’ve already read this book a few times, but neglected to do a review. So of course I had to read it again so it would be fresh. And that was no hardship whatsoever. Although I do so love so many genres, I think Westerns rank #1 and Ellen O’Connell is right up there as amazing authors of Westerns.
Caleb Sutton and Norah Hawkins first meet as children when Caleb has been caught stealing food from the wagon train Norah is traveling with. Her father and the other men, being drunk and disorderly, plan to hang Caleb and Norah can’t stand the thought as it was a loaf of bread stolen by a half starved boy. She frees him.
They meet again years later when Cal has been hired on as a “tough guy” by the rich man of the area to try and displace the small farmers. He barely recognizes Norah as “the girl” who helped him escape all those years ago when the nasty ranch hands go and try to roust her from her home. He realizes right away that while not actively fighting off the gang, nor is she defending herself and he rightly concludes she’s given up on life. He’s not too happy as he always pictured ‘the girl’ to be living a good life and he realizes that in his own moral code he ‘owes’ her for what she did for him years ago. And Cal doesn’t like owing anyone anything. He lets the others that she is ‘off limits’ for harassment as she is an old friend and he drags her almost screaming and kicking back to life.
As with all of Ellen O’Connell’s books, I loved it. Although complete opposites, it turns out that Cal and Norah are perfect for each other. Even though she constantly gives it to him for bending or even breaking her view of what’s right and what’s wrong, she realizes at the same time that this is one of the things she needs most from him, his willingness to look the other way and take what she needs.
Cal has come from a horrific childhood and Ms O’Connell writes so vividly the reader really feels for what he went through. And we see that he needs the softness and gentleness and eventually love that Norah offers him.
I think this is the fourth time I’ve read this book and I’d be willing to bet there will be more times. Beautiful Bad Man is the perfect kind of comfort read and as it’s a western – well – I give it for me, a well deserved 5 out of 5.
#*#*#*#*#*#
I love finding new A books by new authors. And i equally love rereading A comfort reads. Some readers will read a book and even if they really enjoy the book, don't or perhaps very rarely go back and reread a book. I'm the opposite. I love to reread or rereread abook and so on. I last read Beautiful Bad Man in April of 2015 and here i just had to read it again. And it still gets 5 stars. Below is the review i wrote last year around this time.
§~§~§~§~§~§~
I’ve already read this book a few times, but neglected to do a review. So of course I had to read it again so it would be fresh. And that was no hardship whatsoever. Although I do so love so many genres, I think Westerns rank #1 and Ellen O’Connell is right up there as amazing authors of Westerns.
Caleb Sutton and Norah Hawkins first meet as children when Caleb has been caught stealing food from the wagon train Norah is traveling with. Her father and the other men, being drunk and disorderly, plan to hang Caleb and Norah can’t stand the thought as it was a loaf of bread stolen by a half starved boy. She frees him.
They meet again years later when Cal has been hired on as a “tough guy” by the rich man of the area to try and displace the small farmers. He barely recognizes Norah as “the girl” who helped him escape all those years ago when the nasty ranch hands go and try to roust her from her home. He realizes right away that while not actively fighting off the gang, nor is she defending herself and he rightly concludes she’s given up on life. He’s not too happy as he always pictured ‘the girl’ to be living a good life and he realizes that in his own moral code he ‘owes’ her for what she did for him years ago. And Cal doesn’t like owing anyone anything. He lets the others that she is ‘off limits’ for harassment as she is an old friend and he drags her almost screaming and kicking back to life.
As with all of Ellen O’Connell’s books, I loved it. Although complete opposites, it turns out that Cal and Norah are perfect for each other. Even though she constantly gives it to him for bending or even breaking her view of what’s right and what’s wrong, she realizes at the same time that this is one of the things she needs most from him, his willingness to look the other way and take what she needs.
Cal has come from a horrific childhood and Ms O’Connell writes so vividly the reader really feels for what he went through. And we see that he needs the softness and gentleness and eventually love that Norah offers him.
I think this is the fourth time I’ve read this book and I’d be willing to bet there will be more times. Beautiful Bad Man is the perfect kind of comfort read and as it’s a western – well – I give it for me, a well deserved 5 out of 5.
May 5, 2020
Solid 5 stars!
Wow so my previous book was this ultra beta pacifist hero and Beautiful Bad Man could not have further from that.
Total opposite.
So let’s start with Cal - he was truly one of the most bad ass heros I’ve ever read yet still very likable and he made me laugh out loud. He has his own view of justice and living with him is definitely full time adventure. He is a lone wolf who had to learn to be tough, cold and resourceful just to survive.
He did have to draw out toughness out of Norah because unlike him her life experiences had made her almost suicidal.
The story takes place in Kansas in the newly settled environment when the rules are loosely followed and those with money can do anything they like.
Even though there is a lot happening in the story, we do get to spend a lot of time with our couple. We see them start building a relationship from the beginning. They are both very careful and at the same time very sweet to each other. It gradually gets deeper and deeper just as you would expect in romance.
However in this case it is perfection - every step of their relationship. It’s like song that goes higher and higher and every note is in perfect beautiful pitch sang by great storyteller.
What else I can tell you about it?
Well there are dark bad things that happen to our hero and also heroine in the past. But because Cal seems to handle it so well, I did as well.
If you are in a mood for an excellent western romance, give this one a try.
Wow so my previous book was this ultra beta pacifist hero and Beautiful Bad Man could not have further from that.
Total opposite.
So let’s start with Cal - he was truly one of the most bad ass heros I’ve ever read yet still very likable and he made me laugh out loud. He has his own view of justice and living with him is definitely full time adventure. He is a lone wolf who had to learn to be tough, cold and resourceful just to survive.
He did have to draw out toughness out of Norah because unlike him her life experiences had made her almost suicidal.
The story takes place in Kansas in the newly settled environment when the rules are loosely followed and those with money can do anything they like.
Even though there is a lot happening in the story, we do get to spend a lot of time with our couple. We see them start building a relationship from the beginning. They are both very careful and at the same time very sweet to each other. It gradually gets deeper and deeper just as you would expect in romance.
However in this case it is perfection - every step of their relationship. It’s like song that goes higher and higher and every note is in perfect beautiful pitch sang by great storyteller.
What else I can tell you about it?
Well there are dark bad things that happen to our hero and also heroine in the past. But because Cal seems to handle it so well, I did as well.
If you are in a mood for an excellent western romance, give this one a try.
November 3, 2018
1866
Cal was caught stealing from a group of free settlers. They planned to lynch him but seeing the injustice of it, Norah, herself just a young girl helped him escape.
1880
Cal is Webster van Cleve's newest gun for hire in his efforts to run settlers off their land so he can claim it for himself. Arriving at a run down earthen house with a group of hired guns, he discovers a defeated widow just waiting to die. When he realizes the woman is the girl who saved him many years earlier, he steps in and stops the other hired guns from raping her and forcing her from her land.
Norah has lived the hard life of a farmer, taking the little the land gives and stretching it as far as it will go. When her husband is murdered by Van Cleve there is little she can do but wait to die, and joining the ones she loves is what she wants. So when Cal steps in, his help is at first unwanted, but over time she starts to accept and love him.
Together, Cal lends his strength to Norah and Norah gentles Cal but as the range war escalates and a bounty is placed on Cal, the only option left to them is to either abandon the land and run, or fight and become outlaws.
I feel I should say, I don't really know anything about this period of American history, apart from what this book and Wikipedia told me. If I've made mistakes in using incorrect terms, I'm sorry for that. Beautiful, Bad Man is a great book. It's completely captivating from start to finish. I really can't fault this book in any way.
Cal was caught stealing from a group of free settlers. They planned to lynch him but seeing the injustice of it, Norah, herself just a young girl helped him escape.
"Everyone you see is either predator or prey, wolf or rabbit. Wolf is better."
1880
Cal is Webster van Cleve's newest gun for hire in his efforts to run settlers off their land so he can claim it for himself. Arriving at a run down earthen house with a group of hired guns, he discovers a defeated widow just waiting to die. When he realizes the woman is the girl who saved him many years earlier, he steps in and stops the other hired guns from raping her and forcing her from her land.
Norah has lived the hard life of a farmer, taking the little the land gives and stretching it as far as it will go. When her husband is murdered by Van Cleve there is little she can do but wait to die, and joining the ones she loves is what she wants. So when Cal steps in, his help is at first unwanted, but over time she starts to accept and love him.
Together, Cal lends his strength to Norah and Norah gentles Cal but as the range war escalates and a bounty is placed on Cal, the only option left to them is to either abandon the land and run, or fight and become outlaws.
"Put that rifle down, Mrs Hawkins. I don't want to shoot a woman, but I will if I have to."
Her hands stayed steady, and she didn't let the rifle waver. "Mrs Sutton. And I don't want to shoot a sheriff, but I will if I have to."
I feel I should say, I don't really know anything about this period of American history, apart from what this book and Wikipedia told me. If I've made mistakes in using incorrect terms, I'm sorry for that. Beautiful, Bad Man is a great book. It's completely captivating from start to finish. I really can't fault this book in any way.
"He's a bad one."
"Oh, Mabel, yes he is. He's a very bad man, but he's a beautiful bad man."
April 4, 2016
Buddy-Read with Bubulinea:)
Bravo, Ms. O'Connell! I’m in complete awe of your talent!
After I read the last page, I wanted to go back and re-read the story right away. The plot, the characters, the romance, the setting was perfection. My kindle is full of notes and I just want to paste them here and let them do much better justice than anything I can say to relay my admiration for the story. I don’t know how the author does it. It seems to be so effortlessly written with subtle humor that just makes me smile, with such rich atmospheric feel and attention to details no matter how small. My heart was alternatively breaking, swooning, and rejoicing.
If you are fan of Western HR, I’m sure, you’ve read the author, and if you’re new to the genre, the author is the best place to start.
Thank you Bubulinea for such a memorable b-r!
Bravo, Ms. O'Connell! I’m in complete awe of your talent!
After I read the last page, I wanted to go back and re-read the story right away. The plot, the characters, the romance, the setting was perfection. My kindle is full of notes and I just want to paste them here and let them do much better justice than anything I can say to relay my admiration for the story. I don’t know how the author does it. It seems to be so effortlessly written with subtle humor that just makes me smile, with such rich atmospheric feel and attention to details no matter how small. My heart was alternatively breaking, swooning, and rejoicing.
If you are fan of Western HR, I’m sure, you’ve read the author, and if you’re new to the genre, the author is the best place to start.
Thank you Bubulinea for such a memorable b-r!
May 12, 2013
You will not get the Lorelei James type cowboys here. These men are the old fashioned gun slinging cowboys. There's no hot and heavy loving either; it's slow building and just good old fashioned romance and chivalry. So it's all good!
June 28, 2024
5☆ Home is blue curtains, The Girl who saved him, and a dog named Early Warning.
She did it again; with her deceptively simple writing style that shows a lot and tells less, Ellen O’Connell made me love another one of her devastating, hopeful, tender Old West love stories.
➳❦ He cleared his throat. “We need to renegotiate our partnership agreement.” A squint-eyed, suspicious look was her only answer. “We need to get rid of that obey part.” She dropped the rifle in the dirt in a way that made him flinch and kissed him in a way that made him forget the gun. 🤎🤎
This book pulls you into its world so subtly and relentlessly. EO really knows how to make us care enough about her beaten-down characters enough to give time to gradual, thoughtful pacing, as they fight again and again for survival, safety, and a scrappy, determined kind of love. 🫶
➳❦ With that, he flipped back to the first page and began reading aloud. His hair was dark gold in the lamplight, his voice deep, sharing the story a gift. The scarred hands that cradled the book and turned the pages would run over her body soon and dissolve all the cares of the day into a pleasure she’d never imagined existed. Her needle stopped in the cloth. 📚🫦
Norah and Caleb both deserve so much more than the lives they’ve had to survive so far. Definitely interesting how they first meet as The Girl and The Boy at the beginning, and then not again until later in life, when she’s a numb, broken widow on her last legs, and he’s a numb, broken antihero gunslinger without a home or a cause.
➳❦ With a few exceptions such as snakes, he liked pretty much everything on earth better than people. The knot in his belly loosened a little. She didn’t need to know it, but she was an exception too. He liked her most of all. 😏
Thanks to them saving each other in different ways, they finally get to fight for a better future, but it's pretty hellish at times getting there. The Evil Murderous Overlord of Land Grabbing and his dumbass rapey minions enabled by corrupt “law enforcement” are scary as hell. Caleb has to get really creative in his war tactics and rely on an equal partner to have his back—his new wife of convenience.
➳❦ Sometime in the last months her ideas about right and wrong had expanded. She still believed everything she always had. She’d just added two truths—anything that could hurt Caleb Sutton was wrong. Anything that kept him safe was right.
Their hurts and broken bits, and the way EO eventually pulled those truths out into the light for us? The trauma is real and it burns.
➳❦ Caleb not only held her the way she needed to be held, he didn’t tell her she had to forgive the unforgivable. He knew, she thought, he knew about that dark place in the heart where some things had to be hidden because that’s all that could be done with them. 🥺
The frequent dry humor in this is amazing, and mixed with the wonderfully passionate love scenes, they save the book from being too heavy.
➳❦ Her stubborn refusal to do what any sensible woman would do infuriated him. He ought to marry her just to teach her a lesson. 😂
➳❦ “He’s a bad one.” “Oh, Mabel, yes, he is. He’s a very bad man, but he’s a beautiful bad man.” 🫦🕺👀
I hated that Caleb thought so poorly of himself, having internalized his uncle’s horrible abuse and piling on all the learned violence, but it also set up the interesting questions for Norah (and the reader) about what makes someone/something bad, good, right, wrong. These MCs just naturally provoke each other into reluctant, painful, sometimes funny character development.
➳❦ “Caleb, when we got married, what kind of husband did you think you’d be?”
“Rotten. I knew I’d make you miserable.”
“I’m not miserable. Except for the trouble Van Cleve’s caused, I’m happy. You’re a very good husband.”
“I can’t be. You only just promoted me from evil to very bad.”
“You’re a very bad man, but you’re a good husband.”
And isn’t that what we always want in our antihero-types? A good 'bad man' who fiercely protects those he loves, the kind you always want on your side in any storm and any fight, the one you can count on? Even better if there's an irreverent sense of humor and lots of arguments that end in bed.
➳❦ “You did marry me for the land.”
“Not just the land. There’s the curtains.”
“Curtains.”
“Whatever makes the house feel like home. I think it’s the blue curtains.” 😏💙
One little thing Caleb said at the end just to provoke the Evil Overlord pricked my annoyance, but it was so relatively minor that it’s just whatever in the grand scheme of this beautiful story. And while Without Words is still probably my favorite of Ellen O’Connell’s books, this is a close second. We’ll see what happens once I get to Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold; pretty sure it’s going to smash my heart up real good. 💔🔨😭
She did it again; with her deceptively simple writing style that shows a lot and tells less, Ellen O’Connell made me love another one of her devastating, hopeful, tender Old West love stories.
➳❦ He cleared his throat. “We need to renegotiate our partnership agreement.” A squint-eyed, suspicious look was her only answer. “We need to get rid of that obey part.” She dropped the rifle in the dirt in a way that made him flinch and kissed him in a way that made him forget the gun. 🤎🤎
This book pulls you into its world so subtly and relentlessly. EO really knows how to make us care enough about her beaten-down characters enough to give time to gradual, thoughtful pacing, as they fight again and again for survival, safety, and a scrappy, determined kind of love. 🫶
➳❦ With that, he flipped back to the first page and began reading aloud. His hair was dark gold in the lamplight, his voice deep, sharing the story a gift. The scarred hands that cradled the book and turned the pages would run over her body soon and dissolve all the cares of the day into a pleasure she’d never imagined existed. Her needle stopped in the cloth. 📚🫦
Norah and Caleb both deserve so much more than the lives they’ve had to survive so far. Definitely interesting how they first meet as The Girl and The Boy at the beginning, and then not again until later in life, when she’s a numb, broken widow on her last legs, and he’s a numb, broken antihero gunslinger without a home or a cause.
➳❦ With a few exceptions such as snakes, he liked pretty much everything on earth better than people. The knot in his belly loosened a little. She didn’t need to know it, but she was an exception too. He liked her most of all. 😏
Thanks to them saving each other in different ways, they finally get to fight for a better future, but it's pretty hellish at times getting there. The Evil Murderous Overlord of Land Grabbing and his dumbass rapey minions enabled by corrupt “law enforcement” are scary as hell. Caleb has to get really creative in his war tactics and rely on an equal partner to have his back—his new wife of convenience.
➳❦ Sometime in the last months her ideas about right and wrong had expanded. She still believed everything she always had. She’d just added two truths—anything that could hurt Caleb Sutton was wrong. Anything that kept him safe was right.
Their hurts and broken bits, and the way EO eventually pulled those truths out into the light for us? The trauma is real and it burns.
➳❦ Caleb not only held her the way she needed to be held, he didn’t tell her she had to forgive the unforgivable. He knew, she thought, he knew about that dark place in the heart where some things had to be hidden because that’s all that could be done with them. 🥺
The frequent dry humor in this is amazing, and mixed with the wonderfully passionate love scenes, they save the book from being too heavy.
➳❦ Her stubborn refusal to do what any sensible woman would do infuriated him. He ought to marry her just to teach her a lesson. 😂
➳❦ “He’s a bad one.” “Oh, Mabel, yes, he is. He’s a very bad man, but he’s a beautiful bad man.” 🫦🕺👀
I hated that Caleb thought so poorly of himself, having internalized his uncle’s horrible abuse and piling on all the learned violence, but it also set up the interesting questions for Norah (and the reader) about what makes someone/something bad, good, right, wrong. These MCs just naturally provoke each other into reluctant, painful, sometimes funny character development.
➳❦ “Caleb, when we got married, what kind of husband did you think you’d be?”
“Rotten. I knew I’d make you miserable.”
“I’m not miserable. Except for the trouble Van Cleve’s caused, I’m happy. You’re a very good husband.”
“I can’t be. You only just promoted me from evil to very bad.”
“You’re a very bad man, but you’re a good husband.”
And isn’t that what we always want in our antihero-types? A good 'bad man' who fiercely protects those he loves, the kind you always want on your side in any storm and any fight, the one you can count on? Even better if there's an irreverent sense of humor and lots of arguments that end in bed.
➳❦ “You did marry me for the land.”
“Not just the land. There’s the curtains.”
“Curtains.”
“Whatever makes the house feel like home. I think it’s the blue curtains.” 😏💙
One little thing Caleb said at the end just to provoke the Evil Overlord pricked my annoyance, but it was so relatively minor that it’s just whatever in the grand scheme of this beautiful story. And while Without Words is still probably my favorite of Ellen O’Connell’s books, this is a close second. We’ll see what happens once I get to Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold; pretty sure it’s going to smash my heart up real good. 💔🔨😭
June 18, 2018
Another Great Story from a Wonderful Author of Western Romance!
Set in Kansas in 1880 (except for the prologue set in 1866 and 1871), it tells the story of two people who met one night at a circled wagon train when they were young. He was a thief looking for food and she was his rescuer when some drunken men wanted to hang him. Neither forgot each other, but when they meet years later, all has changed.
Caleb Sutton has become a hardened gunslinger, good at killing men; and Norah Hawkins is a broken widow looking for death. When Cal realizes she is “the Girl” who saved him, he can’t leave her without helping. And she needs help, as a land grubbing rancher is using any despicable means he can to steal the settlers’ land.
O’Connell weaves a complex tale of second chances and redemption as lives affected by the evil actions of others are dealt with in the context of love. Cal is hardened and brutal (but still noble), haunted by the ghosts of his past. He believes he is “the devil’s spawn” as he was told as a boy. Though deep down he has a tender heart, he hides it from all but Norah. Norah is a courageous woman who only needs a reason to live. And Cal gives her one.
It’s a great story, well told and with richly developed characters. There’s lots of action, too, and the plot is cleverly woven, the dialog wonderful.
I highly recommend this and all O’Connell’s novels.
Set in Kansas in 1880 (except for the prologue set in 1866 and 1871), it tells the story of two people who met one night at a circled wagon train when they were young. He was a thief looking for food and she was his rescuer when some drunken men wanted to hang him. Neither forgot each other, but when they meet years later, all has changed.
Caleb Sutton has become a hardened gunslinger, good at killing men; and Norah Hawkins is a broken widow looking for death. When Cal realizes she is “the Girl” who saved him, he can’t leave her without helping. And she needs help, as a land grubbing rancher is using any despicable means he can to steal the settlers’ land.
O’Connell weaves a complex tale of second chances and redemption as lives affected by the evil actions of others are dealt with in the context of love. Cal is hardened and brutal (but still noble), haunted by the ghosts of his past. He believes he is “the devil’s spawn” as he was told as a boy. Though deep down he has a tender heart, he hides it from all but Norah. Norah is a courageous woman who only needs a reason to live. And Cal gives her one.
It’s a great story, well told and with richly developed characters. There’s lots of action, too, and the plot is cleverly woven, the dialog wonderful.
I highly recommend this and all O’Connell’s novels.
July 13, 2013
This book changed my concept of Western historicals or Western romance novels. I like history, I enjoy some historical romances but I just never thought I would be interested in a western historical romance. I am not sure what I had in mind, but Beautiful Bad Man changed my mind. Beautiful Bad Man was the first book I read by Ellen O’Connell and remains one of my favorites. It begins with two children, one who needs the help of the other – desperately. After given, that help is never forgotten by either child. Years later, the world has changed them both but the meet and this time the situations are reversed. What I loved about this story was that the story was so impeccably developed that I truly knew each character by the end of the story. The set-up is simple — widow is alone and is targeted by town criminals who want her land and former gunslinger is alone and he wants to help her because he needs to belong some where and he wants home. Despite the simplicity, the story is so rich in detail, history and beauty. Readers who enjoy strong character development, descriptions of daily life and are looking for the Little House on the Prairie for adults -- this is that book. I cannot wait to read it again.
April 25, 2017
Another read by Ellen O'Connell that I thoroughly enjoyed. There's just something about her characters that work for me every time. No push and pull, characters that speak to and listen to each other, no TSTL, no arsehole moves. That'll do :)
4.5 stars
4.5 stars
December 19, 2021
2021 - it was time for a re-read of my all time favorite historical Western romances - and as always they never disappoint.
A must read for anyone who loves this genre.
A must read for anyone who loves this genre.
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