Ambush Before Sunrise

Jinx McCallahan knew she made a mistake. A big mistake! She was trying to rectify that mistake right now. But “Big Mistake”, T D Sharp, the husband she was trying to divorce just wouldn’t go away. He wants half the ranch before he will sign the divorce papers. Actually what he really wants is Jinx back. Ain’t ever gonna happen! Right now Jinx’s main concern is getting her cattle to their mountain pasture. Jinx knows that’s not going to be an easy task. The “Big Mistake” has been bad-mouthing her all over town and no local wranglers want to get in the middle of a domestic dispute so none have, so far, signed up for her cattle drive up the mountain. Now she is surprised to to see three wranglers from Montana show up, Angus and Brick Caldwell Savage, twin brothers and their cousin, Ella Caldwell. Two other wranglers sign up also. Jinx is a little leery of those last two, Cash Andrews and Royce Richards, locals but not with the best reputations. Oh well! “Beggars can’t be choosers.” Jinx fears T D will follow the cattle drive up the mountain and cause trouble. Little does Jinx know how much trouble is ahead.

Angus Savage and his twin brother and their cousin decided to travel to Wyoming to help out Jinx McCallahan. Their mothers had been good friends and when Angus’ mother, Dana Caldwell Savage heard Jinx needed help she encouraged the three of them to go. Angus remembers Jinx from the one time they met as kids. Does she remember him? Seems not. Angus liked Jinx when they met as kids and now he is attracted to her. He knows her divorce hasn’t come through yet and suspects she isn’t in the right state of mind to get involved with a man right now, but it never hurts to think positively. First they have to get the cattle moved and get back safely from the mountain. Easier said than done!

Ambush Before Sunrise by B.J. Daniels is the third book in her Caldwell Ranch: Montana Legacy series. This story is a real page-turner with plenty of action and suspense. Ms. Daniels keeps the reader’s interest with enough tension spread perfectly throughout the book. I liked the realistic characters and how the author kept me guessing as to what TD had planned and how Jinx and the Montana crew would handle it all. This is a super romantic suspense story. Another B.J. Daniels excellent story!

Really enjoyed it. Couldn’t wait to c what happen. Looking forward to the next book in line.

This was a good, fast-paced suspense story with some romance along for the ride. Jinx’s ranch is in trouble. After her father’s death, it was just her to run the ranch. She already kicked her cheating husband to the curb and is in the process of divorcing him. The trouble is, TD wants at least half the ranch. He also wants Jinx back. TD is a violent, obsessed man who will do anything to get what he wants. He made it impossible for Jinx to hire and keep local ranch hands, so she advertised out of state for wranglers.

Three wranglers from Montana showed up at her door. Twin brothers, Angus and Brick Cardwell Savage, and their cousin, Ella Cardwell, were sent by their mother. Dana had been a friend of Jinx’s mother, though Jinx didn’t remember the connection at first. Angus remembers Jinx very well, especially an event from their childhood. He was curious to see how that nine-year-old spitfire turned out.

The suspense and action were intense from the beginning. TD’s intentions are evident from his first appearance. He will either win Jinx back or kill her, and he isn’t all that picky about which one it is. Now, TD isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, but what he doesn’t have in brains he makes up for with devious persistence. Once Jinx and the others have the cattle on the trail to the high meadow, TD and his buddies aren’t far behind. Jinx and the others know that he is coming for them, which makes for a tension-filled trip. I was as antsy as they were as I waited for TD to make his first move. As each attempt that he made was foiled, TD’s anger and obsession grew. I was on the edge of my seat during that last night, as TD made his attempt. I liked the steps that Jinx, Angus, and the others took to give them an edge. Matters are complicated by TD’s girlfriend, who has taken steps to cut out her competition. The events on the mountain don’t go his way and leave TD even more determined to get what he wants. There are a couple of twists leading up to the final confrontation, and it is a nail-biter as Jinx faces two enemies. I did like the way it turned out.

The development of the relationship between Jinx and Angus wasn’t as intense as the suspense. There was no doubt that the two of them noticed each other, but neither was interested in a relationship. Angus was recently burned in his love life, and Jinx isn’t interested in a new relationship when she hasn’t yet gotten rid of the old one. However, Angus can’t help feeling protective, and that makes Jinx feel safer. Both feel the stirrings of attraction, but Angus realizes that Jinx has too much going on to be in the right place for him to pursue her. I loved the last chapter and Jinx’s arrival at Cardwell Ranch after several months apart. I liked that they made the effort to get to know each other during that time. I laughed out loud at Dana’s reaction.

I also really liked the development of the secondary characters. Brick and his charm and competitiveness were intriguing, and I’m looking forward to getting to know him better. Ella’s clear-sighted view of those around her helped me see things I might have missed. I’m also interested in her worry about her mother, as I remember reading Stacy’s story many years ago. The author’s descriptions of TD’s “minions” showed each of them with the weaknesses that made them susceptible to his pressure on them.

Ambush Before Sunrise makes me think of those spaghetti Westerns we used to watch on Saturday afternoon. And there I go, dating myself again. Anyway, my point is it’s easy to tell the good guys from the bad guys. If I closed my eyes, I could practically see the good guys in their white hats and the black-hatted baddies lurking and scheming nearby. We even have a gray hat or two in there to keep things interesting.
Knowing who the bad guys were didn’t diminish the fun at all. The pacing is spot on for a Western. There’s plenty of action and danger and lots of intrigue as TD connives while Patty manipulates. The way that relationship works and lengths they’re both willing to go certainly keep the pages turning. And of course, there’s a romance in there too with a swoony cowboy and a strong heroine who doesn’t exactly need saving, but she could use a little help.
From what I’ve seen, the Savage brothers come from another story written by BJ Daniels, but if I missed something, I didn’t notice it. The characters are developed, the story is engaging, and the intrigue was everything it should be.

This one will have to be another addition to the good, the bad, and the ugly. There were things I enjoyed about this story, for sure. Unfortunately, there were quite a few things that drove me nuts. The first being that, although I initially believed this to be a standalone story, I could tell almost right away it was somehow connected to a series. And boy is it! There seems to be a few series by this author that deal with the Cardwell family. Do you need to read them to read this? Nope. I understood what was happening perfectly. But I did feel that I was missing out on some of the deeper emotions and/or meaning with those from the Cardwell family that came to help Jinx.

One of the things I loved was the sweetness between Jinx and Angus. While I didn’t feel high chemistry, there was definitely an attraction and, more importantly, a respect for one another. They both felt the pull but knew it wasn’t the time or place to act on those feelings. Yet, when they were alone together, they were so open and honest and it gave me hope for their future.

Now, I’m going to admit that the biggest thing that drove me nuts may be something others will greatly enjoy. I have no issues with multiple points of view, especially in romance. I love seeing things from both angles…or more than 2 if there are more than 2 people in the relationship. But there are six points of view in this story. SIX! And only two of them are falling in love. The depth into which the author goes into the minds of Jinx’s ex-husband, his girlfriend, and the man in love with his girlfriend was just too much for me. I don’t mind knowing the motivation of the bad guy in a suspense, but it almost seemed like there as also a justification for their actions. Like the reader would somehow find forgiveness for the awful things these characters were doing if we could just understand where they were coming from. Ugh! No! Too much for me.

Which reminds me, I wanted to give a trigger warning on this one. Jinx’s ex, T.D., is truly a terrible human and is very aggressive with women. Not only physically, but also sexually and in verbal ways. Because the author did an amazing job writing these scenes, it could prove to be too intense for some readers.

I look back on that last paragraph I wrote and realize that I do think this author is a great writer. She is able to paint a picture with her words and that’s a beautiful talent to have. But, until the end of this story, I didn’t feel the suspense. I knew Jinx’s group was in danger intellectually, but didn’t feel the danger like I would have liked. Now, like I said, the ending did have that feeling for me. But I expected it more throughout.

Will I try out another of this author’s works? Probably. Most likely something from the beginning of her writing of the Caldwell family. I know others who greatly enjoyed this story, feeling as though they were revisiting old friends. So who know? It’s surely a decent read, it just didn’t hook me as I had hoped it would.

**I received an ARC of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely**

I’ve been reading B.J. Daniels’ Cardwell Ranch novels for some time, and it was nice to see one that wasn’t part of the series, yet it didn’t take me long to discover that she brought a few of the Cardwells to Wyoming in this contemporary western romantic suspense novel, which was a tad light on the romance, and which gets 4 stars from this reader.

Jinx McCallan is in trouble. Her father’s recent death led to her hasty marriage to the wrong man, T.D. Sharp, a handsome, smooth-talking, snake in the grass. He repeatedly cheated on her throughout their 2-year marriage and 6 months earlier, Jinx finally had had enough of him, his nasty temper and his verbal abuse when drunk, which was quite often, as well as his lazy, unwillingness to help with the mountain of work required to keep the ranch her father left her in the black, and she finally tossed his lazy butt out, filed for divorce and eventually filed a restraining order against him, one that he’s ignored repeatedly. He won’t sign the divorce papers unless Jinx either sells the ranch and gives him half the proceeds, takes him back (which is so not happening), or simply pays him off–which he’d prefer, since he’s amassed a mountain of gambling debts, and his debtors want to be paid.

It’s springtime in Wyoming and time for Jinx to move her herd of cattle up to their summer grazing ground, high up in the mountains, but she can’t do it alone, and aside from Max, her elderly cook, she needs to hire enough wranglers to help on the cattle drive, but T.D., using threats and intimidation, has made sure that no wrangler in the area will sign on to help her, but an ad she placed out-of-state is soon answered by none other than three members of the Cardwell family, the twins, Angus and Brick, and their cousin Ella, and eventually, a couple of other iffy wranglers, but Jinx knows that beggars can’t be choosers, and although she doesn’t really trust them, she accepts them all.

It turns out that Jinx’s mother and Dana Cardwell, mother of Angus and Brick, were good friends, and when Dana spotted Jinx’s ad, she sent her twins and her niece to help her late friend’s daughter. It also turns out that the twins had met Jinx decades ago when her mother visited the Cardwell Ranch, so Angus does look a bit familiar to Jinx, and Angus never forgot the feisty little redhead who pushed him out of the hayloft.

There’s more than one subplot in this novel, and I won’t give it away since I don’t do spoilers, but I will tell you that this cattle drive is fraught with danger, from the weather, the two iffy wranglers, T.D. who wants Jinx to either take him back, or is willing to kill her to gain total ownership of her ranch, since the divorce hasn’t been finalized. There’s also the slow sizzle undercurrents of the attraction between Jinx and Angus, something T.D. notices, and something that makes him even more of a danger to Jinx, who he still considers is his.

While I liked the main characters in this novel, especially strong-willed, brave, and feisty, Jinx, and protective, handsome hunk, Angus, my reason for giving it 4 rather than 5 stars is that it really was very light on romance. Aside from a couple of kisses and Angus telling Jinx she’s beautiful, I really wanted to see more depth of character develop between these two, as well as more romantic interactions between these them as well. After all, Jinx and Angus barely know each other. While there’s plenty of action and danger in this novel, and it’s well-plotted and well-paced, I felt that the romance was given short shrift–so all in all, it’s a very good, fast-paced read, but not a great, emotionally satisfying one.

I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions expressed are my own.

I’m always up for a BJ Daniels suspense! I also always enjoy going back to see what is happening with the Savage family! In this one, twins Angus and Brick decide to help out a childhood friend, Jinx McCallahan. Jinx doesn’t quite remember Angus since they were kids when they met but she is thankful for the help on the cattle drive. Jinx’s ex-husband is a piece of work. No one writes bad guys better than Daniels! TD, the ex, is one messed up guy! I love how Daniels writes the bad guy’s thoughts, not just his actions. The other supporting characters are great in giving the story a well-rounded feel too. The cattle drive up to higher pastures in the mountains was a treacherous one! Jinx, the Savage brothers, their cousin, Emma, the cook, Max, and a couple of roustabouts have trouble at every turn. This is a great intrigue and I recommend it!