Customer Reviews

Defiant Heart (Westward Hearts Series #1)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In 1847 their stepfather sold Fannie Caldwell and her preadolescent siblings Katie and Kip to Tom as indentured servants. Over the next three years raging drunken Tom treats them horribly, abusing them although Fannie as a lioness protecting her cubs absorbs most of his wrath. However, she is concerned by the way Tom stares and leers at twelve years old Katie; she vows they will escape before he assaults her younger sister.

Fannie befriends Toni the town's fallen woman. They agree to flee together with the former's siblings at the first opportunity. When wagon master Blake Tanner arrives in town, the two females book passage on his trip west although he objects to single women with no man to protect them. As Fannie and Blake, and Toni with the wagon master's best friend Two Feathers fall in love, danger seems everywhere besides the normal perilous journey as someone wants either one or both women dead although no reason seems apparent except perhaps Tom seeking revenge for the Caldwells running away.

The first Westward Hearts tale is a wonderful western romance starring fully developed characters bringing to life the decade before the Civil War on the Great Plains. The story line is driven by the cast who face all sorts of peril as they seek a new hopefully better life. Readers will admire the intrepid Fannie who is fierce when it comes to keeping Katie and Kip safe, but also loving and vulnerable. Toni will receive much empathy from the audience for her trials and tribulations. Tracy Bateman shows why she is an award winning author with this suburb Americana romance.

Harriet Klausner

Fannie Caldwell has been trapped in a life of servitude to an abusive master and for three years she has plotted to escape with her younger brother and sister. Blake Tanner's wagon train is Fannie's chance but convincing Blake to allow an unmarried women on the train proves to be an impossible task. Refusing to give in Fannie takes an incredible risk to protect her siblings but her past life threatens to endanger them all.

Tracey Bateman's first Westward Heart novel, kicking of the new Avon Inspire range is a lovely read. Fannie is down to earth and her desperate struggle to convince the most mule-headed man she has ever met, that she has a place in the wagon train is amusing and inspiring. Faith, hope and love meet together in this engaging story.

Readers of historical novels will enjoy Defiant Heart and Fannie and Blake's journey and look forward to the sequel ~ a story of the emotionally scarred Toni and Sam Two Feathers, secretly devoted to a woman beyond his reach.

I have to agree with Michelle. This was a quick, very enjoyable read!


The book is filled with twists and turns that kept me turning the pages. Tracey fills the pages with conflict and placed the story in a setting that presents plenty of challenges for Fannie and her family. Defiant Heart was an easy read, and I enjoyed the cast of characters. Fannie's twin siblings were a study in contrasts, but also a tight knit family that's used to standing alone against the world. The subplot focuses on Toni, a former prostitute, and Sam, the lead scout. Their story will be the focus of book two, and I look forward to reading it.

This was probably one of the most riveting prairie novels I've ever read. I finished it quickly. The tension was great throughout the story. And Fannie was the strongest heroine I've ever come across, though her stubborn streak got her into an awful lot of trouble. On occasion, that stubbornness made her a bit unlikeable, but given her past, her guarded behavior made total sense. Plus, she never would've captured Blake's attention any other way. There were some pretty sad situations in this story, many of which were extremely realistic for those times.

Honestly, the only weakness I saw was the POV switching without warning at times. At first I thought it was that the printer missed the section break, but then realized that probably wasn't the case as the switch happened about twenty times. At any rate, that wasn't a huge issue for me, but did confuse me a bit. Still, I highly recommend this book. It has a nice ending, but there is obviously going to be a sequel, which I assume will be just as wonderful as this story.

Defiant Heart is a sweet story chronicling Fannie Caldwell's journey west and the personal journey that leads her there. Her personal story is sad and bittersweet. You want her to succeed and have a good, happy life- to move on from her troubled past.

Overall it's a fast-paced, enjoyable read. The character of Blake, is kind, heartwarming, and sweet. And yet he also is described as a ruggedly handsome cowboy type too. Not a bad combo... My only disappointment is it being such a short book is priced at almost $13!! (Even here, with shipping, it still just as much as the list price.) And it's a small book, barely taller than a mass market paperback. Though the story is good, I wish that the price was more reasonable for the amount of reading it actually is. (The last 10 pages are discussion questions, author info, and preface to next book.)

I really like Tracey Bateman's honest writing style. (I loved the Claire series). Defiant Heart isn't quite as fun as Claire but it's still a worthwhile read.

This was my first book by Tracey Bateman, and it will not be my last. I thought this book was well written, except that I thought it ended abruptly. At least there is a second one to the story. This story is able to give readers a view of what it was like living in the west and traveling with a wagon train. I look forward to reading the sequel, "Distant Heart" and there is a third installment "Dangerous Heart". Can't wait to read them. Would definitely recommend to others.

Did not know this was a series. Bought first book, then realized it was a series. Bought all books in the series. I thoroughly enjoyed these books. Good reading interspered with tension, love, friendship.

I absolutely LOVED this book and the other two in the series! I literally read each one of these in 24 hours or less.

The beginning of the story was very, very well written. I loved it!!! I just wish that the story would continue to the end like the beginning. But it was a nice read to the end. The writer presented the western life very well. The pictures were painted so realistic, that I could picture myself as an insider of it all. The writing was wonderful. I have grown to love specially the dialogues in this book that sounded western. :)
But, the book ended abruptly. I wish there would be more to it.
The other two books of the same series had nice written dialogues, but some events were too contrived to believe. But it is western after all.
Also, I have predicted the endings right away after just finishing the first book of the series. (Each book ended with one kiss at the end.) I do not like the books where I can predict the ending to be similar like in a harlequin novel.

Bateman gives the reader real live characters set in the real pioneer movement west. Fannie Caldwell and her two younger siblings, orphaned and indentured to a pig of a man, planned for three years how they would escape their bondage. Fannie watches as wagon trains travel west through Hawkins, Kansas and makes her plans to join one of them. As perfect as her plan appears, when she and her siblings try to execute it, roadblocks stand in the way: a woman of the night from the saloon wants to go along, the stubborn wagon master won't allow Fannie to join his wagon train because she is not accompanied by a husband and her "owner" discovers her plan. The battle begins between the wagon master's stubbornness and Fannie's stubbornness that equals his. A spark of attraction slowly glows between Fannie and Blake. Numerous calamities get in the way of their love and the wagon train's progress to its Oregon destination. Bateman's characters will live on with you after you've finished the last page. A Good Read.