Deep as the Rivers

The threat of the war with England (the War of 1812), together with the break-up of his marriage, makes Colonel Samuel Shelby is more than eager to head west into the wilderness on a secret mission for President Madison. Having sworn never to get involved with another treacherous female, Samuel has conflicting emotions when the headstrong beauty Olivia St. Etienne arrives on the scene to save him from unknown assassins. Despite his vow, he's attracted to the enigmatic redhead, so when her deceitful guardian offers to trade her to Samuel in payment of a gambling debt, Samuel readily accepts her as his mistress. Needless to say, Olivia is infuriated to be traded like so much hardtack and absconds in the middle of the night. When they are accidentally reunited en route to hostile Indian territory, a bitter battle of wills begins. Henke has overloaded her story with so many subplots and secondary characters that the reader loses sight of the love relationship supposedly building between the hero and heroine. So when the romance finally arrives, it's almost too late. (Mar.)