2.5 out of 5 stars
Kindle Edition. 2nd edition. 190 pages. Published September 20th 2019 by Self-Published (first published October 5th 2013)
Blurb:
After years of saving every penny, Nathan has finally
managed to buy Tsarina, the horse of his dreams, and he’s looking forward to a
summer of exploring the mountains above Tucker Springs with her. But on their very
first ride, a motorcyclist makes a wrong turn, scaring the mare into bolting
and leaving Nathan with a broken leg, a broken hand, and a ruined summer.
Ryan is a loner and a nomad, content with
working odd jobs before moving on to the next town. Feeling guilty for causing
the accident that leaves Nathan in two casts, Ryan offers to keep Tsarina
exercised until Nathan heals.
A tentative friendship forms, and a strong
attraction grows. Nathan doesn’t want feelings getting involved, though. Not
after a couple of nasty breakups and especially knowing that Ryan doesn’t stay
in one place—or relationship—for long. It’s only a matter of time before Ryan
drifts out of Tucker Springs and out of Nathan’s world.
But since when do feelings ever listen to reason?
Now it’s Nathan who’s about to shy away, unless Ryan can ease his
fears…assuming Ryan doesn’t bolt first.
Likes:
- Horses.
- The general setup of the story.
- The romance and internal tension felt realistic.
Dislikes:
- I didn’t get invested in the story.
- The beginning felt like it was trying too hard.
- Ryan and Nathan were boring.
- Nathan’s character felt all over the place.
- The passage of time wasn’t well marked.
- Nathan’s reasons for not wanting to get into a relationship were lame.
- Nathan’s control freak attitude felt like a plot device.
- The groveling scene dragged on and on.
This book was like a piece of cake that looks nice but when you try it it’s dry, bland, and not worth the calories.
I never got into this book. I kept going because I’ve liked things by L.A. Witt before and I so desperately wanted this book to get better. All the ingredients for a good romance were there. They just didn’t make something good.
The accident happened too early in the book for me to get a good grip on Nathan’s character. I liked what I’d seen of him from previous books, but since this book was in Nathan’s first person point of view, I was looking forward to a deeper dive into who he was. So my first real introduction to him was him punching Ryan, then claiming that punching someone wasn’t like him at all.
Then why did Nathan punch Ryan in the face? Plot device. The punch broke his hand and made Nathan need more help. See, Nathan is a control freak, but it only shows up when it’s helpful to the plot. It wasn’t present when Ryan offers to help exercise Tsarina, but it pops up to show how good a guy Ryan was when Nathan freaked out before sex.
All through this story, it felt like things would pop up when needed for plot reasons, then be conspicuously absent when the plot didn’t need them. Like at the hospital right after the accident. Nathan had a broken hand, a broken leg, and no pain pills. Yet he was laughing with Ryan, and the massive amount of pain he was in wasn’t mentioned until after Ryan left.
I know that all romance novels force the couple together right away, but most of the time it feels so natural that I don’t notice it. I definitely noticed the author’s guiding hand in this book. It was especially heavy at the beginning, when it felt like the author was forcing Nathan and Ryan to get along smoothly after the accident, when a truer-to-life set of emotions would have been anger and resentment.
Even once the romance started, I didn’t get invested. Ryan and Nathan were boring. In a series full of such colorful characters, these guys didn’t stand out at all. It’s bad when the first kiss happens and I don’t care at all. Which is a shame, because this book had a lot of sex scenes.
The romance itself did progress naturally. Nathan and Ryan became friends, then casual lovers, then got deeply invested. The tension between them also felt realistic. That’s the best I can say about this book.
It took me days longer to finish this book than normal. I should have quit hallway through, but there were times, especially when Nathan freaked out during sex, that I thought something big was going on. Like that Nathan had repressed memories of rape or trauma or something. But no.
My final gripes are relatively small. I wish the passage of time had been marked better. I also wish Nathan’s reasons for not wanting to get into a relationship were better. And then the groveling scene was so long and drawn out I almost stopped reading.
Overall, I was deeply disappointed in this book. It’s hard to believe that this is the second edition.
Be sure to check out the reviews for the rest of the series – Where Nerves End, Second Hand, Dirty Laundry, Covet Thy Neighbor, and Never A Hero.
Love is Love Reviews 