I really enjoyed the Clean Slate ranch series and looked forward to another cowboy series from AM Arthur.
Michael and Josiah have both been poorly treated by their partner. Michael now divorced from the man who cheated on him, then took most of his money and his dog! Josiah's is a lot more painful and follows on from years of hard living on the streets. Two men who deserve to catch a break and find that in each other, though with extreme caution especially on Josiah's side.
My heart went out to them both but Josiah's spirit is totally broken before meeting Michael and his father, Elmer, who Josiah is caring for after a stroke. They are friendly, welcoming and offer any help he might need which never comes free in Josiah's world. Michael is starting over in the home town he left twenty years ago with a father who he's barely spoken to in that time. Now he has the chance to look at a fresh start in his life whilst reconnecting with the things that matter.
The characters really take the time to at first build trust and a friendship ahead of anything else. It becomes apparent that Josiah's home situation is untenable which Michael, with his protective instincts, needs to help with but understands everything has to be Josiah's choice. I liked that part especially as he noticed and made sure that whatever happened was Josiah's decision, a thing that had been taken away from him. Both men's exes need to be kicked to the curb but both bring drama to the story that heightens tensions, even for a moment. It's also heartwarming to read Michael's relationship with his father and his home improve after the way things had been left between them, which is a slow reveal in the story.
I loved the sense of community that comes across between the Woods ranch and the MC's. Friendly and offering to help with anything they might need, even a late night phone call to pick some things up has everyone up and ready to go. I definitely need to go back and read book one of this series.
A really good slow burn, hurt/comfort romance that has a fair amount of drama with some trigger content warning but no events happen on page, it's all spoken about after the fact or in a round about way.
I received an ARC via NetGalley and am happily giving a review

While this book had an interesting premise, I was troubled by one of the main protagonists basically forgiving his domestic abuser simply because the abuser had been abused himself. The man had been brutal to him, and if he hadn't been a sheriff, could have served time in prison for the abuse.

The author felt the need to record the minutiae of the characters' daily lives: what they ate, when, and every little thing they did. Lots more telling than showing.

I liked the characters, but not sure I would read anything else about them in the future.

This is a good hurt/comfort story that hits you right in the heart. I really enjoyed reading this story.

Readers met Josiah briefly in His Fresh Start Cowboy, the first book in the Woods Ranch series. Although we didn’t get to meet Michael in the first book, we met his dad, Elmer. By the end of the first book, Elmer wasn’t one of my favorite characters and from the way he referred to Michael, I didn’t have high hopes for him either. I love it when an author can change my mind about a character just by giving me a new perspective. ❤

Much to Elmer’s surprise, Michael comes home to take care of his dad after his stroke. Michael’s not sure about how his appearance is going to be received by his dad, but he does know that he can’t leave him when he needs him – whether the old man wants to admit it or not. They both have a lot of hurt to get over.

Josiah is in a situation that he doesn’t know how to get himself out of and he has no one to turn to. His job is his only escape from the life he feels trapped in. He’d love to trust Michael and Elmer, but it’s hard to trust when he’s been burned so many times before.

I have to admit that His Reluctant Cowboy wasn’t the easiest book to read, mainly because of what Josiah went through. Even though most of it was glossed over, there was enough of his story on page that was more than cringe-worthy. The fact that Joshiah’s tormentor was a respected individual that held a position of power made his situation even more terrifying.

Along with Josiah’s story, both Michael and Elmer had a lot of history to come to terms with. Josiah ended up helping them as much as they helped him.

Like a few other readers, this one wasn’t my favorite in the Woods Ranch or the Clean Slate Ranch series, but I’m still glad I took the time to get to know these broken characters. There were a few hints throughout the book about where the series may go next and I can’t wait to see if I’m right. 😉

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of His Reluctant Cowboy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5* Touching and sweet but also the ending that set up the next book, was clumsy.

This is a tale that's a bit hard to take at times, when you consider how much of a victim Josiah has been and what's happened to him in life, and when you consider that Michael is also a victim, just a different kind. But, they're not broken, just bruised and they come together at a time where they need each other's help and in a very believable setting. I liked them both, but disliked a particular character who was made out to be the current big baddie and yet right at the end, he was clearly being set up for his own book, sadly, taking away from this current book. Yes, abused people can become abusers but I didn't quite believe the 'too much, too obvious in too few lines' bit, which spoilt what had been an otherwise good tale for me.

A redeemer for me was Elmer, Michael's old dad, who was a mix of proud, cantankerous and a huge romantic who still loved his late wife very much. I would so have loved to have a love like that, but it wasn't to be.

ARC courtesy of Carina Press and NetGalley, for my reading pleasure.

Thanks to Harlequin Carina Press and Netgalley for the early copy. Below you'll find my honest review.

Major content warnings galore for this one: abuse (physical and sexual).

I've loved the Clean Slate Ranch series and the first book in this Woods Ranch spinoff, but I really am not sure how much I liked this one. It just felt like nonstop pummeling of one of the main characters mixed in with a lot of repetitive phrases and a very formally wooden naughty scene.

I didn't hate it, but I really was hoping for more from the story, and less of the trauma.

The second book in Wood Ranch, His Reluctant Cowboy is a good overall read. There are some triggers to be cautious of so please be aware of this before you pick up this book. An age gap m/m romance I like the story and the characters and will read more of this series.

I haven't gotten to read this author's cowboy books before, but figured I would jump in here. This is book 2, but it stands alone.

Michael is recently divorced and had everything taken from him. Meanwhile, Josiah, I don't want to say much, but it isn't a good situation, it made my heart hurt for him.

This was a slow burn, which was good for the situations these two were coming out of. However, it just didn't work well for me. Too many things just didn't sit well for me. I felt like there were pieces that didn't quite make sense for me, or were too blatantly wrong for what I expected. And the ending was a bit too predictable.

It was an okay story, and I'd like to read another cowboy book from this author, because I love the narration and descriptions, and few authors can make me cry more than once in a book, and she does most of the time. This just wasn't the right story for me, I think.

Michael Pearce and his father had a falling out many years ago, but now both men need each other to get past their own troubles. Michael’s coming off a nasty divorce, learning his husband swindled him out of the royalties from the computer programs he wrote for their company. He’s house-rich and cash-poor, so he has little choice when his ailing father needs full-time live-in care but to return to his decaying childhood home in Weston, Texas. Michael isn’t able to fully care for his dad, but he’s smart enough to hire a part-time home health nurse, Josiah Sheridan. With little money on hand, Michael reaches out to his former neighbor, Brand Woods, to take work as a ranch hand so he can afford Josiah’s services.

Josiah came to Weston a couple of years ago to care for a patient and took lodgings with the single sheriff. Unfortunately, Sheriff McBride isn’t the professional, polished man he projects to the folks of Weston. He’s mostly had Josiah under lock and key, sexually and physically abusing him, for quite some time. Being in the Pearce house day after day gives Josiah a new perspective, but also keeps him in the sights of the Woods Ranch folks. Michael may not be at his most observant, but he’s able to recognize that Josiah may himself be in big trouble, and between Michael, his dad, and the Woods Ranch crew, they aim to ensure Josiah is safe from harm.

His Reluctant Cowboy is the second book in the Woods Ranch series, but can be enjoyed as a standalone. This is a slow burn romance, as both Michael and Josiah have big trouble to overcome before they can trust new partners. Josiah has to get past his trauma, and it helps that Michael is so patient and kind, giving him the space he needs to recover, without demanding anything but good care for his dad. The sheriff is a bad man, but it’s a more nuanced story than ‘the bad guy gets his comeuppance,’ which was refreshing. Josiah isn’t a damsel in distress who swoons for his rescuer; he’s a wounded man who needs to learn to love himself and stand on his own for a time. Michael helps him do that while Michael sorts out his own issues. I loved how Michael also got some good karma intervening in his love life, his family life, and his professional life. He’s a good man, and both he and his father have been hurting for a long time, since Michael’s mother’s tragic murder decades before. Michael couldn’t understand his dad’s reaction to that loss as a teen, but he’s gained perspective in the intervening years. He’s able to recover his relationship, which was sweet to see. And the progress he and Josiah make toward healing and love is joyful to watch.

This wasn’t a typical “cowboy” book, with Michael essentially dusting off his skills following two decades of hiatus, but the Texas is strong with this crew, nonetheless. There’s a sweet and compassionate core of guys developed in this series, and I look forward to more tales from the Woods Ranch in the future.

P.S. Note the trigger warning for domestic violence, partner abuse.

I am so happy that A.M. Arthur is continuing this series. I fell in love with both Michael and Josiah and hoped that they truly found their way into each other's lives. They were both sweet and kind and deserved a happily-ever-after.

Josiah wasn't out. Well, he wasn't allowed to be out by his current lover. You can't be out when your lover is a pubic figure and public homophobe. And, an abuser. All he wants to do is help people. He's had a hard life and is hiding who he is from everyone. Until he meets Michael and sees how life can be with the support of family and a little self-confidence.

Michael lost everything that he worked so hard for. He was used by the man who he thought he would spend the rest of his life with. Returning to Weston to be with his father was not what he was expecting or looking forward to. There was a rift that he is going to have to mend and wasn't sure if that door would be open for him to walk through. He'll do what he has to to get his father back on his feet including giving up his Tech career to cowboy again. Circumstances has him reevaluating his life, his goals and his love. It's time to forgive and forget … it's time to move forward and not live in the past … it's time to find his true love.

I have to commend A.M. Arthur on her character building and story-telling abilities. I am never disappointed that I didn't understand something or where the character was coming from. She's a master of giving her readers a complete and compelling story. His Reluctant Cowboy was no different. It had a little bit of everything in it .. some suspense, a couple of laughs, a whole lot of love. I love how she brought Michael and Josiah together and kept them together. I love the support Michael had from his father and the men at Woods Ranch who also turned out to support Josiah as well … to his surprise. From Clean Slate Ranch to Woods Ranch, A. M. Arthur has brought us another amazing story.

Audiobook review:
Overall – 5
Performance – 5
Story – 5

I loved the audiobook.

I've read some of the other reviews for this book and was a bit surprised at how harsh some of them are. My experience/opinion is vastly different and that may be due to the fact that I listened to the audiobook rather than reading with my eyes.

I love listening to Michael Dean and I thought he did a wonderful job with the story. Maybe because I listened to it, I didn't notice any of the issues that other reviewers mentioned. I thought the MCs were interesting. They both had issues but they meshed well together.

Josiah is being abused in his current relationship when he agrees to be a private nurse for Michael’s father. Michael suspects that something is wrong but doesn’t call him on it at first. Michael left home several years ago after an argument with his father. He became very successful in the tech world and then was betrayed by his now ex-husband.

I could feel the connection between Josiah and Michael and I thought it was wonderful how caring Michael was with Josiah. This was pretty much a slow-burn romance and I do enjoy those from time-to-time.

I liked that the bad guy – Josiah’s ex – kind of got what was coming to him. I’m not sure if he could ever be redeemed or not.

I’m enjoying this series and I’m looking forward to reading the next one.

A review copy of the audiobook was provided to me at my request by the publisher and a copy of the ebook was provided via NetGalley. My review was voluntary and not influenced by the author and/or narrator.

It's been a minute since I got to read some of AM Arthur's cowboys. I missed them.

This is book 2, but you don't have to read book 1. In fact, I kind of like that they are basically 2 new characters. We met Josiah briefly in book 1, but he wasn't one of the guys working at Woods Ranch. And Michael is back in town to help his estranged father after he had a stroke. His estranged father we also met in book 1. Elmer, the metal sculpture artist who rented out his trailer.

Both of these guys are broken. Michael's brand new ex husband weasled him out of a lot of money, his business and his patent. Josiah is in a relationship that is a secret, but they live together and he is being abused.

This led to a nice, slow burn between them. The attraction is immediate and obvious, but they are both wary. Partly because Josiah is Michael's dad's home nurse. But partly because of what they each just got out of.

Josiah just broke my heart. He is one of those people that just keeps having crappy things happen to. To be honest, a few too many tragic things. He seemed to have a permanent black cloud. What I assumed about what had happened to him wasn't even close.

The Big Fight that strained the relationship between Elmer and Michael was also a bit...anticlimatic. Not that the trauma that caused the fight wasn't exactly that- trauma. But these two men should have mended fences long ago. I think because we also met Elmer previously, we know he is a good guy. So Michael being mad at him for something 20 years ago just didn't seem right.

I did appreciate how gentle Michael was with Josiah, even before he knew everything that has happened to him. But I wished he would have stopped Josiah from doing things around the house. That isn't part of being a home nurse. But he cooked and cleaned everyday. Breakfast and lunch for Elmer? ok. But having dinner in the crockpot for Elmer and Michael just seemed a little much.

You could see the coming conflict toward the end from a mile away. I could have made a list that would have been checked off.

I don't not like the story. I did. But I think Elmer deserved more grace from Michael. Michael should have been WAY more angry at his ex and everyone should have noticed what was going on with Josiah. They went from the slowest of slow burns to moving in together.

And not for nothin, but the Woods family is a little too good. Silly, but still.

This isn't my favourite Arthur title. It was much darker than usual. I know I have read previous books of hers that were tough reads, but generally these 'cowboy' stories have left much of the trauma off the page.

I was interested mostly in how she develops the villains here. There are two of them, and despite their despicable behaviour, by the end, readers are being asked to change our minds about them. Not sure how I feel about that.

But given his terrible past, I am happy to see Josiah in a safer place by the end. It's not a HEA which guarantees another book, so there's that.

There's a strange mixture of sweetness and spoiled fruit here, and I struggled a bit with the uneven tone. I trust that this author knows where this is all headed and that readers will ultimately be satisfied, so I will keep an eye out for more.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for advanced copy. His Reluctant Cowboy is out on October 25.

3.5

I've read a few of A.M. Arthur's book, and I've always encountered the same issues with her books: I really adore the first half of it, but then, I start skimming because I suddenly get a bit bored.
"His Reluctant Cowboy" has a gorgeoursly angsty and sweetly lovely beginning: the story, the writing, the characters, were all fantastic and I was pleasantly surprised by how angsty it was. Nothing gets me going more than a good ol' hurt/comfort romance, featuring an even better "who hurt you" moment. I really adored the first half of the book, but then... I got bored. And a tiny bit annoyed.

A.M. Arthur is a really good writer, but I think her characters here lacked a bit of spark. Don't get me wrong, the leads were fantastic and the side characters even better, but I felt like something was missing, something, like snark or emotional depth or anything really, that made them stand out clearly. I also got a bit annoyed at how the sheriff was kinda turned into a "misunderstood and broken character that deserves sympathy", when in reality he's an abusive, horrific person who deserves jail time. I don't know if that was the author's intention, but I got that distinct feeling and it made me very uncomfortable.

On the other hand, the romance between the two leads was fantastic and sweet and lovely, and I also adored the setting: it was vividly described and I could clearly picture it in my head.

All in all, this WAS, regardless of my issues with it, an enjoyable read and I'm curious to see if there will be a third book, and who it will be about.

TW: domestic abuse.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I have received this book from NetGalley, Carina Press & Carina Adores (Harlequin), and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review. The Pub date of the book is October 25, 2022.

I will post this review on my Goodreads, Facebook page and Instagram.

I liked it, but I didn't love it.

It was nice to have CW at the beginning of the book because it helped to understand what could come further in history.

I thought that because of the characters, the situation of the two might be something more mature and understandable, but there were several things that annoyed me in this story. Especially the line that didn't make sense to me.

I liked the characters on an individual level, but together it was complicated to believe in the chemistry of the two as one. Maybe it's just my point of view, but I couldn't understand much more than what little I understood.

I'm sure the author's message is there and not all books can have the desired rhythm. I kind of feel like I don’t have much to say about it because I didn’t really feel this story.

I want to continue reading the series, and more books by this author, given that I liked previous ones, but I think this was not the best of hers for me.

If this book had started at chapter 8 with a short prologue introducing the characters past trauma, I might have been able to give this book a higher rating, but honestly the first 7 chapters were a huge trauma dump and trigger warning for domestic abuse, trauma and rape, and honestly it tainted the rest of the book and made me want to quit. If it wasn't an ARC, I would have set it aside before I got to the actual romance...

If I knew less of the characters direct history as I read the book, I would probably have been more invested in the story and liked the characters more.

I am unfortunately not going to be posting my review publicly for this book on my blog and will strongly suggest that you consider increasing your content warnings.

This novel has a difficult beginning, which I do not mind, as Josiah, one of the main characters, extricates himself from an abusive relationship while the other, Michael, is recovering from a difficult breakup that also left him in financial straits. They come together because Michael's father has a stroke and needs at-home care.

One of the aspects I appreciated about this book is the attention to ways childhood homelessness affected Josiah's adult life. From the ways Josiah really focused on domestic details, such as food preparation and daily chores, to the fact that he was stuck in that abusive relationship with the sheriff, I found him believable.

The narrative was plodding and I think calling this a slow burn is not quite correct, as there was barely any burn. In part the two men rationalized keeping their attraction under wraps because they were both recovering, but it doesn't seem like they should have been that effective at keeping their own feelings tamped down, however wise it seemed. We go through most of the book with little romantic activity until the end.

I also found the dialogue overly formal and stilted, though I enjoyed a lot of the rest of the writing.

A.M. Arthur has a wonderful writing style, and there is much to like about His Reluctant Cowboy. The setting is great, and I loved Michael's relationship with his father, Elmer, as they overcame the issues that separated them for two decades. There was a lot of growth and ultimately, the way they forgave each other was the highlight of this book.

I also enjoyed Michael's relationship with his new co-workers. Reluctant though he might have been to return to ranching, the confidence he showed in taking that job and adjusting to his new circumstances made me both admire and appreciate him. On top of that, to see him branching out and establishing friendships with those around him was nice—it made me smile to see the support he was given, and to see his comfort level grow.

The hardest part of this book for me was the simple fact that it was melancholy. There was an air of sadness about it lingered from beginning to end, and although it did serve the story in some ways, it also made it difficult for me to be excited to read. As much as a part of me wanted to see Josiah find his feet and overcome the horrors of his life (of which there were too many, IMHO), I mostly wanted to feel more joy in his liberation from his past.

All in all, a solidly written book that was perhaps just not for me.

The concept is nice, it drew me in to pick up this ARC. I wish it lived up to that, because this book spent a lot of time waffling around traumatic experiences without delving into any aspects of recovery and reclamation, on the MC's part. This is a slow burn but nothing interesting happens in the large chunk of time they're not in a relationship. I wonder what the point was?

His Reluctant Cowboy is a sweet romantic book between Josiah and Michael. Michael has lost everything including his dog, except his house, to his ex. He moves back home to take care of his ailing father and he meets Josiah. Josiah is the nurse assigned to take care of Michael's father. He's in an abusive relationship with the town's sheriff. With the help of Michael and the Woods Ranch cowboys, he is able to get his things after the sheriff threw him out. You can see the attraction between these two but for different reasons, they don't act on it until they get to know one another. The is sweet, romantic, some angst, witty, and funny, and I enjoyed it.