Books › Tender is the Storm
Tender is the Storm
First published 1985 · 388 pages
A fiery clash of wills set against the rugged American West, where mutual deception inevitably ignites into all-consuming passion.
What it feels like
Reading this vintage romance feels like stepping into a sweeping, tempestuous Western melodrama where every glance is loaded and every argument is a prelude to passion. The atmosphere is dusty and feverish, capturing the stark contrast between Gilded Age high society and the raw, untamed frontier. It moves at a brisk, breathless pace, driven by the fiery, stubborn clash of wills between two people determined to use each other for their own ends. The prose is lush and unapologetically dramatic, reveling in the sensory details of longing and frustration. It is a perfect escape for readers who love the high-stakes emotional turbulence, alpha-male posturing, and headstrong heroines that define classic 1980s historical romance, offering a deeply satisfying journey from deception to devotion.
- Mood
- tempestuous
- dusty
- feverish
- sweeping
- Tone
- passionate
- melodramatic
- earnest
- dramatic
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- marriage of convenience · culture clash · revenge and redemption · enemies to lovers · all-consuming passion
- The writing
- Lush and dramatic, leaning heavily into sensory descriptions and the breathless internal turmoil of its characters.
- The arc
- Moves from stubborn defiance and mutual manipulation to explosive passion and eventual vulnerable surrender.
- Who it's for
- Readers who crave the unapologetic melodrama, fiery banter, and alpha-male dynamics of vintage 1980s historical romance.
Content notes
- dubious consent
- sexism
- mild violence
- abduction themes
About the book
Headstrong heiress Sharisse Hammond wants no part of the New York society marriage that has been arranged for her. So she heads west across a vast and dangerous land -- with no intention of honoring her agreement to become the mail-order bride of a rugged Arizona rancher. But Lucas Holt needs a wife -- any wife -- if his plan to destroy his most hated enemy is to succeed. And this gullible Eastern lady would do quite nicely. However, their separate schemes to use one another are complicated by raw, aching passion. For Lucas's beautiful, unsuspecting pawn was not supposed to be so irresistible alluring. And freedom-loving Sharisse never dreamed she could ever desire one man so much!
Description from Open Library.
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