What it doesn't say is that "A Cowboy in Shepherd's Crossing" is an absolutely beautiful and fun love story!
It doesn't say that this sweet, kind, hard-working and talented cowboy/contractor, a carpenter who learned the trade from his late father and who has simply run out of work in a failing, fading Western town is on the verge of leaving when everything...
And I mean everything...
Changes.
Jace Middleton has worked hard to establish himself as a building contractor/carpenter and a cowboy. He can round up sheep, mend fence, sit saddle and hit the hills in search of wandering ewes with the best of them. And he's a talented builder, but with the economic crunch in Shepherd's Crossing, there ain't nobody building a thing. And Jace faces the inevitable at the end or book one "Her Cowboy Reunion"...
The three Fitzgerald sisters were hung out to dry by their money-embezzling father. He left the family publishing fortune to crumble after bilking massive funds, went to Dubai with his current sweetheart and left his three steel magnolia daughters to deal with the Kentucky bankruptcy, a boatload of student loans they didn't know existed, and the loss of jobs when the publishing empire crashed and burned. The largesse of their late uncle brings all three women to Western Idaho, and it's Melonie Fitzgerald who rolls into town as the story begins. A gifted home fashion designer, Melonie made her mark in one of the publishing companies trendy home magazines, and was on the verge of getting a cable TV home restoration contract when everything fell apart. Her boyfriend disappeared, the job crumbled, the TV contract offer was never extended because right now the name "Fitzgerald" equates "Public Disaster" and what production company wants that onus?
Not a single one!
To fulfill the terms of the bequest, the women must stay in the area for a year and must do something that helps Pine Ridge Ranch continue to grow.
Mel's got nothin' on that. She's got a healthy and deep-seated fear of horses, she knows nothing about sheep and the entire town is falling-down wretched, if you know what I mean.
But when a wealthy, elderly white woman steps up to the plate and admits she's Jace's grandmother-- his biological grandmother...
Jace's world turns upside down. Throw in two toddler nieces from a half-sister he didn't know he had...
And the fact that he's been living a lie for nearly thirty years...
And that his newfound grandmother wants him and Melonie to restore her crumbling house and barns to their former beauty on "Hardaway Ranch", Jace is pretty sure his world just spun out of control.
How does a strong, faithful, committed family man deal with all of this? How did it happen in a town where color has never been an issue for the Middleton family, one of the earliest settlers to the area? And in a small town where everyone knows everything, how did they manage to keep this secret?
These protagonists have very diverse journeys ahead of them. Their dreams and hopes and goals are on opposite ends of the spectrum, but as Gilda Hardaway insists that the very talented Melonie guide the restoration efforts IF Jace takes the job...
And IF Jace steps up to the plate to make a home for Ava and Annie, the eleven-month-old abandoned babies...
And IF Jace stays in town...
While Melonie has plans to pursue her own dreams of her "Shoestring Southern Charm" cable show, housed in Kentucky...
It can't possibly work, can it?
And yet, when folks rise to a challenge, it's amazing how doors swing open! And if they don't, surely God has cracked a window somewhere, right?
I hope you love this story. It's a story about diversity, but not about the obvious difference in skin tone.
That doesn't enter the picture between Mel and Jace.
The difference in goals and dreams and hopes and fears and faith lay enough hurdles along the path for this beautiful couple to climb over.
I've got two copies of this book to give away today. Leave a comment below... and as for a question of the day, how's this:
What draws you to writing and/or reading romance? Is it the journey? The happy ending? Or both? Hallmark Channel lovers will love, love, love this story!
AND THE LAST DAYS OF OUR DECEMBER TO REMEMBER RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAYS LEADING UP TO OUR NEW YEAR'S EVE CELEBRATION!
a Rafflecopter giveaway —
Happy day after Christmas.
ReplyDeleteI love halHallm movies because they are clean and enjoyable. I miss not being able to see the new ones. I had a choice when i moved TV or Internet. I couldn't afford both. I have a Roku and subscribe to Hallmark movies now so I'll eventually see this year's movies.
Even though the stories are similar, they are also unique.
I love the Hallmark Channel and I can't get it, either, so I hear you, my friend! I would need a different streaming service... Bah. Humbug. Silly!!!!!!
DeleteHappy day after Christmas, Ruthy. You said, "Hallmark Channel lovers will love, love, love this story!" YUP! That's exactly what I was thinking as I read your description.
ReplyDeleteIsn't that funny, but it's how I felt when I wrote it. So many things coming together at the worst possible time... that turned out to be the best possible time! Cate, it's so good to see you, my friend!!!!
DeleteHappy Boxing Day! I hope that you and yours had a wonderful Christmas. I think my love of romance started with Cinderella and Prince Charming and the promise of happily ever after. Perhaps it continues because of my need to sometimes have a Calgon moment---romance takes me away!
ReplyDeleteI would love to be entered in your drawing.
Happy New Year!
Connie, you're in and I hear you about the Calgon moment! Yes!!! :)
DeleteThat happily ever after is a total winner, isn't it?
It's the happy ending that draws me to romance, and the sigh factor. Lee-Ann B
ReplyDeleteI am with you, sister!!!! In a world replete with trouble, I love a happy ending. It shows the romance... but also the power of love and faith!
DeleteI've finished this one last night (thank you Ruthy!) and am about to write up a review. It hit me right in the gut because we've been dealing with the subject of guardianship with our grand-girl since the end of September. It's been a rough journey that has pulled the rug from underneath us. Do I know God has this in His capable hands? Yes, absolutely! Am I a little scared? Yes, without question! But my husband and I feel we are doing the right thing when it comes to her. The same hard questions that Jace had are ones we've mulled over ourselves. The same feeling of agony and struggle are exactly what we've felt. This was a harder read then I anticipated, but it gave me HOPE. Hope that God will work this out for the good for all involved. Hope for a better future even though we can't see it right now. Hope and faith is what's keeping us going even in the roughest of days. I honestly don't know how to review this but I'll give it my best shot anyway.
ReplyDeleteI always know in a book like this that the happily-ever-after will happen. My most favorite thing is the journey the characters take to get there. Just like with Jace's struggles in his new role of parenthood, and Melonie trying to find her footing again. Watching these two deal with what life throws at them is what makes the story for me. Life's messy but God has it all under control if we but place it firmly in His hands. Letting go of what we want isn't easy or fun and it can be a real fight (at least for me), but it's all a part of growing in the grace of God and Him molding us to be better people for Him. I really appreciate authors like you who aren't afraid to show the messier side of life but yet give the HOPE we have in Christ! Things may not work out so smoothly or perfectly like in a fiction book, but they work out just the way God intended. And I have found, better than ever imagined :-)
Obviously no need to toss my name in the black Stetson hat. Just know you touched my life exactly when I needed it Ruthy....THANK YOU!
Oh, you made me cry. You brat.
DeleteI am so glad you loved it, and I'm glad it came through as real because it came straight from my heart and the hearts of so many I know who have been caught in similar circumstances... family secrets, old grudges, silence, abandoned children or sometimes children who are not abandoned and left to live intolerable lives...
Trixi, thank you for your lovely words. I will carry them in my heart!
I guess it's payback for making ME cry. You brat, lol! I don't know how you made this so real, but you nailed it. Just what I needed to hear.
DeleteI'm blessed God placed our grand-girl in our lives and we are in a position to take care of her for such a time as this. She certainly lights up our lives in more ways than one. I don't know what the future holds, but I certainly know WHO holds the future :-)
By the way, I left my review and posted a note to that effect on your FB page :-)
Hugs!!
Trixi, thank you for doing the review and the shout out! You know how important that is, especially when a book is only on shelves for 5 weeks.... so your help is huge! And I'm so glad it came at the right time for you.
DeleteGod's funny that way. :)
Hi Ruth:
ReplyDeleteFunny thing. Every time I read your title it comes out as "A Cowboy in Shepherd's Clothing"! This happens even after I've discerned the actual title. I think the mind develops its own autofill feature as we get older. How could this be used to advantage?
Cowboys and sheep don't mix. Sheep ruin the range for cows. Range wars! Is that part of the conflict? What's next, 'nesters'? You know, they killed the historic cattle drives!
Odd thing: Amazon has your print book, "A Cowboy in Shepherd's Crossing"! , on sale for 25% off and is giving free delivery! That's less than the Kindle format which does not require shipping. Print fans should take notice.
I wonder if it is a good thing or not to have titles subject to autofill when the autofill version may be well established in the reader's mind.
What do you think?
I don't think that even Vance Packard in his "Hidden Persuaders" was on to this.
Vince
Hello, my friend!
DeleteMy brain auto-fills all the time, too, and it's funny! What a hoot!
Amazon pricing is set up by the publisher, so they want people to keep buying real books... and not succumb to Kindle only, so it's not unusual to see this marketing strategy any more. Kind of weird, but we've got our own "range wars" going on in publishing!
And I love working with sheep in books. The world has so many cows and horses, and we woolie lovers like to add some fluffy ewes and rams to the mix. :) Idaho, with its rich history in Basque shepherds was the perfect spot to set this series.
I've loved writing this series. I hate to see it end, but I'm working on the opening book for a new series set in Washington state so that's easing my pain. :)
#mustlovecowboys
Ruthy -- you sure do know how to deliver an emotionally charged read. Loved Jace sooooo much! And the gnarly, tummy-churning tilt-a-whirl on the way to his happily ever after.
ReplyDeleteI definitely like to get lost in the journey towards a romantic happily ever after. But I do love the HEA, but I wouldn't read a novel just for that one reason. It's all the stuff that happens between the first chapter and the last that keeps me coming back for more. I fall in love with heroes and heroines and even settings...and animals! I love getting lost in another world for a time. And funny thing -- I can only take so many Hallmark movies in a stretch but I can read back-to-back romances forever. I think that's because each author brings their own unique voice to the story and that completely enthralls me!
Kav, thank you so much!!!!! I'm so glad you loved it, and isn't Jace wonderful? He's such a great hero, the race that knows Joseph, the guy that sees a job and does it right, like his daddy before him... until he finds out it wasn't his daddy at all.
DeleteI loved writing these stories. With a capital "L"....
Thank you for loving it and commenting on it!
the journey and The happy ending."A Cowboy in Shepherd's Crossing" sounds wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Emma! I'm tucking your name into the cowboy hat!!!!
DeleteOOOOHHHH! That sounds so good!
ReplyDeleteI joke that I love reading romance because I never have to worry about whether or not it will end happily. Sure, I'll sometimes wonder how it will work out, but I never have to wonder if it will. It's a great way to escape from the sometimes stressful things in real life. Plus, it's always fun to get butterflies in my own tummy when an author writes a kissing scene *just right*. :-)
Oh, Amy, isn't that the truth? I love happy endings. Life is chock full of the other kind, and we see that far too often these days, so if I can give readers a realistic happy ending that draws those strings together, I am a very happy author! Tucking your name into the hat!!!
DeleteRuthy, congrats on your beautiful new release!! I think for me, the draw of romance novels is that the characters overcome obstacles to find love--giving a happy ending.
ReplyDeleteMissy, thank you! Overcoming obstacles is clutch in all parts of life, isn't it? So if we throw faith, hope and love into the mix... How sweet is that??? :) Thanks for stopping in today!
DeleteI read the first book in this series so I am all in with this second one. A good love story has characters with issues. I love to see them surrender control of their lives to God and let go of their past. Family secrets or unsurmontable odds are also a good addition. I find it particularly fun if the hero or heroine isn't drop dead gorgeous. After all readers hope they have what it takes to be loved. So excited to read your installment.
ReplyDeleteCindy, it's so nice to see you here! I'm glad you loved the first one "Her Cowboy Reunion".... and I'm tucking your name in for the second one!
DeleteAnd I agree on the beauty is in the eye of the beholder status for looks.... Normal works for me, too!!!!
Finished the entire thing in half a day yesterday. Definitely a good tear-jerker moment later in the book.
ReplyDeleteI love the journey of these stories. I know where they're heading, but I love to see how they get there. :)
That's so true, Beth. It's not like the HEA is a mystery, but when authors bring the characters alive so well, they make us love every detail of how they get to the happy ending.
DeleteNora Roberts once said in a book that the ability to make the reader or listener cry is the highest of compliments... I agree.
DeleteThat roller coaster of emotions is so important... and to make people laugh so they're not left in the abyss is clutch, too.
All part of the roller coaster ride!
Ruthy, congratulations on your new book! Just reading your intro has me tearing up! My family is one of many diversities, secrets and drama! I enjoy the journey of two characters discovering what their capable of handling and then forging ahead with the help of the Guidance Counselor. Love all the twists and turns a story can take before the lead characters can finally claim their HEA. Would love to read a story near and dear to my heart.
ReplyDeleteBlessings for the New Year,
Marcia
Marcia, ours too! :) And when I proposed this series to the editors, it was that background and experience that got me the okay, I think. And those family secrets that don't tend to stay secret forever.... especially with ancestry registries now.
DeleteThose closed adoptions suddenly become open books and that's a whole new layer of drama to be tapped, isn't it?
Thank you so much for coming by!!!!
Looks like yet another Ruthy-good story! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Glynna!!!!
DeleteYour new book sounds fabulous, Ruthy! I'm drawn to reading romance for the journey AND the HEA. I love it when the characters show some growth and overcome obstacles.
ReplyDeleteWinnie, me too. If the journey is too lame or the hero or heroine too whiny, I must desist reading and toss the book aside.
DeleteI like a strong backbone, even under pressure... maybe especially under pressure! :)
Thanks for stopping by today, I'm tucking your name into the hat!
Um, Ruthy, you spelled my name wrong!!! But it's okay. I'll still think you named her after me. :-)
ReplyDeleteHahahahah! I went for a spelling I'd seen in a Southern magazine because you know my Steel Magnolia Southern friends like to STAND OUT from the crowd! :)
Delete