As I couldn't finish the first, I didn't read this.

I'm going over my backlog that I forgot to post on netgalley, sorry for the late posts.

RATING: 4 STARS
2017; Orbit Books/Redhook

After another cliffhanger, we open with Kindle being taken in by the law and Laura is now running off with Kindle's former lover, and sex worker. Neither trust each other which makes their situation so much harder. On the run, and trying to set up shop in a new town, Laura wonders if death is really the worst outcome. And if the rumours of Kindle execution are true, Laura thinks about turning herself in.

This was a great novel, concluding the western trilogy. It was jam packed with action, grit and emotions. I loved the characters - good and bad - and while the ending wasn't exactly my favourite, I did leave the Sawbones series pretty satisfied. I hope there is more to come in the future or maybe another western novel by Lenhardt (hint hint)

<i>***I received a complimentary copy of this eBook from the publisher through Edelweiss/NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.***</i>

I didn’t know it was a series, it’s book 3! so I did not read it. Therefore my review is not valid. Thank you for giving it to me.

There is nothing as satisfying as a good historical fiction. Combine it with a little romance and give it an old west setting and you have a winner. And having a book that is part of a trilogy ensures that the enjoyment will last longer.

FABULOUS conclusion to a fabulous series - but not for the faint of heart.

This is the third book in Melissa Lenhardt’s Sawbones trilogy and in my opinion, it was the best! After leaving readers of Blood Oath with a cliffhanger, Lenhardt completes the saga with another exciting tale of adventures for Catherine Bennett.

With her husband Kindle in a military prison, Catherine ends up traveling across the west with a former hooker, ending up in Cheyenne Wyoming where she gets a bit of a reprieve from being on the run. While there, several people discover who she really is, each having their own reasons for not turning her into the sheriff.

I loved the relationship that developed between Catherine and Rosemond, who was a hooker determined to have a fresh start at a respectable life. Each woman was fiercely independent and wary of the other. In spite of their mistrust, they helped each other and formed a unique sort of friendship.

As the story comes to an end, readers will find Catherine making her way back to New York in order to clear her name. The book was hard to put down--riveting right up until the final chapter!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books, Redhook for allowing me to read an advance copy and give my honest review.

The Sawbones trilogy will appeal to many different readers because it's a whole lot of genres rolled up into one adventure series. It's part gritty western, part romance and part mystery.

Sawbones, the first book in the trilogy, remains my favourite with the books losing some of that special 'somethin' somethin' as they go on. Badlands still had that grit that I enjoyed but it didn't grab me as much as the previous books. The plot was definitely slower, we're stuck mainly in one small, podunk town in the western fringes and sadly, we miss out on the connection between Kindle and Laura. When you add in an abrupt ending (and an obvious bad guy) it just wasn't the ending I was expecting after the amazing start to the series.

Overall, this is a good series that has a strong female lead, a wonderfully varied and diverse cast of characters and I appreciate that Lenhardt doesn't hold back on the atrocities, violence and grit of the Wild West. While this wasn't as strong of an ending as I had hoped, I still recommend this series (my Mother is quite a fan of it too!). I strongly encourage readers to read these books in order, and not too far apart, because there's a lot that goes on and the author doesn't offer her readers many hints about previous plot lines.

Disclaimer: This ARC was generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This is the third book in this series, so Sawbones and Blood Oath should be read first. I really enjoyed this series and of course, Badlands did not disappoint me. I love how the author uses such strong women in her books. This book was so full of action, deceit, grief, love, anger and strength.

Laura is continuing to run from the law and has met some new people. Not all of them are nice. She is a determined woman who will do what it takes to be with the love of her life. While in this book, William gets caught and goes before the Army to see if he will be killed. Laura is sort of kidnapped by Rosemond. Rosemond is a great manipulator and has Laura falling for all her lies. As Laura continues to live and work in a medical surrounding, she is being blackmailed by the local physician. Then you meet Henry Pope, who went to New York and wrote his first novel, Sawbones. (I love how Melissa used her own books in her story line.) Henry has sent word to William Kindle about helping clear Laura of the murder charges so she can return to New York.

I can't say enough about how well this story and series were weaved. This book gets five star rating from me.

Melissa Lenhardt's Badlands (Redhook 2017) is the third in the Sawbones series. If you haven't read the earlier books and don't want any spoilers, come back to this review after you've read them! At this point in time, Kindle and Laura are separated, he in prison and she fleeing from the law with the unlikely assistance of Kindle's former mistress, Rosemond. Their goal is to make a fresh start out west where Laura can wait for Kindle and Rosemond can leaving her whoring past behind her. The book follows their adventures from the lens of two females traveling alone in a land and a time when that was rarely done. First, they need money and then they need to fulfill a few dreams. How they accomplish these is clever, unique, and completely interesting.

If I have a complaint about this book, it's that Laura can't seem to make up her mind about most anything ( I don't want to be too specific or I might give the plot away). Every time I think we've resolved an issue and are moving on, she rethinks it. Once, I wouldn't mind, but this happened over and over and over. That's why it got 4/5

--to be published to my blog, WordDreams, Oct. 15th

Badlands by Melissa Lenhardt is the final book in the trilogy about the former Dr. Catherine Bennett, now Laura Elliston, on the run after she's accused of killing one of her wealthy patients' husband. This picks up where Blood Oath left off, and while it ties up the series well (and Laura lives happily-ever-after), I wasn't madly in love with some aspects.

For one thing, Laura starts this series as a strong, independent woman and as events unfold she becomes weaker and more dependent by the day - to the point where she's going through opium withdrawal and wringing her hands over what to do. Yes, she's currently separated from her love, William Kindle, but get it together cupcake!

The best parts of this entry, for me, revolved around the whore, Rosamunde, who you're not quite sure is friend or foe. Literally, it could go either way. Finally, stuff happens, and Laura realizes she has to go back to New York City to clear her name. This felt somewhat rushed me, after spending the whole trilogy leading up to it, but it resolves itself satisfactorily, and there's even a nice little twist thrown in from keeping the resolution from being totally obvious.

While I would easily classify this trilogy as Historical Fiction with Romantic Elements, the violence has made this a difficult series for me recommend universally. In the previous two books I cringed at the violence, but I understood (OK, mostly) why it was there. In this book? Not so much.

Final Grade = B

Oh how I didn't want this trilogy to end, but end it must. Badlands packs a powerful punch from the first page all the way to the last. As with the first two books, the ride in Badlands is fast paced, mesmerizing, rough and gritty, and oh so exciting. I absolutely love Lenhardt's ability to develop characters who are perfectly flawed in every way. I was right up there with Laura/Helen in her love-hate relationship with Rosamond. Seriously, even the minor characters are well developed and interesting.

Laura (yes, let's just call her Laura) is brave, vulnerable, flawed, broken, and resilient. I am so impressed with her characterization throughout the entire trilogy, but Badlands has our girl struggling with drug addiction, constant fear, and excruciating sadness. But don't despair. Did I mention Laura is resilient?

If you're overly sensitive or squeamish in any way, this trilogy might not be for you. But I love the non-stop action and the every-subject-is-fair-game mentality. Lenhardt's style is boldly refreshing.

This was a really good conclusion to an interesting series. In this concluding novel, the story was focused almost entirely on Laura, which I really enjoyed. Kindle, while always present, took a backseat in this story and it actually worked for the better. This novel had 2 female protagonists (including Laura) and I really liked reading about how they fought and worked with each other throughout the course of the story. Again, the author did a great job maintaining the historical setting of the novel. All of the open ends were tied up really nice with this book. After all the negative things that occur in this novel, it still ended on a positive note, which I was happy about. This was definitely a successful Western historical fiction series and I would recommend to anyone who is a fan of this genre!

One of the first reviews that Badlands posts above its blurb says "Outlander meets post-Civil War unrest in the conclusion to Melissa Lenhardt's fast-paced historical series." Not to shatter anyone's bubble or harm their ego but I don't think this a very good way to describe this series. Yes, both have strong women who are more than a damsel in distress, both have medical training and both have to make the best of a new world they've been thrust into. Outlander is strong fantasy with a nice time-travel aspect to it, where as I would classify the Sawbones Series as simply Western Romance. So if you picked up the series looking for time-travel, realize now that it's the strong women and vivid danger that the stories share.
Now that I have all that out of the way, the entire Sawbones Series has been a joy to read and this latest one has been no different. Not only does it continue the story from the first two books, it gives me one of the things I cherish these days, a complete story arc with a great ending. Great story and well placed plot points had me racing through the series and left me well satisfied at the end. Author Melissa Lenhardt doesn't need the Outlander name to carry her series as it is quite strong all on its own.

*This eBook was provided by NetGalley and Redhook in exchange for honest feedback*

Badlands is Badass!!! I loved everything about Melissa Lenhardt’s Sawbones Series. The action, the adventure, and the angst were the elements that kept me plowing through the pages as quickly as I possibly could. I couldn’t get enough. With captivating covers, these books seem to be in a league of their own. Having read the series in its entirety, it is safe to say my expectations for Westerns has been only sub-par, Melissa Lenhardt has ruined me for any other western romance probably forever. Badlands took us on a wild ride, and gave us the justice we seek. Historical Fiction is a hard genre to write and to properly execute, but it seems Ms. Lendardt may have magic in her quill.

The end of a trilogy that comes full circle for Catherine/Laura/Helen (the woman with many names).

When I first started reading this series, the grittiness and gore took me by surprise. While we know that the late 1800's in the west was not a tame period or place to be, I was a bit surprised by how detailed the books were in describing the raids on and by the indians, the whore houses and just people in general. I have heard that some compare this to Outlander. I've never read that book but would imagine is it the raw and rough scenes that cause the comparison.

This book/series holds nothing back and really entranced me as the reader, imagining what it would be like to live in those times and under those conditions. The type of medical care that wasn't really available and the charlatans that sold "snake oil" as cures for whatever ailed you.

Catherine/Laura/Helen is definitely a strong female character, but almost too strong in my opinion. I know that she never expected to fall in love and get married, and I know that this time period women were not seen as equals but almost as servants to their husband. Other women were fiercely strong too including Rosemond who is trying to make an honest living out her life and erase her own past. Laura and Rosemond may think they are different from each other, but really are alike in many ways and figure this out in the 2nd and 3rd books. I had to admire the gumption of many of the women in this book for taking their future into their own hands and not being dictated by society.

There are so many facets to this story that I thought the author did a wonderful job of exploring and leaving us with a mixed bag of emotions throughout the series.

the third and final book of the sawbones trilogy brings laura and kindle's story to a close. these two are the ultimate survivors. it's like they literally reach the depths of hell and crawl their way back.

at some point, you think, what else could possibly go wrong for them? and somehow lenhardt finds ways to surprise you on how badly things going sideways. but then as we barrel toward the conclusion of the saga, things start to come full circle. i'm not interested in spoiling the end for anyone, because i think that if you've stuck it out this far, you deserve to experience the story firsthand. so i'm just going to speak about the book in generalities.

one thing i think this is so great is that everything does tie together. we literally come back to the beginning in badlands and solve the original mystery once and for all. and how we reach that conclusion really does work for me. i love that she doesn't do it alone. because one thing i've loved about laura, even as she has frustrated me as a character, is her ability to connect with others. especially other women, and how she develops relationships that while not necessarily predicated on friendship, are at least about mutual respect. as much as catherine bennett relied only on herself, laura kindle learns that she alone can't do it all, as brilliant and as resourceful as she might be. sometimes you get by with a little help from your friends.


that's a worthy lesson. and it's nice to see laura take it to heart. when you think of everything this woman has suffered and endured, it's good to see that she comes out of it, in the end, a better, a more complete person. i didn't connect with laura until blood oath, and in badlands we finally see her reach her potential.

i think that's worth something. i'm glad i stuck with the series past sawbones, it's not really easy reading, the western frontier was not an easy place to be, especially if you were a woman. and reading about it now, and seeing the fights and the struggles that women continue to have today, you realize maybe we aren't so far off from this. and then you wonder what the heck is wrong with the world. and then you are happy that there are stories of survival like this one.

Thanks Orbit Books and netgalley for this ARC.

Melissa Lenhardt's awesome series will always be a favorite of mine. Gritty, cringe-inducing, unforgettable, passionate, and boundary pushing. This last book in the series hit all the right notes and left me feeling exhilarated.

Not since Outlander have I enjoyed a historical fiction series or one that held my attention like this one did. Lenhardt has written a series about post Civil War and the wild West....murder, intrigue, betrayal and unexpected friendship and love. I highly recommend this third book in the series.

Badlands is the third and final installment in author Melissa Lenhardt's Laura Elliston trilogy. If you've read my first two reviews of Sawbones and Badlands, you know that this trilogy is centered around Dr. Catherine Bennett aka Laura Elliston. Bennett was accused of murdering a very well off patient at the start of this trilogy. Facing the distinct possibility of being hanged on sight because the deck was stacked against her by rich and powerful men, she chose to flee to Texas, and later changed her name to Laura Elliston. Laura's journey has been anything but easy.

It has been a roller coaster of emotions that has seen Laura face humanities worse scum of the earth, it's darkest secrets which have been hidden by revisionist history, and yet, Laura has not given into the temptation to run back to NYC with her tail between her legs and face the likelihood that she will be hung on sight. As we begin Badlands, it has been several weeks since Laura was separated from William Kindle and taken cross country by Rosemond Barclay. For Laura, there have been moments of happiness, followed by physically and mentally challenging situations that have often ended in tragedy.

Laura ends up in Cheyenne, Wyoming for a large part of this story. It is a very progressive place where women have the right to vote, and own their own businesses. However, Men still outnumber Women by a ration of 6:1. Laura really is between a rock and a hard place. She isn't sure if Rosemond
is being honest with her, or just using her until Laura can find a way to make enough money to sneak back to Missouri. She can't expose herself as a doctor, but when there are those in need of her services, she's not going to run away. One of the things readers of this trilogy will come to realize, Laura's path has left a swath of death and destruction in her wake. It's not all her fault, but there are times when she needed to be a little less open about her abilities as a Doctor.

Overall, Badlands is a pretty awesome way to end this trilogy. Loved the entire series, especially Catherine who was sent scurrying off into the wild west where she became Laura, and other persona's trying to stay ahead of bounty hunters, and Pinkerton's who believed she was a murderer. Laura who stood up to the worst of what the West and Mankind can offer a woman in the late 19th century. Laura who isn't a Mary Sue character who runs away at the first sign of trouble, but stood up on the middle of a dangerous storm and heroically saved a man's life after hers had been turned upside down by the harsh reality of the West. A man who would become her lover, her antagonist, her reason for living, and her reason for putting one foot in front of the other to prove she can do anything any man can do.

Someone asked me if I would offer trigger warnings in my reviews for future readers of this story. My answer is that if you need trigger warnings, then I suggest you go back in your history books and read about the real struggles of those who chose to blaze a trail to the West. This story is a Historical Fiction story set immediately after the Civil War. It wasn't all gum drops and lollipops. Author Lenhardt has done her due diligence while writing this series. She doesn't try to sugar coat anything, but dives right into the muck, and let's the reader decide if they are offended or not. I am not being offensive towards anyone. I just don't believe we need trigger warnings, or safe spaces, or dorms that are separated by race, religion, or sexual orientation.

That being sad, I truly do hope that you get a chance to read this series. I also hope you end up loving it as much as I did.

In the conclusion to the Sawbones trilogy, Kindle has been captured and Laura is on the run. If she’s caught she will be executed, but she’s beginning to wonder if all the running is worth it. Maybe it’s time to stand up and face her worst fears. This was my favorite book in the series, it feels like the characters have grown into their personalities and Lenhardt hits a high with both the action and the emotional growth and changes in her characters