Review: 'Mistletoe Cowboy' by Carolyn Brown
Genre: Contemporary romance
What it's about: (Back cover copy courtesy of Sourcebooks)
'Tis the season for ...
• A matchmaking grandma on a long-distance mission
• Mistletoe temptation in every doorway
• A sexy cowboy with a killer smile
When Gran Presley agrees to sell Creed Riley the Rockin' C Ranch for a song at Christmastime, he can hardly believe his good fortune. There's just one little catch — her tantalizing granddaughter Sage is part of the deal ...
Why you should read it:
"First of all, exactly where are you sleeping?"
"This place has only two bedrooms and one is yours. You do the math."
Her eyes popped open even wider. "In Grand's room!"
He nodded. "She took all her personal things with her. Cleaned out the closet and the drawers. When she comes back she said she'll have a mover take her furniture to her new home in Pennsylvania and I'll make a trip over to Ringgold to get the rest of my stuff."
Sage's face lost all color and her jaw set firmly. Her eyes went to the shotgun hanging over the mantel and back to him.
Lord, was he going to die on his second day on the ranch?
Mistletoe Cowboy is a sassy, sexy, feel-good addition to Brown's popular Spikes & Spurs series. While Creed settles in for a three-week trial at the Texas ranch he hopes to buy, Sage braves a blizzard to beg her grandmother not to sell. But instead of her grandmother, Sage finds Creed at the ranch — right before they're snowed in. Sage's resentment is both understandable and touching, laced as it is with genuine grief. Creed gives as good as he gets, but his sympathy and respect for the ranch and Sage's attachment to it, not to mention his appreciation for her artwork, gradually defuse her anger. Their interactions are fun and feisty, showcasing Brown's signature down-to-earth humor and mischievous, matter-of-fact dialogue. (Speaking of fun and feisty — it's a laugh-out-loud delight watching Sage's grandmother and her grandmother's sister trade barbs as they negotiate setting up house together.)
This fifth book in the series doesn't have quite the community feel its predecessors do, but the story is no less entertaining. Satisfying and genuine, too. Despite their shared fear of commitment Sage and Creed work as a team, tending to the livestock, rescuing abandoned pets and carrying out the Christmas traditions that comfort Sage and charm Creed. A slow build of affection adds an authentic air to the romance, but don't let that cozy Christmas ambience fool you — the sex scenes are hot enough to scare Santa right back up the chimney.
What Carolyn Brown has to say: "Merry Christmas, folks, from Creed, Sage and me! It's an honor to be included among the Christmas (reviews) here at USA TODAY! When I first thought about writing Creed Riley's story, I figured it would be right there in Ringgold, Texas. His family all lived within spittin' distance of Ringgold and his brother Ace (One Hot Cowboy Wedding) lived on the ranch next door to the Riley family ranch. But Creed had different ideas. He said that he wanted to look at a ranch out near Post, Texas. So Husband, being the wonderful chauffeur and spouse that he is, and I loaded the car and went to Post to check out the area.
"And it did not feel right! No, sir! It was a lovely town, but Creed wasn't happy with it so there was no way I could write about it. We decided to drive north, then north some more and finally dropped off the face of the earth into the Palo Duro Canyon. And dear hearts, Creed and I were so happy with that desolate canyon that I couldn't take notes or snap pictures fast enough.
"The only trouble was that it was fall and even with my eyes tightly shut I couldn't picture it with snow. We came home and I wrote and wrote, with Sage and Creed right behind me and arguing about the story, and when the first winter storm hit the Texas panhandle we went back to the canyon. It was cold. There was snow. Mistletoe hung in the trees. I shut my eyes and I could feel the story. Here's hoping that you feel the chill of the snow, see the canyon and wrap the warmth of budding love around you as you read all about Creed and Sage at Christmastime in the Palo Duro Canyon."
Kathy Altman's debut contemporary romance novel, The Other Soldier, came out in July. She also writes romantic suspense. She's a member of Romance Writers of America (RWA) and Washington Romance Writers (WRW) and is also active in the online Harlequin community. Her website is KathyAltman.com.