In 1895 Boston, Rutherford Finch bets everything including his daughter's dowry on what he believes is a sure shot with long odds in an upcoming race at Saratoga. However, someone steals the horse, Damien's Curse, while killing the trainer.
Worried about her family's future, amateur scientist Mary Lou Finch travels to Milltown, New York to obtain a job as governess to the son of the owner of Damien's Curse. That enables her to go undercover to begin sleuthing using modern scientific methods. However, May Lou's expertise, when she is not blowing something up, is chemistry, but her skills never prepared her for the attraction between her and the owner, Pierce Thorndike, nor his son.
RUNAWAY HEARTS is a zany but cleverly crafted Americana romantic mystery. The story line is filled with twists that make for a wonderful amateur sleuth tale while brimming with a romance between the lead characters that smoothly glides into the who-done-it. The cast helps bring alive the gay nineties racing crowd adding to the feel of a well written period piece that showcases Katie Rose's abilities to entertain readers from the two genres.
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of story
- 19th century
Action/suspense subplot?
Yes
Action:
- wrecked transport makes love
Making a living subplot
Yes
Making a living:
- office romance among coworkers
If one lover chases another...
- they alternate
Main Male Character
Profession/status:
- business executive
Age/status:
- 20's-30's
How sexual is this person?
- very picky
How romantic is this person?
- somewhat romantic
Sex makes him
- confused
Sex has bad effect on him
Yes
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Very much smarter than other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Female Character
Age/status:
- 20's-30's
How sexual is this person?
- very picky
How romantic is this person?
- very romantic
effect of sexing
- confused
Sex has bad effect on her
Yes
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
Misc setting
- scientific labs
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
What % of story is romance related?
- 50%
Focus of story
- equally on him and her
How much dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
