Review - A Cowboy for Christmas

Title:   A Cowboy for Christmas

Author:  Sara Richardson
Series:  Rocky Mountain Riders #6

Genre:   Romance

Publisher:  Forever

Format:  Print ARC
No. of Pages:   416

Date of Publication:  October 29, 2019
My Rating:  4 Stars

DESCRIPTION:

Come home to Topaz Falls, Colorado, where the best way to spend Christmas is in the arms of a cowboy!

When the beloved Farm Café in Topaz Falls burns to the ground, widow Darla Michaels comes up with the perfect plan to help her friends rebuild -- a Cowboy Christmas Festival complete with a sexy bachelor auction and a benefit rodeo. But to pull it off, she has to pretend to be engaged to Ty Forrester, the irresistible bull rider who keeps testing her keep-things-casual policy.

A fake fiancée wasn't on Ty's Christmas list this year, but it's the only way to get his family to visit over the holidays so his NFL-star brother can draw more tourists to the festival. The engagement wouldn't be such a problem if Ty wasn't starting to have real feelings for Darla. Knowing he can't go on pretending, Ty prepares to tell his family the truth--but then he and Darla discover a precious little Christmas surprise that just might help them embrace a whole new life together.

Includes a bonus story.

Link to purchase the book

MY THOUGHTS:

A familiar, but very enjoyable trope. A fake fiancée. Ty Forrester has always felt like second best to his parents. Although a big-time bull rider who definitely draws in the crowds, his parents have attended every game his NFL-star brother played. Ty will be hosting all of them for the holidays, but he tells them that he is engaged.

Why such a fabrication? Ty and Darla Michaels, a widow in Topaz Falls, are among the very good friends of a couple whose Café has burned down. Ty, Darla and members of this lovely town decide to put together a bachelor auction to raise funds to rebuild. With Ty's brother being a big sports star, they know they can draw in a ton of money. In so doing, Ty suggests to Darla that they pretend to be engaged when his parents and brothers arrive in town.

A problem brews instantly. Both Ty and Darla have feelings for one another, and any type of long-term relationship is not something Ty wants in his future. However, Darla has a secret - something that will affect both of them for the rest of their lives. Sadly, Ty experienced great tragedy in his past and now must find a way to push the past behind him so that he can not only be there for Darla, but actually find the precious joy of a shared love.

This is a wonderful story. Not only do readers get to see this couple fall deeply in love, but Ty's healing is very touching, as well as how the relationship with his family is strengthened.  

Many thanks to Forever and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

When I first heard the story of how my grandparents ran away in the middle of the night to elope, I was fascinated. They followed their hearts and found a love that most people only dream about. Years later, my grandfather loved my grandmother enough to stand by her side through immense heartache and suffering with their special bond somehow still intact.

Amazing stories like theirs have always inspired me to believe to in love. As a young girl, I kept a notebook that I called “The Book of Love.” On those tattered pages, I copied stories and poems and vignettes that helped me hold onto the hope that love could change things, that love could make life’s heartaches and disappointments bearable. Since then, I’ve seen true love change people and circumstances and hearts and lives. That’s the kind of love my stories explore. I use my experience as a mountain guide to write stories that incorporate adventure with romance. By trade I’m a writer, but I’m also a wife, a mother, a dreamer, a believer, a storyteller and an explorer.

web | facebook | twitter