⭐️ 2.75 stars

Tropes/What to Expect:
🧡 Clean Romance
🧡 Cowboy x City Girl
🧡 Grumpy x Sunshine
🧡 A song for each chapter
🧡 He calls her ‘Red’
🧡 One Horse
🧡 Slow Burn

Info:
1st person POV (h)
No owd
Light unwanted omd (flirty cowboy)
No cheating
No virgins (no manwhore/celibate H - 2 yrs at least)
No spice
No third-act breakup
Epilogue (1 yr later)
HEA


My Thoughts (good):

I adored how the author captured cowboy culture in such a genuine and real way. I have read some books that just did not seem to have given that particular plot point enough thought or realism. This portrayal was outstanding.

I loved how much thought the author put into this. You can really tell she put little parts of herself in the story, and it makes it even more unique.

It was really fun to learn about cowboy life, and be able to learn alongside Amelia. Basically, this book addressed every query I had while reading a western novel.

I was relieved that Eric was not an asshole because sometimes when I read about a grumpy MMC, he just turns out to be an asshole. (It was a little off-putting that he was such a jerk in the first few chapters, but he quickly changed his attitude.)

It was great that we readers did not have to read about the "boring stuff" and that the first few chapters moved quickly from her book being rejected to her arrival at the ranch.

I loved how much I was able to connect to the characters and even have a few happy tears. I loved Eric! And his relationship with his horse, Roper <3


My Thoughts (not so good):

I would have liked to see Eric’s POV, and I feel like it would’ve helped me connect with his character and understand him better.

I was not as engrossed in this as I had hoped. I felt like certain parts of the story were drawn out, repeated, and maybe a little unnecessary. Which made me want to skim a little and took longer for me to read. I am not quite sure why this did not really work out for me, though, because I thought the characters were great.

There was a little too much pushing away from Amelia for my liking. I don’t mind it normally, but it did seem weird that she was completely blind to all of Eric’s advances. We do learn where her doubts stem from, so I understand to a certain extent.

It felt more like a personal journey on learning to trust and gain confidence back than an actual romance? The plot also felt slow.

This was not my thing, but I can definitely see others adoring it! I still recommend this to certain readers! The book was safe, had good writing, good characters, and I liked the hard topics that were brought up. This rating is based on my personal enjoyment.

"I think I'd take Eric. He's such a Mr. Darcy. So broody and handsome and responsible..."

I love Eric sm and I'm so mad that he's just ink on paper 😡

Oh wow, I didn't expect to love this book as much as I did.

Amelia's a successful author and when her next book got rejected 14 times, she set things right and embarked on a journey for research purposes about her book. She head to Colorado and stayed at a family's ranch where she met Eric.

First off, I love both characters. It took me around 30% to fully be invested in this book. Amelia's flawed and had her own trauma from her past that got her hesitant to go all-in with Eric. While Eric's been broody from the start but ultimately changed after a few chapters because of Amelia. He's communicative, had all the love languages, knows what he wants and backed it up with actions. He's perfect and I love how they were both adults with the whole thing.

It's not your typical city girl settled down with the countryside for love. They both put in the work, the effort and communicate properly to get where they are.

Brb, heading to Colorado to get me some cowboy!

First thought: Love,Love,Love! Hats off to Waitlyn once again she leave me with all the feels wanting more. This book does not disappoint, I binged it in one sitting it’s that good! If you want a swoon worthy cowboy romance with all the vibes run and add this one to your TBR now I promise it’s as good as the late 90/2000s romcom movies.

NY best selling author Amelia is trying to break out in a new genre of mystery but her book has been turned down 14times! So she’s scratching the bottom of the barrel and her last attempt will be do go do some field research. One of her besties has family that owns a ranch out in Northern Colorado and to her luck they have an open cottage she can stay in for the summer.

Now it’s time for this cali girl to immerse herself in the land of the cowboys! Before she even makes it to her cottage for the summer her rental gets a flat on the road there and she encounters the hottest grumpiest man aka cowboy she’s ever seen. Man of little words he fixes her tire and send her on her way. Little does she know he is one of 3 brothers running the ranch she’s staying at.

Amelia wants to make her time counts and absorb all the things so she’s quickly indcuted to the family and tossed into all things ranch life. Come follow her adventures as she gets the full cowgirl treatment, she may ever find a cowboy as she gains insights to rewrite her book.

This book has it all: horses, rodeos, storms, rattlesnakes, sunsets, forced proximity, family dinners, hot cowboys, found family and the perfect level of slow burn! Check it out when it Releases on September 26th, 2024!

Literally Themes you’ll find:

* Grumpy Cowboy x Sunshine Author
* Forced Proximity
* Drunken Confessions
* Cowboy & His Horse 😍
* Silent Acts of Love
* Swoon Worthy
* Slow Burn
* Single POV
* Only Kissing 💋

♥️🐂🐴♥️🐂🐴♥️🐂🐴♥️🐂🐴♥️🐂🐴♥️

i unfortunately didn’t enjoy this book, i just couldn’t get being the story or the characters and found the plot very slow

Oh I enjoyed this so much! Closed door, comforting, happy romance featuring a cowboy and a writer! Just lovely. I enjoyed Andrews previous work and am looking forward to the next and the next. Pacing and writing were good. A treat of a read! Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy!

It started slow, and I really thought it was going to take me a while to get through this. But Waitlyn really has a great way of revealing the characters to you and making you feel more and more invested in them.
It's a single POV, which I didn't hate, but really wished I had Eric's POV too, to really see what his thoughts were and show the juxtaposition of his actions vs. thoughts.
It was such a neat take on a cowboy romance, it would be a great gateway book to people who haven't read cowboy. By writing Amelia as an author who is doing research for a book, Waitlyn was able to really explain and breakdown ranching and rodeoing without feeling like it was a tutorial for the reader.
I had such a great time with the Randalls and am so glad Waitlyn has set up her next novel within the same family.

such a cute slow burn cowboy romance!!!! What I really enjoyed about this book was how everyone at the ranch immediately took Amelia into their family with open arms. Now, it took a little bit for our grump MMC cowboy, Eric, to realize he had been won over, but the love was there nonetheless.

This book was sent to me via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 5 stars (I had to)
Spice: none

Please be warned, this review may contain spoilers.

This year alone I have read 127 books including this one. I read for pleasure and this was my first real foray into getting an ARC. I have gotten ARCs before, don't get me wrong, but with wanting to build a base for readers and hopefully authors and also hopefully inspiring others to read and fall in love with being able to travel to far off places without ever leaving their couch, I decided that this foray could be a worthwhile step.

I am also a person who rarely, gives a five star review. I have bounced between 4.5 stars and 5 stars for most of this book to be honest and I am trying to figure out what it lacks or doesn't lack for me to say I can take off that half point.

The only slightly negative things I can say is that it took me a couple of chapters to settle into the book. And the second thing the level of frustration I had with these two MC's was unparralled. Have you seen that book meme that's "I find reading so relaxing. *Screams at book*, *cries over book*." etc? Well I have never related to a meme more when reading and book. I wanted to grab the two MC's and shake them at times. But you pick up a romance book that is what you come to expect.

Amelia (Mia), is a successful author but her lack of research bites her in the ass so she needs to do some immersive research. Which is how we meet Eric. The cowboy *fans self*

Eric is a man of few words at least until he warms up, and boy does he warm up.

My notes the whole way through the book are a little insane and I don't know if Waitlyn Andrews experienced half of the events of this book but man, did she pull me in.

The tornado sparked an anxiety I didn't even know I had. I want to find rodeos online and watch them (And I have read my fair share of cowboy romances and they haven't made me do that). I have completely fallen in love with a fictional horse, and the bond between said horse and Eric...be still my beating heart. The banter between Mia and Eric made me giggle (and I don't giggle. I laugh out loud or I smirk) The book gave me butterflies, it made me giggle, it gave me anxiety (in a good way), and it made me cry.

I have to say it always surprises me when distance (especially with a job you can do anywhere as long as you have an internet connection, and a laptop) comes a huge sticking point. But its a romance that will get sorted. I was kind of surprised at the turn this book made, when I had a about 1.5 hours of reading left but I got it. Because my brain works the same way. When you have a point or plan in mind its damned hard to stray from it. So I very much got Mia's point but it didn't stop me being annoyed with her for not changing her mind.

We also get a very real sense of Mia's frustration with Eric, despite her having her own reasons for being...standoffish, and he had his reason's. It was just a matter of time before one of them broke and it was so amazing when one of them did and we get a frustrated, tormented confession of feelings that set of my butterflies and caused more giggling and maybe some hand clapping.

I have to say though an in love cowboy is a cute as hell cowboy *insert heart eyes here*

Andrews offers us not just one romance in this book though, but two. I found myself getting heavily drawn into Penny and Dean and I genuinely did not know which of the characters love lives I wanted to work out more.

I didn't want this book to end. So much so I read the acknowledgements, which I never ever do. And something Andew's wrote stuck with me. She picked up a book from a favourite author of hers because this author was historically a safe happy read. She ended up disappointed as this wasn't what she got, and because of that she promises to always be that author. She will be the author you can pick up and know you are going to get a story that will give you the feels and will be a happy book. That for me, made me run to Amazon and download her other published work Yes Chef and added her to the list of authors I will always, without fail, buy before anyone else.

Thanks for reading this review, and thanks again to NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this book, review it, and find a new will always buy author.

Tropes for this book are some of my favourites:
- Cowboy & City Girl
- One Horse ;)
- Slow Burn
- Grumpy Sunshine

Riders Block was a fun time! Doing research for a book by immersing yourself in the situation is such a great premise, and the relationship between Amelia and Eric has a lovely arc of almost mentor/mentee vibes but overlapped with heavy chemistry and adorable moments, Eric is super persistent in his interest in Amelia which I loved, but found myself getting a bit frustrated with Amelia's guided nature - she pushed away for too long in my opinion.

I adore cowboy romance books but for some reason this didn't engross me as much as others - it would have been better framed as a dual POV I think, having some deeper connection with Eric would balance the constant back and forth in Amelia's POV.

All in all it was a very cute read, I wasn't aware that it was a 'Clean Romance' so if you're looking for an easy and enjoyable book with really interesting details and view into accurate ranch life then it's for you!

I am a big fan of cowboy romance and this one was fun to read. This is a slow burn which is always a favorite - but being closed door it is much lighter on the spice than my typical read. I was glad that there was a well rounded cast of side characters to keep me engaged. I felt a lot of similarities between some of my long-standing favorites like the Blue Moon series by Lucy Score and Elsie Silver's Chestnut Springs - large, meddling "found family" with some good humor.
I like the premise of an author spending time on a ranch for research, with the slight misunderstanding/grumpy x sunshine/enemies to lovers vibes at first. And I really enjoyed two main characters who communicate very well!

Thank you for the chance to read this arc!

Such a cute story of a writer struggling with a book and making the decision to travel to the setting to help with her writing only to find herself going head-to-head with a grumpy cowboy who she ends up falling in love with but his life is in Colorado and hers is in California. She doesn't want to give up the life she thinks she wants and doesn't want to ask him to do the same either but eventually she has to pick what's more important to her. I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to read more from the author.

I was 100% sure that I would love this book, I mean, she is a writer, he is a cawboy, a wholesome found family, he fell in love first. And I have indeed loved it, but the men of this author have left me very high standards.
I don't know much about cowboys, so don't know how acurate is the author, but she has convinced me, and she made me feel part of this story from the first page. The atmosphere, the rodeos, made me need more books like this one in my life, it has become my new obsession.
One thing that I value very much is that it's not one of those stories in which their love interests fall in love, argue for nonsense, and reconcile to be together. We can see how the relationshipbetween them evolves and how they fall in love, and that makes this book more special for me.
Definitely I need everyone to read it so I can talk about it with more people.

Rider’s Block is such a sweet love story! I loved every character and you can imagine/feel as though you’re there in the story the entire time. Really made me want to get away to the Colorado plains and stay on a ranch for a summer 🤠

This book releases on September 26th!

Cowboy romance
Grumpy x Sunshine
No spicy scenes
Forced proximity
Little bit of family drama
Healing old wounds
Feel-good romcom

I really enjoyed this book. Small town, romance, grumpy cowboy, author with writers block, really can’t go wrong. Super cute story of people overcoming their fears with letting people in and realizing the power with having a great supportive partner and family unit.

I do wish Dean and Penny had their own book for their side love story in this, I think that would have been a really great book to read.

I feel a couple parts of the story were lengthy and didn’t add much to the story for me at least.

Over all I really did enjoy this book and the characters. Eric is just the perfect swoony grumpy cowboy! Amelia was a great relatable fmc that I loved, her dad is a pos who deserves nothing good in this world!

This is a clean romance, so if that is what you look for this is really great option to cure the small town romance without spice itch. Even for readers that enjoy or want spice, this is a great read.

Go check it out!

Rating: 4.25 ⭐️
This book is what you’d get if an Elsie Silver book had a baby with a Hallmark movie, and I mean that with the highest praise. Everything about Rider’s Block felt really wholesome and earnest without being sickeningly sweet.

I loved the characters so much! The personalities balanced one another out so well and I loved discovering new things about them as the story went on. The pacing was fantastic and really made sense given Amelia and Eric’s backstories.

I flew through this book simply because I couldn’t put it down. It was so funny and such a quick and easy read.

Read if you like:
- German Shepherd cowboys
- Learning about ranch life & rodeos
- Family and found family
- Lots of swoon with no spice
- Horses with lots of personality
- Injury tending
- Red cowboy boots and drunken confessions

e-ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

I would note first, because I didn’t see this mentioned anywhere and was hoping for the opposite - this is a sweet romance. I am a spicy reader, so my critique may be in part related to that letdown. I didn’t find the actual prose to be stellar, the length was a little long, and the MMC (while VERY endearing and sweet) came off a little too predictable? I would recommend it for a light, easy, sweet read. But it doesn’t meet my typical rating criteria of uniqueness, heat, or complexity.

Wow! I wanted to read this book because of the clever title. I loved every moment of this story. The romantic tension, the found family, the relationship that is a true partnership, the town, the ranch life, the bond with the animals, the rodeo circuit. Loved it all. This is a clean romance but there’s plenty of chemistry. This book is also so funny! A new favorite for sure! Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC

Rating: ★★★★☆ (4 stars)

Waitlyn Andrew delivers again with her sophomore romcom, Rider’s Block. After whisking us away on a delicious adventure in Paris with Yes, Chef, she now brings us a love story set in the stunning Colorado plains, pairing a cowboy with a romance writer.

Amelia, a successful romance author, hits a roadblock when her latest cowboy-themed book gets rejected 14 times. The reason? She’s never actually spent any time in the Colorado plains she writes about. When the opportunity arises to live on a real cowboy ranch for some hands-on research, the last thing Amelia expects is to meet Eric Randall—a grumpy, handsome cowboy who just might steal her heart. Through rodeos, new friendships, and the warmth of a found family, Amelia and Eric discover they’re at their best when working together to achieve their dreams.

This book was such a delight to read! The character development was especially well done, with both Amelia and Eric growing individually and learning to love and be loved in return. I also adored the side characters (horses included!). Waitlyn did a brilliant job of immersing readers in the setting—you can feel the warmth of the sun, see the night stars, admire the sunsets, and almost smell the cinnamon rolls. It’s an utterly cozy fall read that will leave you smiling.

Highly recommended for fans of closed-door romances, cowboys, and the grumpy/sunshine trope.

Thank you to Netgally and the publisher for an advanced copy for my honest opinion.

Absolutely adored this book! The lush scenery, the vividly three dimensional characters, and an author FMC!? Three of my favorite things. Though it was closed door, the tension between Mia and Eric was palpable and didn’t make me feel like I was missing anything. A great read for fans of Western/cowboy romances!

This was an absolutely amazing book! It was my first cowboy romance and I loved the writing style. I really enjoyed the vivid descriptions of everything, the food, scenery etc. Penny by far was my favorite character, she was so outgoing and funny! I definitely recommend this book.

I got this book in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.