Customer Reviews

One Cowboy, One Christmas (Silhouette Special Edition)

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

 

 

I am a big Kathleen Eagle fan and this is one of the best ones she's written in years. The dialog is terrific and the story and characters are wonderful. I've just finished reading it twice through and shed many happy tears. I cannot wait for the next one in the trilogy. It helps if you read "In Care of Sam Beaudry" first to be introduced second hand to the cowboy character. The dialog is so realistic and the story is very romantic. I do not want to give any of it away- just read it.

Zach Beaudry is thirty-two. Still young for a man, but after years on the rodeo circuit, his patched-up body is old. Very old. Bull riding will do that to a man, and Zach's had his share of bad luck, so when Zell, his faithful truck, breaks down in the middle of nowhere on a lonely stretch of South Dakota highway one bitterly cold November night, Zach is forced to hoof it to the nearest house for help. By the time he collapses on the house's front porch, he's got, in addition to a broken body, a bad case of hypothermia.

Schoolteacher Ann Drexler is trimming the Christmas tree when she hears a thud on the porch. She and her sister Sally find a half frozen man...one they recognize. Sally, a rodeo enthusiast before multiple sclerosis cast its shadow, remembers Zach, one of the best bull riders a few years back. Ann also remembers the mixed blood Indian cowboy, and their one-night stand eight years earlier.

They provide care in the form of a hot bath, food and a bed. The next day, Hoolie, their hired hand, retrieves Zach's truck and informs him it'll need a lot more than gasoline. Hoolie needs help at the ranch and offers to fix the truck for Zach's labor. Zach is first and foremost a rodeo cowboy, always moving down the road in search of a good bull and a hefty jackpot, an item that has been missing in the last couple of years. But he can't move down the road without Zell, so he agrees to stay and work at the Double D ranch until his truck is back on the road.

Zach finds he enjoys talking to Ann, likes helping out in the kitchen. He's attracted to her but has no recollection of their previous encounter, a secret Ann has kept to herself.

Kathleen Eagle has created a wonderful story in One Cowboy, One Christmas. Zach and Ann are perfect characters to love and cheer. There's just the right mix of back story, inner thought and wonderful dialogue to keep you cheering for these tow. Sister Sally and Hoolie add to the mix. Zach's gradual transformation from rodeo cowboy to cowboy is heartwarming. I loved this story and can't wait to read Cool Hand Hank, Sally's story.

Another winner from the multi-talented Ms. Eagle.

There was a time in the not-so-distant past that Kathleen Eagle was a must-buy for me. When she moved into hardback her work became more mainstream and it lost its appeal because the romance placed a distant third in those book.

In this book, Eagle is back in the format that I feel showcases her considerable talent the best. She's known for crafting the every Jane and Joe. Her characters are the people next door with real issues and shortcomings just like everyone else. While I don't feel his is her best work, One Cowboy, One Christmas is an entertaining holiday-themed read.

I love this book! I haven't read this copy of it yet because I already had it but didn't realize it because the image on Amazon.com was a different cover and I didn't put 2-and-2 together. Oh well. And it was shipped from the U.K. Yikes! I highly recommend this entire series by Kathleen Eagle, starting with In Care of Sam Beaudry. One Cowboy One Christmas is the second book and tells Sam's brother's story. Kathleen's writing style is different from other authors, but it's wonderful. You have to pay attention and you have to read between the lines sometimes. I like that - having to think while you read...but not thinking so hard that you get a headache :-D

I expected more length and intensity from a Kathleen Eagle book. O.K. fast read for a light weight romance.

I have to agree with the previous two reviewers...An excellent Western romance by an excellent romance writer. I am looking forward to the next installment of this series.

If you love western romance books, you'll probably love this book. I don't think Kathleen Eagle has wrote a bad book. Her books are short but good. I think you'll like it.

I am a fan of Kathleen Eagle. I have read all of her romance novels and some of her mainstream work. Her mainstream work is well crafted but too dark for my taste.

The trite plot of "One Cowboy, One Christmas" is unusual for Kathleen Eagle (a banged up, promiscuous, once famous professional rodeo bull rider finds his true love and turns around his declining, depressing life).

Despite the plot, I highly recommend this book. Ms. Eagle's writing is outstanding. I have always considered her one of the best Romance genre writers. Her venture into mainstream fiction seems to have added grace, originality, and power to her writing style. It is a pleasure to read. The dialogue is hard hitting and feels authentic. The descriptions are excellent. Word choice is outstanding and original. I randomly selected a couple of examples of Kathleen Eagles writing. If you like them, you will love this book. The first example is a description of miscarriage: "What was it like? Like a dream died inside me. ... The thing is, I had a little face in mind, little hands and feet." The second example is about waking up and finding a bed partner absent on a cold day when the heat is not working: "She flipped the covers off, swung her legs over the side of the bed, sat up and thought about the possibilities. But only for a couple of seconds. She was stark naked, and it was seriously cold. Anyway, she wasn't feeling it. The cold, yes. Zach's absence, no."

I hope Ms. Eagle will combine her excellent writing with one of her thought-provoking, highly original romance plots in the future.