Welcome to Big Verde, Texas, where a love-‘em-and-leave-‘em cowboy faces his greatest challenge yet—the woman he left behind. Perfect for fans of New York Times bestselling authors Lori Wilde and Carolyn Brown. Some cowboys aren’t cut out to be Prince Charming—and Claire Kowalski knows that better than anyone. She gave her heart to Ford Jarvis two years ago, yet that didn’t keep him … that better than anyone. She gave her heart to Ford Jarvis two years ago, yet that didn’t keep him from disappearing into the sunset. Now that he’s back in Big Verde, Texas, she’s determined not to make the same mistake twice. But the ruggedly sexy cowboy still knows how to push all her buttons, and avoiding him is nearly impossible when she needs his help.
Ford didn’t plan on returning home—ever—but when he hears that the Kowalski ranch is in trouble, he hightails it back to town. He’s not eager to be reminded of the life he can never have, but his time in Big Verde is only temporary. He’ll stay long enough to get the ranch up and running, then hit the road again. But when Ford finds out the new foreman he’s training is Claire, still as stubborn and beautiful as ever, this cowboy is going to have to decide what matters most—repeating the mistakes of the past or fighting for a future with the only woman he’s ever loved..
This story will keep you laughing throughout at the antics of the characters. Ford is back in a place he never thought he would be and facing the woman he left behind. Claire has been trying to find her Prince Charming and wants to ignore the man who did not stick around. The author builds a hilarious story filled with cowboy superstitions and animals that behaved oddly. It involves an entire small community that takes care of each other like family. The characters are bold and likable and will make you want to see each of them get their happy ending as Ford and Claire does.
Cowboy Come Home is the second book in Carly Bloom’s Once Upon a Time in Texas series, but it’s the first novel in the series I’ve read, the first novel I’ve read by this author, and it worked just fine for me as a standalone, and it gets 4 stars from this reader.
The setting for this novel is Big Verde, Texas, and the Rancho Cañada Verde, a 12,000 acre ranch that has been in the heroine’s family for generations. That heroine is Claire Kowalski, a strong, determined, statuesque redhead with an attitude to match. When we first meet her, she’s on a blind date with a Sizzle dating service match, a totally self-absorbed dud, and she simply cannot wait to leave, and does so at her first opportunity. She then tries to return home to her airstream trailer, dubbed Little Daisy, her home on ranch property, since she moved out of her parent’s house to gain some measure of privacy.
Claire is driving her new Mini Cooper, an ill-advised vehicle for getting around on the ranch, and certainly the wrong vehicle to be driving during a torrential downpour. When she tries to cross a low-water bridge to get back to her trailer, her car dies–not because of a malfunction, but because it’s out of gas, and Claire gets out of her car mere moments before it washes away down the creek. As she’s trying to walk the one remaining mile to her trailer, she is shocked to find herself being rescued by Ford Jarvis, the man she fell in love with two years earlier, the man who broke her heart when he moved on without so much as a goodbye.
Unbeknownst to Claire, Ford has just been rehired as ranch foreman by her father, and she soon learns the reason why–her larger than life father has throat cancer and he needs someone he can trust to take over running the ranch during his surgery and convalescence. Ford could only agree to act as foreman for 6 weeks, already having another job commitment waiting for him. It doesn’t make matters any easier because even though he broke Claire’s heart 2 years earlier, they still have off-the-charts chemistry, but Ford believes in the Jarvis curse.
Ford’s father was a rodeo star, and although married to Ford’s mother, he also had a woman in every venue, and he clearly didn’t believe in condoms because Ford has a plethora of half-siblings, all but one born of one-night stands. He believes in the Jarvis curse–there isn’t a male Jarvis anywhere in his family history who was faithfully monogamous, and he’s already decided that marriage and family are not for him and never will be. He likes moving on, enjoys a frequent change of scene, and he simply refuses to do to any woman what his father did to his mother.
When Claire confronts her father about rehiring Ford, rather than letting her run the ranch, she’s shocked to learn that her father doesn’t think she can run the ranch by herself (she really can’t), and when her father lets on that at his age, and with his health issues, it might be time to sell the ranch, Claire is devastated. But she isn’t giving up without a fight, and convinces Ford to teach her the ropes, how to run and manage the ranch, all while keeping her job in town and working on a business plan to market ranch-related products as a profitable sideline. As a romance reader, you already know that in romance novels familiarity doesn’t necessarily breed contempt, and that’s certainly true in this novel.
In addition to the sexual tension between Claire and Ford, we get to meet a host of other colorful characters in Big Verde, all of whom have widely diverse backgrounds and who all try to pull together to get the flooded town and its businesses up and running again. It was impossible not to get caught up in their lives and personalities, and that holds true of the town librarian who, after the flood, no longer has a library to work in. Then, there’s Claire’s closest friend, who was obviously the central character in the first novel in the series, and who now is pregnant with her first child, living Claire’s dream of a happy family, a good marriage and children of her own. Also living her dream are a gay couple who are about to adopt their first child. At nearly thirty, Claire is realizing that her dream may not come true, because although he broke her heart, she’s still deeply in love with Ford, and hasn’t met anyone else in the past two years who even comes close to being the man of her dreams.
There are other tensions throughout this novel, such as a bar fight when one bar patron says the wrong thing to the gay couple and the fistfight that follows. Ford’s younger brother, Worth, shows up to announce his engagement, not believing in the Jarvis curse, and commitment-phobic Ford doesn’t know what to do about it. Yet despite all the positive and negative events in and around town and the ranch, as well as the on-again, off-again relationship between Ford and Claire, it was hard not to like these characters and it all made for a rather well-written and absorbing read. It made me curious enough to download and read the first book in this series, and eager to see where Ms. Bloom will take us in her next novel in this series.
I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions expressed are my own.
Dally Up!
Oh my heart! This cowboy romance will give you all the feels! I love the way Author Carly Bloom wrote this second book in the Once Upon a Time in Texas series! Cowboy come Home is a heartwarming book that features family, love, heartbreak, curses, and second chances.
When the flood of the century hits Big Verde, Texas, it is just the beginning of what flows through town and Ford Jarvis’ life. Claire Kowalski knows her one time Prince Charming is in town for just a few weeks, but she is determined to not make the mistake of falling for him again…even if her father, Gerome Kowalski, has requested him to be there at the Rancho Canada Verde ranch. His health and life is uncertain, and he believes Ford is capable of providing the help he needs to get through these tough moments.
“What Claire had learned from the flood and her dad’s cancer – and all that had happened since – was that life was unpredictable. It didn’t follow some kind of storybook outline. You didn’t know what chapter you were in, and nobody was guaranteed a happily-ever-after at the end.”
This can be read as a stand-alone, but if you read Big Bad Cowboy (book 1), then you meet all of the characters and have a basic understanding of the town and the dynamics of the series…plus…it is very enjoyable! This series is wonderful! Author Carly Bloom’s writing technique and style is fantastic and smooth flowing. She wraps everything up nicely in the end, and you fall in love with the characters! 5 ropin’ stars!
Sweet, sassy, and adorably romantic!
Cowboy Come Home takes us back to Big Verde, Texas and into the life of the kind, vivacious Claire Kowalski as she once again finds herself relying on the one man who stole her heart two years ago, the supposedly cursed in love, stubborn ranch hand Ford Jarvis.
The writing is light and humorous. The characters are genuine, charming, and easygoing. And the plot is a delightful mix of family, friendship, adversity, touching moments, heartache, attraction, chemistry, comical situations, and sexy times.
Overall, Cowboy Come Home is the third title in the Once Upon a Time in Texas series, and if you ask me it just keeps getting better and better. It’s steamy, witty, highly entertaining and has everything you look for in a western, contemporary romance and more.
I don’t know why but it seems I’ve been reading so many second chance romances. It’s not my favorite but I’m getting used to them. I’ve been enjoying this series so far and couldn’t wait to read Cowboy Come Home. Carly Bloom is a new to me author and one that I’ve really been enjoying.
Usually, in the books I read, I’m more in the hero’s favor than the heroines. I can’t say that with this one. I really liked Claire and thought she was a wonderful person. Her family ranch is really in need of help and that comes in the form of Ford. He’s there to help her for a while but that’s as far as it’s going to go.
Claire’s plan is to stay as far away from him as she can. Ha! When has that ever happened?
I do understand why Ford feels he needs to stay away from love. Or I should say I understand his thinking. I got why he left the first time and that he felt it was for the best for both of them but…
I do like how much these two talked. They don’t even realize that they talk like a couple. I like these two together and think they make for a good match. If Ford can get over what his head tells him and let his heart lead he will be a happy man.
This was so fantastic! Cowboy Come Home had a wonderful mix of wit, emotion, and passion and was so entertaining to read. This story filled me up, thrilled me, and made me ridiculously happy!
Enjoyable addition to the Once Upon a Time in Texas series. This fast-paced, easy read hooked from the start. Loved watching Claire and Ford find their way back to each other. The epilogue left me smiling. Can’t wait for more from Carly Bloom.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC received via NetGalley.
Ford is a good guy, but also a rolling stone who believes the men in his family are cursed to ruin their own lives and those of everyone around them because they are incapable of settling down. Due to a personal tragedy when he was younger, he is afraid to let himself love and uses the supposed curse as an excuse. Two yrs ago he met Claire while working at her father’s ranch and they fell for each other, but he ran because he was scared of his feelings for her. Needless to say, Claire was angry and hurt when he left and vows not to let him back into her life. When they are forced to work together due to her dad’s health challenges, that proximity allows the chemistry between them to work its magic again.
I loved Claire so much. She was a strong, capable woman, a marketing whiz, and a really good friend. She wanted to find a guy that she could respect, fully commit to, and form a family with but she also wasn’t willing to just settle. I also loved that even though Ford had already hurt her once, she was willing to forgive and take another chance on him. He ends up running from his demons and hurting her again, but once again, she doesn’t fall apart, but picks herself up and keeps moving forward. This was an emotional romance and I loved that the resolution actually took some time, she didn’t just immediately forgive him when he came back after running away a second time. He had to start proving that he was there to stay before she forgave him again.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book from Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This is the second book in Bloom’s Once Upon a Time in Texas series and can stand alone but I wish I would have read the first before this one just to get the whole background for the series and introduction to characters. I think it would have helped to make it an even better read for me. However, I did enjoy this story. It was filled with family, friends, chances, dreams, heartache, happiness, trials and sorrows, forgiveness, new beginnings, laughter, and love. It was an all-around feel-good book with charming characters and a heartwarming storyline that will leave you smiling and looking forward to the next book in the series.
*I received an arc from NetGalley, via the publisher, and I am voluntarily leaving my honest review.
This is the first book I have read by this author, and it definitely will not be the last.
The main characters Claire Kowalski, and Ford Jarvis had a relationship two years ago until he left without looking back. Leaving Claire with a broken heart.
Ford returns to town when her father, a prominent rancher, asks him to temporarily fill in as the foreman of his ranch. Ford accepted knowing it was temporary since he has never felt a desire to stay in one place.
But as Claire and Ford start spending time together, he might see a future.
But fears get in the way. Will they find their HEA or will fears and a curse keep them apart?
You will fall in love with the town and it’s people. The author added humor that will make you laugh out loud, while at times you will feel the angst of the characters.
An engaging story from the first page to the last with complex characters you will love.
I was entrusted a copy of this book by Netgalley and Forever.
The opinions expressed are solely my own.
There’s just something about second chance romances that make my heart sing. Yes, the separation and angst is often painful, but the reward is so worth it in the end. Cowboy Come Home hit all the right notes and had me rooting for Claire and Ford right from the start. The book can be enjoyed as a standalone, but previous characters do appear and it would be most appreciated if read in order.
I really loved Claire. She was intelligent, strong, independent, kind, and had so much fortitude. She was unstoppable when she put her mind to something and was willing to put her own happiness aside for those that she loves. She had fantastic chemistry with Ford and I really enjoyed seeing them verbally spar and banter back and forth. The build up was delicious and I couldn’t wait for these two to lower their walls and finally give in to what they both wanted. I would never have thought that a scene in a little Airstream trailer could be both so insanely hot and laugh out loud hilarious. Yes, there’s the inevitable push away (I was really shaking my head at that one), but I was so happy to see that the characters just didn’t fall back into step with each other. They had to earn that forgiveness and really make an effort to prove that they were in it for the long haul.
The more serious moments (TW: death of a sibling, cancer) were balanced well with humor (Bubba was great comic relief) and the writing was wonderful. Catching up with all the previous characters was so fun and I loved getting a little more of their stories and glimpses into their futures. There were a few nods to Cinderella in the story, but I found the book to be overall less of a fairy tale retelling than Big Bad Cowboy. The epilogue of Cowboy Come Home was absolutely adorable though and I couldn’t contain my giggle and smile after reading the final line. Readers are sure to fall in love with this story as well.
*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*
Had it’s moments:
This was book 3 in the series and whilst it can be read as a standalone (I hadn’t read the prior books), it seemed to just jump into the story without building up the characters or setting sufficiently. I felt it took me a while to connect with the main characters and I had some difficulty investing in their journey. Ford is convinced he is cursed and unable to settle down and stay with one woman. Their road to love was a rocky and slow one.
There were some quirky and humorous side characters which kept things interesting. However overall I thought that the book fell flat and could have benefited from more in-the-moment action as well as more internal dialogue, especially in the beginning and middle parts. The latter part of the book was better and I really enjoyed the ending.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. All opinions expressed are solely my own.
**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
After reading the first book in the Once Upon a Time in Texas series and loving it, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this one. Carly Bloom drew me into the town of Big Verde and I haven’t looked back!
Claire Kowalski has grown up on her family’s ranch, Rancho Canada Verde, and being the only child of Gerome and Lilly, she is set to inherit it when the time comes. While the ranch is very much a part of who she is, she also has other dreams and would love to pursue them. One of the things she has her heart set on is finding her own Prince Charming. She thought she had found him two years ago when Ford came to work at Rancho Canada Verde, but he broke her heart when he up and left.
Ford Jarvis is a rancher who finds himself going from ranch to ranch. He’s not one to put down roots or to get attached, but when he had been at Rancho Canada Verde, he did both and he ended up falling for Claire. Believing that she deserved better, he left. He has always believed that the Jarvis men are cursed and that they don’t stay and fall in love.
Now that Gerome needs his help, Ford is headed back to the one place that has held his heart. His plan is to stay for six weeks, but will both the land and the girl have enough pull to make him stay indefinitely?
The chemistry between Claire and Ford was so strong and explosive. It was clear how much they cared about one another, but you could also understand why both were holding back. All of the characters that Carly Bloom has created have made these stories so rich and enjoyable. There are deep connections, friendships and the town genuinely looks out for their own. I love this series and I’m really looking forward to what Bloom has to offer for us in the future!
Five wrangled, roped and tied stars for this amazing read!
Two years ago, Ford left Claire after making her think they had a future. Now he’s back to once more help on the ranch and she’s determined not to let her heart get her into trouble again. But when life takes a detour, she finds herself relying on him to help her do what needs to be done, even if it means giving up her dream.
Claire is quite the heroine. She’s tough and sassy, but soft and sweet. Rancho Canada Verde runs in her blood and her loyalty and dedication to it shines through, highlighting her character throughout the book.
I loved Ford, despite his back and forth ways in regards to Claire. He has ample reason to not trust what his heart is telling him and watching him battle against the “curse” was heart wrenching. There were certainly times I wanted to knock him upside the head, but generally I wanted him to relax and trust the tug. Getting to the point he could do so was quite the journey!
’Ford shifted nervously from foot to foot and fiddled with the bring of his hat. “I lose my mind when I’m around you.”
“Clearly”
“So, I don’t think I should be around you. On account of how I, you know, need my mind.”’
This couple were absolutely adorable together. They knew how to work together, have fun, and when it came to something more, they certainly knew how to do that. The chemistry between Claire and Ford could be felt from the very beginning and I loved watching them as they grew to a place of trust.
This is a fun, witty story with lots of sharp dialogue and interesting characters that had me smiling pretty much throughout the book. As a backdrop, the ranch and cattle business did not consume the story but added a richness that could only be shared by someone who has experienced it. All the superstitions had me laughing and shaking my head, even as I realized I had heard most of them before and they brought back my own memories.
I absolutely adored everything about this story, the hero and heroine, the secondary characters and the most perfect epilogue. I have a strong suspicion of who the next heroine will be and I can’t wait!
Carly Bloom gives us this incredible story set in picturesque Central Texas, with the characters of Claire Kowalski and Ford Jarvis..
These characters reunite during a natural disaster and the results of course are disastrous. You will enjoy this book on so many levels I just couldn’t put it down.
This is the second book in the series a really good book fast story to read very good Romance basically will you want to commit book love the cowboy theme very realistic written going to go back and read the first book I look forward to reading more
Cowboys and their curses!!
Ford is a wonderful man who just has a sticking problem. He believes the men in his family are cursed and he needs to keep moving and not put down roots. Years ago he met Claire and even though he had feelings he left now he’s back and those feelings never left.
Claire is a strong woman who has a lot on her shoulders. A ranch that needs repair, a sick father, and possible new store venture and a cowboy who likes to cut and run when things get serious.
I liked that this books showed the strength and determination of individuals. I loved the sense of family this book had.
The only thing I didn’t understand is for such a smart woman that Claire is, how is she friends with Anna?