Cowboy's Gift (Code Of The West) (Silhouette Desire, No 1329) [Paperback]

Anne McAllister (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2000

A COWBOY FOR CHRISTMAS? Bronc buster Gus Holt has shied away from wedding since he backed out of his own engagement a decade ago. But when ex-fiancee Mary McLean turns up in Montana -- pregnant, alone and lovelier than ever -- Gus suddenly discovers a hankering to leave behind the bunkhouse for a marriage bed!

Being a surrogate mother to her sister's child is the closest Mary figures she is going to get to having a baby of her own. And she's not at all sure she trusts Gus's new-found enthusiasm for family . . .

But Gus is determined to win her over. Mary is darned well going to be his by Christmas -- if he can just figure out how to gift-wrap forever!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A COWBOY'S GIFT (4) by Anne McAllister is a wonderful tale with good story and character development and charming scenes." -- ROMANTIC TIMES, November 2000

"Anne McAllister blends humor with stirring emotion to create a richly layered,deeply satisfying love story . . . It's definitely a keeper!" -- Lynn Turner, reviewer for Writers Club Romance Group on AOL

From the Author

A COWBOY'S GIFT is the 12th (good grief!) in my Code of the West series. It's a Christmas story, a family story and a cowboy-who-just-might-not-ride-off-into-the-sunset-after-all story all in one. I had a lot of fun with Gus. He's the brother of the hero of A COWBOY'S SECRET, and when he first turned up there, I knew I was going to like him a lot. Gus's first name was inspired by an ancestor of mine who probably suffered with it about as much as Gus has. I hope you enjoy his -- and Mary's -- story. Drop me a line at [e-mail] and let me know.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Silhouette (November 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373763298
• ISBN-13: 978-0373763290
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,618,697 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born in California and grew up there on the beaches of SoCal where I used to think I would write humorous social commentaries and pithy columns about life between "here and the pier" in Manhattan Beach.

But then I left. I went away to college and then married and moved to the Midwest. Since then I've been in the Midwest and Montana and made the mental transition to life with four seasons with no trouble at all.

In fact, last time I was in MB I looked at the inlaid terrazzo tiles in the sidewalk on the hill leading down to the pier and thought to myself, "Who on earth would put tiles in the sidewalk? It will be so hard to shovel the snow off!"

See?

Despite my beach upbringing, I was the child of transplanted okies and montanans, and my love of cowboys was apparently bred in the bone. The first man I fell in love with was a cowboy. I was five years old -- and I imprinted on him, following him everywhere, like a duck.

So when I started writing romance fiction years later, there was no question that even my CEOs and beach volleyball players and Greek tycoons were, at their heart, cowboy heroes.

McAllister heroes have a strong sense of honor, determination, competence, and a "get it done" attitude. They are more often lone wolves than they are alphas. They go their own way -- until they meet the woman who makes them want to share their life. And a lone wolf who takes on a spouse has to have some alpha in him. She definitely brings it out.

Writing has been a wonderful opportunity for me to expand my horizons, to learn more about things that interest me. It gives me license to satisfy my curiosity and to meet people from all walks of life. I love it. The ideas never seem to dry up. They are everywhere. I'm looking forward to writing a whole lot more.

I'm always glad to hear from readers so stop by my website or blog if you have comments or questions.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The story of a man who learned to appreciate what he had, November 20, 2000

By 

C. M. Chen (CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cowboy's Gift (Code Of The West) (Silhouette Desire, No 1329) (Paperback)

Twelve years ago, Gus Holt decided that the appeal of the outside world beat tying himself down to the girl he loved. He headed down the road and he hardly ever looked back. Now, years later, the appeal of the road has slowly worn away and he finds himself uncertain about his future. Taking a few weeks to get it straightened out was all he planned to do when he arrived in Montana. But when he unexpectedly encountered his ex-fiancee, his uncertainty faded quickly.

Mary McLean's world is turned upside down by the sudden reappearance of Gus Holt. She is surprised to find that the young man who claimed he'd rather be dead than married is all too eager to pick up where they left off twelve years ago. Unfortunately for Gus, Mary's world no longer centers around the young love they shared. She is also carrying a child. But nothing will deter Gus from reclaiming the love they once shared.

Anne McAllister has written the story about a man who grows up quickly when he realizes that the source of his restlessness is actually his need to set down some roots. This is an irony that the author makes impossible to miss for both Mary McLean and the reader. At the story's beginning, Gus still is that careless young man in that he never truly understands the consequences of his heartless actions. But through Mary's strength of character, Gus is compelled to face his inadequacies again and again as he comes to understand the depth of the heartache he inflicted upon her. This is a wonderful and heartwarming story for the holidays which readers will enjoy. Mary is a determined and strong heroine both as a young woman and as a mature adult and her sheer will both humbles Gus and allows him to appreciate all he had taken for granted.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A COWBOY'S GIFT, November 12, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Cowboy's Gift (Code Of The West) (Silhouette Desire, No 1329) (Paperback)

A cowboy's Gift is my favorite Anne McAllister book so far. The characters grab you right from the first page. Gus Holt is a man who hasn't stayed still for five minutes in his whole life. Disillusioned with living his life on the road, he starts re-thinking the decisions he's made. Gus can't stop thinking about Mary, the girl he left a week before their wedding. Mary McLean pulled her tattered heart together and started living her life. In fact, she's pregnant. How Gus deals with Mary being pregnant, and the shock of who's baby she's having kept me reading long past my bedtime. I highly recommend A Cowboy's Gift.