Runaway - A Review

Runaway by Renee Donne

Imprint: Romance

Release Date: July 29, 2014

Blurb:

After Marianne discovers her bankrupt stepfather sold her into marriage to the highest bidder, she flees Philadelphia and heads west to start a new life.

Unfortunately for her danger follows.  First, a stage coach accident leaves her stranded in the middle of nowhere – with an injured driver. And henchmen, hired by her spurned would-be husband, are hot on her trail, threatening to return her to Philadelphia and the man who is determined to own her.

Just when things seem hopeless, Marianne is rescued by a handsome, cowboy who offers temporary refuge.  Knowing she can’t refuse, yet wary of his intentions, Marianne finds herself drawn to this quiet, enigmatic hero. But is he someone she can trust?

Author Bio:

Renee Donne is a native Floridian with a penchant for writing books with a western theme. In her head she's a world traveler and an amateur chef. In real life, she's a hometown girl with an affinity for fine wine and good friends. Her favorite place to write is sitting on her veranda, overlooking the beach.

Author Links:

www.twitter.com/reneedonne

https://www.facebook.com/renee.donne

Trailer:

Excerpt Link: http://www.anaiahpress.com/Runaway.html

Buy Links:

Amazon:

Kobo

Barnes and Noble

iTunes

Smashwords

Goodreads

My Thoughts
Whenever I read a book by a new-to-me author, I try really hard to treat the book like a debut and to give the author the benefit of the doubt. That said, I loved the premise of this book. She is running away from an arranged marriage and then meets the man she can love. That seems to be a premise I have found in several different historical books and it's one I've always enjoyed.

I found the plot to be rather choppy. If this is the author's first book, which I don't know if it is, then I see that as a spot of growth. Yet I also found the characters to be a little shallow too. Perhaps more story would have been the answer there, I don't know.

Still this was a quick read. Amazon shows it at only about 57 pages. So maybe, a longer book would have had a less choppy plot and deeper characters.

Did I like the book? Sorta. I've got really mixed feelings about it as a whole. Parts were good. Parts were sweet. Parts dragged. Would I read something else by this author? Maybe. I'm not sure. This was by no means a favorite, but perhaps I could read something else by this author and see how she develops over time.

I received this book for free from the publisher for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of novellas, westerns, romance

Rating - 2.5 stars. I've debated about this a lot. I usually don't round up when I give half ratings, but I don't feel that this one truly deserves a 2 star rating. So for Amazon purposes, it's 3 stars.