Customer Reviews

Along Came a Cowboy

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Fabulous! I was looking for a fun and romantic read after a plethora of mind bending books and Along Came a Cowboy did not disappoint. The humour, delightful romantic tension and engaging characters drew me in instantly and carried me through the entire book. That being said, it is not without substance from Rachel's awkwardness with her parents to her niece's search for her real mother. Toss in cameos from Rachel's friends from Promise Me Always and you have the perfect tale to spend a few hours with.

In Shady Grove, Arkansas chiropractor Dr. Rachel Donovan just wants her practice to succeed without any hints of scandal so she goes out of her way to avoid dangling alliances with men especially with cowboys. She has had a scandal to last a lifetime so burned once she adheres strictly to her mantra of no cowboys.

However when Rachel meets cowboy Jake Westwood while on a town planning committee, she thinks he is quite a hunk when they are not arguing. He finds her pretty when they are in agreement and lovely when she yells at him. However, fearing her past will surface, Rachel rejects any relationship with the hunk, but love cannot be easily discarded especially when the stubborn cowboy insists on constantly coming around to see her.

LONG CAME A COWBOY is a deep character study starring a woman wanting to overcome her past as she seeks personal salvation. The romantic subplot enhances Rachel's efforts to obtain redemption starting with paragon behavior of someone nominated town citizen of the year. Readers will appreciate Rachel's tale supported by a strong secondary cast especially the title cowboy, the townsfolk and her family.

Harriet Klausner

My daughter and I both read this book and loved it. We thought Lynxwiler handled issues of purity, teen pregnancy, parenting, love, and forgiveness quite well. We were quite taken in by Jack's charm, love, and patience, and how he handled unwanted interference of the press. As a Mom, I appreciate how the issues of pregnancy, trust, pressures, commitment, and forgiveness addressed. Had a hard time putting it down!

New authors are always an interesting experience. You never know what you're going to expect. When you're not used to a writer's previous works, the first book of theirs that you read can make or break whether or not you'll continue reading their books. Lucky for Christine Lynxwiler she's made it in my opinion! I really enjoyed reading this book. Rachel is a wonderful character and I really liked the way she handled herself. We find out about her past a bit at a time throughout the story and I liked it more that way rather than everything being told all at one time. Her chemistry with Jack is wonderful and I loved reading about the two of them together. The romance sometimes feels like it's playing second fiddle to the conflicts within Rachel's family but it's still very much alive and kicking. I also enjoyed reading about bull riding and cattle roping. Not activities I would ever do myself, but still fun to learn about. The story that actually held my attention the most though was Lark's story involving adopting a baby. I could have read an entire book on that situation alone! I'm looking forward to going back and reading the first book in the series and I hope there are more stories about the Pinky Promise sisterhood in the future!

Chiropractor Rachel Donovan's life has been forever changed by a cowboy--and sixteen years later, she is still struggling to get past the experience. Unfortunately, her past just shows up when her fifteen-year-old niece, Jennifer, is picked up for hitchhiking and brought to Rachel's house. Jenn has learned she was adopted and isn't taking the news very well. She wants to find her birth mother.

Ex-rodeo star Jack Westwood has been in love with Rachel ever since he began to notice girls. Now that she's back in town, he's determined to get past Rachel's cold exterior to the feisty woman who hides inside. But Rachel is determined to stay as far away from cowboys as possible.

With Rachel's past staring her in her face and a cowboy trying to woo her, Rachel has lots of issues to deal with. Can she forgive herself and allow God to mend her hurts?

I totally loved Along Came A Cowboy, and it is easily one of the top ten books I've read in 2008. Written in first person, I was easily able to identify with Rachel, and I fell in love with Jack early in the story. He is a wonderful hero.

Set in a make-believe town in rural Arkansas near the real towns of Cherokee Village and Batesville, I was easily able to envision the setting as I am very familiar with that area of the state. The story is true to the southern rural mentality of the residents, with the townfolk friendly and involved in every area of their neighbors' lives.

Along Came a Cowboy is second in the Pinky Promise Sisterhood series, and even though it easily stands alone, it sent me looking for book one in the series. Ms. Lynxwiler did a stellar job on this book. Don't miss Along Came a Cowboy.

Armchair Interviews say: A perfect read for a hot summer day.

A Book Review by Audrey Hebbert:
Along Came A Cowboy
By Christine Lynxwiler
March 2008, Barbour Publishing
ISBN-978-1-59789-896-6
Trade $9.97
This story, set in a western town, provides a good read with all the charm that Lynxwiler brings to her work. Dr. Rachel Donovan runs a thriving chiropractic practice, and apparently she has everything together. In typical small town fashion, she helps out with the committee planning the town's major centennial celebration and rodeo. She's even been nominated Shady Grove's Citizen of the Year. Unfortunately, she carries baggage from the past.
Part of the conflict is kind, godly, stereotypical cowboy Jack Westwood, Rachel's old high school chum. He's cherished a love for her all these years, holding her dark secrets without rancor. Jack is bullheaded enough to persevere through her rejection, and insightful enough to recognize her conflicts with her past, especially the one involving a mistake Rachel made in their senior year.
Lynxwiler skillfully ties all the threads together at the end, pouring in forgiveness, true love and a takeaway for the reader's life. I especially enjoyed the book because I, too, grew up in ranch country, and I had to reconcile issues from the past. Sometimes it's harder to forgive ourselves than those around us.

"Along Came a Cowboy" is a wonderful, lighthearted, comical love story. The Pinky Promise Sisterhood series are well written and the characters come inside your home and sit down. I thought "Promise Me Always" was the best, but Christine Lynxwiler out did herself with this new one.
Dr. Rachel Donovan carried a lot of baggage with her through her life. It seemed the you could feel the tension lifted as she conquered each of her problems. Jack was/is a handsome cowboy from next door and years ago. To see him enter her life, although she fought to have him there, was refreshing for me.
Rachel handled each problem with poise and dignity, and humor. I really did not know what to expect when I received the book, but I could not put it down when I started reading. I always want the good guy to win and they did.
This was one of the best that Chris has written. She always brings the characters to life. They seem a part of my family. That's what I look for in a good book. One I can get lost in and I did in "Along Came a Cowboy."
If you are looking for some lighthearted summer reading, buy this book!

After reading Promise Me Always, I had been looking forward to and hoping that there would be more from the Pinky Promise Sisterhood. But Along Came a Cowboy was a bit of a disappointment. The plot was very predictable. I kept reading to make sure that there would be a happy ending but you pretty much know for sure that that is a given... A lot of the dialogue seemed canned, forced almost; the "y'alls" and "shugahs" appear randomly into the Pinky Sister's dialogue- like the southern talking only comes up sporadically. It was still a good, light, fluffy read. Rachael is the chiropractor in her small hometown. She is always ready and able to help her patients, even in the wee hours of the morning. But she has a harder time fixing her own problems, particularly moving on from a past indiscretion and finding forgiveness for herself, her family. She doesn't even allow herself to think about love. That is until a dashing cowboy from her past reappears and even though she fights the matchmaking attempts of the whole town, including their meddling mothers, she can't help but warm towards Jack. Rachael has a lot to learn though, before she can let herself love Jack.

Rachael's journey to self-acceptance is realistic and touching. Jack is sweet and dashingly handsome as her knight in shining armor, or cowboy in scuffed leather... Either way he is a wonderful hero, one that you may find yourself pining after. It would make for a good beach read, when you don't want to think and want the light fluff.

Along Came A Cowboy was a really nice read and the verbal sparring between the hero and heroine was fun.
The author did an excellent job of developing both of them into characters that we love and the same with their romance.

In recent months, I have been reading stories about cowboys and bull riders. I think it may have something to do with the real live bucking bull that I won a few months ago. Cowboys are hot, right? :-)

One book I have read recently is Along Came a Cowboy by Christine Lynxwiler. Rachel Donovan, small town chiropractor and Jack Westwood, ex bull-riding rodeo star are thrown together on a project. Rachel, however, doesn't trust cowboys and a cowboy-Jack-is. As you can imagine, there is conflict and flirtation and chaos while working on this project together. Why does Rachel so dislike cowboys? One cowboy from her past broke her heart, can another cowboy from her past capture her present and future?

Right from the start, Christine caught my attention giving just the slightest indication that Rachel had a secret. I was intrigued to find out what that secret was and how it would play out in Rachel's life. I love how Christine divulged just enough information to keep you looking for more. The book comes across as light-hearted and fun, yet also deals with real-life issues and struggles. I liked that the book wasn't just full of romance and fun and good times, but the characters lived real lives with real issues and were forced to overcome pasts and lean on God and His plans for the future. And if you are worried the story is too serious...it will sure to delight and comfort and make you chuckle.

Oh, did I mention I read the entire book in one day? Must mean a good book, eh? :-)