One Tough Cowboy: A Novel

One Tough Cowboy has the potential to be a romantic suspense that is both gritty and gripping. Add in a sexy, alpha male cowboy and this one should sizzle. Sadly, it doesn't. The story starts off well-enough with a handful of suspicious deaths, an old flame rekindled, and corruption in town government, but quickly snowballs into something else. The mystery is still there, but it's overrun by one long sex scene after another once Hunter and Samantha get together. I can understand a strong attraction, but considering the personal stake they each have in this case and that they're both law enforcement, I would've expected them to be able to focus on that at least some of the time. Instead, they act like teenagers who can't control their hormones. The steamy fun certainly has its place, and the authors certainly know their stuff in writing detailed, scorching hot scenes, but it just got to be too much. If only that talent for details had been applied to the actual story, this could've been a terrific read. We do get some moments with terrific banter, and I loved one particular part with Hunter solving a set of riddles, but there are just too many inconsistencies in the story. One such inconsistency lies in the setting. It is supposed to be a small town in California, but the vernacular and several descriptions just don't fit. So much so that I turned back through the book to make sure I remembered the setting correctly. It should also be noted that there is a particularly disturbing scene toward the end that could have and should have been handled much better. The list goes on, but suffice it to say that the cons far outweigh the pros here, at least for me.

Hunter and Samantha’s love story was HOT, HOT, HOT!!! I absolutely enjoyed One Tough Cowboy by Lora Leigh and Veronica Chadwick, book one in their Moving Violations series. Detroit Detective Samantha returns to the small California town where grew up after the suspicious death of her aunt, an overdose of pain pills. Hunter was appointed sheriff by the governor after the suspicious death of his uncle; while hunting, except he didn’t hunt. When Samantha encounters Hunter, the cowboy who always protected her from bullies, she finds she is still attracted this handsome, hot sheriff, with a heart of gold. Hunter still has feeling for Samantha and the low-smoldering heat of their innocent childhood flirtation has matured into a raging fire, consuming them both. When Hunter enlists Samantha’s help in an investigation, he prays he can keep this love of his life safe and show her how much she means to him. All he needs is for Samantha to believe and trust in him. This reader felt singed by the heat and chemistry between these two characters. The suspense of trying to find not only the killer, or killers, was intense as was Hunter’s search to find out what evil was going on in his county and by whom. Ms. Leigh and Ms. Chadwick wrote an amazing, erotic, suspenseful and emotional story that is not to be missed. They provided a tale rich with sizzling chemistry, amusing banter, scary situations, and endearing characters. I struggled to put this book down. I highly recommend One Tough Cowboy to other readers. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

Exciting journey for two people that were close as children but then life put distance between them. When Sam returns to Deerhaven following a family tragedy, she is put directly back in Hunter’s path. Hunter was her brother’s best friend growing up and she loved him. She was always getting into trouble, the Pixie Pest, as he dubbed her and he would always rescue her. When her family moved away, she left part of her heart behind but didn’t realize it until she returned. Hunter is now the sheriff after spending time in the military. He is just as hot today as he was years ago which has Sam all tied up in knots. Hunter has a real mystery on his hands in town for a suspenseful set of twists and turns. Sam is now a cop in Detroit which allows them to work together putting them in each other’s path. The chemistry these two have is off-the-charts giving us intense sexy encounters. I loved their connection as kids to adulthood. Seeing how they didn’t lose that spark they had which allowed it to glow hotter as adults. The mystery was captivating and intense which kept me guessing. I voluntarily read an ARC of this book and this is my honest review.