Beauty for Ashes (Rendezvous) [Mass Market Paperback]

Win Blevins (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rendezvous | Publication Date: August 2, 2005

Young Sam Morgan, serving his apprenticeship as a mountain man in the Rocky Mountains in the early 1820s, searches for Meadowlark, the Crow Indian girl he loves. At the Wind River village of Meadowlark's people, Sam finds her being courted by a Crow warrior named Red Roan. Sam realizes he must become more Indian than white man to win Meadowlark.

Taken prisoner by the dreaded Sioux, the Crows' mortal enemy, Sam escapes but loses everything except his faithful companion, a coyote pup. Sam must rebuild his life and his esteem among his Crow friends

Beauty for Ashes is an unforgettable love story and an action-filled adventure. There are fights against Pawnees, Sioux, and Blackfeet; a knife duel and horse race at the trappers' rendezvous; and a harrowing escape from captivity, torture and certain death by the Indian captors.

This is the memorable story of a boy becoming a man in the cruel, beautiful, unexplored wilderness of the Old West.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Blevins's (So Wild a Dream) lively fur-trading tales of the American West continue with this rousing second entry in the Rendezvous series. In the early 1820s, white-haired 19-year-old Sam Morgan departs his native Pennsylvania hometown for the second time after returning from adventures in the West as a trapper. His homecoming was marred by family squabbling, and a disenchanted Sam sets out again promising never to return. He's on a mission of love to find Meadowlark, a virginal Indian maiden he left behind two years before. Upon reaching Meadowlark's village, Sam presents her with gifts and their reunion is joyous. But Sam's battle to keep her has just begun, and he struggles to learn to live in an alien culture. Undaunted by failure in a bow-and-arrow contest, he proposes to Meadowlark. But on a trapping excursion with Indian friends, Sam's group is violently ambushed by Lakotas, and Sam is seized and stripped of his possessions. He manages to escape, but now he has nothing to offer Meadowlark, who has since become otherwise engaged. A true willingness to absorb Crow family customs pays off with a happy ending. Sam's adventures are boyishly uncomplicated and vibrant, making this a rousing installment in a fine epic of the American frontier.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"The glory years of frontier life, fresh and rich"
--Kirkus Reviews on Beauty for Ashes

"So Wild a Dream is a fabulous beginning of what promises to become a classic series that will be on college reading lists in history classes studying the fur trade era."
--Roundup Magazine

"The first volume in the Rendezvous Series, So Wild a Dream is a throughly enjoyable tale of survival in the wilderness of the Great American West in the early 19th century. So Wild a Dream is a story of amazing courage, endurance, and resourcefulness."
--Tennessean

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books (August 2, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765344823
• ISBN-13: 978-0765344823
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,084,845 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I came out of Missouri and Arkansas, of Irish, Welsh, and Cherokee heritage. After a whirlwind of colleges and jobs, I discovered that books are my calling, and I've written more than twenty, primarily about mountain men and Indian people. Though awards are less important than readers, I'm glad when they come, and was delighted to be named Writer of the Year in 2003 by Wordcraft Circle of Native writers.

I live with my wife Meredith, the novelist, in a remote corner of the canyonlands of Utah.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Historical Fiction at its Best, November 10, 2011

By 

Jeanette Raleigh - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beauty for Ashes (Rendezvous) (Mass Market Paperback)

Win Blevins writes authentically and brings such raw emotion to his characters. This is the second book of Blevins that I've read and he does not disappoint. Beauty for Ashes is the story of old west trappers who much struggle in the harsh environment of a new land. More than that, it is the story of triump over pain and loss. Another great read!

5.0 out of 5 stars great transaction, October 15, 2011

By 

Mary L. Morgan (Fort Madison, Iowa..USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Beauty for Ashes (Rendezvous) (Mass Market Paperback)

Thanks for making some of these older books available. I collect certain authors who write in certain generas. Great prices.

5.0 out of 5 stars beautiful love story, May 23, 2005

By 

Suzie Wright (Santa Rosa CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beauty for Ashes (Hardcover)

This is a gorgeous love story between a white man and a Crow woman. Great emotional depth and wonderful depiction of Crow culture. I'm going to get the first book in this series right away.