The Indian Lover: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Wax Nostalgic
Review: Every day, due to comercial and housing developments, there are fewer untouched areas of San Diego that can transport you to the time of the Gold Rush. THIS BOOK IS A TREASURE WORTH MORE THAN ITS WEIGHT IN GOLD. I remember as a child roaming the wild wheat feilds and rolling hills of pure unadulterated Southern California. Every time I read The Indian Lover I relive the adventure of long horseback rides through the countryside and discovering the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of plants, streams, ponds, lakes, canyons and animals. The romance is steaming hot with fantasically descriptive scenes but still leaves something for the imagination. The history of the Native American tribes in the San Diego area is not widely known and it is quite a blessing to finally be awakened to some of the beauty as well as harsh reality. This is a must read!!!

Rating:
Summary: must read
Review: Garth Murphy takes you on a time travel back to the beginings of california. The atmosphere is wonderfully engaging and his blend of history and romance is compelling. I could not put the book down once I had started. A must read for anyone ready to be transported back into an adventurous and unpredictable world!

Rating:
Summary: The Indian Lover
Review: Garth Murphy took fifteen years to write this book, which explains why a reader without prior knowledge of the Californio days will close it feeling satisfied--having learned his history wrapped within an exciting story of love and betrayal. A young Easterner, Bill Marshall, is lured to California in the mid-1800s and his adventure becomes our history lesson. The women in his life--the mayor's daughter, Lugarda, and the native chief's daughter, Falling Star-take their place as unwitting heroines.
It's fascinating to read about the nature of the hardy and unworldly individuals of the times, since all but the best of us know instinctively that we couldn't survive one month in similar situations. The details of their living flow, revealing the enormous amount of research, though the facile way it is written belies the effort. The descriptions of the natural settings are enchanting; those of us most content in nature will love reading every single detail of the land and sea, smelling and feeling the living in the canyons under the oaks and the sleeping on the beaches.
Murphy writes about Bill Marshall's sexual relationships with an uncanny knowledge of the way a woman's mind works. With native women, he finds sex is wonderfully natural, earthy, uncomplicated. When Falling Star finally surprises Bill with what every woman can relate to, that he was initially an insensitive lover, we have to chuckle. One minute Murphy has on the eyes of the cynical male, the next minute he makes us laugh with his female perspective on callow sex. Not since Larry McMurtry's "Lonesome Dove" have I had the pleasure of thinking a male has figured us out.
At the end, Falling Star's dispassionate outlook is strangely soothing; it lends itself to a sequel. This story spins and spins. It's good and strong like beef stew and biscuits.

Rating:
Summary: A must read for San Diegans...
Review: The other reviews sum it up... it's a great book, especially if you live in the area. It's really fun to read about places you've actually been to. Also, it's quite an eye opener to see how badly the natives of California were treated by wave after wave of immigrants.

Rating:
Summary: A must read for San Diegans...
Review: The other reviews sum it up... it's a great book, especially if you live in the area. It's really fun to read about places you've actually been to. Also, it's quite an eye opener to see how badly the natives of California were treated by wave after wave of immigrants.

Rating:
Summary: The Indian Lover
Review: This is a wonderful book...Especially for those of us from the
San Diego area...those of us who are familiar with the Sacred
places mentioned in this story...