Once Upon a Cowboy
by Maggie McGinnis
Series: Whisper Creek, #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: June 30, 2015
In this sexy Whisper Creek romance for readers of Kristan Higgins, Susan Mallery, and Molly O’Keefe, a red-hot cowboy uses some Montana magic to give a reclusive beauty her happily ever after.
Yoga instructor Jessalyn Alcott radiates peace, calm, and serenity—on the outside. Inside, she still feels like the broken, desperate girl from the trailer park. She’s got dark secrets she can’t share, which is why she never lets her relationships go beyond the third date. But when she travels to the Whisper Creek dude ranch for a friend’s wedding, Jess is enchanted by a cowboy whose deep blue eyes, dimpled smile, and rock-hard body make it tough to remember why she keeps running scared.
Cole Driscoll has struggled to find his place on a family ranch where he’s always played second fiddle. His future might be uncertain, but he’s sure of one thing: He wants Jess by his side. Easier said than done. When it comes to getting close, she’s full of excuses, and he longs to fix the hurt he sees in her eyes. Now that she’s at Whisper Creek, there’s nothing he wants more than to break down the walls around her heart and heal her pain with the power of love.
Yoga instructor Jessalyn Alcott radiates peace, calm, and serenity—on the outside. Inside, she still feels like the broken, desperate girl from the trailer park. She’s got dark secrets she can’t share, which is why she never lets her relationships go beyond the third date. But when she travels to the Whisper Creek dude ranch for a friend’s wedding, Jess is enchanted by a cowboy whose deep blue eyes, dimpled smile, and rock-hard body make it tough to remember why she keeps running scared.
Cole Driscoll has struggled to find his place on a family ranch where he’s always played second fiddle. His future might be uncertain, but he’s sure of one thing: He wants Jess by his side. Easier said than done. When it comes to getting close, she’s full of excuses, and he longs to fix the hurt he sees in her eyes. Now that she’s at Whisper Creek, there’s nothing he wants more than to break down the walls around her heart and heal her pain with the power of love.
What a beautiful, emotionally charged story this was! Maggie McGinnis has written a book that will draw you in from the first chapter and take you on an emotional journey. She’ll make you smile and also have you grabbing a tissue, but in the end she has woven a tale that will make any doubter believe in happily ever afters.
Cole and Jess have been dancing around the attraction they have towards one another for the past two years. Jess has once again returned to Whisper Creek dude ranch for Hayley and Daniel’s wedding and the sparks start flying from the moment she arrives. And of course everyone is pushing Cole and Jess together – which makes it hard for these two to resist each other. I loved watching these two come together, only to be confronted with obstacles that seemed insurmountable, which ultimately made their HEA even more special.
Jess’s back story was just horrible. The life she lived before reinventing herself was painful to read about. I loved that she ultimately came out of those experiences a strong, resilient, and independent woman. Cole has also had some struggles with his past, feeling that he had to give up his dreams in order to help run the ranch after his dad passed. He is constantly wondering what he could have done or made of his life if circumstances were different. Now he’s also feeling the added pressure of trying to pick up the slack when his brother has to devote his attention to his other business ventures. As Jess and Cole begin their relationship they are both carrying around issues from their past that cause misunderstandings and hurdles that they need to clear. It was frustrating at times watching these two struggle to communicate and trust in each other, but the end result was certainly worth all the angst.
The added drama of Jess’s past coming back in to play added a nice layer to the story. Watching Jess grow as she built up the strength to deal with her issues was wonderful. And seeing Cole support her without taking over and handling things himself made me just love him even more.
I have come to love the Whispering Creek dude ranch and the wonderful family that has been built around it. This little slice of paradise in Montana has me smiling at the thoughts of real cowboys and trail rides, and has me hoping that Maggie McGinnis will be taking us back to Whispering Creek for a few more stories.
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Ahhh that sounds like a keeper for sure. I'll have to check out this series :D
ReplyDeleteThis was a good one - let me know what you think if you get a chance to check it out!
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