Buttons Mom2003
A young cowboy nearly sacrifices everything for his momma Midnight Heat is the third book in the Midnight Cowboys series by Cat Johnson but it can be read as a stand alone. However, if you're anything like me when it comes to book series you will want to read at least book #2 before this one. Book 2 gives you a lot of background on very strong, a little more than secondary, characters in Midnight Heat. Justin's brother died two years ago and both he and his mother are having trouble moving on. His mother has been unable to function normally so Justin gave up his own place to stay with her. He is feeling the pressure of being the sole breadwinner and the need to give up any kind of social life. At less than 30 years old he feels more like 50. Phoenix is a disorganized first-grade teacher. Due to a clerical error she sets out on a journey where she meets Justin. I really can't say more than that because of spoilers. This was a very entertaining and relatively quick read for me. (Amazon says it is 320 pages.) Justin and Phoenix have an adventure with bumps along the way to their HFN, pretty normal for a romance. What was different about this story for me was not just the concern that Justin has for his mother, but the fact that he was willing to sacrifice his happiness for her. While this seemed a bit strange to Phoenix it was only because he didn't explain to her what was going on. So Justin is not some namby-pamby momma's boy, he is a concerned son. If I were to criticize anything it would be the ending. While there is an HFN I wish there had been just a little bit more. I hope Cat Johnson has a book planned for Colton, the third hired hand who works for Rohn on the Double L Ranch. *****Reviewed for Xtreme-Delusions***** I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Bette Hansen
I loved this one! Justin has always been one of my favorite characters in this series and it was fantastic to finally get his story. I don't want to give too much away and spoil the story so let me just say I really enjoyed how the author set this one up and how well it was handled. Phoenix and Justin worked great together and I thought it was great how things worked out for everyone. Definitely a book I would recommend.