Love So Deep by Kathleen Ball

She’s been shunned. He’s been exiled. Will two outcasts find love in the winter freeze?

What’s it About? 

Colorado, 1853. Samantha Foley is cold, alone, and scared. After being rejected from her wagon train for refusing to marry a man she didn’t love, she must find a way to survive the merciless Colorado winter on her own. When she stumbles into a handsome mountain man, she might be saved… if she can convince him to take her in.

Patrick McCrery knows what it’s like to feel unwanted. Half white and half Indian, he fits in neither world and has built a solitary life as a trapper. Caring for the beautiful woman he finds in the snow is the right thing to do, but it means risking the sting of another rejection come spring.

As winter bites and the two wait out the thaw, an unexpected attraction heats up. But with trust in short supply, will Samantha and Patrick open their hearts to love, or will past hurts and discrimination freeze romance in its tracks?

Love So Deep is a sweet Western romance. If you like heartwarming stories, complex characters, and raw emotions, then you’ll love Kathleen Ball’s gorgeous novel.

First Impressions

I know what you’re thinking. Rugged mountain man rescues traveling damsel in distress. He takes her to his secluded cabin to recover from her hardships, and they’re stuck there for the rest of the grueling winter. With just the one bed. Heck yeah, let’s get this party started!! Well…not so fast. Patrick and Samantha practically only have two solitary seconds alone together before another unexpected lost traveler finds his way to this safe haven of shelter. Young and rambunctious Brian certainly knows how to make an entrance, and kill any potential chance of our two leads sharing that bed any time soon. Especially when yet another surprise guest is dropped off at Patrick’s doorstep in the form of a woman from a local indigenous tribe who is due to give birth any day now, and insists that she belongs with him.

Again, we’ve got a bit of a mood killer happening here when another woman is staring daggers, and sometimes even wielding daggers, at Samantha. And that’s before the scoundrel who kidnapped and abused the young Brian finds his way into this bevy of characters who have become so tense with cabin fever that a trek through the harsh winter wilds of the Colorado mountains is starting to seem like a bright idea. For a secluded cabin this place is certainly getting a bit crowded! And yet, in between each new surprising arrival there’s the tedious repetition of daily chores, from laundry to cooking, fur trapping and whittling. Even we as the reader can’t help but feel a little stir crazy for something to break up the monotony of frontier living. 

From One Extreme to the Next

This is a novel of extremes. From overreactions to unsupported judgments, everything is done to the n’th degree and then some. The perfect example of this is when Patrick first rescues Samantha as she is trudging through the mountains in the middle of winter, at immediate risk of frostbite, or even death. When she relays her story to Patrick of how her parents both died on a wagon train, and she was thrown out to fend for herself, he scoffs at her wild tale which must obviously be fabricated. When Samantha repeatedly insists that she’s telling the truth, Patrick gives her an “oh sure whatever you say” kind of roll of the eyes that I’m sure we’ve all experienced at some point in our lives. Then when young Brian comes on the scene, Patrick insists that he must be her son since they share the same coloring, and she must have abandoned him on the trail to save her own skin. Again, we’re going from zero to sixty here in less time than it takes to blink. I’m not going to lie, it wasn’t necessarily the best way to be introduced to our leading man, and although many of his later actions prove he is indeed a decent man, there was always a part of me that didn’t fully warm up to him considering his initial harsh judgement of Samantha. 

This theme continues throughout the rest of the book with almost every character we see. We’ve already discussed the pregnant woman who is dropped off and takes an immediate dislike to Samantha, even going so far as to threaten her with a knife not too long after first meeting. There are multiple villains who try to kill our characters at some point, all of whom are the purest representations of evil. When Samantha, Brian and Patrick eventually get to town we see how the townsfolk are the most racist, high and mighty bunch of quick-to-judge dimwits we’ve ever had the misfortune of meeting. They look down on Patrick for being half-Indian, and while they initially pity Samantha for the harsh time she was forced to spend with such a “beast”, they instantaneously switch to thinking she’s a harlot when she deigns to defend him. Throughout all of these crazy shenanigans Samantha and Patrick are slowly starting to warm to each other, but any time they allow themselves to feel something they are quick to convince themselves that the other really isn’t all that interested. Even if they’ve just shared a passionate kiss or embrace out in the barn. Honestly, it was kind of exhausting to be presented with so many irrational and exaggerated responses. 

Series: Stand-alone.

Would I befriend the heroine? Considering how the men of the cabin always relied on her to do the cooking, I feel like she and I would kick some serious butt if we did some kind of team cooking TV show competition together. 

Would I date the hero? Can’t really say that I would. I wanted to like him, but talk about a negative first impression. It was even more disappointing later on when we find out how much unfair judgement he received by the townsfolk throughout his entire life, but he was still quick to judge Samantha on her arrival. 

Final Impressions: There were several aspects of this novel which needed to be either toned down or amplified. Everyone was quick to think the worst of everyone else, to the point where it’s frustrating to see these characters interact with one another. We would go through bouts of text where not much was happening in the seclusion of the cabin, and then boom! Villains come out of the shadows and are squandered in about a page, to the point where you think, wait, was that really it? There was one other feature of the novel which held the most promise, but ultimately kind of fizzled in execution, which was how the slow build of Samantha and Patrick’s relationship was impacted by his Indian heritage. Any time Patrick started to feel something for Samantha he would immediately try to push it aside by insisting that she didn’t feel the same way, or that he couldn’t put her in a situation where she would be ostracized by the town, but now he’s willing to give their relationship a chance, actually never mind, wait actually he’s going to propose, oh but their kids would be ostracized so really never mind. What could have been such a fascinating exploration of Patrick’s inner turmoil at his insistence on sacrificing this deep love for Samantha in an attempt to protect her from scandal instead came across as a guy who just couldn’t make up his mind over what he wanted. The pieces were there for a truly emotional moment of sacrifice and eventual acceptance, but they never fully came together in a compelling way. 

Smut Level: This is a low-heat read. A few stolen kisses in the barn, but nothing too steamy. 

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $4.99 Kindle Price. 194 Pages. 

One Shingle to Hang by Deann Smallwood

When Lil looked to the future, all she ever saw was the law. She’s defied family expectations, not to mention societal norms, to open her own law practice. Marriage never seemed to be on the table. But all of that changes when one rugged cowboy with a threat against his life walks in seeking her help. 

What’s it About? 

A woman with too much knowledge was at risk for insanity. Her fragile mind couldn’t handle it. That’s what Lil had been told when she went against convention and became an attorney. The 1800’s had fewer women lawyers than women doctors. Her pride knew no bounds when she hung her shingle—L.M. Wentfield, Attorney At Law.

Drew was a struggling cattle rancher, building a fledgling Hereford empire. He was working toward that goal when he was accused of rustling and faced possible hanging. He needed a lawyer—a good one—a man. Chesterfield had one lawyer—a new one—L.M. Wentfield. He wasn’t prepared for a beautiful blonde with a sharp tongue and fiercely won independence.

Lil had no homemaking abilities. Her love was the law. And if the thoughts of the gray-eyed cowboy, who had the audacity to refuse her legal help, stayed in her mind, she’d push them aside. She had nothing to offer a rancher . Even her wealth wouldn’t be considered an asset to a prideful man. And Drew Jackson was proud. So proud, he knew he couldn’t ask a woman of Lil’s stature to share his life—but he wanted to—from the moment he’d stolen that first kiss.

First Impressions

This is a cute, light-hearted read whose synopsis was unfortunately more enticing than the story itself. I’m always excited to pick up a historical romance that will regal us with a strong female character who is “ahead of her time”. While Lil was certainly a headstrong and quick-witted female lead, I was rather disappointed we didn’t get to see her engage more with the law. After moving to this small mountain town with the goal of opening her own law practice, the most lawyer-ly activity we see her pursue is writing up an ironclad will for her first ever client who deigned to giver her a chance. When it comes to helping Drew, the dashing cattle rancher in need of legal help, Lil almost transforms more into an intelligent private detective than a lawyer.

She even goes so far as to set up a sting operation with the local sheriff to catch Drew’s accuser in a lie. An entertaining scene to be sure, but I was holding out hope for a dramatic courtroom argument where Lil could truly showcase her law prowess. The fact we are never privy to one scene in court throughout the entirety of the novel was the peak of disappointment, not to mention that Drew’s drama is resolved quite early on in the novel. Even though an act of revenge from Drew’s nemesis is hinted at in the beginning, it’s a threat which never comes to fruition. Instead the focus of the novel switches to the budding romance between Drew and Lil, which was certainly an adorable relationship you proceed to root for, but the flow of the story probably could have benefited from bringing the conflict involving Drew’s land and cattle business back full circle. As things stood, that particular story line was left feeling unfinished. 

The High Point

While the story didn’t quite live up to the hype of the synopsis, one area where this novel truly excelled was in the characters. This is a world you want to live in, or at least have the opportunity to visit, merely in the hopes of sitting down to a cookout with our outspoken female lawyer, her devilishly handsome and selfless rancher, the candid yet caring housekeeper and her precocious granddaughter, just to name a few. Even our villains were characters you loved to hate, from the nefarious cowboy who has his sights set on Drew’s ranch, to Lil’s conservative parents who threaten to stand in the way of everything she’s built for herself. I can’t remember the last time I was so inclined to don a pair of gloves, merely so I could rip them off to haughtily slap a fictional character’s face.

Even though the author should be commended for the creation of such distinct and hypnotizing personalities, it was also a little disappointing to see the introduction of some fascinating characters at the start of the novel, only to have them fade away from the story completely by the midway point. I think this can once again be attributed to the flow of the plot, which was too distinctly segmented into Lil setting up shop, Drew seeking her help with his legal troubles, and then the slow evolution of their romantic relationship after his legal conflict is resolved. This meant that when one segment was settled, there wasn’t an attempt to bring back some of the characters and drama from that section into a later one.

Series: Chesterfield Colorado series, book 1. Though a sweet read, I’m not sure I’ll continue on with this series. 

Final Impressions: Greater cohesion for how this story unfolded, as well as further incorporation of Lil’s law knowledge, really could have made this historical romance a standout read. It seemed like an odd choice to suggest that the source of Drew’s legal drama at the beginning would come back to seek revenge against him and Lil, but then abandon that story line completely. The book as a whole is relatively conflict free, so to bring in Lil’s parents as the final source of drama for the book felt random compared to the possibility of fully resolving the outstanding risk of Drew’s nemesis. Lastly, every great legal story, from Philadelphia to My Cousin Vinny has an exciting courtroom scene of opposing counselors, so never giving Lil the chance to prove herself in court seemed like a wasted opportunity for some delightful entertainment. 

Smut Level: The most sensual moment of this read is when Drew and Lil share a jug of lemonade together in a shaded, hidden meadow. Their clothes stay on the whole time, and the biggest step they take is a brush of lips, but there’s something about that lemonade scene, as they contemplate where each other’s lips have just been that will make you giddy with excitement. Who knew? 

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. FREE Kindle book. Soul Mate Publishing, LLC. 213 Pages.  

Shot Through the Heart by Andrea Downing

This is definitely a meet-cute for the record books. After all, how often does a female lead meet the man of her dreams by having to pull glass shards out of his finely-toned bum?

What’s it About? 

Gunslinger Shiloh Coltrane has returned home to work the family’s Wyoming ranch, only to find there’s still violence ahead. His sister and nephew have been murdered, and the killers are at large.

Dr. Sydney Cantrell has come west to start her medical practice, aiming to treat the people of a small town. As she tries to help and heal, she finds disapproval and cruelty the payment in kind.

When the two meet, it’s an attraction of opposites. As Shiloh seeks revenge, Sydney seeks to do what’s right. Each wants a new life, but will trouble or love find them first?

First Impressions

These two definitely have chemistry that is off the charts! Even though neither was actively looking for love, once they find each other they discover it’s darn near impossible to stop thinking about the other. Something that I truly appreciated about this read was that while their attraction and connection was practically immediate, we’re really taken on a journey for Sydney and Shiloh to accept the other into their lives. Sydney especially has the most difficulty in acknowledging her feelings for this gunslinger.

After all, she’s a doctor dedicated to saving lives, whereas he’s seemingly an expert at ending them. How can she align herself with such a man when their very morals are so out of sync? Shiloh also finds himself on a journey of acceptance when it comes to Sydney, ultimately coming to understand and appreciate the fact that she’s a female doctor. Considering the time period our novel is set in, men accepting women into the medical profession was less than standard, and Shiloh has his initial hesitancies upon first meeting this beautiful newcomer. However, he quickly comes to admire and commend her intelligence, as well as her dedication to saving others. He’s the first to admit that he wants this woman in his life forever, but he’ll have to exercise patience for her to realize the same.

From One Part to the Next

The most compelling aspect of this read, other than the chemistry of our two lead characters, was the format. We’re presented with a story of love, revenge, and suspense, and what initially seems like the climax of the entire book is actually just the end of Part 1, falling at the halfway point of the overall story. There was so much more to come! The first part of the book really focused on Shiloh and Sydney coming together. Part 2 features Sydney figuring out her place in life and acknowledging that what is most important to her was vastly different than what she ever could have conceived. The third and final part features Shiloh’s ultimate revenge in seeking out his sister’s killer.

Each section of the novel was just as intriguing and engaging as the one which came before it. The only disappointing feature of the format was the fact that for the two latter sections we see how Shiloh and Sydney spend most of the time separated from each other in a physical sense. Their connection was so strong in part 1, and while we get to see a few explosive instances of it in parts 2 and 3, the fact they were so far apart meant we noticed their lack of proximity even more fully. Throughout so much of the last half of the book I was craving their eventual reunion with every turn of the page.

*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*

Series: Stand-alone

Final Impressions: The characters in this historical western romance were an absolute treat, even though by the end you just wanted to push them both into a room and lock the door so they could resolve their differences once and for all. Beyond the characters you also have to appreciate the descriptive scenes of the wilds of Wyoming and Colorado. The land practically became another character, and it was easy to envision the scenes laid out before us any time we closed our eyes.

Smut Level: The flirtations between Shiloh and Sydney will keep you blushing, and this read is all about the build-up to their eventual physical connection.

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $4.99 Kindle Price. The Wild Rose Press, Inc. 241. Pages

Landing the Lawman by Kadie Scott

Hold onto your Stetsons ladies and gentlemen! We finally get to see the Hill family daughter get a romance story of her very own.

What’s it About? 

Carter Hill walked away from a perfectly fine life and relationship…all for a career she’s chased since she was fourteen. Years and a PhD later, she loves her job as a water rights consultant. At the same time, now that all her brothers are happily married, she’s lonely and wanting more. But the only man in her life is Logan – super serious, no sense of humor, and friend-zoned. Or is he? Perhaps a sexy, no-strings affair with a man more driven than she is could help her move on.

Logan Cartez doesn’t date, do relationships, or worry about commitment. He’s married to his job – making sure what destroyed his family ranch and their legacy doesn’t happen to others. When Carter propositions him, what began as a passionate and unforgettable night soon develops into more. Logan finds himself doing things he swore he never would, and the feisty, brilliant, blue-eyed rancher’s daughter has him thinking about so much more than work.

First Impressions

This series is an absolute delight! Up until this point we’ve only seen the romances of the Hill family boys, most of whom are sexy as sin alpha cowboys. Well, after four full-length novels featuring the Hill men, we’re finally privy to the one Hill daughter falling in love with a dashing lawyer. It feels like I’ve been waiting for Carter’s story since book one, and I’m thrilled to say it doesn’t disappoint. I might even go so far as to say that Carter and Logan’s romance is my favorite of the series! It’s definitely a tough call to make, but these two draw you in from opening bell and simply don’t let go. The fact we also get to see glimpses of Carter’s protective brothers, not to mention their entertaining wives, who we’ve come to know and love throughout the series is a glorious bonus.

Rebound, or Real Love? 

At the start of the novel we see that Carter and Logan have a professional, yet friendly relationship. She offers water expertise to many of his law cases, and the two have grown to become friends over time. However, even though they’ve always been a bit more than co-workers, they’ve never acted on what they assume to be a one-sided attraction to the other. That all changes though after Carter learns her ex-fiancé, Brian, is engaged, and she thinks going for a roll in someone else’s bed might take her mind off things. When Logan learns that Carter is considering a potential one-night stand with a complete stranger, he sees red, and steps in to act as a source of sexual release.

What follows is a steamy and amusing romance, with both Logan and Carter constantly debating whether they should upgrade this fling between them to a full-blown relationship. A feature to the evolution of their attraction that I found particularly fascinating was that we never really entertained the idea that Logan was simply a rebound from Carter’s previous relationship with her fiancé. While we can’t deny that her ex becoming engaged was sort of the impetus for them ultimately coming together in the physical sense, we also realize that they’ve always been close, and more importantly that there’s always been something simmering just under the surface between them. They’ve both been daydreaming for more, and in a way her ex’s engagement is the slap in the face they both need to finally act on it.

The Role of the Ex

Throughout the novel we see a primary focus not only on Logan and Carter’s burgeoning relationship, but also a side story involving a water right’s case the two are working on. It helps highlight the dedication they both have to their respective careers, as well as how their jobs help bring them together. However, another feature of the plot which I found especially intriguing was the role of both Logan and Carter’s exes to their current relationship. When the two first met, Carter was still engaged to her ex, meaning that the foundation for Carter and Logan’s relationship was built as a friendship surrounding their work, rather than one which was romantic in nature.

As for Logan, his ex-fiancée, Angela, left him because he seemed to pay more attention to his work than he ever did to her. It’s only now that Angela has broken up with somebody else that she starts to sniff around Logan again. We’ve already discussed how the engagement of Carter’s ex was sort of the impetus to them taking their relationship to the next stage from friendship to horizontal mambo partners. We also see how Logan’s previous breakup with his ex makes him hesitant to move things even further along with Carter from having a casual sexual relationship to an actual boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. After all, his work will always be important to him, and he fears that eventually he’ll fail to give Carter the attention that his previous fiancée always demanded of him. And this brings me to what I loved most about Carter and Logan’s connection.

While they compromise in certain aspects of their relationship, we see that they never really have to give up a part of their lives that means a lot to them, and that would be their careers. Whereas Angela felt pushed aside, we see that Carter and Logan can come together in their work. Whereas Angela pouted and sulked on the sidelines, Carter isn’t afraid to ask for Logan’s attention when it matters most, or force him to take a break and have some fun when he needs it. Simply put, they fit together. They are each other’s person in a way that their exes could never be. Brian was pushing Carter to give up her career in Austin, and Angela complained that Logan’s work resulted in them spending too much time apart. And yet, when it comes to Logan and Carter, they can still have fun and play together, not to mention have sexy fun times together, yet still devote themselves to the careers that really mean a lot to them.

*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*

Series: Hills of Texas, book 5. Quite possibly my favorite couple of the whole series.

Final Impressions: A delightfully romantic, funny, and also emotional read from start to finish. Carter’s parents sort of serve as the guiding light of wisdom in their relationship, and her father especially may have given the most enlightening advice of any romance character ever when Carter and Logan found themselves on the verge of breaking up after an argument. “Don’t assign blame…Rarely is it one person’s fault. Usually, it’s a little bit of both.” It might seem like simple advice, but my goodness when it comes to Romancelandia I feel like this needs to be cross-stitched into a pillow! I realize we’re all out of Hill children to feature, but I sincerely hope this series continues, maybe with a time jump into the future so we can focus on all of their children finding love!

Smut Level: This read is a perfect blend of clean with a bit of steam. While some scenes can get a bit descriptive and passionate, we also see several scenes end with a quick fade to black, or others where we come in after the good stuff has already taken place. I must say the only time this disappointed me was when we missed the details of Carter and Logan having phone sex! Would have loved to hear Mr. Proper Lawyer utilizing his dirty talking skills.

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $3.99 Kindle Price. Tule Publishing.

Jake’s Redemption by Jamie Schulz

In this futuristic world, women are no longer considered the weaker sex, and have come to control society. Yasssss!! They’ve also enslaved all men, and even sell them at Auction as breeders to be used and abused. Dammit ladies, we’re better than this!!! 😦

What’s it About? 

Chained and enslaved, Jake Nichols is convinced he’ll die alone. In this new order where men are stripped of all power, he endures brutal torture at the hands of his female captor. But when he’s hired out to build a ranch home for an outspoken beauty, his dreams of escape transform into visions of passion.

Monica Avery struggles to fill her heart in a loveless society. With marriage outlawed and romantic partners reduced to pawns, she’s given up hope of finding her soul mate. But watching the rugged rancher hard at work on her shelter awakens deeply buried desires.

As the project comes together, Monica discovers a kindred spirit in the tenderhearted Jake. But despite their growing attraction, he still belongs to a cruel woman who’d rather see him dead than free. Can Monica save Jake, or will their love lead to a tragic tomorrow?

First Impressions

This is definitely a unique world we’ve been thrown into, as it is both futuristic in concept, yet rudimentary in execution. A series of wars and…genetic mutations(?) have resulted in womankind becoming the dominant force in society, with the ability to overpower men with their superior strength that kicks in when threatened. These various wars have depleted the men of this world, and they have since become the slaves and playthings of women. They are objects to be sold at auction, and there seem to be no repercussions or punishment for women who abuse their slaves to the point of death. As a result of these wars, women may have come to the ultimate position of power, but they rule over a land that has seemingly been thrown back in time, with rolling blackouts of electricity, the necessity for horses as a means of transportation, and the fond memory of telephones as a way to communicate with others. It’s a stark juxtaposition of modernity vs. stagnation.

While the premise of the story was certainly intriguing, I felt like we only scratched the surface of these wars which plagued the entire world. For a series prequel, I would have liked to see more attention focused on the details of these wars, and the fallout which resulted in such a drastic alteration to society as we know it. There were many times throughout the book where I couldn’t help but think, “how did we ever get to this point?!” I almost wonder if a more appropriate use of this prequel would have been to set the story years earlier in the midst of the wars so we could see how everything came together for our women, yet simultaneously fell apart for our men. In a way, I sort of wanted to see a prequel for our prequel!

From Slave to Partner

Jake is in Hell. He’s the slave of a sadistic, tortuous woman who seems determined to break his will to live. Salvation comes when he is loaned out for a time to a neighboring farm to help with the construction of a ranch house for it’s beautiful owner. Monica is seemingly the opposite of every other woman he’s come across in this world. She treats her slaves with respect, and vows she would never force them to do anything they weren’t comfortable with. The truly heartbreaking feature of this story is that Jake has the hardest time seeing this reprieve for what it is. When he first arrives at Monica’s farm, he’s constantly suspicious of her motives, and wondering when she’ll finally let her true colors shine as a demanding Mistress. He simply can’t trust her, because his hellish owner “tortured all the trust” out of him.

Although Jake has difficulty trusting Monica in the beginning, he can’t deny his body’s attraction to her, and she too desires him in a way that feels different than all the men who have come before. When Jake rejects her initial advances, she is quick to assume that he’s being overly gruff. However, she eventually realizes that he has suffered immense physical and emotional abuse at the hands of his owner. This torture is deeply embedded in his psyche, to the point where Monica’s intimate touch causes him to experience distressing flashbacks which fully incapacitate him. It is only after many open and honest discussions, not to mention time, that Jake is able to overcome the mental torment of his past abuse and rape that he can learn to enjoy Monica’s affection. The only problem with the fact that Jake and Monica have established a deep emotional connection is that the time is soon approaching when he must go back to the hell he was merely on a break from.

*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*

Series: Angel Eye Series, prequel. This book definitely pulls you in to the point where you immediately want to pick up the next book.

Final Impressions: In terms of the purpose of a prequel to set the tone and background for the series, I’m not sure it was used to it’s fullest potential, especially when you consider the length. It’s a rather hefty read at 425 pages, and when all was said and done I still felt some confusion about the foundation of this world which has been ravaged by such unconventional wars. The bulk of the story involves Jake and Monica stuck in a cat and mouse game where they seemingly take two steps back for every step forward in their relationship. In addition, there were several key aspects of the plot which were left unfinished so that they can undoubtedly come back into play in the next novel. Ultimately it seemed we were left with more questions than answers, and the flow of the story probably could have benefited from about 50-75 fewer pages.

Smut Level: It takes quite a bit of time before Jake can push his past trauma aside so that he can fully connect with Monica on a physical level. This means that more of the story involved the development of their emotional relationship rather than a physical one.

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $2.99 Kindle Price. Amazon Digital Services LLC. 425 Pages.

Off the Market by Audrey Wick

Opposites attract in this sweet Texas romance that will leave you smiling, and craving BBQ too! Good thing we get some delightful comfort food recipes to try out at the end of the novel.

What’s it About? 

Quinn LaFayette is in her inaugural year as library special programs director of Last Stand, but when the kickoff performance for the children’s summer program goes terribly wrong, she has to save face as well as her job. She has a surprise advocate in Cole, whom she did her best to ignore in school. Seven years has only made Cole more appealing, but Quinn is determined to resist the sparks that fly between them because they are too different.

Restaurant owner Cole Hutchinson is no bookworm, but thanks to his fast-thinking antics, he ends up saving the day at the library and earning Quinn’s praise in the process. He’s tempted to seek more, but he’s juggling plenty of female attention from gracing the June edition of Modern Texas magazine featuring barbeque. Cole’s not interested in revisiting a woman from his past, but there’s something about Quinn that he can’t quite ignore.

Can Cole prove that opposites really do attract?

First Impressions

“The jock. The bookworm. Opposite interests. Opposite personalities. Opposite means of interacting.” Quinn’s memories of Cole from high school aren’t necessarily negative, but rather of a man who simply ran in different circles. While she could certainly appreciate his charm and good looks, she acknowledged the two would never have anything in common. When their paths cross again years later, Quinn is shocked to see the former jock run to her rescue in her moment of need. As the summer progresses these two former acquaintances grow closer than either ever thought possible, and Quinn discovers that Cole Hutchinson has matured into a caring man who no longer craves the spotlight of fleeting attention.

Cole too realizes that this woman is making him want things he’s never desired before, and as she starts to share herself and her love of books with him, he admits to himself that Quinn is a woman he can’t let get away. It was enchanting to see these two nurture their feelings for each other, and especially to see how Quinn’s initial surface-level opinions of this man from high school could change so vastly. Something we don’t really explore though is what Cole thought of Quinn back in the day. He’s certainly smitten with this somewhat shy librarian now, but what about back then? Did he see her as a quiet bookworm? Someone cute, but perhaps beyond his league intellectually? Did he even notice her at all? Even though I loved their tale of romance from start to finish, a further exploration of their history could have been an interesting addition!

Taking a Stand

The first book in this series really highlighted the tense, yet lovable relationship between the Hutchinson brothers, both of whom are fighting to make their family BBQ joint a success. While this sequel certainly continues on with that theme, we also see the town of Last Stand come to the forefront as a character in its own right. The delightful townsfolk gather together to support and protect their own, yet in this second book we also see the flip side of that small town atmosphere in the shape of city council members who are rooting for Quinn to fail. They see the local library as a non-revenue generating entity that isn’t worth sinking money into. As Quinn encounters a few hurdles at the start of the summer with her reading program aimed at the children of Last Stand, we see Cole come to her aid in more ways than one as their feelings for each other start to deepen.

When Quinn has to make her case in front of city council for their support of her position, you can’t help but feel a hint of Leslie Knope in Parks and Recreation, standing up for what’s right in her small town. This of course means we must also encounter a villain in the shape of a city planner whose advances Quinn once rebuked, and therefore he’s out for revenge against her. As the story progresses we see Quinn start to become increasingly concerned about all the obstacles and malice being thrown her way by the city council, and wonders if there will be a place for her much longer in this small Texas town. While our concern for Quinn continues to grow, and we hold our breath in anticipation wondering if she’ll end the summer on a high note, this intriguing story line does sort of fizzle out a bit by the end. There are some questions which aren’t fully answered, and the character who has grown into our villain exits the story rather abruptly. A more fleshed out culmination of these events would have resulted in a smashing success of a read!

Southern Comfort

If you were to seek out any of my friends and ask them what two things I’m addicted to most in this world they would most likely tell you the following: romance novels and cookbooks. My Kindle has over 1000 romance novel titles, and my bookshelf is literally buckling under the strain of cookbooks featuring practically every cuisine imaginable. Therefore, the fact that this series combines adorable tales of romance with a sampling of comfort food BBQ recipes at the end of each novel means I’m in a swirl of romance-culinary heaven. Check out some of the scrumptious delights this series has provided below!

Bubba Hutchinson’s Country Biscuits

The LaFayette Family BBQ Muffins (best thing ever!!)

Cole Hutchinson’s Corn Casserole

Wanda Hutchinson’s Peach Cobbler

*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*

Series: The Texas BBQ Brothers, book 2. There are only two Hutchinson brothers at this barbecue joint, and we’ve seen both of their tales of romance. Can they discover an illegitimate or long-lost brother of some kind so this series doesn’t have to end?!

Final Impressions: This is a cute, fun, quick read that will have you rooting for our main characters on multiple fronts. From Quinn’s struggles making the summer reading program a success, to Cole and his brother seeking to keep their family’s BBQ restaurant a local success story. Interspersed throughout is the natural development of their relationship which is also reminiscent of the romance from book one. These characters feel like your friends, and their affection comes across as completely real. There was the introduction of some contrived drama between Quinn and Cole towards the very end which seemed somewhat unnecessary, and while I was slightly disappointed that the development of our local villain didn’t entirely come full circle, overall it’s a delightful sequel that’s perfect for the beach.

Smut Level: This story is much more focused on Cole and Quinn developing their attraction into affection rather than lust. It’s a sweet read devoid of sex, with a few intimate kisses here and there.

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $3.99 Kindle Price. Tule Publishing.

Meant to be Different by Amelia Foster

Another home run! Amelia Foster once again succeeds in hitting it out of the park in her sequel of the “Meant to Be” series, Meant to be Different. 

What’s it About?

Young Wyatt Carlisle fell in love with the rodeo and it became his dream career. It was also the decision that would one day cost him his high school sweetheart. But when thirty rolls around he decides to give his battered body a break, he retires with two goals in mind: open a training facility in his hometown and win back his Gigi.

Teenage Georgia Marsh is not only faced with watching her mother fade from terminal cancer, but also a relocation to North Carolina. It’s only made worse when the one person not scared by her goth girl persona is a rhinestone cowboy with more swagger than brain cells. In a turn of events she never thought possible, Wyatt becomes her first love and a rock through the heartbreak of losing her mother. Only to shatter her months later when he chooses his career and disappears from her world.

After a twelve year separation, Wyatt saunters back into Georgia’s life. Forced to work together on a project for her boss, and one of Wyatt’s sponsors, their sexual chemistry quickly ignites, but Georgia is determined not to fall for Wyatt’s charm a second time around. Especially when she suspects that watching the cowboy ride off into the sunset for a second time might be more than she can handle.

First Impressions

What can I say about this series other than that you should read it? Amelia Foster is a master storyteller who allows us a glimpse into teen love, second chances, and even emotional heartbreak. This sequel in the “Meant to Be” series holds up just as strongly to the premier novel, which is really saying something considering that was also a beautiful roller-coaster of a read that gave me all the feels. Something I’ve appreciated with this series so far is that while we see a continuation of certain themes, such as the brilliant use of flashbacks and alternating points of view between the lead characters, each novel really is distinct.

It never felt as though this second book was merely a repeat of the one which came before it. Wyatt and Gigi’s story is unique to them in a way that sets them apart from the couple of the first novel, even though that one featured Wyatt’s older brother. It feels as though we are once again witnessing a true romance play out between two very real people that we’ve come to know intimately through the author’s words. Wyatt and Gigi demonstrate that their teenage love which ended 12 years ago may not be entirely over, but simply paused. This rhinestone cowboy may have just found a second chance at love with his dark angel.

A Journey to the Past

While the consistent use of flashbacks might not have been as mind-blowingly spectacular as their use in book one, they still served a very important and alluring purpose of highlighting the foundation of Wyatt and Gigi’s relationship all those years ago. They seemed like polar opposites when they first met in high school. She was the new goth girl in town, and he was the popular wannabe rodeo stud that all the girls drooled over. Somehow this rhinestone cowboy is able to draw this dark angel out of her shell, and they find love together. But this story is more than just a simple teenage romance. We discover that Gigi’s surly attitude at moving to this small North Carolina town is born of the fact that her mother is in the last stages of cancer, and it’s just a matter of time before she’s gone from this world.

Heavy stuff, I know. The beauty though of her relationship with Wyatt is that he manages to pull her out of the constant limbo she’s experiencing at home, bouncing constantly between life and the imminent arrival of her mother’s death, to find an escape where she can simply be herself. To find a few days a week where she doesn’t have to be constantly worrying about her mother’s illness, or how her dad is struggling with losing the love of his life. What started as a simple dalliance to take her mind off the harsh realities of life soon turns into an example of true love. Wyatt stands by Gigi in everything, and she too supports him through some of his own life’s struggles. They might experience a few bumps in the road, just like with any new relationship, but they soon discover the key to their love is always being open with each other when life tries to get in the way. Wyatt especially acknowledges that the depth of their love isn’t like every other typical teenage romance. It’s real. They’ll make it through anything life throws at them, and they’ll be together past their teenage years, because their love is meant to be different. Or is it?

The Hope for Second Chances

We know pretty much from the opening page, actually from the synopsis itself, that Wyatt left Gigi behind all those years ago to pursue his dreams of becoming a rodeo star bull rider. It seems that in spite of all their vows that their love was “meant to be different”, it seems to have succumbed to defeat just like any other teenage romance. Throughout the novel we see a constant switch back and forth of Wyatt trying to win Gigi back in the present, while simultaneously seeing how their love played out in the past. As we see how deep of a connection these two had when they were young, we see that their teenage romance in fact wasn’t merely just a passing fancy. They meant everything to each other. So where did it all go wrong, and more importantly, will Wyatt be able to convince Gigi that he’s worth a second chance? When they first met he had to fight for her to see how good they could be together, and all these years later he’s going through that same fight of trying to win her trust.

Something that really did surprise me as we saw the love between Wyatt and Gigi play out in both the past and the present, was that we never witnessed that one key moment where Wyatt decided to leave. We hear his explanation to Gigi when they reconnect, but we never actually get a flashback scene where we see him drive off into the sunset. I was kind of confused at first, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that the purpose of these flashbacks was not to build up to the point where he left. Instead, it was to show the development of their love up until that point. To demonstrate how Wyatt was there for Gigi through every hardship, including standing as a pillar when her mother eventually died. He also succeeded in showing her that life was still worth living amidst such pain. His decision to leave was not out of selfishness. As we uncover his reasoning behind the decision we realize it may have been the most selfless decision of his life. What mattered most was not that we saw how or when he left, but rather that he came back. The author manages to convince us through these flashbacks that Wyatt is in fact worthy of a second chance in the present, and we can only hold our breath in anticipation that Gigi remembers why their love is worth fighting for.

*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*

Series: Meant to Be, book 2. I love, love, love this series, and you can bet your Stetson I’ll be continuing on to see what might be in store for the other Carlisle brothers going forward.

Final Impressions: I pretty much finished this book in two sittings. It made me laugh, sigh, and definitely brought tears to my eyes a time or two. It’s an emotional read for sure, and seeing Gigi and Wyatt’s love play out as teenagers was particularly heartbreaking because you knew going into it that eventually it would end. But then to see them pick things up again in the present, you’re hopeful that all these years later they’ll manage to find the happiness which escaped them back then. As their story played out, I was drawn so much into their world that it started to feel like I was reading about two people I actually knew. When it was over I even wanted to pick up my phone to call Gigi and dish about how Wyatt is such a dreamboat. A girl can dream!

Smut Level: When it comes to the bedroom, Gigi demands one simple thing of her cowboy lover. Clothes off…cowboy hat on. 😉

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $3.99 Kindle Price. Limitless Publishing, LLC. 227 Pages.

Desert Rose by J. Arlene Culiner

A woman who lives for the moment. Who enjoys her own company. A woman who acknowledges that long-term relationships can eventually turn flat with a lack of excitement. Is…is this my doppleganger?!?

What’s it About? 

A secret life is the best protection against love…Men love Rose Badger, and if the other inhabitants of dead-end Blake’s Folly, Nevada, don’t approve, she couldn’t care less. With a disastrous marriage far behind her, settling down is the last thing she intends to do. Isn’t life for fun? Doesn’t a stable relationship always mean predictability and boredom? Well… perhaps things might be different with Jonah Livingstone, but he is off limits for anything other than friendship. Even though he’s started a slow burning fire inside her, he’s still entangled in a complicated past relationship. And Rose has another secret life—one that she’ll never give up for any man.

The last person geologist Jonah Livingstone expected to meet in a semi-ghost town is Rose Badger. She’s easy-going, delightfully spontaneous, and Jonah is certain their attraction is mutual. But Rose is always surrounded by a crowd of admirers and doesn’t seem inclined to choose a favorite. Though Jonah has also suffered a failed marriage, he can’t help being drawn to Rose—and he dares to hope she may feel the same for him. But is Jonah too independent to settle into a permanent relationship again? He’s leading his own very private life, as well…and secrets are an excellent protection against love. Will he do what it takes to hold on to his DESERT ROSE?

First Impressions

Rose and Jonah come from very different backgrounds. He’s a university professor who’s benefited from education all his life. She’s a high school drop out who now owns a second-hand clothing store, and her family has a history of prostitution and alcoholism. In spite of their different backgrounds, they’re still able to connect over those shared interests which can bring a couple together. For the case of Rose and Jonah, it’s the love of music. Russian music to be exact. Different time periods, sure, but it’s still an interest that they can discuss, and even learn more about from each other. As they spend more time together we also see a rise in their own insecurities. For Jonah, he sees himself as one of many admirers who always seem to be following Rose around like a lost puppy. Everywhere she goes in Blake’s Folly, she’s surrounded by men hoping to spend time with her, and he worries that she just seems him as another one of the crowd. Perhaps he’s too plain and boring with his love of fossils to stand out among the other lads vying for her attention.

As for Rose, I even feel like the big reveal of her past demonstrated that she put more weight and judgement behind it than Jonah, or even we as the audience did. Whenever she would talk about the sordid past of her brothel-working grandmother, or not knowing the identity of her father, and her mother being a lowly drunk I thought…so what? Rose is still an awesome person who seems like she’d be a hoot to be around. The somewhat troubled pasts of her family members, and even her own difficult past as a musician in the big city, may have molded her into the person she is today, but they by no means negatively impacted her personality. They made her strong, caring, and even proud of certain aspects of her background. She managed to find a positive light in some of the darkness of her family’s past. Her love of Russian folk music in particular turns out to be not only a big part of who she is today, but also binds her to the future love of her life.

Standing Out From the Crowd

Even though Jonah feared that he would simply get lost in the wave of admirers surrounding Rose in her every day life, he actually manages to do something which sets him apart from all the rest. He asks Rose questions. He quickly recognizes that she always tries to turn the focus of a conversation away from herself, and he doesn’t fall for this standard ploy of hiding from others. Instead, Jonah succeeds in getting her to open up about herself, and in those moments is able to demonstrate his total selflessness, as well his definite interest in getting to know as much about Rose as possible. It also makes Rose feel vulnerable. Keeping secrets has always given Rose an air of mystery that has drawn men to her, and she now worries that because Jonah has seen every part of her he’ll either tire of her and move on, or not like what he sees lying behind the walls she’s erected around herself.

Secret, Secrets Are No Fun

In the beginning, secrets are a dominant feature of Jonah and Rose’s relationship. Not only does Rose not want to share the details of her family history, but she’s also keeping secret something which she doesn’t even deign to share with her fellow citizens of Blake’s Folly. Now don’t worry, it’s nothing illegal or exceedingly shocking, it’s actually the details of her musical past and present, including the fact she sings every Saturday for a Russian cultural club in the city.

As far as the secrecy of Jonah’s life, this has more to do with a misunderstanding, and possibly even a misleading situation. The whole impetus behind Rose and Jonah’s first meeting was that he stopped into her shop to buy a necklace for another woman. Jewelry…for another woman…who isn’t his mother? This doesn’t look too good, does it? While he openly admits it’s a gift for a woman he’s living with, he remains pretty tight-lipped about the identity of this woman, and Rose has no choice really but to assume it’s someone that Jonah is romantically involved with. This designates the beginning of their relationship as one bound to the “friend-zone”. While Rose might love to flirt with other men, she’s not one to pursue a man already in a relationship, so she tries to limit their interactions to ones that “friends” would do. By Rose acting more reserved around Jonah, he in turn assumes that she’s not into him as much as he is into her. Eventually they have a heart-to-heart about the true identity and background situation of the woman living with Jonah, and it’s a rather interesting turn of events.

Jonah openly admits that he didn’t make things as clear as he should have about the identity of this woman, and that he is to blame for the misunderstanding. However, he also scolds Rose slightly for essentially thinking the worst of him. At this point in the book, they have developed a pretty strong friendship. While they won’t admit the deeper stirrings of affection which are bubbling between them, they can’t deny they’ve grown close and have certainly come to care for each other. This is why Jonah can’t help but be slightly hurt over the fact that Rose’s first assumption would be that he’s just a typical cheater. I certainly understand his view on this, but you also can’t help but understand Rose’s misunderstanding on the whole situation.

If they had been friends for a while, and then Jonah were to admit his living with another woman, I could probably sympathize more with his frustration over Rose thinking he was cheating. However, seeing as this misunderstanding was bred from their very first meeting, and he made multiple mentions of this woman throughout their time together without clarifying who she was, I don’t think we can necessarily fault Rose for holding onto this initial misunderstanding. After all, she didn’t know anything about his nature at that point to be able to determine for sure if her assumption was true or false. If she had this idea during their first meeting, we can see how this misconception could balloon up bigger and bigger as they spent more time together, and Rose herself felt more remorseful as her feelings for Jonah continued to grow. I think it’s one part of their story that didn’t necessarily have a right or wrong answer as to how it was handled.

*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*

Series: Stand-Alone

Final Impressions: The relationship between Jonah and Rose felt “real”. Some of the misunderstandings and circumstances surrounding their time together may have been somewhat dramatized, but I enjoyed that the emotions they evoked felt natural. These were two people who had a friendship which developed into something more intimate. They were attentive in learning about the hobbies and interests of the other person, just as anyone would do in a real relationship outside of the romance novel world. I do wish this book had been slightly longer, as I think it would have been interesting to focus more attention on Rose’s various admirers, as well as her relationship with her mother. There probably could have been some features with more depth and exploration which went beyond Rose and Jonah constantly questioning whether or not the other person liked them as much as they did, but overall I’d say it was a good read.

Smut Level: Only one love scene, but it definitely has some heat to it! It certainly packs a punch in spite of how quick it was.

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $2.99 Kindle Price. Fire Star Press. 152 Pages.

Cupid Comes to the Lonesome Buzzard Ranch by Hebby Roman

Who would have thought that a weekend which starts off as such a disaster could so quickly transform into one of romance, and dare I say even love!

What’s it About? 

Les Springer, a widowed rancher, hasn’t stopped grieving for his wife. When three of his friends cook up a Valentine’s Day weekend at his B&B, chaos ensues. The three cowboys go to an online dating site to find matches. The only problem is, no one ends up with who they pick…almost. Jackson Coleridge, Les’ best buddy, kisses the wrong woman at the wrong time…in front of the wrong woman. Jiggs Davis, Les’ ranch foreman, gets drafted at the last minute to squire one of the matched ladies…but she’s no lady. Jayce Fulton, Les’ rodeo champion friend, tries to corral the lady no one wants…until she turns on him.

Harper Lewis, a social media guru, is divorced and thinks she’s looking for a husband…until she realizes she wants more. Can the cowboy she’s chosen meet her expectations? Lillian Mayfield, a widowed accountant turned florist, comes across as stiff and formal and still…grieving. Is she ready to open her heart and discover a new love? Cheyenne MacPherson, part Navajo and a sculptor, is dedicated to her work and feels the weekend is…one big mistake. Can a handsome cowboy change her mind? Eva González, Les’ widowed cook and housekeeper, misses her children and longs for a sense of…family. Is she ready to start a new family with the man she loves?

First Impressions

I just loved the premise of this romance with how every person was meant to be paired with someone else. Each couple really has their distinct personalities and characteristics which make their particular relationship unique from those around them. Although, I will say it definitely didn’t help that 3 of the 4 male leads had names that started with a “J”. Made it a bit tricky in the beginning to remember who exactly we were dealing with! After a while we get to know them all fairly well, and I appreciated the balance in how each couple received the appropriate amount of attention they deserved. You also can’t help but love the fact that these are handkerchief men! There are a few moments throughout the story where a few of our leading lads seem to whip out a handkerchief at just the right moment. Now, if that’s not the sign of a gentleman, then I just don’t know what is!

“Never, at any crisis of your life, have I known you to have a handkerchief.”

Online Dating Run Amuck

While I definitely enjoyed the haphazard way each couple eventually found their suitable partner, I sort of wish the impetus for what brought all these characters together was slightly different. This is one hell of a blind date when you think about! Some of these women are traveling rather lengthy distances for this romantic weekend, and the idea of four women who don’t know each other traveling to a B&B with a name out of a horror film to meet with four for men they’ve never met before…well it actually kind of sounds like the start of a horror film!

I think the one change I would have liked above everything else was if these women could have known each other and been friends before coming to the ranch. As a single woman, I don’t know if I’d travel such a long distance to go to a somewhat solitary cabin to meet with men who have seemingly put the call out for four women to come meet them for skiing and bridge over Valentine’s Day. But…then again maybe that’s why I’m single. Maybe instead if this had just been a group of girlfriends who decided to get away for a fun weekend of skiing, and then just happened to be swept away by the men on this ranch/B&B it may have felt slightly more realistic.

Speed Dating

We definitely have several whirlwind romances taking place over this one Valentine’s weekend! There were a few moments throughout the book where you can’t help but question if our couples are moving too quickly in their search of love. The fact that these characters spend approximately four days together, and by the end some are openly declaring their love makes you wonder if these couples will still be together a month from now, let alone a year. However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I wasn’t as bothered by these expeditious tales of love as I probably would have been if we’d been dealing with couples in their mid-twenties.

Practically all of these couples are in their 40s or 50s, and most have found love before. They know what it feels like to fall in love, and they can recognize when someone is special. For most of the people presented here they quickly acknowledge that what they feel for the person in front of them is something strong and unique. In some cases it’s reminiscent of what they felt for a past love, and in others it’s something stronger than anything they’ve felt before. Now granted, not everyone is ready to walk down the aisle by the end of the weekend. Some just seem willing to see where this new relationship will lead, whereas others are willing to make big moves and changes in their lives. Again, it was nice to see that not everyone fit into the same mold.

My Favorite Couple?

There are a number of cute couples to enjoy here, but if I had to choose my favorite it would probably be Les and Lilly.  They are clearly drawn to each other, yet both find themselves pretty consistently referencing their deceased spouses. The romance which develops between them might not be the steamiest, or one which receives the most attention when all was said and done. That being said, I think the message which was shared from their romance was my favorite of the bunch. Seeing as all of these couples are older than your typical romance novel lead characters, it’s not just the fact they’re in their 50s that makes their romance unique. Nor is it the fact that both have been married before, and are just now taking the chance to open up their hearts again to someone new. Rather, the aspect of their relationship which I found the most compelling was that in those moments where they couldn’t help but reference a memory from their late-spouse, the other person encouraged them to discuss it.

Neither was made to feel guilty for bringing up their beloved on several occasions, and they were never pressured to “move on”. Both of these characters could understand the difficulty of losing the love of your life, as well as the undeniable fact that some scenarios they encounter or places they’ll go will undoubtedly remind them of their wife or husband. While many people would view this constant remembrance of a previous loved one as an annoying or troubling characteristic, for Lilly she actually saw it as a representation of how devoted Les could feel for another person. It was something to be celebrated. You can tell that Les feels a slight sense of embarrassment over the fact that he brings up his late wife on several occasions, but instead of reprimanding him for it, Lilly actually encourages him to share the memories of his wife. He also does the same when it comes to the few times Lilly is reminded of her deceased husband, Doug. Both can acknowledge that they were in love with these people, and even though they’re gone, their memories live on. It’s nothing to be ashamed of or try to hide.

*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*

Series: Stand-alone. Since finishing I keep going back and forth debating whether or not I would have liked to see each romance broken out into its own novel. It would have allowed us to get to know each couple on a deeper level, but I also don’t know if the premise of how they came together could have held up if we had four individual books. Maybe another 100 pages would have been great!

Final Impressions: Could there have been maybe one less couple involved? Mayyyybe. I did enjoy how different each couple was, but at times it almost seemed like we may have been dealing with too much back and forth between our various characters. Especially considering we’re dealing with under 250 pages, to have four distinct couples was definitely a lot. I also found it a bit hard to get behind the premise of four solo females agreeing to travel to an oddly named B&B to meet four men they’ve never met over Valentine’s Day weekend to possibly find romance. That being said, we do have plenty of cute stories at work here, and you come to appreciate their struggles, their hesitancies, but also their undeniable connections.

Smut Level: Some of the relationships have some heat to their stories. These folks may have just met, but that doesn’t prevent some from getting a bit…handsy…at the dinner table 😉 Nothing overly detailed or outrageous though!

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $0.99 Kindle Price. Estrella Publishing. 224 Pages

Taming the Troublemaker by Kadie Scott

“You may always win, Autry Hill, but I never lose.” A woman willing to stand up to ladies-man Autry? Hot damn! 

What’s it About?

Autry Hill may be a cowboy to his boots, but he’s also gained quite the reputation as a charmer and playboy. His parents aren’t sure he’s ready to take the reins of the family’s prosperous Texas ranch, so they set up a challenge: No women or scandal for the next six months and the ranch house he grew up in is his. Easy peasy, Autry thinks. He’s already tired of late nights and romancing, until elementary school teacher Beth Cooper happens to cross his path. Suddenly Autry is losing his heart, his mind, and what’s left of his reputation.

Good girl teacher Beth Cooper is far too practical to fall for Autry Hill, even if she had a crush on him way back when. The man’s been breaking hearts since middle school. But when he becomes her unexpected champion and then they work together to help one of Beth’s troubled students who’s about to lose everything, she sees a different side of Autry – serious, compassionate, determined and dedicated. And that Autry is nearly impossible to resist. Does she need to?

First Impressions

Normally in a romance novel we see how a bet can bring two people together. This one throws a rather unique twist on the whole betting trope in that we see how it actually keeps our two lead characters apart in terms of not having sex. Autry has a bet going with a family member that he won’t get into any sexual shenanigans for the next six months, and lo and behold this bet is actually made with his father. Not a drinking buddy or frat brother, which is another aspect we usually expect to see with this theme. Well, not for this ranching family! Autry needs to prove to his mother and father that he’s worthy of inheriting the family homestead after his parents downsize to a smaller piece of property.

Aside from his parents and siblings, it’s probably the one thing that Autry is most passionate about in this entire world. He’s always been a bit of a player about town, but for the last few months he’s taken up a personal vendetta to clean up his act a bit. Something which his family and the other townsfolk of this small corner of Texas don’t seem to have noticed. The prospect of spending a few more months without a random woman in his life doesn’t phase Autry in the least. Until a quiet local schoolteacher flips his entire world upside down that is. Now, how could you not be intrigued to give this romance a read?

Staying Out of the Bedroom

For those of you who know me, you’ll know there’s one element I usually like to see in all of my romance reads, and that’s some hanky panky between the lead characters before the halfway point. They say patience is a virtue, and it’s a quality I have never possessed, and most likely never will. I usually hate when a physical connection seems forcibly delayed, so when I learned Autry has this bet going with his father which would prevent him and Beth from doing the horizontal mambo, I was understandably concerned. Lemme tell you, I was shocked the author managed to pull me into this story so fully that I didn’t even notice or care that it was taking a while for Beth and Autry to fall into bed together.

A big part of that probably had to do with the fact that just because they can’t have sex doesn’t mean they can’t do…other things, and my goodness do they do a LOT! But I still think the main part of this was the fact that I was so drawn in by these characters, their connection, their growth as individuals, that sex was the last thing on my mind. Don’t get me wrong, I love a sexual element in a romance, but the emotional connection and passion between these characters was so strong that I don’t think I would have minded at all if we’d gone the entire novel without seeing them have sex at all. Don’t worry though, they do, and it was everything I was hoping it would be! It was still refreshing though to see these two build a relationship that had such a strong foundation that didn’t rely on a physical component.

Big Brother

The true beauty of this novel lay not in the burgeoning sexual relationship between Autry and Beth, but rather in the familial relationship Beth and the entire Hill family were building with a young lonely boy named Dylan. A troubled foster child who seems closed off from the rest of the world, Beth and Autry are both determined to show him all the love he’s worthy of. Hands down this was my favorite feature of the novel. Dylan’s reluctance to trust others, or show hope in the possibility of someone else willingly choosing to care for him was heartbreaking, yet also the most truthful part of the book. We feel for this boy just as much as Beth and Autry do, and you can’t help but become entranced with the way that we see him open up from his shell to simply have fun as Autry spends more time with him as a positive male influence.

Striking a perfect balance between the love story in a romance novel, and any additional aspect involving children is often difficult, but this author manages to do it with a steady hand. It adds depth and struggle to the developing relationship between Beth and Autry, yet doesn’t overpower it either. If anything, my only wish would be that Beth was featured a bit more prominently in the scenes which ameliorated the connection with Dylan. It’s clear at the start of the novel that Dylan and Beth have already established a sense of trust with each other, so the book itself focuses more attention on Autry working his way into Dylan’s life. I think just one more scene elaborating on this already defined relationship between Beth and Dylan would have been especially enlightening.

The Hill Family

Throughout this entire series we have seen how close the Hill family is as a unit, and Autry’s connection with them is just as strong. However, his past “sins” have apparently put a kind of black mark on their opinion of him. They still love him, but it’s clear throughout their conversations with Autry that they seem surprised any time he demonstrates a selfless act. Needless to say, Autry becomes increasingly upset over his family’s seemingly less than positive opinion of him, and it’s a type of underlying animosity which grows and grows throughout the book. Sure, he’s a bit of a flirt, but it’s clear to us as the audience that every action and feeling he’s ever had towards Beth, Dylan, or his family has been filled with nothing but affection and love.

There was one scene in particular that I feel deserves mention where Autry has seemingly reached the breaking point in listening to his family’s underhanded sarcastic comments about him. He lashes out at his brother, who was surprised Autry wanted to spend more time with Dylan instead of going out drinking. It was such a beautiful and emotional scene you can practically feel the tension emanating off the page. Personally I think it was a kind of defense mechanism, in that his devotion to Dylan was being called into question by those who are supposed to know him best. Autry exclaims in frustration and anger that his family apparently seems to think so little of him, and he’s practically shaking with outrage. He’s a good person with a good heart, and he never thought he’d have to prove that to his family. It’s a quick scene, but for me it’s the one I’ll probably remember the most from this book. It sort of encapsulates Autry’s desire to be known as a good man, and for his past indiscretions to no longer characterize the man he is today.

*A copy of this book was provided for an honest review*

Series: The Hills of Texas, book 3. I didn’t think it was possible, but this series might just be getting better with every new addition we see of a Hill family member. Can’t wait to see what comes next!

Final Impressions: If I had to find one negative of this book it would be that I don’t immediately have book 4 in my hands to start right now! We’ve come to know and love this Hill family, yet I’m surprised that with each new novel in the series we see a slew of different personalities from those we’ve seen in the previous book. Sure, we see some familiar faces from book to book, but it never feels like we’re seeing the same story, or the same people, on repeat. I especially loved the story-line we see here involving Dylan, as it allows us to see a different aspect of how someone can become enveloped into the Hill family. We hold our breath as we question how Beth and Autry’s story might evolve, from their own romance, to whether or not they’ll be able to save Dylan from getting lost in the foster system.

Smut Level: Sure, there might be a no-sex bet in place, but thankfully Autry is willing to push the boundaries as far as what that might include. Some things which aren’t off the table include kissing, licking, sucking, tugging and even a bit of stroking. And they’re on the kitchen table for that matter!

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $3.99 Kindle Price. Tule Publishing. 207 Pages.