Finding Her Montana Cowboy – Lara Van Hulzen – Book Review

Finding her Montana Cowboy takes us to Marietta, Montana where we meet Wyatt and McKenna. Small town boy, Wyatt, wants nothing more than to continue living his quiet life as a ranch hand. That is until world traveler, McKenna, returns to town.

FINDING HER MONTANA COWBOY by Lara Van Hulzen

Publication Date: March 26, 2018
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: 228 Pages
Purchase: Amazon
Story Rating: 4/ 5
Romance Rating: 3/5

I received a free copy of this book from the author/ publisher via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

Description:

Former rodeo star Wyatt Emmerson leads a quiet life. He’s busy working with his dad and raising his daughter on his own. Romance is the last thing on his mind, but when McKenna St. Claire crosses his path, life takes a turn that Wyatt never saw coming.

McKenna doesn’t sit still well; traveling the world has always been her favorite pastime. She’s vowed to stay in Marietta for her family, but is ready to pack her bags as soon as her twin nephews are born. But a wounded cowboy and his young daughter steal her heart, making her question what she really wants in life. Will she take a risk on love and call Marietta her home?

Review:

Isn’t the cover just the sweetest thing? There’s something about cowboys…

This was another super sweet, wholesome, small-town romance. It’s no secret, I adore books about small towns. There’s something about the gossip and the smell of manure that takes me back to my formative years. Actually, the book didn’t mention the smell, which is disappointing because places that keep horses tend to have a very distinct smell. Missing olfactory information aside, there was a lot I liked about this book.

Wyatt is a small town boy to his core. Having as a retired rodeo star, he wants nothing more than to live a quiet life in the small town where he grew up. When experienced world traveler, McKenna, breezes into his life he’s reluctant, to say the least. He’s convinced she’ll pack her bags for her next adventure leaving him and his daughter, Kaiti behind and heartbroken.

While I fell in love with McKenna and Wyatt, Kaiti stole the show for me. She was so hesitant to trust and scared after everything she experienced in her short life. It was heartwarming to see her let McKenna in and start healing. McKenna and Wyatt were fairly well-developed characters. I would have loved to see more intimate conversations about their pasts. They both have baggage I wanted to poke around in.

Which brings me to the things I didn’t like. I read for those satisfying, emotionally intimate conversations. Nothing makes me happier than watching the characters share their secrets and insecurities and realizing the other person isn’t bothered. I didn’t get that conversation in this book, and there were plenty of opportunities.

The idea of love was brought up in the very coy “that’s what I love about… Oh, no! I can’t believe I just thought…” sort of way. I don’t mind it necessarily but after the second time, it stopped being cute and got old.

The next thing I didn’t like and this is why I could only give it 4 stars. Wyatt and McKenna’s big fight… It’s not a spoiler, we know every romance novel has a conflict that leads to a temporary break-up. This one felt forced and immature. Through the entire book McKenna and Wyatt were calm, rational, mature then all of a sudden things changed, they jumped to conclusions, they acted rashly. I felt like if they couldn’t clear up such a simple misunderstanding, they probably weren’t mature enough to be in a relationship anyway. I’m glad they ended up happy, but I didn’t have the empathy I usually do when they were sad.

Overall, Finding Her Montana Cowboy is the perfect read for a snowy afternoon. I would recommend it to anyone who likes cowboys, single fathers, and close-knit families.

If you like reading about cowboys falling in love you might enjoy Take a Chance on Me or Ryders Ridge.

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