Want Me, Cowboy (The 78th Copper Mountain Rodeo Book 3) by Sinclair Jayne - Review

Synopsis:

Cowboy Luke Wilder only wanted a beer at Grey’s Saloon. Instead he ends up in a fight with a brother he never knew and dumped by a fiery red headed bull breeder he only asked to dance. So much for keeping a low profile. But Luke Wilder is stubborn, and no woman’s ever said no to him twice, in business or pleasure.

Tanner McTavish is more focused on breeding champion bucking bulls than in making out with cowboys, unless that cowboy’s Luke Wilder. She’s had a crush on him for years, and the Copper Mountain Rodeo could be her chance for a little romance except she needs Luke on her side for a new business opportunity. Flirting and kissing are off limits. Too bad Tanner’s never played by the rules…

The 78th Copper Mountain Rodeo series
Book 1: Catch Me, Cowboy by Jeannie Moon
Book 2: Protect Me, Cowboy by Shelli Stevens
Book 3: Want Me, Cowboy by Sinclair Jayne
Book 4: Love Me, Cowgirl by Eve Gaddy

My Review: 

Luke Wilder had avoided the Copper Mountain Rodeo for years for a very good reason.  The first day he was in Marietta everything that could go wrong seemed to happen.  He freaked-out a woman, got into a fight with a guy who turned out to be a brother that he didn’t know about, pissed off his mother and got thrown out of a bar.  And that was just within the first few hours.  Luke really needed to focus on the rodeo and didn’t need any distraction.  What else could go wrong?

Tanner McTavish was back at her family ranch raising rodeo bulls while her father recovered from an injury.  She had a masters in genetics and animal science and had started her PhD before putting it on hold to go help her father.  Her dream was to have Triple T bulls on the IBR Tour.  

Tanner had seen Luke on the rodeo circuit and secretly had a crush on him.  He was the IBR representative who showed up on her ranch for the appointment about her bulls.  Luke planned to spend a couple days after the rodeo at the ranch observing the entire operation and meeting the ranch hands. Things heat up when an attraction between Luke and Tanner grows.  But Luke has a secret that he knows Tanner will be upset when she finds out.  And Tanner does find out when her twin sister returns home and spills the beans.  This was not what Luke needed right before the rodeo.  Will anything go right for Luke in Marietta? 

This book was a wild ride.  There was a lot of family drama in the story on both character’s sides.  But it was how they overcame the things that should have torn them apart that kept the book interesting.  The author did a good job keeping the pace of the story and with the character’s backgrounds.  There was an unanswered question, but I believe they will be answered in a future book.  All around it was a good story. 

Perfectly Charming (A Morning Glory Novel Book 2) by Liz Talley - Review

Synopsis:

Morning Glory native Jess Culpepper is desperate to get out of town after divorcing the only man she’s ever dated. She takes a temporary nursing job in Florida and, thanks to the bequest of her late friend, Lacy, has the funds to rent a condo right on the beach. She’s not prepared to literally trip over her old high school lab partner—and definitely not prepared for how deliciously hot he is now.

Ryan Reyes, once known as “The Brain,” has worked hard to become more than the skinny nerd that jocks bullied and girls politely tolerated. At twenty-six, he has retired from science to run a charter fishing business in Pensacola and spend his leisure time catching up on the debauchery he missed. But when the unattainable girl of his teenage fantasies moves in down the beach, old feelings come flooding back.

Their scorching attraction soon leads them into bed—but what starts as no-strings-attached fun is complicated by a return to Morning Glory and the shadows of their shared past. Can the head cheerleader and the geek redefine themselves and forge ahead to find their happily ever after?


My Review:

Jess Culpepper had always wanted to live at the beach.  So when she is offered a temporary position at a hospital in Florida, she takes it.  It couldn’t have happened at a better time.  It was a year after her divorce and one of her best friends had recently passed away.  She was ready to move on where no one would know her and she could just relax and unwind.  The one thing Jess didn’t expect was for one of her new neighbors to be her old chemistry lab partner from high school, Ryan Reyes, the school nerd.  But Ryan was no longer a nerd.  He had become a real hottie and now all the girls want him.

Ryan had worked had to shed his geeky image and become someone new.  After a lot of soul searching, he left his boring life in California and moved to Florida where he changed his image and bought a boat to charter fishing tours.  No one knew him as Dr. Ryan Reyes, MD, PhD there.  They all thought he was just a cool guy who liked to hang out on the beach and party with his friends.  Everything changed when he saw Jess on the night of his birthday party.  But he thought it was all in his head as he was drunk as a skunk and laying naked on the beach looking up at the stars.  Jess was the girl he had a crush on all through school.  The next day when he found out it really was her and not his mind playing tricks on him, he thought maybe this time he could finally have a chance with her.

I really enjoyed this story.  When I first started reading it, I didn’t know it was book 2 in a series.  I definitely want to go back and read the first book.  In this book, I enjoyed how Jess and Ryan started their lives over even though they both had insecurities, they were able to move past them and find love.  I also liked the friendship story too between Jess and her girlfriends.  It was sad that they lost their friend Lacy, but Lacy seemed to be the one who brought these girls to discover their destinies.  Lacy left a letter to her three best friends, gave them some money and also left them her charm bracelet.  The letter stated that each was to use the money to discover their own happiness and when they did, they were to add a charm to the bracelet and pass it on to the next friend.  It was definitely a feel good type of story.   

 

Kitty Smile

Chance for Love (Montana Born Rodeo) by Ann B. Harrison - Review

Synopsis:

Callie can't resist the advertisement for a ranch manager in Montana. Only thing is, it also stipulates marriage. Down on her luck with more debt than she can manage after the death of her parents in a vehicle accident, she takes the plunge and commits for twelve months.

Chance is sick of the high life he's led for years as a top International Bull Rider. The glitz and glamour aren't what he wants. After an accident leaves him unable to return to the tour, he decides now is the time to do what his heart has been yearning for - marry a down to earth country girl and raise bulls on his ranch, with the hope of bringing his brothers back together.

Little did he know that an advertisement would bring him a sassy talking Australian bride to turn his world up side down... Will Callie return home after her contract is up, or can Chance convince her to say I do forever?


My Review:

When champion bull rider Chance Watson is injured on the rodeo circuit, he is forced to take some time off.  He heads back to his Montana ranch to recover.  When he realizes he needs some help, he decides to advertise for a ranch manager and wife.  He had no idea he would end up with spunky Australian farmer Callie Lister and fall head over heels in love with her.

Callie is doing what she needs to do in order to help support her sisters after her parent’s death.   The job in America is only for a year and then she can head back home with enough money to pay off her debt and help her sisters.

Even though Chance's brothers are against it, he goes through with the mail order bride plan anyway.  Chance and Callie find themselves falling in love fairly quick.

The characters and their backgrounds were good and the story moved along fairly fast making it an enjoyable novella.  Although the mail order bride idea was a bit far-fetched, it seemed to work out well in this story. 

 

Not Quite Perfect (Not Quite Series Book 5) by Catherine Bybee - Review

Synopsis:

New York Times bestselling author Catherine Bybee delivers the fifth heartwarming, flirty novel in the wildly popular Not Quite series.

Mary Kildare knows how to read people. It’s both why she makes a great therapist and why she refuses to trust the average bachelor. Staying fiercely independent has been her primary relationship strategy—until wealthy playboy pilot (and commitmentphobe) Glen Fairchild reappears in her life. After a yearlong teasing tug-of-war, Mary and Glen test the waters of attraction, only to find that their physical chemistry runs deeper than flirtation.

At first, a bicoastal romance suits them both—especially since Glen can swoop in and whisk Mary away on one of his company’s planes. But no matter how close they get, they’re still three thousand miles apart. And when Mary’s life is threatened, Glen realizes the one luxury he doesn’t have is time. Can he close the distance between them before it’s too late?


My Review:

This is the first book in the “Not Quite” series that I have read, and I can assure it won’t be my last. 

Extremely independent Mary didn’t like Glen in the beginning of the book.  It took her best friend Dakota having a baby to finally bring them together.  Mary and Glen live on opposite sides of the country, but Glen, being a pilot, he is able to come and go as he pleases.  He also whisks Mary away for out of town dates.  Mary knows what they have won’t last long as Glen is known for changing women often, so she enjoys it while it lasts.  But what Mary didn’t know was that Glen was falling hard for her.  The glitz and glamour of Glen’s life was one thing that Mary liked, but it was how Glen came to her aid when a stalker destroys her home that made Mary really fall in love with him.    

This book had it all wrapped up in one fabulously told story.  Romance, suspense, great characters and the perfect plot hooked me from the beginning. 

Marrying His Best Friend (The McKinnon Brothers Book 3) by Jennifer Gracen - Review

Synopsis:

Single mom Maura Callahan never anticipated that at age 29 she’d be living with her mom in the suburbs, raising her young daughter, Chloe, and working a job that pays the bills but not much else. Her daughter is worth the struggle– and she still has her best friend Aidan, who makes her laugh, keeps her on her toes, and provides the oh-so-toned shoulder to cry on when necessary.

Aidan McKinnon, exec at a high profile social media company in the heart of Dublin, has longed to change his bestie status with Maura for years, but it seems Maura’s relegated him permanently to the friend zone. Still, she and Chloe are his world. But when Chloe’s father shows up out of the blue and demands shared custody when he’s never once met the little girl, Aidan sees a way to finally have what he secretly wants most while ensuring Maura and Chloe’s safety… and the diamond ring is just the beginning.

Will Aidan’s fiercely protective, knight in shining armor proposal of convenience end up starting the love of a lifetime?

The McKinnon Brother series
Book 1: All I Want for Christmas
Book 2: The Doctor's Love
Book 3: Marrying His Best Friend

My Review: 

In this friends to lovers story, Maura is a single mother living with her mother and doing her best to give her young daughter Chloe the life she deserves.  She never told Chloe who her father is because he was abusive while she was pregnant and she fears what he might do if they ever met. 

When Maura’s ex shows up after five years and wants a relationship with his daughter, Maura’s best friend Aiden comes up with a plan where they can marry and Chloe will be protected once she is adopted by him.  Aiden has always loved Maura, but he kept his feelings to himself. 

When Maura’s ex starts stalking her and Chloe and she keeps it a secret from Aiden, it could threaten the relationship that Maura and Aiden have.  Aiden takes things in his own hands at this point and it worries Maura.  How will their friendship and newly found romance survive?

This book was well written and you couldn’t help but feel sad for what Maura was going through.  All of the changes at one time would be more than I could handle.  But Maura is a strong woman and takes care of herself and her family.  Aiden has his job cut out for him trying to get Maura to trust him and I enjoyed seeing how he earned Maura’s trust.  I enjoyed this book a lot.  The characters felt real and so did the issues they faced.  The story moved along quickly with no down spots. 

Kitty Smile

Kitty Smile

Breaking Good by Madeline Ash - Review

Synopsis:

He wasn’t good for her. He never would be.

At eighteen, Stevie Case finally surrendered to her attraction to bad boy Ethan Rafters, sharing one night with him before she graduated and he skipped town on a one-way road to destruction. Years later, Stevie has hit back life’s curveballs and is no stranger to hard work, but when she finds herself working for Ethan, who’s turned his life around, her world shatters not only because their chemistry is still fierce and undeniable but because fate separated them before she could tell him he has a son.

Ethan desperately wants to be a good father and a partner yet he believes he’ll never be normal. The chaos that defines his life has destroyed his relationships, yet Stevie’s acceptance of his flaws tempts him with a life he thought impossible.

Dare he risk Stevie's life of hard-fought stability for his own chance at happiness?

My Review:

He wasn’t good for her.  He never would be.  But maybe if he really focused, it just might work out.

Stevie Case and Ethan Rafters were total opposites in school but they were still attracted to each other.  The night before Ethan was to leave town, him and Stevie finally got together.  It was the night Stevie's life.  She ended up pregnant. 

Eight years later, Stevie and her son Zach are vacationing in Byron Bay.  To help pay for some of the expenses, Stevie answers an ad for a painter.  Little does she know, the house she will be painting in belongs to Ethan.

Ethan never forgot Stevie.  When he hires her, he thought they could just pick up where they left off. Then he finds out Stevie gave birth to his son.  Ethan has no idea how to handle this life changing news.  He doesn't know how to be a father.  But with a little determination, they just might be able to find a way to make it work and become a family.

I enjoyed this reunion story.  The characters felt real and had flaws and insecurities that needed to be overcome.  The book was fact paced and well thought out.  I think any romance fan will enjoy this book.

His Montana Rescue (Montana Lakeside series Book 3) by Vella Munn - Review

Synopsis:

Former firefighter Echo Rose may have recovered from the injuries that nearly ended her life but the emotional scars still linger. She now devotes herself to protecting wildlife and sheltering her heart until local contractor Rey Bowen reminds Echo that life can offer so much more.

Rey Bowen is not the only one at Lake Serene with secrets and a desire to reboot his seriously derailed life. Meeting Echo reminds him that life can sparkle with joy and laughter and passion, but can he show the cautious Echo how to love again even as he struggles to trust his heart?

The Montana Lakeside series
Book 1: Romancing the Montana Bride
Book 2: Redeeming her Montana Love
Book 3: His Montana Rescue
Book 4: Saved by the Montana Hero
Book 5: Coming soon

My Review: 

A wonderful addition to the Montana Lakeside series. 

Echo Rose and Rey Bowen didn't like each other when they first met.  She is just doing her job trying to keep the risk of fires down and wants to protect the wildlife in the area.  He has a job to do and didn’t need a nosey ranger sticking her nose in his business.  As the contractor in charge of the renovation at the resort at Lake Serene, he just needs to get the job done on time.  

Soon, Echo and Rey start seeing eye to eye and become friends.  They both felt the need to protect their hearts and didn't plan to have a relationship, but when their new friendship becomes more, neither of them expected how serious it would become.  Will they be able to come to an agreement where they can do their jobs without any conflict?

The descriptions in this book felt real and it made me want to pick up and head the Montana mountains.  This novella was set at a good pace and kept me interested to the end.  The characters were well defined and their stories were told well.