Outstanding historical fiction novel featuring Butch Cassidy. This was an imagined novel of his romance with a famous singer and it certainly changed both their lives. The book did not romanticize the past bad behavior but used it to forward the plot. The story travels a lot of the US, London, France and a short visit to Bolivia. Along the way we meet Sundance and the brother Van.

I found the characters to be flawed but loveable in their own ways. Amy Harmon took a western legend and gave him a different story. I loved it! Thank you Netgalley for the chance to review this novel.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC. Amy Harmon did not disappoint. I never thought I would be rooting for an outlaw, Butch, but found that was the case when reading this book. Not only was I rooting for one outlaw, I was also rooting for Van & Sundance.

This story brought the Revolutionary War to life and pointed light at what it meant to be a woman at the time. I loved the characters and found myself thinking about them when I wasn't listening to the story. Amy has such a beautiful way with words, and I truly love everything written by her. While I love all things romance, I never find myself searching for it in her stories. It just gradually appears and adds a little extra to the story.

Amy Harmon‘s beautiful prose sparkles and shines telling the real life tale of infamous Butch Cassidy and his fictional love story with Parisian songbird Jane Toussaint.

As a person who named her cats Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid as a nod to one of my favorite movies, I was extremely hype for this book. And I have to say, it really delivered. If you‘re going into it expecting a gritty retelling of the outlaw‘s exploits, think again. This is more of a romantic tale about the soft and poetic soul inside Butch/Noble that falls in love with a singer.

I loved the connection between Noble and Jane and Noble‘s character in general. I also enjoyed his connection and the dynamics between him and Sundance, and his brother Van. Van especially was an interesting character because I disliked him in the beginning but then really felt for him in the end.

I wasn‘t super interested in the POV of Jane‘s son Augustus but I did read in the author‘s note that Amy Harmon modeled him somewhat after her own son and his struggles, so I warmed up to him in the end. I also wasn‘t the biggest fan of the pacing of the novel, feeling it moving a little too slow in the beginning and then wrapping up really fast at the end.

That said, I really enjoyed the reading experience and would definitely recommend this book if you love either historical fiction or romance or both.

(Thank you to NetGalley, Amy Harmon and Lake Union Publishing for providing me with an eARC for this book in exchange for my honest feedback. All opinions in this review are my own.)

The Outlaw Noble Salt is a historical fiction novel centered around Butch Cassidy, an outlaw, exploring what would happen if he were given a second chance. I particularly appreciated the heartfelt relationship he developed with the young son of the lead female character. It portrayed Noble (aka Butch) as a compassionate character.

Amy Harmon fans, particularly those intrigued by historical fiction, will find this story appealing. The characters are intriguing, and the historical setting is compelling.

Amy Harmon is a master of her craft when it comes to storytelling. I love the historical details along with the imagination she puts in her stories when she writes historical books. The Outlaw Noble Salt is a historical fiction with a bit of romance, adventure, and lots of heart.

This story follows outlaw Butch Cassidy. There is much more to Butch (or Noble) than meets the eye. He meets Jane Touissant, a famous singer one night when he’s on the run, then he meets her again years later in Paris. Jane has a son who becomes friendly with Butch and together they go on a journey.

Things don’t go according to plan… there are a lot of factors to this. Noble is one of those characters that is so special. I adored his relationship with Augustus and how careful he was with him and Jane. The ending was bittersweet in some ways, but I was happy. This one had a bit of a slow start for me personally, but once I got into it I enjoyed it lots!

Thank you to the publisher for a digital ARC. This story was a little slow paced for me. I didn’t feel like the action started until around 50%. The Outlaw Noble Salt is really about the relationships between mother & son, brothers, friends who are like brothers, and of course, Noble/Butch & Jane. I was really touched by the love shown in all of these relationships. For being a story about Butch Cassidy, I just expected a little more action and adventure on the page and savored the moments where it existed.
CW: sexual assault, loss of pregnancy

Every time I read Amy Harmon's next novel, I always claim it's my favorite. Once again, Amy shows her talent of being able to write across multiple genres and succeed. She's hung out in the historical romance section lately, and I'm here for it. In fact, historical romance has become one of my most favorite genres.

The Outlaw Noble Salt is the perfect mix of fact and fiction. Only Amy could take an outlaw like Butch Cassidy (Noble Salt) and have him be absolutely swoon-worthy. Butch Cassidy tumbled through life robbing the rich (mostly) and gave to some of the poor, but even though he was a "bad man," beneath all his layers, he was a good man. A man with a heart of gold.

While I fell in love with Noble Salt and his relationship with Ms. Toussaint, I also fell in love with a little boy named Gus just like he did. Gus added such a pivotal piece to this story and is up there with Bailey as one of the best side characters in one of Amy's works. My heart was bursting when Noble wanted to lay low and live an honest life, potentially with Jane (Ms. Toussaint) and her son, and then it was broken when his sordid past caught up to him while Jane's caught up to her...

We don't only get Butch Cassidy, but we also get the Sundance Kid and plenty of mention of the Wild Bunch. And while Butch is a wanted outlaw out West, so many people were there to remind him that he was not all "bad man."

Amy Harmon took an outlaw and gave him purpose and human emotion. And even in his flaws, she made him incredibly relatable and worthy of redemption. We got to see the man behind all the wanted posters, and what an incredible man he turned out to be. And never fear, Amy does put your heart back together.

I will always recommend an Amy Harmon book. Every story is wrapped up with exceptional characters with emotions and flaws and the unfailing need to just love them, cheer for them and forgive them. The Outlaw Noble Salt is one of the best historical romances I have ever read. It will be a book that I recommend for years to come.

I stayed up until 2am finishing this amazing story. I loved how it was a mix of history and Amy Harmon’s imagination. I’m not a huge history buff so I love books like this. Since I know they aren’t 100% historically accurate it motivates me to go and do my own research to separate fact from fiction. Her books are always beautifully written. You know she’s a fantastic writer when she has you falling in love with outlaws.
I’m pretty sure I spent the last 10% of this book in tears. Amy’s books always make me feel like I’m in the story and I’m feeling what the characters are feeling. My heart felt like it was breaking at the end. Thankfully she put it back together.
I loved the dynamic between Noble, Gus, and Jane. They made the perfect family. They weren’t perfect people, but they’re balanced each other. I identified with Jane so much. She was prickly, felt unworthy of love, and wasn’t sure she was capable of loving anyone but her son. Butch just wanted a quiet life and to be left alone, yet he attracted people to him that he couldn’t shake. He had a deep love and felt loyalty to people who didn’t always deserve it, and it almost became his undoing.
I don’t use tabs on every book I read, but I knew I would want to tab this one. There were so many funny and heartwarming moments. I’m trying to narrow it down to a few quotes to share, but it’s so hard to choose. If you love historical romance with a heavy dose of imagination I highly recommend The Outlaw Noble Salt.

Butch Cassidy is on the lam when he encounters soprano Jane Touissant. He is immediately drawn to her and ends up helping her with her son. When they see each other six years later in Paris, they form a working relationship with "Nobel Salt" providing security for Jane and her son Augustus' voyage back across the Atlantic and on their upcoming tour. As Nobel (aka Butch Cassidy) and Jane become more to each other, the stakes are high as they try to outrun the law and her horrible tormentor.

I am not a Western lover and I have actually not even seen the whole movie of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. I picked this book up solely on my faith in author Amy Harmon to take a historical figure, fictionalize it, and make it fun. This is exactly what she did here. She used Butch Cassidy and his friends Sundance and brother Van and created new characters in Jane and son Augustus to make a fast paced, high stakes story that had romance and adventure. I loved this book and really wanted it to be all true! Alas, it was not, but I loved her imagining of Butch Cassidy with great locations and sticky situations and a couple to root for.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy for review.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, never would have imagined I’d read a book about these guys, ever. Amazing! I requested this book from NetGalley knowing Harmon wrote intense historical novels but I’ve never read one. Taking chances on new-to-me authors usually works out and I’m so pleased I took the chance. Cassidy, aka Salt, aka Robert, is a man of many names but always a man of intelligence and a bit of a pushover concerning his brother Van and Augustus. Gus, my favorite character, is ten with a huge personality and great protective instincts for his mom. I hope you get as swept away by this adventure and these amazing characters as I did.

I have no words. This book is absolutely stunning. It pulled every emotion out of me and poured so much love and hope back in it's place that I was left breathless. This is a book I will cherish and reread often - and suggest you do the same!

First of all, thank You netgalley for the ARC granted. Everytime Amy releases a book, I am totally in, right from the presentantion of title or cover reveal. She don't need any effort for me to be convinced, because I have read all of her previous ones and never got had disapointed me ever! with this new historical love tale would be no different. Only Amy can makes us enjoy a fictional narrative about an outlaw an see it by a different angle and perspective, even though showing the questionable life choices and not intending to justifed them at all. Just to tell a story and find reflections and giviing characters an alternative ending that only fiction can bring. I didn't get the point of her like writing a book from Butch Cassidy at first, but after pondering about theses things as I was reading I could conclude this mentioned things above. And did appreciate them all along the story. So, if You like historical fiction, romance in the wild west, characters well developed and a compelling narrative with depth reflections and feelings inserted, You can go for it from "The outlaw Noble Salt" and after that, go on, and read all of Amy's other titles as well. You'll never get it wrong! 4,5 stars.

“Kindness had never been his problem, but kind and good weren’t always the same thing.”

Amy Harmon is one of the most beautiful storytellers I’ve read. The way she crafts words and weaves them full of emotion into a tale that takes the reader on a full and complete journey is simply breathtaking. While this isn’t my usual read and preference, I was deeply touched.

This story is based on the infamous outlaw Butch Cassidy, and while parts of the story are fabricated, much about who and what this man was isn’t. I live not far from where he was raised and in the “wild west” where many of his crimes were committed, but I was transported back to just over 100 years ago on an emotional roller coaster that left me haunted and beaten in all the ways. The characters skipped off the pages and it was a treat to imagine real motivations and relationships of these historic characters, especially when the Sundance Kid and Butch’s brother show up. The made-up characters and story arc were also magnificent.

Brilliant, real, raw. I’ll just be over here trying to patch up and heal my wrecked heart.

Content: moderate language; moderate violence (murder, shooting, off-page r*pe, talk of past crimes); moderate romance (one non-descriptive open door scene, kissing)

AMO, AMO AMO!!!
Amy Harmon has become my favorite author, I am obsessed with everything this lady writes. I swear I fell in love with historical fiction again with her, and it was love at first sight, but she has amazed me even more with all the genres she has ventured into: fantasy, romance, paranormal and obviously, historical fiction.

And when I finally came across this story, I must confess that I was afraid, because I was afraid that I wasn't going to like it at the level of the other stories I've already read by the author, but as you can see, Amy took care of shutting me up...

COMPLETE REVIEW https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5525693586

Amy Harmon does it again. I always devour her books and then wait anxiously all year for the next, and this was no exception. I finished the book almost 24 hours ago and I can’t stop thinking about these characters!!!! I can’t start another book. I’m just stuck on Noble and Jane and Gus (in the best way).

The historical backdrop of the story is immaculate… names & places we know... stunning settings, from Paris to NYC and ocean liners to stage coaches.

And all the feels. Suspense, laughter, crying- all of it- with a gorgeous conclusion.

I don’t want to say anything more- just go read it and enjoy it blind.

Any Harmon is a magical wizard and I won’t wear anything to the contrary. This book was so beautiful and I loved everything about it. The characters were amazing, the plot was fantastic, pacing was on point, I have absolutely zero complaints about this book. If you love historical fiction, give this one a try!

The story centers around a mother and son who run into the outlaw. They forge a relationship and what that would look like with one of them being on the run. I loved all of the characters and the story in general.
Noble Salt is roughly based on Butch Cassidy. I did a little google search on him before starting the book. I can't decide if I would recommend that or not. I found myself questioning "did that really happen" a lot. Thankfully Amy clarifies a lot of that at the end of the book. It may have been better for me to have gone in blindly.

Random thought: the name of this book really throws me. The name Noble Salt is explained in the book but I find it cumbersome.

Amy Harmon is without a doubt the master or historical fiction/romance. Outlaw Noble Salt is no different! The story flows very smoothly and you feel instant connections with her characters! She sprinkles just enough fact with fiction to appeal to a broad audience and you can't help but have all the feelings when reading this masterpiece!

This is the kind of historical fiction that is enjoyable, reads away easily and just generally is a good ride.

The writing was good, the story was well thought out and the characters were well rounded. Jane was a fascinating character, who came with her own bagload of issues. Butch/Noble’s relationship with Jane’s son Augustus was very sweet. I would say that this is a romance without it being very romantic – depending on your definition of the word. I liked it for that.

I liked the idea of taking a real life historical character and then hanging a story off his shoulders. I think this was very effectively done, especially since Butch Cassidy is such a cult figure. It is completely fictional, so keep that in mind, but I really did like what the author did with the information she did have. Overall the story was a little on the slow side, but I enjoyed the read.

In the afterword the author makes it very clear that this is NOT what happened, but it is a great alternative for sure.

Highly recommended if you enjoy historical fiction that has heart without being overly sentimental.