Beauty and the Bounty Hunter

Austin's worthy debut blazes a diverting trail of sagebrush, guns, and romance. Bounty hunter Cat O'Banyon, aka Cathleen Chase, always gets her man. Even when said man isn't Mr. Right%E2%80%94as in the man who killed her husband%E2%80%94she turns him in for the cash and keeps on looking. The only man this willful beauty really yearns for is the faceless stranger who destroyed her idyllic life, or so she says until con man Alexi Romanov appears with the promise to help her find the man who has put a price on her head. It's a tempting offer, but Cat prefers to keep her quest uncomplicated by the steamy history she shares with Alexi. She tries to shake him but eventually succumbs to their shared passion, also coming to rely on the bounty-hunting help of his oversized sidekick, Mikhail, as they scam and shoot their way across 1870 Kansas. It's a fine yarn played out against the colorful hills and dusty trails of the old west. Agent: Robin Rue, Writers House. (Oct.)