When Lawman Jack Hollister guns down his outlaw father in self-defense after the posse he rides with surrounds the outlaw gang, it takes a long time to heal the wound, symbolized by the scar his father inflicted on Jack’s face before the man’s untimely death. Certain any decent woman would be repulsed by the disfigurement, he lives a lonely life until the arrival in Great Falls, Montana of one very pretty lady on the afternoon train.

Grace Reilly has come to Great Falls determined to help her best friend, Allie Gibson, clear her name in a scandal that rocked Minneapolis and sent her friend scurrying to the safety of her father’s Montana ranch. Grace has documents that just might provide a clue to the real embezzler of the Library Building Fund’s money—and it’s not Allie. But before Grace can find Allie, a savage looking man tries to kidnap her and the very virile Jack Hollister saves her from his clutches.

Jack’s not sure what is going on, but somehow, Grace Reilly is wanted by the same man Jack has been tracking, the same man who betrayed his father’s gang and is somehow connected with Allie Gibson’s troubles. His father’s old gang holds some of the clues and it appears Grace holds others. Both are attracted to the other. Both are trying to live down the unlawful past of their relatives connecting them in ways neither is aware of. When they do learn the truth about each other, will it lead to misery or forgiveness and more importantly, will it block the path to love?

Ms. Crooks has written a wild and woolly tale where good triumphs over evil but at an emotional price. It is a story filled with wonderful characters, not the least of which is the determined heroine who is prone to rationalizing choices despite her attraction to a lawman who sees things in stark black and white. She’s made ever more sympathetic given the “word blindness” that afflicts and embarrasses her. Despite all of her burdens, and there are many in her life, she persists in trying to make things right, often acting impulsively with unpredictable consequences. The subplot of a Canadian revolution is intriguing and provides enough bad guys and action to keep things lively. But it is the romance that captures the imagination and had me furiously turning those pages.  A keeper.