Being the Judge's daughter, Amelia Harper has always been sheltered and protected. She has lived on a farm with her two brothers, father and handful of handsome cowhands, who, seeing her delicate face and beautiful disposition, have been vying for her attention for as long as they can remember. However, Amelia is disinterested in all of them, until Jesse

Judge Harper has decided to allow Jesse, a lad imprisoned since he was 14 years old, to serve the rest of his sentence on the Harper ranch. Everyone is skittish around the adolescent known as "the outlaw." The only one who cares to get close is Amelia, but she isn't allowed to.

Since romance between them is forbidden, Jesse fears that acting on his feelings will send him back to prison. Once he gains everyone's trust, though, he must either lose it again, or watch the first girl he ever loved die.

Lorraine Heath has an interesting and mildly racy western for young people. She described the scenery so well that you could feel the sand grit in your teeth and hear the horses whinny. One of my favorite things about this book was just how well the character's names matched their personalities. I think I just might read this again! SWEET (Jan., 256 pp., $4.99)

Reviewed by: 
Ally Degray