Friday, May 20, 2016

THE LONE RANCHER by Andrew Grey

 

Dreamspinner Press
February 15th, 2016
978-1-63476-912-9
Contemporary MM Romance/Western/Dreamspun Desires
Paperback
Reviewed by Dawn (love2read28@gmail.com)
Obtained by Self-Purchase
3.5 Hearts




Aubrey Klein is in a pickle. To save the family ranch, he needs money fast. So he finds a weekend job as a stripper at a Dallas club. For two shows on Saturday he is the Lone Rancher and it is the salvation he needs to keep the ranch he has grown up on and loved. But Aubrey finds that he is torn apart as time goes on with him going to Dallas on weekends and dancing and trying to keep it a secret from his parents. But it all comes to head when an old friend, Garrett Lamston, shows up at the club and Aubrey finds out that Garrett is gay like him. Now as the two men try to stop their meddling mothers, their friendship deepens, love beckons. But Aubrey knows that the secret life he is having in Dallas is tearing him apart. Can Aubrey cowboy up and lay his cards on the table for Garrett and his family or will it all come crashing down on him?

I absolutely adore author Andrew Grey’s books and his latest, THE LONE RANCHER, is no exception. His books are full of amazing characters that are quite lifelike and have the same fears, vulnerabilities we all have in real life.  The story moves at a nice even pace with characters that are enjoyable and quite entertaining. The author does a marvelous job in capturing the way Aubrey feels so pulled apart by the secret in his life as well as his new relationship with Garrett as it turns from a deep friendship to something so much more. The reader gets a sense of what life is like in the ‘bible belt’ of Texas and you can not help but find compassion for both Aubrey and Garrett as they try to deal with stolen moments, secrets, fears and shame as they try to find their own path to love and life. The scenes where Aubrey and Garrett talked about hiding who they were, the shame they felt and more just broke my heart. Those scenes, though painful to read, were happening all over the world today not just in books, movies and TV Shows. The author does a great job in capturing that aspect perfectly in the pages of THE LONE RANCHER. There were some lighter moments that helped keep a balance through the story and that helped a lot. It made it seem much more real to me and that helped me understand more of Aubrey and Garrett’s feelings better.

THE LONE RANCHER is a twist on the traditional Harlequin romances like your mom or grandmother used to read and the authors at Dreamspinner Press do an amazing job in creating stories that just take that kind of a theme and turn it on its head. I loved the whole masked stripper aspect of the story fun and those scenes left me smiling and laughing at my imagination going into overdrive as the scenes came to life in my head. The author creates a cast of characters that make you fall in love with some of them and for a few other characters, makes you want to smack them upside the head and shake them silly. Andrew Grey delivers a sweet tale of two people who find that falling in love is the least of their problems. The question is can they make it work even after all the secrets are out and that right there makes this book a keeper for me. Andrew Grey is my go to author for those heart warming tales that leave a smile on your face even as you flip the pages for more. If you enjoy a ‘traditional’ sort of romance abet with a twist, and then you will love this new line from Dreamspinner Press. For the few books I have read through them, I haven’t been disappointed once. I am eager to see what other authors come up with in the future in this new imprint line and can’t wait for more stories with heart from this author in particular. Definitely a book to keep on my keeper shelf.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement



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