This is the second book I have read by Lori Wilde and I am a big fan of her writing. Her books never disappoint. The highlights of the story are Roan's little girl and Charlie (Jazzy's best friend). I found myself laughing out loud often during the banter between Jazzy and Charlie. He is most definitely the best friend a girl could ever want. I also really enjoyed a newer twist to the "baking contest" concept. This one is based on campfire cooking which sounds delicious but is more challenging than you would think. I learned some delicious tidbits as I wholeheartedly enjoyed this sweet romance. Thank you for the chance to read this book!

Welcome back to Twilight, Texas. Nurse Jazzy is thing about leaving town when she meets single Dad Roan. Throw in cookie baking and a cute 4 year old and it is a fun story. ARC from NetGalley.

A cowboy that cooks?! Heck yeah, sign me up! I liked the idea of the story. Some of it was well written and some of it felt….off…unfinished…Felt like I was missing something. I don’t know really know what.

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for providing this ARC to review. ~I was given this book and made no commitments to leave my opinions, favorable or otherwise. ~

Lori Wilde is an incredible author whose stories grab you by the heart strings. This is Jazzy Walker & Roan Sullivan’s story & you will love them!! Jazzy is a pediatric nurse with a sunny, positive attitude & she meets Roan while treating his adorable daughter Trinity. Jazzy is dealing with her ex-boyfriend, Danny getting engaged to her childhood enemy Andi. Roan is a single dad after the death of his wife. After constantly losing contests over the years to Andi, Jazzy joins the Campfire Cookie baking contest & asks for Roan’s help, as he’s won several campfire cooking competitions. They get close, get involved & develop feelings for each other after Roan started training her for the baking contest. Roan makes her realize what was missing in her relationship with Danny and Jazzy helps him start living again after the death of his wife. It’s a beautifully written book about life, second chances, moving on & letting yourself be happy. There’s humor, emotion, heartbreak, romance, all the feels!! You’re missing out if you don’t read this book!! I received an arc from Netgalley & the publisher for an honest review.

This is my first book by this author. I absolutely adore this book! I enjoyed the characters and the story. Well written and I finished the book in a couple days!

This was my first time reading a book by author Lori Wilde and I really enjoyed. Jazzy is a pediatric nurse who is pure sunshine. Her boyfriend left their long term relationship to be with her rival Andi. Andi always seems to win all the contests but this year Jazzy signs up for the Christmas cookie challenge using a campfire to cook. Jazzy does not know how to cook but is determined to win. She enlist the help of Roan a Masterchef who is reluctant to get involved. He is a widowed father raising his daughter. Jazzy slowly wins him over but Roan continues to struggle with the demons from his past. The whole town is rallying behind Jazzy and Roan. This was a sweet romance and can be read as a standalone. I really recommend for Christmas cheer.

Received this book from Netgalley for my honest opinion.

First off, thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Haper Voyager for the DCR of The Cowboy Cookie Challenge. This was my first Twilight, Texas book by Lori Wilde and I thoroughly enjoyed this quaint Texas town. This book focuses on Jazzy an optimistic pediatric nurse and Roan a single dad who is also a campfire MasterChef. When Jazzy needs to take down her childhood nemesis, Andi, a peg or two in the town's annual Christmas cookie baking contest she realizes she is going to need Roan's help. Cue Christmas cuteness and baking! This book is a perfect addition to your Christmas/winter TBR if you love grumpy/sunshine, single dad, and age gap. The supporting characters, especially Jazzy's best friend Charlie, added to the charm of this book. I enjoyed that this reads as a stand alone book. I did not feel I was missing information, because I didn't read the other books in the series. The only thing missing from this book is the recipes for the cookies, so I can make them at home!

Loved Roan and Jazzy's tale. They both had fears to conquer and it was sweet reading about it. Of course their was a youngster involved which you just had to love. There was too much mean girl for me but Jazzy came out on top.

Jazzy and Roan have had a time of it. Jazzy is the now adult daughter of a couple in a previous book in the series. She grew up to have a very sunny and positive disposition - even in the face of having her mother abandon her and suffering from illness as a child. She's a pediatric nurse - and pretty much the exact person you'd want to take care of your sick child. She has an amazingly positive attitude and sunny personality. She's had an almost lifelong competitive relationship with a mean-girl. That mean-girl recently moved in and "stole" Jazzy's long term boyfriend and continues to make it her life's goal to beat Jazzy at everything and anything. Jazzy is dying to finally beat Andi at something - so she enters a cookie competition that involves campfire baking. Since Jazzy isn't good at baking to begin with and doesn't know where to begin with the campfire part - she enlists (or begs for) the help of Roan.

Roan lost his wife recently to complications related to a minor medical procedure <spoiler>(it kind of drove me nuts btw that it was referred to like that - like what kind? what happened? was she having botox? breast augmentation? it just felt off to hear about it. Like what kind of procedure was it - and why did she do it while he was competing on national television. It just felt weird. Anyway...</spoiler> Since then he's given up on his cooking videos and competitions and focused all his energy on his young daughter and his ranch. His relationship with Jazzy comes as a total surprise - and a heck of a lot of fear.

Roan is a total sweetheart and Jazzy is a total ray of sunshine. I think the best parts of the book involved her working through her issues with her ex and her nemesis Andi. Overall - I think this would have been a four star read for me but for the temporary breakup at the end and TBH the epilogue (<spoiler>. I know Roan clearly missed his cooking show and youtube presence - but it felt kind of icky that he restarted it with Jazzy - even given the thought that he talked about the impact the loss of his wife had on him walking away publicly - to then basically replace her with Jazzy felt gross</spoiler>). This is a sweet and sexy holiday romance - with all the small town cheer you can handle.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, but these opinions are all my own.

From stem to stern laugh out loud funny. Of course. THE COWBOY COOKIE CHALLENGE is vintage Lori Wilde. Dialog that candidly cracks you up and no I am not exaggerating. Hard to choose best characters in any Lori Wilde creation but the exchange between Jazzy and her best friend Charlie is the stuff romcoms are made of, if they are done right. Which segues almost perfectly to the plot of this delightful, engaging story. Cookie challenge. This year those cookies must be baked over a campfire. Ingenious way to couple nurse Jazzy with her latest young patient Trinity and Trinity’s father Roan who just happens to be a somewhat famous chef.

Life is full of challenges. Some sweet like a cookie baking contest. Others not so. Both Roan and Jazzy have faced challenges. Both wound up fine and strong, but with some lasting twinges shall we say. Roan was doing a great job raising his daughter Trinity. Lucky because he had a large dependable backup of family. Jazzy was lucky too. She had her father’s support and love. And the addition of an amazing stepmother just about filled her life with love.

Jazzy had a reputation in Twilight. Everyone held her in esteem and most considered her a friend. Jazzy was a realist too. When the challenge of the Christmas cookie contest came up Jazzy never thought to get involved. But through a series of events that’s where Jazzy found herself.

First, acknowledging her lack of baking skills. But also the added complexity of cooking over a campfire. Just where would she ever get those skills. Roan will be forever grateful for Jazzy’ s care of his daughter. So it seemed the right thing to do, to offer his guidance in campfire cooking. He had given it up after his wife passed. Now back working the family ranch, happy with that decision.

So armed with the desire to finally beat her lifelong nemesis Jazzy and Roan spend abundant time baking cookies and unplanned relationship. Life can be so sweet. Once they decide on the perfect recipe that is. In life and in baking.

If you are looking for a most enjoyable tale of an eclectic group of folks, then THE COWBOY COOKIE CHALLENGE fits the bill. Lori Wilde never fails to come up with a somewhat plausible plot that immediately engages the reader. Perhaps that is why I seek out her books to read and review. THE COWBOY COOKIE CHALLENGE is a great beach read. Fun, relaxing and joyously comedic. No question about it Lori Wilde has cooked up her best story yet with THE COWBOY COOKIE CHALLENGE.

I’ve read most of the books in this series. I enjoyed this book as much as the others. The h needs the H to help her win the cookie challenge. The H used to have a cooking show with his wife until she died. He concentrates his time on his ranch and his daughter. The h has been in competition with a woman who bests her in almost every situation; she’s engaged to the h’s former boyfriend. The h enlists the H to teach her how to bake over a campfire. The H blows hot and cold.

✨🎄ARC Review🎄✨


The Cowboy Cookie Challenge
✍️ Lori Wilde
Rating- 🍪 🍪 🍪 🍪/5
Steam- 🔥 🔥

✨Pub Date: 10/25/2022

I would like to thank Avon and Harper Voyager Publishing, & NetGalley for this advanced copy!

Details I loved-
•slow burn
•blended family
•age gap
•endless details of all things Christmas
•banter & bond between Jazzy and Charlie (best friends)

The smell of a crackling camp fire, cinnamon and freshly baked cookies. Peppermint martinis and pumpkin spice tea. This story will take you into a Hallmark-style Christmas, intertwined with a budding romance.💕

Jazzy, an optimistic nurse, finds herself entering a cookie baking competition. She is competing against her lifelong rival. One problem, she doesn’t know how to bake! Roan, a widowed father of one of Jazzy’s recent patients, could be the key to winning the competition! What starts off as baking, may quickly turn into so much more! Jazzy and Roan help one another overcome loss & ghosts from their pasts. Can they open each other up to a possible future?

I am such a sucker for Christmas and romance; this book is everything I love! This was my first read by Lori Wilde, and won’t be my last! The Cowboy Cookie Challenge is a fun, flirty, romantic story that will fill you with hope for second chances! This book will definitely be a tradition of mine to read each season!

Side note-this book gave me such Heart of Dixie and A California Christmas vibes!