I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Cowboy for Hire (Wishing River, #2) by Victoria James Published by Entangled: Amara ISBN: 1640638210
on March 31, 2020
Pages: 400
Read it as: eARC
Source: Publisher
My rating:
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Synopsis
When a shy woman inherits a ranch, she’ll have to find an inner strength to succeed—and open herself up to love—in this heartwarming novel from New York Times bestselling author Victoria James.
Sarah Turner has led a very sheltered life. So when her parents pass away tragically, suddenly she’s left in charge of the family ranch with little know-how but plenty of will to keep it afloat. Determined not to lose her parents’ legacy or her newfound independence, she needs a hero fast—not to save her, but to show her how to save herself. But she’s unprepared for the ruggedly handsome cowboy who answers her ad.
“Cowboy for Hire,” the ad said, and Cade Walker is quick to respond. Betrayed as ranch manager by his former boss, he’s looking for a new place to put down roots—without the pressure to prove himself again. Except when he meets his new boss, it’s clear he’s not only there to run a ranch but to also teach Miss Independent how to run it. But as they struggle to make the ranch flourish, they’ll both need courage if they hope to find a family...together.
Where to begin with this book? I should start by saying it has its moments.
That said, I did expect more from it. More conflict, more tension to keep me turning the pages. On their own, the characters were super likable and both had so much depth. I could see the story unfolding in real life, but a story is not supposed to be like real life. It’s supposed to have a conflict. I guess this is what bothered me the most.
Fine, okay, there is a conflict, but…
I don’t want to spoil anything, even though there is little I can say to truly spoil the book. But there is something our cowboy Cade is keeping from Sarah. That does work and has you wondering what will happen. But it’s something that is so in the back of your mind, it doesn’t really matter throughout the book, until Cade begins to think about it more and then the conflict actually comes into play.
For a book to keep me hooked I need more. So we get these scenes between our leads, which are nice, I guess. But they’re a teeny tiny bit dull. It just feels like there’s a lot of talking, and yearning, and pining, and not enough tension, spiciness… I don’t know!
I probably wouldn’t feel like this if the word ‘cowboy’ wasn’t in the title. It built my expectations, and I was expecting a different kind of story. I expected more banter between the characters. Not that I wanted sweet, responsible Cade to be an asshole. No, I like him as he is. But while he got know Sarah, I really would have appreciated them arguing more, and seeing them work on ranch problems together. Really see how they pushed each other’s buttons.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see that here. But now, I’m going to tell you more about what I did like.
These characters really grow throughout the story
I can’t complain about one dimensional characters here. Their backgrounds are quite sad, and they clearly need the emotional support. Sarah learns to stand up for herself, which I applaud so much. She does it even when it means antagonizing Cade, who she cares for very deeply. At one point when he makes a mess of things, she doesn’t inmediately cave in but makes it clear he made a mistake.
Cade too is super well defined. Perhaps knowing exactly what his problem is makes him a bit dull, but I appreciate that at least he’s got a story. He’s got motivations and fears. They’re a very important part of this story. And you gotta appreciate a vulnerable male lead.
Overall, I’d say this is a nice book. It lacked that added oomph that would’ve made it awesome.
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