This book was just adorable, and I loved every minute! Read my full review below...
Near Misses & Cowboy Kisses
By Katrina Emmel
YA Contemporary Romance
Audiobook, Paperback & eBook, 288 Pages
July 23, 2024 by Delacorte Romance
Summary
A swoon-worthy YA rivals-to-lovers romance between a Nebraskan cowboy and California girl, thrust together on the Oregon Trail.
Anything’s possible under a prairie sky…
Riley Thomas is feeling stuck—she’s moved from California to Nebraska, she’s on a weeklong Oregon Trail family bonding excursion, and her luggage is lost. There’s no one her age on the trip except a tall, dark and irksome cowboy who wrongly assumes she has zero ability to handle the great outdoors. She can’t wait for this misery to end—even though going “home” isn’t even possible anymore.
Lone wolf Colton Walker loves the simpler life of the plains and his family’s tourism business that helps protect them. He’s a stand-up guy—not a love ‘em and leave ‘em type like his rival, Jake. And he knows better than to take his chances with a prairie princess like Riley.
But Riley’s got more sense than Colton thinks--and he’s not nearly as inflexible as he seems. And under a wide prairie sky of puffy clouds and bright stars, everything comes into focus--including a cowboy’s heart.
Katrina Emmel’s Near Misses and Cowboy Kisses will take you on a sweeping journey across the American prairie . . . once you love a boy in a Stetson, you’ll never be the same.
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My Review
NEAR MISSES & COWBOY KISSES is a delightful romance set along the Oregon Trail. Likable characters, a fun family dynamic, romance with plenty of chemistry and a slight triangle, with a bit of danger thrown in makes for a thoroughly enjoyable read. Young adult contemporary romance fans, especially those who find rugged and sweet cowboys attractive, will definitely enjoy this adorable story full of heart and swoons!
I didn't know what to expect when I first began reading this story and I've had a bit of a run of not great books, so it was a relief to finally read something that I enjoyed from beginning to end. This was a refreshing read with a unique setting as the heroine goes with her family on a wagon ride for a taste of pioneer life along the Oregon Trail. There were a lot of opportunities to create friction, surprises, friendship and romance with this setting.
From the first chapter I knew I'd like these characters and story. Riley is a fairly level-headed teenage girl who is about to enter her senior year of high school but has had her whole life completely ripped up with a move across country. She seems a bit plagued my mishaps to add to her challenges, including getting wrongly judged to be someone she's not. Colton is one of the cowboys who works the Oregon Trail with his dad. He's rugged and steady with a sweet side. He's not usually known to be a flirt or get involved with anyone, especially short term. These two don't start of well with a bunch of misconceptions about each other. It was fun to see how one kind of tension turned into another as they got to know each other and faced some surprising challenges. I enjoyed how well the author balanced all the emotions and how the emotional intensity grew as the story unfolded. I appreciated the humor, the contemplative and learning moments, the relationships, the surprising run-ins with animals, and the romance.
Read this story if you like:
- A unique setting along the Oregon Trail
- A sweet, rugged cowboy
- A girl who is perfectly relatable
- A slight love triangle
- Chemistry with sparks
- A heroic rescue
- Plenty of humor
- Sleeping under the stars
- Fun family dynamics
- A story that will leave you smiling
In the end, was it what I wished for? This was an adorably delightful story! I loved reading it and am looking forward to picking up this author's next release.
Content: Some swearing (including a couple s-words).
Source: I received a complimentary NetGalley copy through TBR & Beyond Tours, which did not require a positive review. All opinions are my own.
About the Author
Katrina grew up in New Hampshire, and has a love for literature and science. She studied biochemistry in college before moving to the Midwest for graduate school, where she earned her Ph.D. in chemistry. Continuing her journey to the West Coast, Katrina lives in an active household that includes her husband, two children, father-in-law, and their rascally pup. She works as a chemistry consultant, and writes YA fiction and children’s fiction and non-fiction. Katrina loves chai, science and nature, trying out new recipes, music, and crafting.
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