It was ok. There seemed to be a little too much going on. What was the point of Hunter's ex wife, she was a little pointless. The secondary characters seem interesting.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This was my first book by this author duo. I liked it very much. There was steamy romance and a good mystery. The book begins as Samantha returns to Dearhaven, CA where she lived until her parents moved when she was 11. Her aunt had died under suspicious circumstances and she returned for the funeral. Sam is a police officer in Detroit. Her old crush Hunter is the sheriff now. Sams aunt Dottie was the third in her trio to die suddenly. Hunter is investigating as he believes all 3 were murdered but doesn’t have the motive. Sam arrives and plans to investigate as well. Sam and Hunter realize they have lots of chemistry and start having lots of sex. Hunter suspects the mayor and his 2 officers hired by the mayor of being part of the crime ring. Hunter convinces Sam to quit her job and return to Deerhaven to work under Hunter and solve the mystery. The plot is quite exciting as we learn there are terrorists and criminals operating out of Deerhaven. It is so thrilling to try to solve the murders. It as an exciting end with a great HEA.

The story sounded good but as I got into reading it, I was not a fan of the hero or heroine. I also found it difficult to stay engaged in the story. This one is a miss for me.

One Tough Cowboy by Lora Leigh and Veronica Chadwick is the first in a new series. For as long as Samantha can remember, Hunter—a man as strong as steel, with a heart of gold—has been her hero. It came as no surprise to Samantha when she found out that the ranch-hardened cowboy who always protected her from bullies went on to become the town’s sheriff. What does surprise her is how incredibly hot he still is. And how much she still wants him. Hunter still has feelings for Samantha. The long-smoldering heat of their innocent flirtation has grown into a full-raging fire. But when tragedy strikes, and their small-town community is shattered, Hunter vows to do everything he can to keep his childhood sweetheart safe. But can Samantha trust that Hunter has her best interests at heart…and that, after all these years, his love is true?

One Tough Cowboy is a series starter that does a good job of introducing a town and secondary characters. I liked the small town and the cast of characters, including those that only made their appearances as the dangerous aspects of the story really ramped up. I liked the connection between Sam and Hunter, but felt that so much was left out of the relationship and character building between these two because of their history. I felt like even though the past was explained and some fun moments were told through out the story, that there could have been more of something there- almost like that history was a short cit to get them into bed quicker. I am not saying that it was bad, but that for some reason I just never connected with the story on that level. I liked the characters individual, and their interactions, but wanted a little more relationship building. I would have loved to see more of Sam's life as well, maybe a moment of her time in Detroit or dealing with the ex, to give what comes next more meaning and impact. I still enjoyed the read, but felt like there was so much room for it to be even better.

One Tough Cowboy is a book that will please fans of the authors, and has a good balance of heat and danger.

The writing Duo of Lora Leigh and Veronica Chadwick starts a new series with this novel, One Tough Cowboy. The romance suffers from the fact that it IS the kick off book, as it spends a great deal of time creating the series world, backstory and introducing characters (though very engaging secondary characters). The romance suffers a bit from lack of dedicated pages, in fact I would have been fine with a few less passionate encounters if it led to a more layered story.
That being said, the heat factor is high, the story was entertaining, and I will likely read more in the series.
I received my copy through NetGalley under no obligation.

Such a cute, fun story! I enjoyed the characters and the story. Read the book in one sitting. Will definitely be looking for more books like this one.

I’m a big fan of Lora Leigh and love her steamy sex scenes and relationship building. However, I have not read a ton of Cowboy/Western romances, but I have to admit, they are fun! I particularly liked this one because of the Detroit connection. Samantha is a Detroit cop, who is getting over a bad relationship. She left her small hometown and Hunter behind to start her own life. She came back to Deerhaven to settle her aunt’s estate and try to figure out a mystery. What she didn’t totally count on was her attraction to Hunter. He became the sheriff of Deerhaven so he won’t leave her alone as she tries to piece together the clues for the crime she is trying to solve. Hunter is dealing with his own problems in his department and a series of unsolved violent events. What I really like is that Hunter recognizes that Samantha is a good cop and can handle herself. She is highly trained and doesn’t need rescuing. She just needs a competent partner.

Of course, they have to work together...and kiss...and be irresistibly drawn to each other. Whew….and yummy. Who doesn’t love a hot sheriff? If you need a dose of dominant alpha male, this story is for you. It’s definitely a romantic suspense book….I would say it might be more of an erotic romantic suspense book (if that is a thing), which made me love it even more! I’m looking forward to the next book. *fans self*

I have been a fan of Lora and have enjoyed her writing style and her plots . This one is not one of her best works . It was a good one time read . Thanks to the publisher and Netgallery for the advance copy of this book.

One Tough Cowboy by Roni Chadwick and Lora Leigh is an exciting read with plenty of action. . Samantha came home for her aunt's funeral. She is a cop in Detroit and she knows this was murder. Now to prove it. Hunter Steele is sheriff now. He had been her idol and protector when she was a child. His uncle had been killed in a way that made him suspicious. Also, the mayor's wife somehow ended dup dead. The three had been fast friends and now they were all dead. Was it related? If so, how? Can Hunter and Sam work together effectively?

An interesting and explicit read, One Tough Cowboy takes the reader from an after-the-funeral reception to tied up and in fear for their lives in the dense forest. The journey was an exciting one. The descriptive power of these authors is unrivaled, especially in the area of human emotion. The story was gripping: partly luck, partly good police work. It was a quick and dirty read, full of enticing descriptions of the characters involved. It left me wanting more. I recommend this book.

I received a free ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. #netgalley #onetoughcowboy

Let me tell you, Lora Leigh can write a love scene that makes me blush if I read it in public ;)

This was a great intro to a promising series. I enjoyed watching Hunter and Samantha realize they had adult feelings for one another after knowing one another since they were children.

While I enjoyed Hunter and Sam, I was a little disappointed that the whole action part of the story wrapped up so easily, with no indication of consequences. Will that discourage me from reading the next book when it comes out? Of course not. This is Lora Leigh we're talking about LOL She's one of my favorite authors :)

This book was a DNF for me. I tried many times to get into the story but it felt forced and fake, and couldn't hold my attention. I will still try another book from this author in the future.

Let me start by admitting to being a long-time fan of Lora Leigh and I was lucky enough to have my request for an advance reader copy granted. I also love the romantic suspense genre, add in a hot, sexy cowboy lawman and I'm usually enthralled from the get-go, especially when the book in question is the first book in a new series, but sadly, this novel simply didn't live up to my high expectations for this author, and I can't believe I'm giving a Lora Leigh novel only a 1-star rating.

The opening of this novel had me intrigued--Samantha (Sam) grew up in small-town Deerhaven, California, but her family moved away when she was 17, and about 15 years later, she's back in town for the first time to attend the funeral of her aunt, and attend to the details of settling her estate. She's been told that her middle-aged aunt died of an accidental drug overdose, and Sam, who is now a seasoned police officer in Detroit, has a hard time accepting the details of her aunt's death, knowing how much she hated taking even an aspirin for a headache.

From the time Sam was a little girl, she pestered and followed Hunter Steele, so much so that he nicknamed her the Pesky Pixie. As a 17-year-old she had a serious crush on him, which was not helped at all by the fact that he was 10 years her senior, and her family was not only leaving the town, but leaving the state. From the moment they first see one another again, the sparks ignite. Hunter is now the police chief in Deerhaven, and he too recently suffered the loss of his beloved Uncle Zachariah, supposedly in a hunting accident, and he's equally suspicious of his uncle's death.

So, two mysterious deaths, two suspicious police officers, a shifty mayor and two untrustworthy deputies who were both hired by the mayor, and the set up of this novel sounded like it was going to be another exciting, suspenseful, Lora Leigh page-turner, and I'm absolutely shocked at stating this, especially since Ms. Leigh has written so many hot, sexy and addictive reads that I absolutely loved, but it was the non-stop sex scenes between Sam and Hunter that ruined this novel for me.

I'm probably the last person on the planet to be irritated by hot sex in a novel, but when it's as incessantly redundant as it was in this novel, using the exact same phrasing over and over again, and when it is used in place of a plot, character development and forward momentum in what's supposed to be a novel of romantic suspense, it becomes both frustrating and annoying. The result of all the many descriptions of Hunter and Sam's private parts, was that I did something I never do--I skimmed over half of the sex scenes in the latter parts of this novel. As we neared the suspenseful final chapters, I did notice how utterly ridiculous it was that these two characters couldn't keep their hands off each other and had multiple sexual encounters while on a stakeout, hoping to take down a crime ring that sold children into sex slavery, and smuggled drugs and even radical terrorists into the country. Couldn't Sam and Hunter have controlled themselves for one night during this tense and scary stakeout? Were they supposed to come off as two incredibly unprofessional police officers? Really?

I will warn readers that there are domestic violence and rape triggers in this novel, and one scene in particular, where Sam is tied down and virtually raped by a former boyfriend, and then immediately afterwards again has sex with Hunter, were simply not in any way, shape or form, believable. The other result of the overabundance of voluntary and involuntary sex scenes was that I never felt an emotional connection to either of the two main characters, and most of the suspense in this romantic suspense novel came from this reader, wondering when and if these two would ever stop having sex long enough to do their jobs and catch the bad guys.

By the time we get to the equally ridiculous HEA ending, I still had a hard time reconciling the fact that Lora Leigh, whose novels I've been reading and loving for years, actually wrote this deeply flawed, lackluster sexcapade of a novel. There was one hopeful note, there were a number of interesting secondary characters introduced in this novel, who will, I imagine, be featured in later novels in this series. I only hope that Ms. Leigh concentrates more on plot and character development than she does on sex in the later installments of this series.

As stated, I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions expressed are my own.

I voluntarily read an advanced review copy of this book

This was a good start to the series. Samantha and Hunter have a history together and now that the town has had a mysterious string of death Samantha and Hunter will work together to figure out just what is going on.

Overall this book was ok. While it was a good start to the series I hope that things get more interesting....

We have two main characters in this story, Samantha and Hunter both of whom have a long history together. Hunter was her protector and someone she looked up to and also had a huge crush on. Hunter would do anything for Samantha, he had strong feelings for her before she moved away and they lasted long after she left.

Samantha returns home after a death in her family and she knew it would be difficult to see Hunter again as she wasn’t sure how strong her feelings would be and how he would feel about her. She had nothing to worry about! Both of our characters had a strong chemistry that poured off the pages.

While we having their romance and intense chemistry brewing at the top of this story, we also have quite the plot developing underneath. There are a serious of deaths that on the surface look normal but Hunter believes there were more to these deaths, especially as they were personal. As Hunter and Samantha begin to investigate (not only do they have their personal history both are members of the law enforcement!) we find a dark plot that has spanned several years and may have international ties.

This story was a good read, it was intense at times and I found myself having to re-read certain parts to ensure I understood the plot development. I loved the way the plot developed – I was not expecting the ending and it was perfect for this story.

The novel did have a lot of sexual content spread throughout the story so fair warning to those who may not enjoy that as much. It would be exciting to see the next chapter in Samantha and Hunter’s relationship and what came of the ending to this story.

One Tough Cowboy (Moving Violations #1) by Lora Leigh was just an okay read for me. I found it difficult to get into the storyline and sometimes not easy to stay focused. I enjoyed the suspenseful part of the story, but overall it just did not clique. That is too bad because I liked the idea of Sam coming back to her small town from Detroit and finally having a relationship with the man she had been interested in for so long.

When I read the synopsis the first thing that came into my mind was the story was pure romance. I was surprised that there were a lot of action scenes and 'sex' moments between Hunter and Samantha.

I like the flow of the story but in the end, I felt that it focused more on the erotic side rather than in more important matters.

I can't wait though with the next story in the Moving Violations series.

Good job to Miss Lora Leigh and Veronica Chadwick! Thank you St. Martin's and Netgalley for the ARC!

This story is an erotic novel. It's not my kind of book which I didn't realize so I don't want to post an unfair review; however, I would only give it 2 stars if I were into erotic stories because...for several reasons. It had a very good beginning. The Sheriff, Hunter Steele (loved the name) seemed a tough but fair sort who seemed like he would be a great hero. There also seemed to be a murder mystery developing. Then when, Samantha, the heroine arrived, the story line seemed to fall apart. The first night she was there after her aunt's funeral they ended up in bed which doesn't seem appropriate to me. Then there were too many and too long sexual scenes. Now if you like this then you may love the book; but the story line seemed to get lost. Suddenly at the end the climax of the murder mystery happened too fast and with unbelievable extra tangents, like sex trafficking and terrorists. Those facets might have been believable if the plot had been developed. It did have a HEA thrown. in. I did not enjoy it and won't look for these authors again, but that is because I prefer clean and christian romances so that is why I won't post further.

I received with thanks an ARC copy of One Tough Cowboy from St Martin’s Press and Netgalley.

This is my true and honest review of One Tough Cowboy by Lora Leigh & Veronica Chadwick. This was published on 29th January 2019

I do love a cowboy romance and this was just the ticket. I cannot put in words how sweet and adorable this was. I do love a tough cowboy and Hunter was the man for me. I loved his story and romance with Samantha.

Would recommend if you love a good contemporary romance with cowboys.

Thriller

Since the main characters are both cops, this would be a police procedural rather than cozy mystery. And we start out with some nice sexual tension stemming from childhood, but that quickly morphs into full out sex which goes on for pages in lieu of solving the crime(s)! Okay, I realize that this is a huge plus for many readers. And it is well written, "normal" activity (NOT BDSM). So here's a case of pays your money and takes your choice. And my choice is to discover whodunit. Fortunately we do get back to business (intermittently) and there are the bones of a good thriller in here--local bad guys but national and international repercussions. So if you are looking for a steamy romance with a side of mystery, this is perfect for you.

Samantha came back home when her aunt died, however she is convinced there is more to her death than what meets the eyes.
Hunter is the sheriff of this town and knows there is something going on in his town. There are now three deaths that doesn't make sense but he doesn't know where to turn.
Together Samantha and Hunter work to figure out what is going on and what they find out is not very encouraging.

I liked this book but it wasn't overly exciting. I found it lagged in some spots and it had areas that were hard to read.


** I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review**