Review & Giveaway - - The Cowboy Whisperer

The Cowboy Whisperer

by Sabrina Sol

Publisher: Forever

Release Date: November 28, 2023

Reviewed by PJ

 

When a champion equestrian butts heads with a sexy, brooding cowboy, the heat between them sizzles.

After her last disastrous competition went viral, Olympic hopeful Veronica del Valle spent three years healing – and hiding. Finally ready for another shot, Veronica agrees to train at an under-the-radar, family-run ranch in tiny Esperanza, California. The living accommodations? Sparse. High-end equestrian equipment? Zero. What Rancho Lindo does have is stable manager Tómas Ortega, a brooding, handsome cowboy who offers Veronica unsolicited advice during her training sessions. Advice that, infuriatingly, turns out to be right every time.

The only thing Tómas cares about are his horses and saving his family’s ranch—and not their new boarder, who makes it clear she’s not happy with his stables. So he’s shocked Veronica offers to pretend to be his girlfriend when Tomas’s ex comes back to town. All she wants in return is some after-hours training. He soon realizes Veronica is nothing like he imagined, and the harder he falls, the more he worries, because Veronica’s Olympic dreams will eventually take her away from Rancho Lindo – and from him.

PJ's Thoughts:

I do love me a cowboy. Make him a broody Mexican-American cowboy with strong family bonds, a special connection to horses, and a once broken, now wary heart and I am all in. Plus, bonus, he has brothers!

Sabrina Sol has created an enjoyable contemporary romance with two main characters who have both been hurt by love. I enjoyed their journey from adversaries to lovers, with a fake relationship that gradually grows into friendship, thrown into the mix. Veronica and Tómas each have flaws, familial complications, and emotional baggage that make them both realistic and relatable. Each has an emotional journey of growth to complete individually as well as part of a couple. Sol guides them through it with a deft hand. The banter between them is lively, as is the initial friction that morphs into an undeniable attraction. They're opposites in many ways but alike in others, sharing commonalities, such as their love of horses and of family. I could feel the feelings that slowly grow between them even when they are at odds. 

I really enjoyed the Mexican-American representation of both families in this book. Sol has included traditions, (drool-worthy) food, and Spanish language that give the characters and their storylines a rich cultural authenticity. It brought them to life for me, eliciting a deep appreciation for their history as well as their present-day lives. 

The Cowboy Whisperer is the second book in this series but stands well on its own. Even though the lead couple from book one, Second Chance at Rancho Lindo, feature prominently in this book I never felt lost or confused for not having read their story. However, once I met them I knew I'd be diving into their book too. I hope we'll continue to see the evolution of both couples' relationships as the series moves forward. 

Have you read books by Sabrina Sol?

Do you enjoy reading romances with strong cultural representation?

How do you feel about cowboys, whether present day or historical?

One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, December 7 will receive a print copy of The Cowboy Whisperer.

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

Thank you to Forever Romance for the generous donation of a print copy of The Cowboy Whisperer for today's giveaway. 

 

Review and Giveaway - - Kiss Me, Mi Amor

Kiss Me, Mi Amor

by Alana Quintana Albertson

Love & Tacos - Book 2

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: July 4, 2023

Reviewed by PJ

 

 

Enrique Montez, smooth-talking heir to the Taco King empire, is man enough to admit that he made a critical error when he underestimated Carolina Flores. The agricultural hotshot should have been an easy conquest—who would turn down the chance to partner with California’s largest fast-food chain? But instead of signing her name on the dotted line, Carolina has Enrique eating out of the palm of her hand, and when fate steps in with an unexpected opportunity, Enrique is willing to do whatever it takes to capture her heart.

Growing up as the daughter of farmworkers, Carolina spent her youth picking strawberries in the fields of Santa Maria and vowing to improve the lives of people like her parents. Now, as one of only a few Latina farm owners, she has no time for romance and she’s certainly not about to let the notorious Montez brother anywhere near her business—even if just being near Enrique makes her skin tingle.

But she is willing to let him help get her overinvolved family off her back. When Carolina’s father and her lovelorn sisters mistake Enrique for her (nonexistent) boyfriend, she reluctantly agrees to a series of pretend dates to their town’s traditional Mexican-American holiday celebrations. Soon the fake feelings turn real and both Carolina and Enrique must convince each other to take a chance on love before their vacation romance is over.

PJ's Thoughts:

I have mixed feelings about this second book in Albertson's Love & Tacos series. There are several things I enjoyed. The Mexican-American representation is strong in this book as it was in the first. Albertson paints a vivid picture of cultural expectations and traditions amongst the Mexican-American communities throughout California, adding a rich palette of textures to the story. Traditional foods are a strong thread and, yes, there was plenty of drooling on my part. While the author highlights colorful festivals and warm, welcoming families, she doesn't shy away from the darker side of life among these families, especially in the agricultural areas, and I appreciated that. Low wages and inaccessible healthcare are a concern and a thread of reality these characters work to combat. 

Where the story fell a bit short for me was in the main characters, in particular, Enrique. I had a difficult time connecting with him and because of that, I didn't feel as invested in his relationship with Carolina as I had with the lead couple in the first book. I wanted to see more growth in his character. Others may not have the same difficulty with him as I had. 

I did not have the same reaction to Carolina. Her situation tugged at my heart as she struggled with her loyalty to her family, including her ultra-conservative, controlling father, and her desire to be an independent businesswoman. She's caught between two cultures with no easy way forward. I found her evolution, and her layers, to be much more complex and meaningful than Enrique's. In the end, I was happy with the romantic conclusion to the story though I did feel the resolution to Carolina's falling-out with her family was wrapped up a bit too quickly to be believable. 

The cast of secondary characters add another layer of richness - and conflict - to the story and has me intrigued enough about the Montez brothers to want to know where their journeys will lead them next. I'll be sticking around for youngest brother, Jaime's story in book three. 

Have you read Alana Quintana Albertson yet?

Do you enjoy learning about different cultural traditions?

What's your favorite ethnic cuisine?

One randomly chosen person posting a comment before 11:00 PM, July 9 will receive a print copy of Kiss Me, Mi Amor.

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

Review - - Ramón and Julieta

Ramón and Julieta

by Alana Quintana Albertson

Love & Tacos - Book 1

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: February 1, 2022

Reviewed by PJ

Ramón Montez always achieves his goals. Whether that means collecting Ivy League degrees or growing his father’s fast-food empire, nothing sets Ramón off course. So when the sexy señorita who kissed him on the Day of the Dead runs off into the night with his heart, he determines to do whatever it takes to find her again. 
 
Celebrity chef Julieta Campos has sacrificed everything to save her sea-to-table taqueria from closing. To her horror, she discovers that her new landlord is none other than the magnetic mariachi she hooked up with on Dia de los Muertos. Even worse, it was his father who stole her mother’s taco recipe decades ago. Julieta has no choice but to work with Ramón, the man who destroyed her life’s work—and the one man who tempts and inspires her. 
 
As San Diego’s outraged community protests against the Taco King takeover and the divide between their families grows, Ramón and Julieta struggle to balance the rising tensions. But Ramón knows that true love is priceless and despite all of his successes, this is the one battle he refuses to lose.

PJ's Thoughts:

Albertson pays homage to her Mexican-American heritage in this immersive novel that kept me reading way past my bedtime. Inspired by Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet - but with a happy ending this time around - she explores themes of class, cultural representation, familial pressures. and gentrification in modern-day San Diego. Her experiences bring an authenticity to both the setting as well as the characters. In many ways, this book is a love letter to San Diego's  Barrio Logan, celebrating its rich, colorful history without discounting the challenges the residents, and their community, face. 

I loved the traditions, music, culture, and food (word of advice: do not read this book on an empty stomach) spotlighted in the novel. The characters convey the deep appreciation Chicanos hold for their heritage while also acknowledging the separation within the communities that arise between the "locals" (Julieta) and those viewed as "sellouts" (Ramón), the ones who have left the ethnic communities behind to seek greener pastures in rich enclaves and country club communities. It's an additional layer of complication that Ramón and Julieta must overcome to achieve their happily ever after and one that causes significant introspection for Ramón.

Ramón and Julieta are both relatable, likeable characters with layers that made them - and their journey - interesting. I had no trouble connecting with them, loved their chemistry, and cheered them on in the face of the parental and community opposition they faced. I hope Albertson will continue to follow the progression of their relationship in the next two books, which I'm hoping will star Ramón's brothers. They each showed intriguing layers in the second half of this book that have me eager to read their stories. And if there's more food, music, and cultural richness in their books too, all the better.