Customer Reviews

Sam's Creed (Hell's Eight)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Texas Ranger, Sam "Wildcard" MacGregor was just passing through when he saw the burnt out shells of wagons. Not wanting to check but knowing he couldn't live with himself if he didn't, he moved forward to investigate. Among the carnage and wreckage, he found Isabella Montoya. She's a tiny little lady with more sass than sense and a decidedly regal air about her that made his palms itch at the thought of taming this wildcat. Isabella has been running for six months from Tejala, the man whose been trying to force her to the altar and she's just about out of steam when she meets Sam. One of the notorious Hell's Eight, Sam's not deterred by the threat of outlaws on her trail and drags her with him despite her protests. He sets off for her home, determined to reunite her with her mother and set Tejala straight. Isabella is Hell's Eight now and he wants everyone to know it.

Sam was a gorgeous hunk of man and good Lord I wouldn't kick him out of my bed for eating crackers. He was forceful and amusing and not too broody, which I liked. He was a hard man, a man forged in the Wild West and while he had his inner demons, Isabella charmed her way right into his heart. Isabella was adorably mischievous, like a wayward little kitten. I found her charming and her lilting spanish tinged accent was really cute. I really liked the way Sarah McCarty made her sound and I also thought the way Sam would gently correct her broken english to be a fun game. Bella was a sweet, brave and honorable little lady and her steadfast determination to not let Tejala get the better of her was heartening, as was Sam's cold fear at the thought of what Bella would do if she was caught. These two were an adorable couple. He was hard and she was soft and they both made each other laugh which for me, is what I want most in a book.

Their sex was hot as all get out. They have a lot of "relations" while atop their horse and while it takes a stretch of the imagination to envision what they are doing and how they are doing it, it was certainly intriguing. There is some fun lite spanking and other bits of naughtiness and like I said before, I wouldn't kick Sam out of my bed for eating crackers.

The story of this book was good, too. Isabella's ranch is in her name and only she can pass it on to the husband of her choice. Tejala is determined that that man will be him and if he has to run her down like a rabid dog, then that's what he'll do. Luckily for Isabella, Sam is Hell's Eight and that name strikes fear into the hearts of all evil doers so they think twice before taking him on and taking what is his. We get some fun characters in the ranch hands at Isabella's ranch and a fellow Hell's Eight member in Tucker. This was a fun entertaining read and I can't wait to read more in the Hell's Eight series by Sarah McCarty. Enjoy!

Sam MacGregor, known as Wild Card to his friends (and enemies for that matter), is considered the most unpredictable member of Hell's Eight. Sam is a man who prizes loyalty and family, though he doesn't necessarily foresee either in his future. Still, when his best friend's wife asks him to help find her missing sister, Sam agrees. Because, though he is a Wild Card, he's also an honorable man. But when, on his search, he encounters a spitfire Latina with a quick temper and an even quicker mouth, Sam knows he should just get her to safety and keep on his way. It's not his business how the beautiful Isabella wound up on her own in the middle of dangerous territory. It's not his place to wonder how a virgin could have body built for sin. And it's not up to him to make sure that she escapes the man she says is hunting her. No, Sam's loyalty is to his friends, his family... Hell's Eight.

Only the more he gets to know Isabella, the more he can't stand the thought that one of the most dangerous and evil men in Texas wants her--whether Isabella agrees or not. And soon the Wild Card, the unpredictable one, finds himself becoming very predictable. He will say, do, and kill anything or anyone to keep Isabella safe and make her his woman.

I loved Caine's Reckoning (Hell's Eight). I read it in one sitting and waited with baited breath for Sam's Creed, even though I knew I'd probably be disappointed (second books so rarely make me has happy as series beginners). But now I know something about Sarah McCarty. She's consistent.

Sam's Creed has all the passion, all the fiery moments, fraught tension, and nail-biting action that made me fall in love with Caine's Reckoning. It's not a rehashing; it's not the same story with a different character. It's an entertaining, enthralling, gush-worthy Western that--if I re-read books--I'd read again and again. If you've ever wondered where all the good cowboy romances went, this series is your answer.

This book was well worth waiting for. I've read tons of books while waiting for this one, so maybe one of the books I read before kind of lead me to expect something more and believe me this book was great. Sam was strong, though she seemed to focus more on his emotional pain vs his courage and his alpha personality which is always a pull for me when reading a book. The sex scenes were well written and fantastic. The story line was very well done. This is an excellent author and I've always bought her work without previewing and will continue to do so.

In 1858 bone weary Texas Ranger Sam "Wild Card" MacGregor sees the two burned out wagons and thinks how ugly people are to one another. Tired he sees two bodies bloated by the sun and expects to find women and children, as wagons usually mean dependents. Accompanied by Kell the dog, they find more corpses and one lively female survivor. Isabella Montoya explains to Sam they are dead because of her though she was not with them when they died.

He offers to take her home, bit she explains she is engaged in an arranged marriage to Tejala a nasty villain she refuses to wed. Sam insists on taking her back to her family's ranch, but she explains Tejala's odious henchmen stalk the spread. When they come close to her ranch, he realizes she was telling the truth as Tejala's thugs abound obviously seeking her out and would kill him to get her. Meanwhile wealthy Bella decides to seduce Sam into marrying her; she figures it helps that she is attracted to him and more important he is an honorable person who also can protect her. Sam wants the woman who almost accidentally killed him when they met, but tries to be honorable as he knows she is an innocent siren.

As with CAINE'S RECKONING, Sarah McCarty provides an entertaining Hell's Eight erotic Texas Ranger pre-Civil War romance. The story line is fast-paced mostly due to the powerful relationship between Sam and Bella, whose exchanges makes the tale. Although Tejala is a stereotypical avarice serial killing villain, fans will appreciate the lone ranger with his horse and dog falling in love with a spitfire heiress.

Harriet Klausner

Sam's Creed is definitely not as good as the first book in the series. The first book brought you into Hell's Eight territory. You met the other men, you bonded with them...this book doesn't take you anywhere near Hell's Eight territory. Sam doesn't interact with any (ok just one) of the other members of Hell's Eight.
It just honestly wasn't as interesting as the first book. I didn't even like the heroine as much in this book as I did in the first one. I know that Sam was on a quest to find the sister, but this wasn't mentioned that much and in the end, not to ruin it, but he never even went back to his Hell's Eight brothers to let them know where he was or that he wasn't going to look for the sister anymore.
Overall I was disapointed. It's still an entertaining read, but not one that I will read over and over again like I did the first book.

I loved Sarah's book since she started on Ellora's Cave and this series is just as good as those. I must say I liked Sam's story better than Caine's story. I felt the tension more and it was smoking! Looking forward to the next in the series as well as the Promises series.

When's is the next unchained book coming out?

I read Caine's Reckoning and absolutely loved it! The story was great, the characters were real and the sex was excellent. So I went out in search of Sam's Creed because I just could not wait until I ordered it from Amazon to read it. I went to 3 different Barnes and Noble and a Borders until I got it. I came home and got to reading. I was so bummed out by the turn the story took about 1/2 way through. Sam and Bella have chemistry, but it fizzles right along with the plot. I also agree with the other reviewer that we did not even see any of the Hell's Eight (except one) and the book leads us to believe that Sam is just going to walk away from his brothers at the end. I was disappointed. In addition. If Tucker end up with the Quaker lady Sally Mae there better be one heck of a story to support it. Don't spend your money on this book. CAINE'S RECKONING was much better.

Sam's Creed is book two in the Hell's Eight series about Sam "Wildcard" MacGregor, who was first introduced in Caine's Reckoning, book one. Sam is part of Hell's Eight, a group of men who uphold the law as Texas Rangers set in Texas during the mid 1850's. This is the time of the Wild West where men used their guns proudly to defend their honor. The Hell's Eight have such a scary reputation that you do not want to mess with any of them and who they lay claim to. Sam is on a mission to find the missing sister of Desi, who is Caine's wife. Sam does find a woman but she is not the one he is looking for. He and his trusty sidekick dog, Kell, find a group of wagons that were ambushed. He doesn't think he will find another living soul since the ground is littered with dead bodies. He is wrong, because under one of these wagons, is a young Spanish woman very much alive and one who is very annoyed. Isabella is the last person alive from this wagon train heading to San Antonio where her family home is. She is on the run from Tejala, a nasty man who wants to marry Isabella because of her fortune and her nice ranch spread. Sam, being the man that he is, decides to bring Isabella safely to her family.

Isabella has a lot of sass and doesn't mine telling Sam the way to do things. She has become one of my favorite McCarty heroines because of this. Isabella is no weeping violet and will defend herself, even against Sam. Sam threatens to beat her butt too many times to could because she doesn't listen to him and if Isabella wanted to, she would bend over and allow Sam to have his way. Isabella may be a virginal little miss, but she believes the evil Tejala will get his way even with Sam protecting her. She fears she will be raped by Tejala, so, why not give up her innocence to a man like Sam? Sam would love nothing more to introduce Isabelle to sex. Sam just can't get over the fact that he is not good enough for his Spanish Duchess. Still, this doesn't stop Sam from giving Isabella some interesting foreplay, which leads to some eye popping love scenes.

If you have read Sarah's erotic westerns in the past, you know about one such act that Sam introduces Isabella to. I call it, "fun with the butt-butt", but not only does this intimacy happen out in the wide open desert, but on a horse while it is in motion! Of course there are some other straight forward intimacies that I have enjoyed between these two. The majority of them happen in a cave or as they are camping down for the night. But again, since this is the desert and with that lack of water, well, bathing is not really an option. I would say both Sam and Isabella have been traveling for a few days to a week, but that doesn't stop Sam and Isabella from having fun, which includes Sam rubbing a certain type of fluid into Isabella's skin as to mark her as his own.

Overall, I found Sam and Isabella to have nice chemistry and Isabella is a wonderful heroine who stands by her man. I would have liked to see Sam act a bit more alpha, like most of Sarah's heroes have been in the past, but Sam was quieter and more subdued which seemed to work especially as Sam tries to handle Isabelle. It was nice to see one of Sarah's heroines take control of the relationship for a change. Sarah also showed that the Wild West is a place where the townspeople don't always smile and welcome strangers with opens arms. It is a harsh vast wilderness and if two people such as Sam and Isabella can find some sort of happiness, then, more power to them.

Katiebabs
Caine's Reckoning (Hell's Eight)

I want this man or any like him! This is a hot story line and after reading the start of this series with a new author for me, I will read every book she has in print! The story is great, the characters believable and soooooo sooooo hot. If you are looking for a man to lead the way - this is the one!

Once I opened the book, I didn't want to book it down. I'd been waiting a long time for the 2nd book in the Hell's Eight series to be released, but it was worth the wait. I love all the historical romance books written by this author. Now I must anxiously await the next book in the Promises series.