Okay, this books went beyond my expectations. I grew up on westerns, I love them. This book was like reliving every single western I have ever seen and loved, and then some. Erin Bowman has a beautiful way of describing the setting and characters that pulls you into her story and drags you along until you’re as breathless and filthy as the main character Kate.

That’s what was so great about this book. Bowman spared no gruesome, nasty detail. Everything was dirty, the gunfights had bloodshed, the dead were described until I wan’t to vomit. It was awesome! It was like all 111 minutes of True Grit had been smashed into a YA book. (Except it was even better than that.) I also appreciated how the inevitable love angle wasn’t overplayed. Kate and Jesse’s story didn’t overshadow the main plot and didn’t distract from all that stomach turning action. The characterization was also really good. I love that I could go through this book and not really like Kate. She’s brash and sometimes stupid, but that makes her real and wonderful and I love that she’s who she is and not some default stock character shoved into the protagonist slot.

For full review look here:

https://aggietheskeletonreads.wordpress.com/2016/05/11/review-vengeance-road/