He’d never mixed business with pleasure…until nowWhen Dallas Granger left his family’s Last Stand, Texas, ranch, he hadn’t planned on returning. But when a medical emergency calls him home and a legal matter affects his business, suddenly his family isn’t the only thing in need of a re-build. Unfortunately his new project involves building a house for a woman who not only awakens his desires, … awakens his desires, but also his fears. But if he wants to claim her as his own, he’ll have to tear down the walls he’s built around his heart.
Single mom Ashley Anderson knows all about juggling. Between an assortment of part-time jobs and raising her sixteen-year old daughter, she doesn’t need a hunky construction worker with an attitude as a distraction. Even one who steps in to help her when she needs it most. But life has taught Ashley that when the going gets tough, she’s on her own. It’s going to take a man with a Texas-sized heart to show her that this cowboy isn’t going anywhere.
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Dallas and Ashley were endearing characters.The realistic storyline was entertaining and engaging. I hope Dallas’s brothers will get their own story. I would love to read them. The ending was a little abrupt, otherwise this was a great read.
Ashley is a hardworking, devoted single Mom to Brittany. She works many jobs just to make the bills each month. When she signs on for House of Hope program to get a home for herself and her daughter she has one more job to do, help build what would be her forever home. This puts her on the path to meeting Dallas Granger a local man who runs a construction company, and former rancher. You’ll feel like your right in the middle of this wonderful romance! This was a book I didn’t want to put down and am wishing I could keep reading about the future of Dallas and Ashley!
COWBOY UP (Tangles Up in Texas Book One) by Michelle Beattie is a contemporary cowboy romance that is the start of a new series by a new-to-me author. This first book focuses on the oldest of five brothers and the single mom he meets working on a Houses of Hope (similar to Habitat for Humanity) project.
Dallas Granger loves building beautiful things. From cabinets to houses, he started his own construction company when he left the family ranch. As he is trying to take care of a problem one of his employees caused, he gets tangled up with the law. Then his brother calls to tell him his father is in the hospital and he is going to need help with the ranch. He does not know how he will find the time to deal with everything.
When Dallas is assigned to volunteer for Houses of Hope, he is not happy. He believes the people who receive the homes get them for free (not true), but he feels he worked to build his company from scratch and everyone else should work for what they have, too. When he gets to the work-site he is instantly attracted to the blonde helping with construction. When he finds out the home is for her, he is surprised and not very gracious.
Ashley Anderson juggles a number of part-time jobs to support herself and her sixteen-year-old daughter. She pinches every penny and the last thing she needs to deal with is a cowboy with an attitude problem. She has worked her whole life to stand on her own since she was a teen mom and does not need the judgement.
But as Dallas and Ashley get to know each other, they find they cannot stop their attraction. Dallas has a lot of family baggage to deal with and a broken engagement has left his heart closed off. Will he break Ashley’s heart or will he prove he can open his own?
This is a good start to the series, but there is a lot going on which somewhat detracts from adding more depth to the hero and heroine. I could relate to Ashley and her life, but Dallas really had trust issues that I thought were over blown. That said, they were a good couple and I loved when they talked out their issues and Dallas was a romantic. The sex scenes were realistic and romantic. I also, enjoyed Ashley and her daughter, Brittany’s relationship. It was nice to not have to read about a stereotypical problem teen.
I will be looking forward to reading the other brothers’ stories and having the family secret revealed.
This is the first book I’ve read by this author and I will definitely be reading more. It is awesome to get a book and it’s the beginning of a series and I can’t wait to see how this series progresses. The only downfall that I see to this story is she focused entirely too much on the secondary characters in Ashley in Dallas‘s story, their romance, was like an afterthought. I know the premise was to set up for books later in the series but I would’ve liked it if she concentrated more on Ashley in Dallas because after all it was their book. Overall it was a great story and I look forward to the next installment in the series.
‘Cowboy Up’ is a fitting title for what feels to be a modern-day romance with hints of old fashioned values thrown in.
Dallas has some “burs” to remove from his attitude. So his getting thrown into a forehead smack of a situation leading to his ninety-day penance must be fate in disguise.
Not that Dallas sees the House of Hope or the sassy no-nonsense blonde Ashley at first!
Ashley, a juggler of life, has way soo many tasks thrown up in the air. An unplanned gust of wind would send all of her carefully mapped out days crashing to the ground.
So the judgemental and ridiculously handsome Dallas is an evil, frustrating and delicious distraction, one she is sure her heart, and bottom line cannot afford.
Both come with a host of past and present “baggage” together they seem to make something else entirely.
A plethora of emotions run through the pages of this story. My liking of characters varied from scene to scene- they had a ” real feel ” to them while other parts seemed so out there it. I had trouble meshing the two together!
That aside, the heart of the storyline was sweet, witty, frustrating, with bolts of heat, eye-opening emotions Cowboy Romance! Some of those plots twists! I am curious to see what becomes of them, as well as the other characters further in the series.
A first-time reader of Michelle Beattie, I enjoyed this book, read it one sitting and look forward to more from her soon!
4 Stars!
This is an excellent offering by Michelle Beatty. Two people with tough pasts meet at a home being built for her by Houses of Hope. His preconceived notions, tempered by his past, almost destroy what could be several times. She’s a diligent struggling working single mom raising her teenage daughter alone. Expect lots of misunderstandings that lead to a finality of trust.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Ashley Anderson is a single mom whose daughter, Brittany is now sixteen years old. Ashley struggles with finances and has multiple part-time jobs doing the books for several small companies. She is having a house built by the volunteer agency House of Hope. This requires her to volunteer many hours helping to build the house and she will still have a mortgage to pay. Dallas Granger grew up on the Diamond G Ranch and struggled there after the death of his mother who died from cancer. He had to help out a lot with his younger brothers when his father was so overwhelmed by grief that he wrapped himself up in the ranch work and neglected the boys. Dallas always wanted to build things so left the ranch when his brothers were old enough to care for themselves to start his own construction company. When one of his employees steals a nailgun from the local hardware store while on company time Dallas fires him and decides to return the stolen nailgun himself. On his way to the hardware store he is stopped by a police officer and even though he explains he is returning the stolen item he is charged as an accessory and must pay a fine and do community service. He is assigned to help build Ashley’s house. Their first meeting doesn’t go so well even though they are physically attracted to each other. Due to their personal issues they don’t quite mesh personality-wise. Then they get to know each other better and do a lot of talking. Their relationship keeps getting better and better. Will they manage to overcome their issues and get together permanently?
Cowboy Up by Michelle Beattie is the first book in her new Tangled in Texas series. She does a great job of taking two people with lots of personal issues and getting them together. I loved the romantic touches Dallas did when they went on their first dates. Truly perfectly romantic! There are surprises and interesting interactions throughout the story. The relationship between Ashley and her daughter was pleasant to read about. Not all teenagers would be as thoughtful as Brittany. This was a very enjoyable read and I am sure true romantics will love it.
Cowboy Up is the first novel in Michelle Beattie’s Tangled Up in Texas series, and it’s the second novel of hers I’ve read, the first one being an historical romance. It’s a well-written novel, with an interesting cast of characters but there were a few things that kept it from being a great read, and so I’m giving it 3 stars
Dallas Granger, the hero, is the oldest among his three brothers, who live and work on the family ranch, but ranching wasn’t what Dallas wanted–his dream was to own and operate a construction company, but, while still in his teens, his mother was diagnosed with cancer, and as her illness progressed, their father simply checked out emotionally, working himself to death to avoid seeing his dying wife, and leaving Dallas to not only care for his dying mother but also leaving him to act as a father to his younger brothers–something they deeply resented, and more than a dozen years later, the brothers are still holding grudges. Eventually Dallas built his company from the ground up and is successful, but a phone call from home brings him back to the family ranch. His father has had a stroke/heart attack, was rushed to the hospital and is in a coma. Dallas needs to devote some time to the ranch, and once again face his resentful brothers.
As if that wasn’t enough, Dallas discovers that one of his employees, while running an errand to the hardware store, stole a nail gun from a nearby truck. He immediately fires the man, and is en route to the police station to return the stolen item to the police, when his truck is pulled over and he’s accused of stealing the nail gun. Even though he explains the situation to the officer, he’s charged with possession of stolen property and the judge orders him to pay a large fine and do 60 hours of community service. Since he’s a builder, he’s told to spend his 60 hours working at Houses for Hope, something akin to Habitat for Humanity, but a bit more upscale, and he objects because he doesn’t support the cause, automatically assuming that these are houses that will be given away to people who are too poor and too lazy to work. Judgmental much?
The heroine, Ashley Anderson is a single mom, working at least 3 jobs, 6 days a week just to keep a roof over her and her 16-year-old daughter’s head and food on the table. When Ashley became pregnant at 16, her parents disowned her, the father of her child wanted nothing to do with her, but did agree to pay some child support and has never even seen his daughter. In addition to all her jobs, she also volunteers what little free time she has to working at Houses for Hope, because one of the houses they’re building will be hers–she’ll have a mortgage payment every month, but she’ll finally have a place that belongs to her.
As soon as Dallas first arrives to begin his community service, he spots and is attracted to pretty, blonde Ashley, and she’s equally impressed by tall, handsome, sexy Dallas, that is until he finds out the the house they’re building will be hers, and judgmental Dallas does an about-face on his attraction to her. When Ashley sees a homeless man picking up construction trash and putting it in the dumpster, she tries to talk to him and when she needs a bit of help, she asks him and her boss if he can volunteer–it’s quite clear he knows how to use a hammer and nails, and, of course, judgmental Dallas automatically assumes he’s just scoping out items to see after the workday ends.
Once Dallas gets to see Ashley’s work ethic and learn more about her, his attraction grows, but once again, he finds a list of his pros and cons that Ashley’s friend started writing when Ashley first mentioned Dallas to her, and in the pros column he notices dollar signs. Once again, he decides that Ashley ai a gold-digger, just like his former fiance, who he discovered only wanted him for his money. When she explains to him that she didn’t even write the list, he apologizes but his doubt is still there.
By the time I got this far into the novel, I truly disliked Dallas, and no matter how apologetic he was, he never really changed his negative opinion of anyone, nor did he learn the error of his ways. Yes, he was attracted to Ashley and impressed with her beauty, her kindness and her work ethic, but when Dallas’ 8-month’s pregnant office manager has to suddenly be taken to the hospital, Ashley, who was there dropping off a gift for Dallas, agrees to close up, as Dallas suggests when she calls him for instructions. At the last minute, a client rushes in with his final payment for a job Dallas did for him. Not wanting to leave an envelope full of cash lying around in an office she can’t lock up, she puts the envelope full of cash into her purse and heads off to her next job.
If you’re thinking that Dallas is going to accuse her of stealing the money as soon as he hears from his client who tells him he left the payment with Dallas’ pretty new secretary, and then sees her in a new pair of jeans and new boots, you’re right, he does just that. Ashley tells him that she locked the money in the glove compartment of his truck for safekeeping, and leaves him, their planned weekend alone in cinders and Ashley in tears, hurt by his accusations and his mistrust and brokenhearted over the fact that when she finally finds a man she can love, he thinks so little of her.
Of course, the breakup isn’t the end of this novel, it’s a romance after all, so there’s a rather quickly arrived at HEA ending awaiting you, but quite honestly, Dallas isn’t a man I’d easily forgive if I could forgive him at all. Sure, these two characters have great sexual chemistry, and we see plenty of that, but although Dallas professes his love for Ashley and his regret at accusing her of stealing from him, I would not have forgiven him or taken him back, no mater how apologetic he professed to be, since I truly believe that leopards don’t change their spots.
Cowboy Up is not a bad read, as I said at the outset, it’s well-written, the characters are well-developed, and I liked the fact that this novel was written with alternating narration, but my dislike of hero truly affected my ability to forgive or trust him, and my desire to see the heroine find a better man than Dallas, no matter how sexy and handsome he was. Finally, the title of this novel, Cowboy Up, made no sense to this reader.
I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions expressed are my own.
Loved this story of Ashley and Dallas, both with troubled pasts that find HEA. Ashley is a single parent barely making ends meet when she meets Dallas, owner of a construction company and oldest brother of four brothers. Dallas offers to help Ashley out in a job at the ranch doing book keeping, soon a friendship develops into so much more.
Ashley is a very strong female character and does not expect to be handed anything free, she works hard for what she has. Dallas had to grow up young with the death of his mother and take over the raising of his younger brothers. Now with his dad in the hospital, he has more responsibility with the ranch.
This book has a sweet but sexy romance along with plenty of family drama that will keep you turning the pages. This is Michelle Beattie’s first contemporary romance (she has written pirate stories in the past), and I’m looking forward to reading many more.
This book had a lot of good reviews and the book was not bad it just was not as good as I thought it would be, well at least not for me. We have two people with loads of problems. We have single mother Ashley trying to survive on multiple jobs for her and her daughter and she is barely making ends meet but she will do what she has to do. She ends up meeting hottie Dallas at work sight where he is tasked with helping to build her new home, and they have instant attraction but when Dallas finds out that this home is for her he turns cold and judgemental thinking that she is just one of those lazy people that like things handed to them. When he finds out that she is a hard worker he realizes he judged her incorrectly and they start to build a relationship but more incorrect issues arise when he again judges her wrong and then has to apologize. I do not need to follow anymore of the family.
Rcvd and ARC at no cost to author..(netgalley) Voluntarily reviewed with my own thoughts and opinions