Thunder of the Plains [Hardcover]

Rosanne Bittner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1991

Determined to help her father realize his dream of building a transcontinental railroad, Sunny Landers accompanies Bo Landers on a wagon train west and meets Colt Travis, a half-Cherokee raised by whites. Reprint.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

To fulfill his dream of building a railroad across America, Bo Landers hires young Colt Travis in 1857 to guide his party along a possible route. Landers's young, innocent, and beautiful daughter Sunny is immediately attracted to the tall, dark, and ruggedly handsome half-breed scout, and he to her. They deny their love for 12 years, knowing their worlds are too different for a relationship between them to succeed. Outside influences work against them, too: war, imprisonment, the deliberate intervention of her relatives, injuries, marriage to others. This is a well-written historical novel, and the macho but tender Colt is a hero to set feminine hearts aflutter. Other characters are also realistic in the action-packed story that only stretches credibility a little. Western romance readers will thoroughly enjoy this.
- Andrea Lee Shuey, Dallas P.L.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Veteran Western romance writer Bittner's hardcover debut--a historical saga set against the American frontier. Wealthy Chicago shipping magnate Bo Landers dreams of building the first transcontinental railroad; to that end, he organizes a surveying expedition across the plains that includes his beautiful daughter Sunny, 15, and Colt Travis, a handsome young drifter hired as a scout. There is an immediate attraction between the two, but Bo nips blossoming romance in the bud by pointing out the differences in their social stations: Sunny, the heiress to a vast fortune; Colt, the penniless half-Indian nomad. When the scouting party reaches Fort Laramie--somewhat the worse for their brush with a buffalo stampede and a band of ruthless buffalo hunters--Colt regretfully bids Sunny goodbye. Years pass; Colt marries and settles down, only to lose wife and son in a brutal Indian raid. Bo Landers dies, and Sunny continues her father's work on the railroad. Seeing her name in the newspaper fills Colt with nostalgia, and he writes to her. Thus the romance begins afresh, this time impeded by a series of highly contrived obstacles, including Sunny's evil older brother Vince, and Blaine O'Brien, the rich, socially appropriate man she ought to marry. But Sunny and Colt do have a passionate night together; nine months later she gives birth to a boy with Colt's dark hair and hazel eyes. Sunny's husband confronts her with the infidelity, savagely beats her, and then departs for a hunting trip to Africa. En route, he dies in a shipwreck; Sunny is now free to reveal her son's true patrimony. Eventually, Colt and Sunny are reunited, and the great transcontinental railroad is completed. Despite the apparent care taken with historical detail, a tired romance filled with long, expository passages posing as dialogue, and flimsy, two-dimensional characters. -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday; 1st edition (December 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385421486
• ISBN-13: 978-0385421485
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #717,935 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Welcome! I'm glad to be in touch with you, especially if you love American history and America's Old West of the 1800's. I hope you enjoy stories about that time period, as well as Native American stories. It's what I love to write and currently I've had 57 novels published over the past 28 years. I am still writing and won't stop until the Good Lord requires it. Please check out my web site at www.rosannebittner.com for all the information you could ask for about my books. You can also visit me on Facebook.

I grew up on westerns. They dominated television - shows like The Big Valley, Cheyenne, Wagon Train, Roy Rogers, The Lone Ranger, Rawhide, Bonanza, Have Gun/Will Travel, The Rifleman, Wanted - Dead or Alive, and of course the famous Gunsmoke, which I still watch today on TV Land as well as on the Western Channel. I love the big western stars like John Wayne, Clint Eastwood and James Stewart. When I was a teen my idol was James Arness (Matt Dillon of Gunsmoke) instead of Elvis and the like. My all-time favorite western movies are The Guns of Josie Wales, Pale Rider and Hang 'Em High (all starring Clint Eastwood) - The Searchers, Rooster Cogburn and The Shootist (John Wayne). When I was eighteen and watched How The West Was Won, I knew that some day I would write stories about that glorious time period of America's history. Books that deeply impressed me are A Lantern In Her Hand by Bess Streeter Aldrich, and The Proud Breed, by Celeste de Blasis.

No other nation has exploded in exploration and settlement like America, and to this day our Native Americans still suffer culture shock. When I read Dee Brown's Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (a must read for anyone who wants to know the truth about America's natives and how they suffered as we settled the West), I knew I also had to tell stories of America's growth through the eyes of the Native Americans, because so much of what we were (and still are) taught in school is completely slanted and mostly untrue. It certainly was NOT all Indian/bad-guy and Soldier good-guy. Many lies were told, many promises broken, and our government horribly abused the Native Americans. But that is another story, and I try to get some of it across in my books.

I also strive to tell an abiding love story between two people whose love holds them together through the trials and tribulations of settling America's frontiers. It took grit and bravery to head into rugged, unknown territory, knowing you will leave family behind whom you will probably never see again. Free land, gold and a better life were strong temptations for men, as well as for many brave-hearted women. I think the best books you can read for a truthful depiction of this country's growth and its affect on Native Americans is Dee Brown's book mentioned above, and the book Disinherited, by Dale Van Every. Also, the true and powerful history of this country as faced by red man and white alike is cuttingly depicted in any book you can get your hands on written by Allan Eckert.

I have lived in Michigan my whole life, but I truly believe that somehow I have a past spirit who lives or lived in the Old West, especially perhaps Colorado, which I love more than any other place in America. I yearn to be there, and I feel I "belong" in the Rocky Mountains. When I go there I feel so "at home." However, the family business as well as our two sons and our grandsons all live close by here in Michigan. I wouldn't leave them. But my husband and I have traveled the West for years and I have visited just about every place mentioned in my books. I am also very active here with fund-raising community projects and am Treasurer for our Mid-Michigan Romance Writers of America. Be sure to look them up on the internet, especially in late winter, for news about our group's annual Retreat from Harsh Reality. It's a wonderful experience for any writer.

As I mentioned above, watch my web site and Facebook for news about any new books coming, and about many of my past titles that will soon be printed in trade paperback and as e-books!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thunder on the Plains, February 5, 2000

By 

Jacy Pierce - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thunder of the Plains (Hardcover)

This is the best book I have ever read. It's like a soap opera storyline where they first give you the impression that two very different people can never get together and be happy. But then Rosanne g r a d u a l l y puts them together. The Love was always there, from the beginning, but Rosanne writes it, so that it is an ABSOLUTE MUST that you keep reading it! Love blooms because two people both desparately need someone to talk to, through the mail. (It would be called EMAIL in 2000.) It is exciting to see a woman grow up, and a man to realize that she has. Just like today, family members get involved where they are not welcome! My congrats to Sunny. The Women of 2000 would love her! This is the first book of Rosanne Bittner's that I read. I have since been a used book store "junky" trying to find others from the past. Sunny follows her HEART, and through many obstacles, it leads to happiness. It could easily be made into a 6 hour TV miniseries, or a 3 hour cinema feature. Thanks Rosanne.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Has a little bit of everything in it., March 13, 2003

By 

janlouise (Ruston, LA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thunder of the Plains (Hardcover)

I pulled this one off the library shelves and I enjoyed it. For a while I didn't think Sunny & Colt would EVER get together. I was on a roller coaster with emotions- and truly loved the end. The end held a couple of surprises. The setting in the beginning is the wild west during 1857. Chicago tycone Bo Landers has dreams for the first railroad to head west. To be able to convince his supports to help finance it he wants to head west and see what obsticles there are. He hires Colt Travis (a good-looking Indian 1/2 breed) as scout to accompany him, his daughter Sunny Landers (Daddy's reason for living) and a team of men. During the trip, an innocent attraction starts between Colt (20) and Sunny (15) but Daddy discourages it. Sunny will one day inherit all and needs someone of her own status. Colt ends his scouting for the Landers- while Sunny is feeling the pains of first love. As years pass Colt marries & loses his wife and infant son during an Indian raid. Sunny's father dies leaving his fortune (of which Sunny's 2 brothers squabble over) and his railway dream to Sunny to pursue it. As she starts to fill the shoes of her father's, Blaine O'Brien, a rich tycone that has a dream to become president one day, has his eye on Sunny to make her his wife (there's no mention of love). Hearing of her father's death, Colt writes Sunny sending her his condolences. They start keeping in contact by mail-filling a void in each other's lives (giving fuel to that old flame). Colt shows up in Chicago and seeks Sunny out. One night of passion leads to disaster. Colt realizes their lives are worlds apart and he leaves after having a confrontation with Sunny's brothers-who are afraid Sunny is going to make a mess of her future. But Sunny can't forget that night. Though Brian is definately in the picture, it takes a while but Sunny seeks Colt out. Another night under the stars produces... I'll stop there. You'll have to read it for yourself. But you won't believe the ups and downs- Indian raids, fist fights, buffalo stampedes, grand dinners & balls, train wrecks, battles (Civil War), nights under stars, etc. This book has a little bit of it all, along with a wonderful ending (don't cheat by reading ahead).

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE, May 14, 2005

By 

stacey renee (rochester new york) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thunder on the Plains (Mass Market Paperback)

ON A SCALE OF 1-5, THIS ONE IS A 10. I LOVE BITTNER'S BOOKS BUT

THERE IS NOTHING LIKE THIS ONE. I JUST FINISHED IT AND WANT TO START IT OVER. HATED TO SEE IT END. DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND GET THIS ONE....GET A GOOD COPY 'CAUSE YOU'LL BE KEEPING IT! THANKS, ROSANNE.......