Sandy M’s review of Man of the West by Sadie Callahan
Contemporary Western Romance published by Signet 6, April 10

I was in the mood for a western, some cowboys, so I picked up Man of the West, since I had been pleasantly surprised by Ms. Callhan’s Lone Star Woman that I reviewed last year. While the overall story of this latest book is good and I like the characters, I do have some disappointment when it comes to the hero and heroine.

Jolie has finally decided to leave her no-good ex-husband, so on a stormy night she packs up her daughter and very few belongings, sneaks out of her old life to head toward a new one on the other side of Texas. She has been employed by the Strayhorn family as their cook, and when she arrives, Jolie is amazed at the home she now has and at the people who welcome her and make her feel safe.

Deciding to come home to Willard County, Jake Strayhorn is the new sherrif and he does his job well. He’s drawn to Jolie from the moment they meet, and though he can tell she’s hiding from something or someone, he doesn’t push and begins to slowly get to know her. And that’s the problem for me with these two characters.

The relationship goes too slow. It’s their book, their story, their love but their romance is nearly put on the back burner while we get more romance from other couples in the book. That’s definitely too bad, because these are two very strong people who finally deserve some happiness, and I want them to have it. I also want more. But everything between them is strung out to the very end and between the goings-on in the bedrooms of Pat and Suzanne and J.D. and Maisie. I don’t really mind the addition of scenes for secondary characters, but I do want the same for main characters, and that’s just not here in this book.

Now, that isn’t to say that what is here isn’t good, because it is. Jolie is brave as hell for picking up stakes and taking off like she did, knowing her ex will follow if he can once he’s out of prison. Jake has to take a look at his life and make difficult decisions when he confronts his feelings for Jolie. And I like the fact that her innocence in life and lack of education doesn’t make a difference to him. The scenes between them are nice. But that’s as far as it goes. I just want so much more between them.

The other two relationships are a little more interesting, each not going the way you’d think they would when life throws them curves. I especially enjoyed Pat and Suzanne, and I thought they were doomed when an old love returns to mess up their happiness.

It’s also nice to catch up with Brady and Jude from Lone Star Woman. All of these characters are woven into this story much more than you’d anticipate, and for the most part it works. There’s a lot packed into this book, but I think a few extra love/romance scenes for Jake and Jolie would help out so much more.

Grade: B-

Summary:

Over the last 130 years, the Campbell-Strayhorn dynasty has endured triumph and tragedy. Now, the future of the sprawling Circle C ranch—even the survival of their tiny Texas town—rests on the shoulders of the current generation…

There’s a newcomer in Willard County, and Sheriff Jake Strayhorn is as drawn to her vulnerability as he is intrigued by her beauty. Jolie is clearly on the run from something, but she refuses to reveal her past—or let any man into her heart, including Jake. Still, Jake can’t turn his back on her—even if she winds up bringing trouble to his town …

Settling on an old, sprawling cattle ranch, Jolie Jensen is doing her best to mind her own business and make her little house a home for her and her daughter. It’s the perfect hiding place from her abusive ex-husband—or so she thinks. She knows her past is about to catch up with her, even as t Jake, the man who’s vowed to protect her and made her believe happiness is possible, will be caught in the fray…

No excerpt found.

Other books in this series:

Well, as much as I love reading historical westerns as much as y’all – the polite, alpha cowboy on his white horse and the town’s school marm with loads of gumption getting their HEA, but I also love reading contemporary westerns – that same polite, alpha cowboy who’s been raised right by his mama in today’s world and a more world-wise, modern heroine who can now be anything she wants other than a school marm.

I’ve not read huge amounts of contemp westerns, but I have my favorite authors who I go back to time and again, plus others I still have in the TBR mountain and know I’ll enjoy just as much when I finally read them.

1. Lorelei James is the first to come to mind. I have the best time with her Rough Riders and Wild West Boys series. The books center around the McKay and West families, and while they are definitely erotic stories, the way she weaves family with tragedy and fun and emotion with all the lovin’ going on behind closed doors, her books are always at the top of my list. Her cowboys walk and talk like they should too. No ugly western speak on any of her pages. My faves are Cowgirl Up and Ride, Tied Up Tied, and Branded as Trouble — all for three very different reasons. You can see my reviews of these three books and others of Ms. James here.

2. I discovered Catherine Anderson from the ladies at an historical romance chat group I’m in, and with her first book in her Kendrick/Coulter series, Baby Love, she hooked me not only with her storytelling and characters, but the emotion she wrings from with every book. I’m sorry to say I’ve only read a couple of Ms. Anderson’s books so far, but I know when I do pick up another, it’s going to be one terrific ride. My favorite of those few I’ve read to date is Phantom Waltz. Lordamercy, the emotion in that book will set you back a few days.

3. As good as Linda Lael Miller’s historical westerns are, her contemporaries are just as good. I loved her Montana Creeds trilogy released just recently (see my DDS review on the Creeds here) and still have her McKettrick follow-up books to read, which I know I will love as much as the original books.

4. Anna Jeffrey nee Sadie Callahan nee Dixie Cash is a one-woman force when it comes to contemp westerns. I have read her Jeffrey and Callahan books but have yet to sample her Cash stories. The few I have read so far have turned out to be pleasant surprises, especially Lone Star Woman under the Callahan pseudonym (see my review here). I have plenty more Jeffrey books to read and look forward to getting to them.

5. Though I really love her paranormals, Lisa Renee Jonesgave readers a look at another side of her writing with Lone Star Surrender last year. This is her only contemp western, but I’m hoping she’ll write more down the road.  Lisa is one of those authors who knows how to put the sizzle in love scenes whether it’s in the western or paranormal style, so more of her cowboy lovin’ would be a treat.

6. As for contemp western authors whose books I have but have not yet had the pleasure to read, there’s a few that come to mind: Jodi Thomas, Mackenzie McKade, Joan Johnston, Patrice Michelle, and if you’re in need of a guilty pleasure, Diana Palmer.

So. Have you read any of these authors? What’s your take on their books in the modern western world? Who else do you love/hate when it comes to contemporary westerns? I know I’ve not thought of a lot. Hit me with it, pardner!

Sandy M’s review of Lone Star Woman by Sadie Callahan
Contemporary Western Romance released by Signet 6 Jan 09

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Sadie Callahan is a pseudonym for Anna Jeffrey. I’ve only read one of Ms. Jeffrey’s books, so I was curious when I came across Lone Star Woman. There isn’t an underlying mystery or that type of thing in this book. It’s about a woman who has trained and worked and waited her life to someday be able to take over a portion of her father’s ranch, pull her weight, do what she feels she’s destined to do. Falling in love along the way really wasn’t in the plan, but life can surprise a body sometimes.

Jude is on her way toward a destiny she’s finally realized she’s going to have to make herself. Her grandfather and father don’t seem to value what she has to offer the Circle C, always turning her down when she knows she can help to make things better, so she’s going to buy land of her own and start from scratch. She’s going to have her own ranch like she’s always wanted, her dream come true.

On her way, though, she finds someone else on her property.  By the looks of it, the man thinks he’s going to be staying a while, and when she finds out it’s Brady Fallon, nephew of the previous deceased owner, her heart breaks a little bit more. He has every right to be where he is, and her dream dissolves into nothingness. And when she realizes her grandfather isn’t about to play fair where Brady and his land are concerned, she feels a need to help the handsome cowboy just to even the playing field, even after he comes to work for the Circle C.

Brady isn’t quite a low as he can go on the life sucks scale, but he’s close. When his ex-wife wants a divorce, things were going fine until her high-powered father steps in. Next thing Brady knows, not only did he no longer have a wife, he also didn’t have his son or his business. So when word came he’d inherited land from his elderly aunt, Brady is determined to make a go of it to finally have a place for the father-son visits he looks forward to when his visitation dates come up. He’ll even take the help of the beautiful Jude Strayhorn, though he knows once her father gets wind of their goings-on things will go straight to hell again.

I enjoyed both of these characters. They’re the type who never quit when they’re down, and their down is so very different from the other’s. Jude was born with the proverbial silver spoon while Brady has worked for everything, only to lose it. But dreams shattered, rich or poor, are still dreams shattered. These two are also good together. They felt real whether they were working side by side, making love, or arguing.

Jude is not one to be pampered, she wants to be out on the ranch doing the physical labor like everyone else involved, but it’s her father who nixes that idea every time. He knows how hard the work is and what it does to someone day in and day out and he doesn’t want his daughter old before her time. Brady agrees, and it’s not until events work against her and she needs Brady’s help that she realizes it herself. I liked the fact she fought for herself when needed, but she’s also intelligent enough to know when something won’t work like she’d always thought; there’s something else in life worth having and working for.

This is not one of those super-WOW! books, but it’s a nice love story of two people who belong together, have a time getting there, but once they do make it, nothing will keep them down and the fight has been worth every single roadblock they’ve overcome.

Grade: B

Summary:

Jude Strayhorn, the smart, free-spirited daughter of the Circle C’s CEO, intends to own her deceased neighbor’s abandoned ranch, the 6-0. When she catches a stranger trespassing, she discovers, to her dismay, the too-handsome cowboy is not a criminal, but an heir with plans of his own…

Although it’s been years since Brady Fallon set foot in Willard County, rebuilding the 6-0 means everything to him. Until, that is, he encounters the beautiful Jude Strayhorn. To make ends meet, he hires on as a Circle C ranch hand, only then realizing it’ll be harder than he thought to avoid a tangle with the boss’s daughter—especially one who wants the 6-0 for herself.

Read an excerpt.