Romance of the American West: Raven Dove
Raven Dove (Whiskey Press, 2005) is a historical romance by Joanne Walpole. Joanne’s first novel shares with us the tragedy and success of Vivien Clinton, a lonely and abandoned girl in the small town of Wagoner in the American Southwest. Vivien, who lives with her abusive uncle, has grown up hiding under a mask of tomboyish indifference, until the night she meets Gabe Johnson. Gabe, a wounded stranger, protects her from her uncle’s wrath and gives her hope for the future. Feeling a connection to the girl, despite the situation they find themselves in, Gabe promises himself that this ghost of a teenager will one day be the woman he marries.
Readers will be caught in the spell that Joanne weaves with her realistic portrayal of the characters and her fascinating story. The protagonist, Vivien Clinton, is a strong and determined young woman. Readers will feel for her the sad life she is forced to lead and the decisions she must make if she is ever to escape. We travel all the bumpy roads with Vivien when she leaves Wagoner behind after her uncle’s death and arrives in Tucson. Through Vivien’s eyes, we share the carriage ride experience and meet three of the characters who come to play a role in our heroine’s future. And, as Vivien begins to unravel a mystery in which she is unknowingly at the center, we understand her frustration in dealing with the people around her who are not sincere with her.
Eventually, Vivien discovers the truth of her life, and before long, she must learn to deal with the lies and deception that have haunted her every day. Joanne Walpole uses Vivien’s tribulations as a means to draw the reader further into history with her clever real-life observations combined with solid research on life during the great Western era of the 19th century.
Hope awaits behind every moment of despair and readers will be as determined as Vivien to leave her past behind and find the future she has dreamed of since the night she fell in love with Gabe Johnson. Her strength of character helps her overcome every setback and steadily steers her toward happiness.
And, just as Vivien discovers she has friends in strange places, readers will discover the strength and integrity of Raven Dove’s supporting characters. Chad Green is the first of his “new” friends. Chad, a local innkeeper and businessman, leads Vivien out of the confusion of her uncle’s death and leads her down the road. Charlie Jones is a loyal and strong young man who supports Vivien no matter the cost and in the face of her family’s discontent. Peggy Webster is a manipulative woman shaped by her own unhappy past and linked to Vivien in ways that unfold in layers before us. Madeline Bonchance is a successful actress who appears in Vivien’s life for a short time. However, when she is kidnapped by Peggy Webster and her son, Luke, Madeline becomes the catalyst for the event that will make or break Vivien’s dreams. Then there’s Gabe Johnson, the stranger who promised him the world and disappeared without saying a word. His arrival in his new life only adds to the bewilderment he feels. Can you trust him with your future? Is he as reliable and solid as she felt in their last meeting? Does she still love him?
Gabe Johnson is more than a romantic hero, more than a reflection of Vivien’s love and hope. His roundness of character shows us a compassionate man who has faced tragedy and has taken revenge. A man who rides alone, but who knows what love is, an experience to share and treasure.
Through it all is Vivien’s Uncle Pete. A figure ghost, shown to the reader through the eyes of the people who knew him. Vivien’s feelings for him are often ambivalent. He is not a good man, but he is also shaped by the past and even in this shaky relationship, Vivien finds an underlying mystery and intrigue. Who was Pete Clinton?
Joanne’s variety of characters is woven into a story that traces Vivien Clinton’s journey from innocent girl to strong woman. She shares with the reader her understanding of the events that shape people’s lives and brings those events to a completely satisfying conclusion. Surprises and twists take shape and explode to reveal new surprises and hidden relationships.
The threads of the story come together in an ending worthy of a great epic of western love, as the truth is drawn from the barrel of a smoking gun.
Joanne Walpole’s Raven Dove is available from Whiskey Creek Press.
http://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/
[http://uk.geocities.com/joannewalpolewriter/]