Marrying My Cowboy

I’m disappointed in this bunch of short stories and previews. Not long enough or have enough substance to form characters you can like or dislike. There is no continuity and just jumps around.

This book was gifted to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.

I love Kate Pearce. In reading other collections she has been a part of I have found other authors to love. Of course, I couldn’t pass up the chance at an ARC of this collection when I saw she was involved. I’ve not had luck with Diana Palmer in the past, but I was all for giving her another go. Unfortunately, things did not go as I had hoped with this one.

The stories in the book are in the order of the author’s credits on the cover, but that’s not how I’m going to review them. I’m not a fan of negativity, especially when it comes to book reviews. We all have different tastes and opinions. I decided I’m going to list my opinions below with Kate Pearce’s story first, so you can stop after that if you don’t want any less than stellar thoughts on the other two stories. Here we go…

The Cowboy Lassos a Bride
by Kate Pearce

As usual, Kate Pearce does not disappoint. This story ties into her Morgan Ranch series and the love, chemistry, and friendships found in those full-length novels are also present in this short story. I love the Morgans, I love their friends, and I love the citizens of Morgantown. It’s hard for me to judge for sure since I have read this series, but I don’t believe you have to read the other books in the series to enjoy this story. They are all definitely worth the read though. This is the story of HW and Sam, who are featured in The Bad Boy Cowboy, getting engaged and married. It’s loaded with their usual spats and tons of chemistry and love to go along with those disagreements. I cannot get enough of this author. ~5 stars

The Rancher’s Wedding
by Diana Palmer

I’ll start this one off with facts instead of opinion. There are some major continuity issues with this story. The characters contradicted themselves numerous times. How can Cassie’s dad think she’s allergic to cats from one incident in her past, and then a few paragraphs later she states she’s had cats her whole life? Her dog situation became a confusing mess. The story was also very repetitive, Cassie and her father going over and over why they are in Colorado and the evil things that were done to them. Luckily, there was actual chemistry between Cassie and JL. That alone kept me reading.

I’m sure there’s a market for the type of characters that are in this book, but we’re at the opinion portion of my review now. The media is bashed, journalists are disparaged, the term “bleeding-heart liberals” is actually used, waitresses are looked at as less than. In fact, Cassie and her father hide the fact that Cassie is good at chess because JL might be suspicious of a chess playing waitress. Holy cow! I believe my blood pressure actually shot up a couple times while reading this story. After my other experiences with this author’s books, it really clear that she is just not an author I can enjoy. ~1.5 stars

Wind River Wedding
by Lindsay McKenna

Quite honestly, I skimmed a huge portion of this story. It was a whole heck of a lot of telling and no showing. Very early on, it was obvious this story is meant as a prequel to some other works by this author. I looked it up after and I’d say if you’ve read and enjoyed her Wind River Valley series, you may enjoy this. I’m pretty sure it’s a sort of origin story of the matriarch and patriarch of a major family in that series. But it is NOT a good introduction to the series. I felt like I would have enjoyed it a little more if I already knew some of these characters. There was no chemistry and the dialogue was stilted because the characters were telling each other things they already knew. Maud describing the layout of the land to Steve, who grew up on the land. Steve telling Maud who was standing up in their wedding like she doesn’t know her own best friend. I’m sure this was meant to convey this information to the reader, but it’s done in an odd way that really bogs the story down.

I will admit that I feel terrible judging this author on this story alone. Like I said, if you’re a fan of this series you may love this story. It doesn’t work for a compilation book that is, often, introducing a writer to potential new readers of their other stories. I may give her another chance if I come across something that is either a true book 1 of a series or a true standalone. This did nothing for me. ~1 star

**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**

This review can also be found at https://allingoodtimeblog.wordpress.com/2019/03/22/marrying-my-cowboy-arc-review/

The Cowboy Lassoes a Bride, Kate Pearce. You can never go wrong with Kate’s books, all of the Morgan Ranch series are great books with good stories of family, sacrifice and love. This novella is the wedding of HW and Sam. What can go wrong? Hmmm…everything. But as always, the Morgans pull together so that everything works out. That is what I like about these stories, the family (and friend) element is so strong that it is a joy to read these stories. I laughed out loud at a couple of the scenes.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

What a fantastic collection of stories. Also what an amazing way to introduce readers to new authors. I am familiar with Kate Pearce’s work but not the other two. I will have to change this quickly.

The Rancher’s Wedding* Diana Palmer
Cassie is a woman who is trying to lay low after a family scandal. However, someone tries to get a laugh at her expense and she meets LJ. LJ isn’t the type to let a woman freeze especially when he finds out his cousin is to blame. Neither of these individuals are looking for anything but yet they are drawn to each other. I really enjoyed this book.

Wind River Wedding * Lindsay McKenna
I enjoyed this book because it showed two people from different world (East vs West) fall in love even though their upbringing was very different. I loved the character of Maud. I thought she had such a great head on her shoulders and loved that she just wanted to help. Steve was a very stand up guy, it just seemed like he wanted to help a little further away from home. My only complaint about this book was the ending. I would like to have seen them 2 years after the wedding. There was a lot of concern about their time apart but then as a reader, we didn’t get to see the happily ever after, after the two years.

The Cowboy Lassoes a Bride * Kate Pearce
I LOVED this book. If you have read Mrs Pearce’s series, you already have a feel for this couple. Even if you don’t, its easy to catch up. This story centers around every possible thing that could go wrong right before a couple gets married. Luckily these two are strong enough to withstand it. My favorite part was when she was drunk and HW was trying to take care of her. The banter was fun.

I received a free advanced copy of this book from NetGalley.com. This is my unbiased and voluntary review. This is a collection of three stories from three different western romance writers.

THE RANCHER’S WEDDING

Kudos to Diana Palmer for tackling the spat of false accusations against Conservative men like the ones against Judge Kavanaugh. Producer, Lanier Roger Reed, was falsely accused of sexual harassment by a women who wanted his job. The SJW harassed his family so viciously that his wife committed suicide. He fled NYC with his daughter, Cassie, a successful script writer, to Benton, Colorado, leaving everything behind and now struggling to make a living. JL Denton, is a wealth rancher, who has been in a funk, since he found out that his fiancée was a fake, who was only after him for his money. They meet, when Cassie is the target of a prank by his cousin Carey. Neither is looking for a relationship, just friendship, but they seem to be made for each other. But will Cassie have the courage to tell JL the truth of her history before he finds out on his own?
I love that Cassie is an innocent with a morality that is not usually found in romance novels and that she was living in Atlanta (me too). As all of Palmer’s stories, the characters are endearing and the plot engaging. My favorite quote, which everyone needs to remember is “… we should never judge the past by the morality of the present. You have to judge by the morality of the time period.”

WIND RIVER WEDDING

I have not read any of the Wind River Ranch books, so really could not relate to this “backstory” of Maud and Steve Whitcomb. Having lived through the time period described, I was not impressed with the feminist movement then or now. The dialogues were rather strange, with the author trying to relate information to the reader, but already known to the other character.

THE COWBOY LASSOES A BRIDE

Kate Pearce is one of my favorite western romance writers and I love the Morgan Ranch series. This story is about HW finally convincing Sam to marry him and the tumult leading up to the wedding. This novella is a must for all who have enjoyed the rest of the series.