Jackie North begins her spin-off from the Farthingdale Ranch series with a slow burn, slow build romance set in the newly opened Farthingdale Valley site... The Cowboy and the Rascal
From the blurb:
First, you have to trust. Then comes trust in return. Then comes love.
Gabe’s working hard to save up to buy his own cattle ranch. That dream is years in the future, but he’s a patient man.
For now, he’ll be the first team lead in the valley’s ex-con rehab project. The idea is, put a parolee to work for a summer and he’ll have a leg up on the rest of his life.
Blaze, who’s just been released from prison after serving two years for a crime he did not commit, is among the first group of parolees to enter the program.
Nobody believes he’s innocent, including Gabe.
After all, all ex-cons are just liars, right?
A gay m/m cowboy romance with age gap, hurt/comfort, opposites attract, forced intimacy, emotional scars, lumberjack stuff, fish out of water, trust issues. A little sweet, a little steamy, with a guaranteed HEA.
Heather's Review:
With any new series you get a little extra world building and the Fathingdale Valley series is no exception... the valley itself seems like a side character of it's own... beautifully written and very descriptive...
Gabe and Blaze slowly take center stage though - as they work closely together and slowly begin to act on their growing feelings... if you read Jackie North, you know she's the queen of slow build and The Cowboy and the Rascal is the prime example of that... with just a few sweet and steamy scenes, she builds the romance between two men who need to learn to trust each other.
Trigger Warning for violence and attempted sexual assault - it's in the first chapter which explains Blaze's past and prison life... but could be skipped if you need to.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Laora's Review:
I love how Jackie creates a hurt/ comfort second chance at life with Blaze and Gabe. The Cowboy and the Rascal is told from both their pov, alternating per chapter. The characters are very likable and just layered enough to really relate to them.
Blaze has been hugely let down by his own family in which he sometimes felt out of place and their betrayal felt so unfair which puts him in prison over his brother.
He finds himself in a parolee program on a farm where Gabe is his team leader.
They have a likable dynamic and due to things happening find themselves together in certain situations. Things evolve after Blaze gets huge anxiety after his tent mate left.
I liked how both men are gentle souls and Gabe is able to let Blaze be himself and maybe for the first time in his life can be his true self. They do find their hfn/hea.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
The Cowboy and the Rascal is available in paperback and e-book formats and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited subscription.
ABSOLUTELY MAGNIFICENT!!!!
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