Scan barcode
A review by erinarkin20
Retribution Rails by Erin Bowman
4.0
Retribution Rails is book two in the Vengeance Road series by Erin Bowman and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this book since I loved book one. If you were smart enough to preorder your copy of this book, you could have received a novella called Kate and Jesse. Trust me, if you love the swoony bits, this is something you will want to read. It was also a great lead in to Retribution Rails and I’m glad I read it before I dove in.
According to the timeline, Retribution Rails picks up about 10 years after the end of Vengeance Road and we get to focus on some different characters. Reece Murphy and Charlotte Vaughn are our focus and I liked both of them. They have their own challenges to face but happen to cross paths amidst them and from there the book is non-stop action.
Of the two, I have to admit Reece was my favorite. He was forced into a situation that he really had no good choice to make. It all started when he was working as a farmhand for a family who was unfortunate enough to be visited by the Rose Riders. When the gang robbed and killed the family they were about to kill Reece too but he happened to have a very specific coin in his pocket and when Luther Rose saw it, he decided to force Reece into the gang with the promise he could leave when he found the cowboy who had given him the coin. Until then Reece was stuck as Luther had leverage and Reece knew he would never be free until he gave Luther what he wanted.
The thing about Reece is that despite all the time he spent with the Rose Riders, he wasn’t all bad. I’m not going to pretend he didn’t do anything wrong, he for sure did and he lives with the guilt of it but when push comes to shove, he does still have a conscience and that is the most important thing when he meets Charlotte despite how much risk he takes keeping her around / alive. Now because of the time he has spent with the Rose Riders and the reputation he has developed as the Rose Kid, he is as much a wanted man as Luther Rose and the rest of his gang.
Reece and Charlotte cross paths for the first time on a train that the Rose Riders are robbing. Charlotte is definitely one of those characters that doesn’t shy away from a challenge. When she comes face to face with the Rose Kid and decides to do whatever she needs to in order for him to face justice for the things he has done. On top of that she sees this as an opportunity to write the story of a lifetime to help her get the journalist job she wants so her mother doesn’t have to worry about her. She is a motivated and determined young woman and she is willing to do whatever she thinks is right and in some cases this puts her in danger.
As I mentioned, she has her own challenges and they revolve around the fact that her father recently passed away and now her uncle is trying to not only take over the mine her father worked hard to build but also their wealth and he isn’t above threatening to get what he wants. As he threatens and blackmails everyone around her, Charlotte sees only one way out of this situation. She needs to find someone to get rid of her problem.
At first, I have to admit, Charlotte annoyed me a bit. Mostly because I knew things she didn’t about Reece and she wasn’t able to look past his role within the Rose Riders. I can’t hold that against her, but I wanted her to give him a chance…I completely understand why she wouldn’t have but still.
This book really is pretty much non-stop action. As Reece tries to resolve his relationship/role with the Rose Riders and Charlotte tries to protect her mother, I didn’t feel like the pace slowed down at all. They were jumping from one situation to the next and the pages flew by. I also have to say, Bowman does a fantastic job of pulling the reader into this environment. It was so great to experience the Wild West through these characters as well as see how Reece and Charlotte figured each other out.
Although I’m not going to say anything about their story line, I will say I loved having the characters from Vengeance Road make an appearance because it really does tie this story together. One of my favorite things in series books is seeing where characters are after time and it was great to see how Kate and Jesse evolved as characters in this series.
That’s about all I can say without ruining anything. I will just say, if you are looking for a story that will pull you in from the very first page and some great characters, definitely consider checking out not only this book, but this entire series. This companion story was everything I was hoping it would be and the ending was perfect…just saying.
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.
According to the timeline, Retribution Rails picks up about 10 years after the end of Vengeance Road and we get to focus on some different characters. Reece Murphy and Charlotte Vaughn are our focus and I liked both of them. They have their own challenges to face but happen to cross paths amidst them and from there the book is non-stop action.
Of the two, I have to admit Reece was my favorite. He was forced into a situation that he really had no good choice to make. It all started when he was working as a farmhand for a family who was unfortunate enough to be visited by the Rose Riders. When the gang robbed and killed the family they were about to kill Reece too but he happened to have a very specific coin in his pocket and when Luther Rose saw it, he decided to force Reece into the gang with the promise he could leave when he found the cowboy who had given him the coin. Until then Reece was stuck as Luther had leverage and Reece knew he would never be free until he gave Luther what he wanted.
The thing about Reece is that despite all the time he spent with the Rose Riders, he wasn’t all bad. I’m not going to pretend he didn’t do anything wrong, he for sure did and he lives with the guilt of it but when push comes to shove, he does still have a conscience and that is the most important thing when he meets Charlotte despite how much risk he takes keeping her around / alive. Now because of the time he has spent with the Rose Riders and the reputation he has developed as the Rose Kid, he is as much a wanted man as Luther Rose and the rest of his gang.
Reece and Charlotte cross paths for the first time on a train that the Rose Riders are robbing. Charlotte is definitely one of those characters that doesn’t shy away from a challenge. When she comes face to face with the Rose Kid and decides to do whatever she needs to in order for him to face justice for the things he has done. On top of that she sees this as an opportunity to write the story of a lifetime to help her get the journalist job she wants so her mother doesn’t have to worry about her. She is a motivated and determined young woman and she is willing to do whatever she thinks is right and in some cases this puts her in danger.
As I mentioned, she has her own challenges and they revolve around the fact that her father recently passed away and now her uncle is trying to not only take over the mine her father worked hard to build but also their wealth and he isn’t above threatening to get what he wants. As he threatens and blackmails everyone around her, Charlotte sees only one way out of this situation. She needs to find someone to get rid of her problem.
At first, I have to admit, Charlotte annoyed me a bit. Mostly because I knew things she didn’t about Reece and she wasn’t able to look past his role within the Rose Riders. I can’t hold that against her, but I wanted her to give him a chance…I completely understand why she wouldn’t have but still.
This book really is pretty much non-stop action. As Reece tries to resolve his relationship/role with the Rose Riders and Charlotte tries to protect her mother, I didn’t feel like the pace slowed down at all. They were jumping from one situation to the next and the pages flew by. I also have to say, Bowman does a fantastic job of pulling the reader into this environment. It was so great to experience the Wild West through these characters as well as see how Reece and Charlotte figured each other out.
Although I’m not going to say anything about their story line, I will say I loved having the characters from Vengeance Road make an appearance because it really does tie this story together. One of my favorite things in series books is seeing where characters are after time and it was great to see how Kate and Jesse evolved as characters in this series.
That’s about all I can say without ruining anything. I will just say, if you are looking for a story that will pull you in from the very first page and some great characters, definitely consider checking out not only this book, but this entire series. This companion story was everything I was hoping it would be and the ending was perfect…just saying.
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.