The Colony of Tejas (now Texas) – 1803

Early in the morning, under her father's very nose, Marianne Phillips sneaks out of the house and takes her stallion, Diablo, riding across the wilds of her father's estate. No one on the ranch, except Marianne, can handle the stallion; his very name is the Spanish word for devil. Tiring from a hard run, she stops and rests beside a cool stream, and when Diablo becomes agitated, she decides to go home lest there is danger from Comanche or outlaws lurking nearby. And indeed, a man appears out of the shadows, and Marianne wonders if this is her father's enemy, Armando Garcia, the notorious leader of the villagers who live in the Mestizo town of La Flor.

Marianne's father, Weston Phillips, wants the lush and fertile valley of La Flor to graze his cattle, and he doesn’t care that it really belongs to the Mexican's, or mestizos, who have called it their home for decades. It's the only home they know, but her father plans to own it, no matter the cost, and Armando Garcia is trying to stop him. Now, face to face with Armando, Marianne is afraid. What if he wants to do her harm? She pulls her sombrero low so he cannot see her face, but even so, Armando notices her light skin and asks her name. She speaks not, pretending she doesn't understand his Spanish. Instead, she quickly mounts her stallion, digs her heels into Diablo’s side, and gallops away, back to the hacienda.

But Marianne cannot forget the handsome stranger, and she wonders how this man with the gentle voice could be the evil outlaw her father detests. But she forgets all that when she runs into the house to see her mother, and learns that an aging neighbor, Don Lorenzo Sanchez, is about to become her betrothed. And when the rebels of La Flor invade the Phillip's hacienda and take Marianne hostage, she begins to respect their claim to the land. She's not afraid, even though she knows they will kill her if her father does not agree to their demands, and this saddens her. Marianne believes that the land of La Flor means more to Weston Phillips than she, his own daughter.

AWAKEN MY HEART is the story of the unlikely romance between a half-Spanish rogue and the daughter of a wealthy American citizen in the early colony of Texas when it was still under Spain's rule. Marianne begins to see the world with new eyes when she leaves the sheltered walls of her home. She's at the mercy of the rebels who kidnap her and bring her to Armando Garcia's hideout in the mountains above the village of La Flor. Ready to kill her immediately, the mestizos keep her prisoner only at the word of Armando, who is captivated by this brave woman. Marianne speaks Spanish, but keeps silent lest they realize she can understand what they are planning. As the days go, by she wonders if she will live to see the morrow.

This pleasant romance has many secondary characters as the story plays out: Marianne's mother Elthea; her adopted aunt and uncle, Juan and Carmita; and her father's foreman, the evil Clay Wharton, who all contribute to the excitement. Armando is in a difficult position, determined to help his people in the village of La Flor, and he hides, a price on his head for past crimes. He turned away from God many years ago, and after Marianne admits that she can speak his language, she tries to help him find that peace again, against all odds. Caught in a world of prejudice and anger, Armando falls in love with the pretty American senorita, but turns her love away, as he knows he can never measure up to everything she deserves out of life.

AWAKEN MY HEART is a colorful inspirational tale of romance and adventure!

Diana Risso