(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)
Country-loving Dallas Armstrong is a hard-as-nails bull rider, who dreams of becoming Australian champion, just like his father, Mick, was. But when he discovers a shocking secret about his father on the same day Mick dies in a car accident, Dallas’s world is turned upside down. Now it’s up to him to protect his mother from the truth, and to keep the family farm Rollingstone Ridge afloat. And he will do everything in his power to do so.
Charlize Dawson is a successful city journalist whose marriage is in tatters. Begrudgingly sent to the country to write about Dallas, she is surprised to find that he isn’t the arrogant cowboy she’d assumed he’d be. Instead she and Dallas and share an intense chemistry and deep connection that lead to a stolen kiss at the Rodeo Ball.
But when Charlize’s research for her article puts her on the path of uncovering Dallas’s secret, he demands she stop or lose him forever. Dallas or her career, which should she choose? How can she turn her back on the people who have welcomed her into their lives with open arms, all in the name of her job? Her career is all she has left, and she has worked so very hard to be where she is. But how can she reveal what she knows, if it means losing the love of her life?

Another week, another Australian rural romance novel. You could be forgiven for thinking that, by now, all these stories would be the same but I can promise you that this novel stands alone in the RR stakes. Sure, it is a romance novel, set in the rural areas of Australia, but there is a certain "something" that makes this one of the more memorable ones...

Even the story sounds familiar - big city girl comes to the country to do a story on a local hero, trying to get a promotion she has worked so long for. He has a secret that he desperately wants to keep hidden. During her research, she stumbles on said secret. And develops feelings for the guy. So she is stuck - tell him she knows the secret and he will walk away from her, or keep the secret and maybe lose her job...

But what it is that makes this book fantastic is the quality of the writing. Every detail about the landscape is perfect, the characters come to life in every scene, the dialogue sounds as Australian as you could want it. Not just that, but the "secret" was well thought out, and had consequences. That was really appreciated. The romance certainly had its moments - some would call it swoon-worthy - but it was well contained within the story and never got too sweet or unbelievable.

Overall, a really, really solid book and one that should be high on people's TBR piles!


Paul
ARH