I liked Savannah Richards as the narrator. The story was really good as well. There were some parts that dragged though.

I'm writing this after a reread, but oh man. I loved the reread just as much as I did the first time.

Shadow's story had been brewing in the background over the last few books since his appearance in Caine's. I love how McCarty set up her series and I've really enjoyed the progression she's written, but it felt satisfying to get to this one. Shadow is presented to be the darkest character of Hell's Eight, along the same lines of how dangerous Sam is written. I was almost worried there would be a tug of war between the two, but McCarty does an excellent job establishing each man for his own.

Fei, though. I absolutely adore Fei. Most of McCarty's heroines have a strand of attitude and strength, which is one reason I love her books. But Fei is different in her particular brand of honesty and it's that honesty between Fei and Shadow that I love so much. They don't back down from ugly truths, nor do they shy away from vulnerability. Shadow definitely struggles with allowing himself to love Fei, but they've established such an open line of communication that when it gets to that point in the story, Fei is able to be utterly, brutally honest with him.

And that brings me to the pacing. It's beautiful. I was able to pinpoint why I love the way McCarty writes action and that's because she's always building toward the main climax of the story, but she does it seamlessly. One of my biggest frustrations when reading is that my anticipation is built so high so fast, I don't have the patience to switch gears with the author. McCarty has this way of writing that builds the anticipation before letting it ebb off just enough to follow onto a different point of view. I'm not rushing through this new scene to get to the answer of the previous one, and I can really enjoy it when it all comes together.

I'm changing the rating with this one and moving it up to five stars. I can't in good conscious keep it at four when I loved it so much.

Shadow's Stand was one heck of a romance. And I'm very excited to read some other Hells Eight books! I was honestly surprised by how contemporary this historical felt, which made it so much easier for me to enjoy the story. I would definetley reccomend this book to fans of historical's and people who aren't as excited by the genre as a whole. Cause I'm not the biggest historical fan but dang did I love Shadow and Fei's story!

Another good book in the Hell's Eight Series.

I haven't read McCarty in YEARS; I read the first Hell's Eight book and it was a completely forgettable experience.

But then I found out that her latest in this series has a Chinese heroine, a rarity in historical romance, or romance in general, really. She's not quite a gun-toting sassy smart-talking whip, but she encompasses these qualities in dangerously subtle ways. For one thing, she knows how to use dynamite. So she could kill you in the most extravagant way, and most discreetly.

The book is much too verbose for the actual plot outline; the characters could have done with a lot more tightening in development. I wasn't entirely convinced by the romance, likely due to the aforementioned flaws, but there was a certain spark about it that kept me interested to the end.

One quibble to the author/editor: the only Mandarin Fei says is wrong. "Thank you" in Chinese pinyin is not xei xei, it's xie xie. Seeing as I saw it repeatedly, I don't believe this is a typo.

5/7 - I returned this to the library back on the 10th of June, but somehow I managed to forget to review it. I will attempt to write a comprehensive review despite the time gap.

3.5 stars, better than the last Hell's Eight book I read, but still not quite up to the level of Caine's story. Fei Yen is my favourite heroine of the whole series. She and Shadow were a great couple and I loved the way she brought out Shadow's softer side. Why do these Hell's Eight men always think they're cold-hearted bastards who will only bring pain and suffering to the women they love? They always sell themselves short and that gets so frustrating. I loved Fei Yen's expertise with explosives and the enjoyment she seemed to get whilst using them. Not a particularly comprehensive (or cohesive, now that I read back over it) review, but that's about all I can think of regarding memorable scenes and my feelings while reading them.

I dig the HELL'S EIGHT series, and I really enjoyed this one -- though, for a HELL'S EIGHT book, I found it to be a little tame! Shadow is exactly as he should be, and Fei Yen is a cool heroine, but -after the fireworks of some of the other books I expected this to be off the charts naughty and it really wasn't. It's a good read, however, a western with lots of action and explosions.

Dear Ms. McCarty,

In general, with the exception of Deadwood, I have never been a fan of the western. I’ve read good things about your Hell’s Eight series, however, so I thought I’d see if perhaps your book Shadow’s Stand might be the western that changed my mind. After finishing it, I am open to reading another western. That said, I don’t think it will be one of yours.

My struggle with Shadow’s Stand began with the opening scene. The time is the summer of 1859; the place, the West Kansas territory. Fei Yen, a young Chinese American woman, needs a husband and she needs him fast. There’s a new law that forbids Chinese from holding mining claims and Fei has a claim on which she’s found gold. (Were you were referencing the Foreign Miners Tax passed in California in 1850 that taxed any non-citizen—which meant non-white–claim owners at astronomical rates?) There’s also, in your book,—I couldn’t find any mention of such a law after a cursory internet search so I’m taking your word for this—a law that allows a woman to take a condemned man as a husband thus saving him from death and giving her a spouse. This law also states that should the woman become displeased with her convict, she may return him to the gallows where he will be immediately hung.

Fei, who has just locked her literally crazy father in the cellar and has no one to turn to, rides into town and claims the half Mexican, half American Indian Shadow Ochoa just as he’s about to be hung. Shadow, though, despite the noose around his neck, refuses to be claimed by Fei until she actually asks him to marry her. The sheriff, racist asshole that he is, starts to hang Shadow before Fei has a chance to say anything. Fei grabs up a knife conveniently sticking out of a nearby boot, runs up Shadow’s body and, as he is choking to death, saws through the noose around his neck and, in the literal nick of time, cuts him down. Even after she’s saved his life, he still won’t take her up on her offer until she gasps out “Marry me,” to which he replies, “I thought you’d never ask.”

None of this made much sense to me. If Fei needs someone who could legally protect her claim, why pick Shadow, a non-white? Won’t he run up against the same prejudices and laws limiting the Chinese? The men hanging Shadow are violent racist drunks; Fei, a young unmarried attractive “half-breed” Chinese with an out of it dad, lives near them and yet none of these cretins have managed to rape or harm her. Shadow viciously fights the men trying to hang him, despite having his hands tied behind his back, and yet, when offered escape, he refuses it. This seemed unlikely to me. One moment he’s fighting for his life and the next he needs to be wooed?

After the two are (maybe legally, maybe not) married by a drunken “padre,” Fei, who married Shadow so she’d have protection, then asks the same men she’s worried will harm her and steal her claim to put Shadow in shackles and toss him in her wagon. Fei puts the key to the shackles “into the lace-trimmed pocket above her breast” and Shadow thinks “Of all the things that pissed him off about the last day, it was her drawing attention to her breasts that he resented the most.” REALLY? Being beaten, hung, knifed, and shackled all rankled less than having to notice his new wife has breasts?....

If you'd like to read the rest of my review, please go to Dear Author:

http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/overall-c-reviews/c-reviews/review-shadows-stand-by-sarah-mccarty

I saw this book on Netgalley and I couldn't believe my luck. Remember this book was on my "most wanted" books for 2012? Well, this is like an early Christmas present, to be honest! What could be better than spending a day in bed, with a hot tea, and an incredibly hot historical romance?

Shadow Ochoa... This character has fascinated me since the first time it was introduced in the series. He had this aura of danger around him and he struck me as more of a "less talk, more action" man. He had a brutal childhood, one that made him weary of showing his true feelings for someone. Because of his and Tracker's father, he was convinced that the people he cared for were in danger because of his feelings. Tracker managed to find his happiness, but Shadow is more scared of the power of feelings and the vulnerability that comes with acknowledging those feelings. He's a very honorable man, one that once he gave his word, he'll keep his promise no matter what. He protects what's his and he risks everything for a woman he just barely met, Fei.

Half American, half Chinese, Fei didn't have an easy childhood either. Having mixed heritage made it very hard for her family to accept her, even though her heritage was not her fault. Even so, ever since she was a child, she's hoped of being independent, of finding true love and happiness. She's willing to do anything to save her cousin, Lin, the only person who never judged her for the mixed blood running through her veins, the only one who accepted her as she was. Anything, even marry a complete stranger about to be hanged. Underneath her tougher-than-nails exterior, she's just a girl seeking for acceptance and love. You can see that when she's with Shadow and her vulnerability and insecurity become stronger than her self-control.

I think this book was very good. I still think Tucker's Claim is my favorite, but Shadow's book doesn't disappoint. I'm curios though who comes next in the series.