"A romance in the middle of a really good Western novel."
- Roundup Magazine
THE STAR IN THE MEADOW
Carla Kelly
Series: The Spanish Brand, Book 4
Genre: Historical Romance
Publisher: Camel Press
Publication Date: February 14, 2017
Will Marco choose love or duty?
Marco Mondragón and his wife Paloma are living hectic but happy lives at the Double Cross, on the edge of ComancherÃa. Five years after the death of Comanche leader Cuerno Verde, cautious diplomacy between the tribe and the colonists is underway to end Comanche raids into New Mexico. Paloma's time has been fully consumed by her two toddlers and newborn son and Marco's by spring planting.
The Seven Year Audit of 1784 arrives and with it comes auditor Fernando Ygnacio. After years of incarceration for a crime he did not commit, Señor Ygnacio is a broken man. Although his daughter Catalina is bitter about his mistreatment by his superiors, her storytelling abilities captivate the household, including a frequent visitor from the nearby presidio, El Teniente Joaquim Gasca, who has been undergoing his own reformation from rascal to leader.
Unknown to him, Marco has peculiar enemies plotting his downfall. When Paloma and Catalina set out on a visit to Marco's sister, meant to give Paloma relief from her busy life, the women are kidnapped. Devastated, Marco is torn between love and duty. He yearns to search for his wife, but feels bound by colonial duties to accompany his friend Toshua to RÃo Napestle, where Comanches have gathered to debate the region's fragile peace. In his absence from the Double Cross, will Joaquim Gasca and Toshua's wife Eckapeta be able to find the missing women?
Carla Kelly’s writing is masterful, and I can wholeheartedly recommend this whole series, and I believe you would enjoy each book more if you read them all. STAR IN THE MEADOW is a stellar conclusion which will reside on my keeper shelf.
- Roses Are Blue Blog
I love this series... Carla Kelly is my favorite modern author... She writes from accurate historical research and facts…plus the lady knows how to weave romance into her stories for my girly-side!"
- Patti, Goodreads Reviewer
An Excerpt from the Book
Except from Chapter Eighteen – “In which terror flaps home to roost.”
“I don’t know a time in my life when I have dreaded anything more than telling my children their mother is missing,” Marco said, his voice no more than a whisper, because he felt another wave of misery wash over him. He put his forehead against Eckapeta’s and her arms went around him. They stood that way until he had the strength to raise his head.
“I will ride with you to search,” Marco said.
“Ah, no,” Toshua said. “I came here today to take you with me.”
Marco took a good look at Toshua, the man he knew had returned to RÃo Napestle. What was afoot? “Why are you even here?” he asked.
“Everything has changed,” Toshua said, his eyes not wavering from Marco’s face. “There is a war faction led by a man named Toroblanco. He told me if I did not return with a Spaniard with some authority to speak, he would begin a rampage through your settlements.”
“I don’t care. My wife is missing and my son might not live through the night.”
They stared at each other, neither man yielding. “You promised me,” Toshua said, his voice so soft, but filled with iron purpose. “Everything hangs on your visit. The People will see a while man with me, or all this talk will go nowhere.”
Marco turned away. He put his hands over his eyes, wanting to shut out everything for a moment. The I cannot in his heart ran smack into the You must in his head.
…He looked up at the sky, wishing there were a way out of this corner he had boxed himself into, all because he was a loyal though distant son of Spain, child of the New World, reliable man and devoted husband to a wife in a million. Something had to yield, and Marco knew what it was. Goddamn him, but he knew.
“Very well, brother,” he said quietly to the Comanche standing beside him. “Obedezco.”
“I don’t know that word, Marco,” Toshua said in his fairly good, workaday Spanish.
“No one wants to,” Marco replied with a touch of humor in his voice, even as his heart broke. “It means, ‘I will bend to your will.’”
Other Books by the Author
Don't miss the other books in The Spanish Brand series by Carla Kelly.
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THE DOUBLE CROSS
Series: The Spanish Brand, Book 1
In the royal colony of New Mexico, 1780, Marco Mondragón is a brand inspector living next to the fierce Comanche. On a trip to Santa Fe, he meets Paloma Vega and rescues her from cruel relatives. He vows to find out if they stole the brand belonging to her parents.
"Carla Kelly's vivid storytelling plunges the reader into a tense, hypnotic tale of love and courage in The Double Cross."
- Diane Farr, bestselling author, Regency Romance and Young Adult fiction
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MARCO AND THE DEVIL'S BARGAIN
Series: The Spanish Brand, Book 2
Marco and his wife Paloma fight the scourge of smallpox by bravely venturing onto the Staked Plains, stronghold of the Comanche. As part of a devil’s bargain, they must put themselves at the mercy of these dangerous enemies and try to inoculate them.
"Though I didn’t read The Double Cross first, I still managed to fall head over heels for Marco and Paloma. That is a good testament to Ms. Kelly’s amazing writing."
- Alexandra Anderson, All About Romance
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PALOMA AND THE HORSE TRADERS
Series: The Spanish Brand, Book 3
At the end of the 18th century in the Spanish Colony of New Mexico, Marco and Paloma face a new threat to their ranch. To defeat Great Owl, a renegade Comanche, they form a ragtag army that includes a ghost from Paloma’s past.
"This book will take one’s breath away with the deep, emotional romance and highly likable characters."
- RT Reviews
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Giveaway
WIN
Be one of three lucky winners:
$15 Gift Card (Amazon or Barnes & Noble)
2 x print copy of The Star in the Meadow
Contest runs from May 16 - June 5, 2017.
About Carla Kelly
A well-known veteran of the romance writing field, Carla Kelly is the author of thirty-seven novels and three non-fiction works, as well as numerous short stories and articles for various publications. Carla’s interest in historical fiction is a byproduct of her lifelong study of history. She has a BA in Latin American History from Brigham Young University and an MA in Indian Wars History from University of Louisiana-Monroe.
Tour Schedule
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