BOOK NOOK REVIEW

THE RANCHER

By

Kelli Ann Morgan

Debuting author Kelli Ann Morgan kicks off
her Redbourne Series, a satisfying new foray into historical western/romance, with a charming offering titled The Rancher. Each book in the series is set to center on one of seven sons of the fictitious, wealthy Redbourne family. The Rancher features middle-born Redbourne son, Cole, as its protagonist, and readers will be pleased with Morgan’s choice.

From the back of the book:

The deal was to share the ranch, not her heart...

ABBY MCCALLISTER can ride and shoot better than any man she’s ever met, but when the threat of losing her ranch forces her to find a husband, she is unprepared for the mysterious stranger who takes her hand and evokes in her a sudden desire to be a lady fit for his arm.

He'd sworn to protect her. He couldn't do that if she married someone else...

COLE REDBOURNE, immersed in guilt over the accident that claimed his best friend, discovers there was nothing accidental about it. When he sets out for Silver Falls, Colorado, to fulfill his friend’s dying wish and to flush out his killer, the last thing he expected was to find hope again disguised as his impromptu bride.

One stinging requirement stands between Cole and a lofty inheritance of prime ranchland. He must marry. There are plenty of eligible young ladies willing to oblige the handsome, rugged heir, but Cole is burdened with guilt following the murder of his best friend, Alaric, and blames himself for not being there to save his friend.

Two duties must be satisfied before Cole can think of moving forward with his own life. He must avenge Alaric, whose final cryptic words lead Cole to the Silverhawk Ranch where Cole believes he will find Alaric’s murderer—and he must find and protect Alaric’s intended—a young lady Cole knows only by name—Abby.

The book opens with a humorous scenario incongruent to the action and tone of the remainder of the book. Abigail McCallister can’t reconcile why her widowed, loving father has consigned her to such an unjust fate. Devoid of suitors, and better equipped to break a horse than woo a man, Abigail must find a willing groom and marry by Friday or agree to be shipped away from her beloved Silverhawk Ranch to an aunt in Denver. She knows she lacks the feminine charms men seek, but judging her holdings in the Silverhawk to be a tempting dowry, she heads to town and offers herself as a prize to a willing suitor.

The reader spends several chapters fretting over the chaos about to ensue, and Morgan paces the action nicely. Her writing style is smooth and easy, and her research into 1880 Colorado ranch life consistently dropped delightful nuggets of information on every page.

The tension ramps up quickly as do the number of questions to be answered. Morgan’s plot twists tease with a wide array of possible solutions that leave the reader guessing and head-scratching to the end.

Again, though we enjoy the journey, it is the characters and their struggles against man, against nature, and against their own demons, that really keep the pages turning. By the time the book finishes we are intrigued by all the Redbourne brothers.

Morgan has done an excellent job juicing the salivaries for the next book in the series, The Bounty Hunter, Rafe’s Story, which is being readied for publication.

This satisfying clean-read western is suitable for readers of all ages and either gender. The Rancher can be purchased on Amazon in Kindle and paperback formats.