cover image Soaring Eagle's Embrace

Soaring Eagle's Embrace

Karen Kay. Avon Books, $5.99 (384pp) ISBN 978-0-380-82067-2

Karen Kay's passion for Native American lore shines through in Soaring Eagle's Embrace, the newest entry in her late-19th-century Legendary Warriors series (after Lone Arrow's Pride), but her didactic explanations of the Native American way of life can be off-putting. When photographer Kali Wallace and her father arrive at Montana's Blackfeet Reservation to chronicle the customs of the native people, they run up against Soaring Eagle, who distrusts whites but can't help feeling attracted to Kali. It's obvious from their first encounter atop Chief Mountain-a mystical site where the legendary Star Bride goddess and her mortal lover first met-that more than mere attraction is pulling them together, but first they must come to trust one another. Kay's by-the-numbers tale holds few surprises, and her characterizations are inconsistent. Still, those who enjoy fast-moving, fireside fables may find this a passing diversion.