dtrumps's review against another edition
5.0
Read it on Gone Pecan
Shey Darcy is a former internatational supermodel and now a full time mom, separated from her husband of 17 years and recently relocated from New York to her hometown in Texas. In Texas, she has her mom, though they don’t really see eye to eye, her brothers and sisters-in-law, and Dane Kelly, her first love. And looking at Dane still gets her heart racing and her mind wondering what it could have been like if she had never been shipped off to boarding school when she was 16.
Cooper, Shey’s youngest, has really taken to the cowboy way of life and wants to get into the rodeo game, despite the fact that he’s too old and too tall. Bo, her middle child, has a history of depression and reminds Shey of her favorite brother, Cody, who killed himself several months before. Hank, the oldest, is not happy in Texas and wants to go back to New York and Shey is upset because she doesn’t want to lose him, but she knows she cannot keep him tethered where he doesn’t want to be.
Dane Kelly is six years older than Shey, which explains why her family shipped her away when she was sixteen and in love with him. In the meantime, he’s been married and divorced and had a child. Now he’s a successful businessman, raising bulls for the rodeo. Though Shey doesn’t want to become involved with him because she is still confused about her marriage and Dane and her brothers are feuding, she can’t deny the fact that he still does it for her. They keep getting thrown together because it’s a small town and they’re connected in a way that makes it hard to push aside their attraction.
There is so much going on in Shey’s life right now. She doesn’t know if she’s going to be staying in Texas or return to New York so the boys can be with their dad. There isn’t any way to save her marriage, but she feels lost and lonely and confused about the separation. Her family, though they mean well, particularly her mother, are far too opinionated about what she should do. Add that to the fact that her sons are teens (or nearly) and they have their own issues and Shey struggles to allow them room to grow and be themselves.
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from this book. I don’t know why, maybe because Jane Porter is a new to me author, but I liked the premise of the book, so I took a chance. I fell in love with it in the first chapter. Shey was such a tough, self-sufficient woman and the mother in her spoke to the mother in me. All of the issues she has with her sons hit me hard not because I’ve gone through it, but because I understand how helpless she felt through all the obstacles that were in her way to be the best version of herself for her sons. Shey kept getting pushed down but she kept getting back up, and a lot of it was her natural resilience, but it was also so that she could be a role model for her sons. There were a few times I nearly cried because of the stuff she went through because I felt as frustrated as she did. But Shey always got back on the horse and put on her happy face. And bravo for her and all the women who do it everyday. I really cannot say enough how much I liked this book and I’m so glad I stumbled upon it.
Pecans: 5/5
Shey Darcy is a former internatational supermodel and now a full time mom, separated from her husband of 17 years and recently relocated from New York to her hometown in Texas. In Texas, she has her mom, though they don’t really see eye to eye, her brothers and sisters-in-law, and Dane Kelly, her first love. And looking at Dane still gets her heart racing and her mind wondering what it could have been like if she had never been shipped off to boarding school when she was 16.
Cooper, Shey’s youngest, has really taken to the cowboy way of life and wants to get into the rodeo game, despite the fact that he’s too old and too tall. Bo, her middle child, has a history of depression and reminds Shey of her favorite brother, Cody, who killed himself several months before. Hank, the oldest, is not happy in Texas and wants to go back to New York and Shey is upset because she doesn’t want to lose him, but she knows she cannot keep him tethered where he doesn’t want to be.
Dane Kelly is six years older than Shey, which explains why her family shipped her away when she was sixteen and in love with him. In the meantime, he’s been married and divorced and had a child. Now he’s a successful businessman, raising bulls for the rodeo. Though Shey doesn’t want to become involved with him because she is still confused about her marriage and Dane and her brothers are feuding, she can’t deny the fact that he still does it for her. They keep getting thrown together because it’s a small town and they’re connected in a way that makes it hard to push aside their attraction.
There is so much going on in Shey’s life right now. She doesn’t know if she’s going to be staying in Texas or return to New York so the boys can be with their dad. There isn’t any way to save her marriage, but she feels lost and lonely and confused about the separation. Her family, though they mean well, particularly her mother, are far too opinionated about what she should do. Add that to the fact that her sons are teens (or nearly) and they have their own issues and Shey struggles to allow them room to grow and be themselves.
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from this book. I don’t know why, maybe because Jane Porter is a new to me author, but I liked the premise of the book, so I took a chance. I fell in love with it in the first chapter. Shey was such a tough, self-sufficient woman and the mother in her spoke to the mother in me. All of the issues she has with her sons hit me hard not because I’ve gone through it, but because I understand how helpless she felt through all the obstacles that were in her way to be the best version of herself for her sons. Shey kept getting pushed down but she kept getting back up, and a lot of it was her natural resilience, but it was also so that she could be a role model for her sons. There were a few times I nearly cried because of the stuff she went through because I felt as frustrated as she did. But Shey always got back on the horse and put on her happy face. And bravo for her and all the women who do it everyday. I really cannot say enough how much I liked this book and I’m so glad I stumbled upon it.
Pecans: 5/5
tasha_fullybooked's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a mix of humor and frustration for me. Shey's interaction with Dane and her mother provide the bulk of the bright spots of the book. Her romance with Dane seemed to get off to a somewhat slow start, but once it did, it progressed at light speed. Shey's relationship with her mom seemed a little strained, but it provided the comedic outlet.
What kept me from really liking Shey more, was how she seemed to let her children treat her. Her two oldest children, Hank and Bo, seemed to talk to her and behave with her any way they pleased. With me being raised by a Southern mother, I seen their behavior as very disrespectful and she did nothing to correct it. When it came to her boys, I have to agree with her brother Brick, in the fact that she was babying them. Shey kept saying how she used to be this strong woman, but I never seen her as such. She came off as more passive than strong.
Overall it's worth the read, but in the end I would have liked to seen what happened with the young girl Shey befriended who was having family issues at home. Or more about how Dane and Brick's friendship was progressing. Or not. I just felt like I was left with a lot of unanswered questions.
Read more of my reviews at Book Obsessed.
What kept me from really liking Shey more, was how she seemed to let her children treat her. Her two oldest children, Hank and Bo, seemed to talk to her and behave with her any way they pleased. With me being raised by a Southern mother, I seen their behavior as very disrespectful and she did nothing to correct it. When it came to her boys, I have to agree with her brother Brick, in the fact that she was babying them. Shey kept saying how she used to be this strong woman, but I never seen her as such. She came off as more passive than strong.
Overall it's worth the read, but in the end I would have liked to seen what happened with the young girl Shey befriended who was having family issues at home. Or more about how Dane and Brick's friendship was progressing. Or not. I just felt like I was left with a lot of unanswered questions.
Read more of my reviews at Book Obsessed.
tlandrews's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book. Porter does such a good job of writing human emotion. She had my stomach doing flip flops, crying, and feeling like my heart was being ripped out. I loved watching Shey regain her old self. The feelings she went through from dealing with the divorce and everything that entails to dealing with her teenage boys. The parental emotions were pretty strong for me since my boys are the same age as 2 of Shey's. At one point when working through something one of the boys was going through I had to put the book down because it was hard to read.
I loved her brothers (Brick and Blue, don't you just love their names?) and Dane. Dane, he was so sweet. It was great how both Shey and Dane needed each other and how they helped one another heal.
I loved her brothers (Brick and Blue, don't you just love their names?) and Dane. Dane, he was so sweet. It was great how both Shey and Dane needed each other and how they helped one another heal.
lapetite's review
4.0
A very different type of romance novel though I wonder if I can really call it a romance novel and not just a work of fiction. The romance is there but its not exactly front and center.
It's mostly centers on the 39 year old, Shey and all her problems after her divorce and raising 3 boys. Dane, the love interest, is all cowboy: rock hard and not very emotional. At times I felt him to be kind of flat and two dimensional but I still got happy whenever they were in the same scene together.
Really liked how the author conveyed the emotions throughout the book. I felt connected to Shey, even if we don't have the same age or issues. That's always a good thing.
My only problem lies in how many subplots were left hanging. Did they ever catch the guy who broke into her house? What about Emily and her drinking problem? It just felt a little underdeveloped.
All that aside, I felt happy once I finished it and that's always a plus though in the end, because of her justifiable hesitation, I was left a little nervous for her. Maybe because I felt that Dane liked her and he did love her but it felt a tad... generic? Dunno. Still a good book.
It's mostly centers on the 39 year old, Shey and all her problems after her divorce and raising 3 boys. Dane, the love interest, is all cowboy: rock hard and not very emotional. At times I felt him to be kind of flat and two dimensional but I still got happy whenever they were in the same scene together.
Really liked how the author conveyed the emotions throughout the book. I felt connected to Shey, even if we don't have the same age or issues. That's always a good thing.
My only problem lies in how many subplots were left hanging. Did they ever catch the guy who broke into her house? What about Emily and her drinking problem? It just felt a little underdeveloped.
All that aside, I felt happy once I finished it and that's always a plus though in the end, because of her justifiable hesitation, I was left a little nervous for her. Maybe because I felt that Dane liked her and he did love her but it felt a tad... generic? Dunno. Still a good book.
More...