“If I look back now
I’ll surely turn to salt, Lord.
Keep my gaze forward.”

Amy Harmon has done it again. Honestly, the premise of this book didn’t appeal to me at first, but I had to read it since she wrote it, and I was not disappointed. I loved the complexity of Butch Cassidy/Noble Salt’s character. His desperation to leave his outlaw past breaks my heart throughout the story, especially when he tells Jane that there isn’t a person in his life that he hasn’t disappointed. His bond with Gus (LOVED their relationship🥹) and then with Jane makes you root for his redemption all the more, but it’s not so simple with a past like his. The love that grows between Noble, Jane, and Gus is so beautifully written. Highly recommend this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

"Life is like that, I think. Beautiful and ugly, right next to each other."

If that quote doesn't sum up the story of The Outlaw Noble Salt I don't know what does. Amy Harmon has a gift of bringing me into a story that wouldn't normally be for me. Historical fiction and the Wild West? Not something I'd normally pick up. But she took a person (Butch Cassidy, aka Robert LeRoy Parker, aka Noble Salt) that has quite the history in the Wild West and put her own spin on him. She gave a story to a man that was perhaps misunderstood and gave him purpose. Gave him beauty against the ugly and did it with a finesse that is incomparable.

Going into this book, I knew very little about Butch Cassidy, except what I had seen or heard about in movies. And while this may not have been a true to life story, it was a man's story of redemption. Of second chances. Of love and protection for those he cared for. When this man decides to leave his criminal past behind, he finds an unlikely love with a renowned singer (Jane Toussaint) and her son (Augustus).

The unexpected relationship that forms between these 3 is life altering and will forever change Noble and his purpose in life. We see a rocky relationship between Jane and Noble that evolves and becomes more than either of them could expect. They begin to open up to one another about their pasts that they'd rather leave behind and Augustus finds a man that is a hero in his own right.

But you can't have a redemption story without the beautiful AND the ugly and we get it all with Ms Harmon's poetic and cinematic writing that plays out in vivid detail on the page.

If you're not one to normally pick up an historical fiction book, you must try Amy Harmon. She brings her characters to life and creates an unforgettable story that will grasp onto your heart and tangle itself into your soul. There is always a lesson in her stories, but there is a deeply rooted love and a journey to get to that place that will take your breath away. And The Outlaw Noble Salt is no different.

As Amy Harmon says in her author's note, 'Everyone deserves a love story, even an outlaw, and I hope he (and you) liked this alternate ending to an American legend.'

Bravo, Amy Harmon. Bravo. What piece of history will you bring to life next?

En bref, j'ai énormément aimé les personnages et leur histoire, je ne savais pas à quoi m'attendre et j'ai apprécié la façon dont Butch nous touche et nous fait vibrer. Jane est une héroïne attachante, avec ses forces et ses faiblesses humaines et elle aussi va nous faire vivre des beaux moments et des passages plus durs. Les événements s'enchainent et je ne me suis pas ennuyée une seule seconde, j'ai adoré les voir se battre pour ce qui compte pour eux et je n'avais pas du tout vu venir la fin. Une très belle histoire pleine de sentiments très différents !!

Português: Que livro incrível, eu comecei a ler "The Outlaw Noble Salt" sem nem olhar a sinopse e sem ter ideia de quem eram Butch Cassidy e The Sundance Kid e fui instantaneamente envolvida pela trama desde suas primeiras páginas.
O livro conquistou minha atenção com uma narrativa envolvente e personagens profundamente cativantes. A cada momento livre que tinha, sentia a necessidade de mergulhar de volta na história para descobrir seus desdobramentos.
A escrita de Harmon é notavelmente fluida, o que facilita a imersão na trama, e dá pra perceber que a autora se dedicou à pesquisa para garantir uma ambientação autêntica e coerente do início do século 20, tornando a experiência de leitura ainda mais enriquecedora.
O livro oferece uma mistura envolvente de aventura, romance e ficção histórica com reviravoltas surpreendentes. O livro me levou a ter algumas reflexões sobre escolhas e as consequências das mesmas, assim como a nossa parcela de responsabilidade na construção do nosso próprio destino.
A relação entre os personagens é tocante e profunda, e é impossível não se apaixonar por suas jornadas individuais e coletivas. Fiquei particularmente encantada com o personagem de Noble Salt. A maneira como ele demonstrava paciência e compreensão por Jane, respeitando seu espaço, entendendo seus desejos e lidando com seus traumas e limitações, ele se revelou um líder nato, mesmo não gostando de estar nessa posição, sempre pronto para proteger os seus, combinando sabedoria, gentileza e uma firmeza admirável em suas ações.
Jane, por outro lado, é uma figura feminina forte e resiliente, que enfrenta as adversidades da vida com determinação e coragem. Seu filho, Augustus, um garoto muito inteligente e observador, desempenha um papel crucial na história, trazendo leveza e um tanto de humor junto com Van e Harry.
Através da jornada desses personagens, somos levados a vivenciar uma gama de emoções intensas, culminando em um final emocionante que me deixou profundamente comovida.

inglês: What an incredible book! I started reading "The Outlaw Noble Salt" without even looking at the synopsis and having no idea who Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid were, and I was instantly drawn into the story from its very first pages.
The book captured my attention with its engaging narrative and deeply captivating characters. Every spare moment I had, I felt the need to dive back into the story to discover its unfolding events.
Harmon's writing is notably fluid, which aids in immersing oneself in the plot. It's evident that the author devoted herself to research to ensure an authentic and coherent setting of the early 20th century, making the reading experience even more enriching.
The book offers an engaging blend of adventure, romance, and historical fiction with surprising plot twists. It led me to reflect on choices and their consequences, as well as our own responsibility in shaping our destiny.
The relationships between the characters are touching and profound, and it's impossible not to fall in love with their individual and collective journeys. I was particularly enchanted by the character of Noble Salt. The way he showed patience and understanding towards Jane, respecting her space, grasping her desires, and dealing with her traumas and limitations, revealed him as a natural leader. Despite not liking to be in that position, he was always ready to protect those he cared for, blending wisdom, kindness, and remarkable firmness in his actions.
Jane, on the other hand, is a strong and resilient female figure, facing life's adversities with determination and courage. Her son, Augustus, a very intelligent and observant boy, plays a crucial role in the story, bringing lightness and a bit of humor along with Van and Harry.
Through the journey of these characters, we are taken on an emotional rollercoaster, culminating in a touching ending that left me deeply moved.

The Outlaw Noble Salt by Amy Harmon is the best book I have read this year. The best cowboy romance I might have ever read. It is also the first book that I have read by this author. If you want to see Butch Cassidy up close and personal this fictional story is the one. It not only gives a realistic romantic picture of him, but the book also gives him heart. I am not one for romancing criminal stories but I fell hook, line, and sinker for Noble Salt thinking that this first name fit him to a T. Young Gus is pretty lovable too!

I won’t tell you much more except this is one mighty fine story. I stayed up until 3:00 am to finish. I needed to know the ending. Be sure to read the author note and remember this is a fictional story. How we wished it had happened just this way to one who had as many sightings as Elvis. I loved it and you will too.

Amy Harmon is a remarkable story teller. During her books I find myself googling about the characters and the time period and wanting to learn more. I’ve read a few of her books and after reading The Outlaw Noble Salt I want to read more. I loved the love story and how Butch Cassidy was depicted as a a Peter Pan type man. I loved how it ended.

Oh my goodness! This book invaded my heart and became part of my soul. To be able to give Butch Cassidy a story as beautiful as this is just pure magic. Butch is a known outlaw, train/bank robber and all around not a good person, but what if he was?
What if.. he met a girl and told her his name was Noble just so he could help her son? This journey was nothing short of breathtaking. I savored every single word, and while I knew what was going to happen at the end with the foreshadowing (I was really really hoping that was the case), I still was absolutely NOT prepared for the feelings I would have about these characters.
I fell in love with Noble, Jane, Gus, Harry and Van, to the point I was in full tears at the end of this beautiful story. There are bad people, and there are people that we SEE as bad and those aren't always the same. This story shows us that. You can't trust everything you see on the outside because there is so much good inside the hearts of some people you just write off.
I loved that Amy brought a bit of her own story into this one with Gus and Jane. It made me appreciate it all the more.
This is probably one of my favorite Amy books now. Top three at least.
Thanks to Amy, Lake Union and Netgalley for an early copy.

I saw a random quote from this book on IG and downloaded it. I’m so glad I did!!! While I’m an avid romance reader, and read some historical romance, I knew nothing about this time period or Butch Cassidy. I ate up every last bit of it. Honey 😭🥹

Where to even start? Amy Harmon has done it again. A historical fiction about Noble Salt AKA Butch Cassidy and his journey after his life of crime.
A story of love, hope, redemption. It broke my heart and put it back together again. It’s not a light, fluffy read and hits some hard topics. I loved the relationships and the haikus were my favorite.
Trigger warnings below (could be considered spoilers so beware the scroll down)
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On page rape, open door scenes, miscarriage, death

Thank you to NetGalley and author Amy
Harmon for allowing me to read and review this book.
Everyone knows what happened to the legendary Butch Cassidy, but what if there's an alternate ending? What if Butch got away from his gang to go live life on the up n up?
What if a beautiful songbird captured his heart? As we follow the beautiful Jane Toussaint popular soprano and her son Augustus they lead us to France where they have been living the last few years while Jane performs to help fund her husband’s family’s private school. At one time Jane was an orphan and attended this school on scholarship. When she was old enough it was decided that she and Oliver would marry. It was a harsh and loveless marriage so when Oliver died unexpectedly Jane decided to continue with the planned trip to the states and perform on a grand tour then live her life there.
Enter Noble Salt, Butch’s alias. They meet again and Jane hires Noble to be her body guard during her tour. Join Jane and Noble on thier exciting adventure across America and enjoy the story of what could have happed.
I rated this tale 4⭐️

James' rating: 5 out of 5 stars of 'Noble Salt'!

A lot of feelings in this one and I do mean a lot. Mixed feelings, actually. I teared up while reading the story and especially at the ending. It was beautiful and a well deserved HEA.

I'm rusty with haikus but...

A breathtaking tale
Anent Jane and Gus's quest with
Outlaw Noble Salt

Noble Salt aka Butch Cassidy, or Robert LeRoy Parker, which I actually prefer, really was just an absolutely extraordinary man. He has become one of best and most complex characters I have read. I love him. Jane, honestly, she had been through a lot. I loved her for her strength and her perseverance. Her prickliness became a shield which unfortunately became necessary.

Gus. Oh my gods. I just loved that little dude. He was so... Gus. He had a unique innocence and at the same time a necessitated maturity. I could just keep listening to him. Oh, wait. Another one coming...

Outlaw Noble Salt
Finds eternal happiness
With Jane and young Gus

Okay okay fine, moving on. (Told ya I was rusty. Gus would love it though 😌)

There was emotions just blasting out of the book in succession. So much grief and chaos, so much anger and pain, abundant drizzles of humor and love to balance it out and finally ending with an immensely sweet dose of happiness.

An emotional cannon that will put you through the ringer.

Thank you Amy Harmon and Lake Union Publishing for a consuming ARC!

4.25⭐
thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this book!

if i'm being honest, most arcs i request are based on how pretty the cover is. and thankfully, amy harmon writes as beautifully as this book's cover. everything i know about the old west i likely only learned from watching wynonna earp or back to the future, so i had very little idea who butch cassidy was... anyway! i was pleasantly surprised to find that the outlaw noble salt involved more romance than expected. overall it was a lovely story with likable characters to root for. something about "he was good even though he did bad things."

This was a very dramatic, sometimes a little cheesy, but overall cinematically epic tale of love and redemption. I was so impressed by the author’s ability to transport me to the Wild West and across america and Europe and had me believing that Butch Cassidy truly was this hero she’d built him into. And what a hero! He is a swoony feminist of a dreamboat. And the Sundance, Van, Gus, and Jane are somewhat predictable pieces that fit into the puzzle that is this plot. But it was such a nice story! It was definitely a few-good read and it has Hollywood film written all over it!

Rated 4.5 Stars

The Outlaw Noble Salt was pretty good. I quite enjoyed it. It kept me engaged my emotions and fully immersed even though it was slow moving.

I was wholly invested in these characters lives and rooting for them from pretty early on. The author managed to make me empathetic to what in essence shouldn't be empathetic but I couldn't help falling for these characters and wanting the best for them despite what they had done.

This book had a chokehold on me, on my emotions. It was rage inducing at times and oh so beautiful at others. It was also sweet. I loved it and highly recommend it.

🤍 Thank you netgalley for the earc of this masterpiece, @amy.harmon.author is just brilliant! 🤍

The story of Butch Cassidy takes a whole new turn in this gritty, addictive, and emotional novel from Amy Harmon.

A tale of an outlaw, beaten and battered by the choices he’s made and running to make a new life, and the woman who stops him in his tracks.

This book played out like a movie, the heart-pounding moments, the emotions made me feel like I was in the room with the characters, and the swooniest love story.

Throughout all the pain and heartbreak that come with this journey, the thread of hope woven intricately throughout was masterful and oh so beautiful.

Read if you enjoy:
• single mom
• reimagined history
• an outlaw and a singer
• breathtaking writing
• tearjerker

Also 10/10 recommend reading and chatting about this book with friends like @authorjoannabarker and @and.a.good.book

★ ★ ★ ★ ★/5
Steam: kissing
TW: some very heave triggers, please dm for details

*thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for a copy of this eARC in exchange for my review*

I didn’t know that historical fiction could feel like this. Amy Harmon’s storytelling ability is so seamless that it doesn’t even feel like reading. Is there anything better than a book that drenches you in the plot without making you feel lost? I was swept away by vivid characters and realistic settings that made me feel like I was really there.

Noble Salt. Butch Cassidy. Robert LeRoy Parker. What a man. He makes me think of that quote from Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery—“I wouldn't want to marry anybody who was wicked, but I think I'd like it if he could be wicked and wouldn’t.” Even with his checkered past as the outlaw leader of the Wild Bunch, here we see him as a man who truly wishes to be good, knowing that he can’t outrun his wrongdoings.

This beautiful fictionalization of Butch Cassidy’s love life is full of adventure and hope. I absolutely loved Jane Toussaint. In fact, I almost always love a prickly female protagonist because sometimes we (the prickly ones) need reminding that we can be loved in spite of and even because of our barbs.

Augustus Toussaint rounds out our little trio of main characters as the perfect little gentlemen. Too smart for his own good, he is a beacon of hope and joy in this story—his innocence and charm winning over everyone he meets.

This brilliant story had some incredible twists and turns. The timeline threw me off a little at first, but was overall really nice. One night when I was about halfway through, I suddenly realized how the book was going to end, and that was a little disappointing because I’m not the kind of person who guesses at the endings. But the ending itself was not disappointing—honestly, it was just very emotional. And I loved it.

What Harmon did here was weave us a story about two realistically unhappy people finding love in an unlikely way. This was my first Amy Harmon book, and I cannot wait to read more! Absolutely stunning. A new favorite.

I could write that I am surprised how good this book is, how emotional, how extraordinary, exciting, and thrilling.
But I won't write all that :-) because when it comes to a book by Amy Harmon, it's always phenomenal.
I swear she can only write amazing books.
Her books leave such a lasting impression.
You always have to think about her stories long after you have finished her books.

If you are a fan of historical fiction, then this book, and all of Amy Harmon's books, is a must-read for you. I love all her books.

This book is a story about the Wild West and about the famous Butch Cassidy.

An incredible, fascinating and thickly real-fact-filled story about his life and his adventures.
It's also a fascinating story about the love of his life.
A very unique, exciting and emotional love story.

I seem to be going through a chaos of emotions with my books lately.
This book is a rollercoaster of brutal and heartbreaking, but also heartwarming feelings.
In other words, I cried like a baby again! 

This is such a beautiful book.
It's incredibly fascinating and uniquely written.
The story and the writing style will take you back to the times of The Wild Bunch and Butch Cassidy.
You will experience so many brutal, raw and authentic emotions.
You will experience so many mixed feelings while reading this book.
You will love and hate this story.

By the end, you will wish the beautiful book had never ended.

This is my new favorite Amy Harmon book. I was absolutely obsessed with this book and I am always amazed at how well Amy researches her characters and time periods. She researched Butch Cassidy and all the legends surrounding his life and death and wove them expertly into her story. I always enjoy reading her author’s note and getting a little peek into her thought process and what drove her story-writing process.

I grew up in Southern Utah and grew up hearing the legends and tales of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid. This book absolutely renewed my interest in the outlaw and his history. I was researching Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch alongside reading this book. I was so fascinated with the American old west time period.

Amy wrote such a beautiful story about a morally gray man who was absolutely an outlaw, but also seemed to have a bit of a moral compass , albeit a bit shaky one. I loved how deeply he loved in this book. His love for Jane and Gus was so beautiful and heart-warming.

I loved this book so much and was crying by the end of it. So beautiful and complex and just so well-done!

Prepare to be captivated by 'The Outlaw Noble Salt' – a riveting tale that seamlessly blends adventure, intrigue, and a dash of romance. Author Amy Harmon’s vivid prose transports readers to a richly imagined world filled with daring escapades and unforgettable characters. From the fearless outlaw navigating treacherous landscapes determined to defy tyranny, every page brims with excitement and suspense. But it's not just the action that makes this book shine – at its core, 'The Outlaw Noble Salt' is a story about friendship, loyalty, and the resilience of the human spirit. With its clever twists and turns, this novel is sure to keep readers on the edge of their seats until the very end. An absolute must-read for fans of epic adventures!

Nicely written and engaging tale that was not what I expected. I almost passed this one by but I'm glad I didn't. Yes there's imagined history for Butch etc but it's nice to see a fleshed out character. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.