I received this book for free from Avon in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Dirty Little Secret by Jennifer RyanAlso in this series: Restless Rancher, Tough Talking Cowboy
Series: Wild Rose Ranch #1
Published by Avon on December 18, 2018
Genres: Contemporary Romance, American West, Small Town
Pages: 384
Format: eARC
Source: Avon
ISBN: 0062645323
Meet the women from Wild Rose Ranch—and the men who want them—in New York Times Bestselling Author Jennifer Ryan’s breathtaking series of romance and scandal . . .
Noah Cordero is a modern-day cowboy who loves three things: ranching, his younger sister, and his step-father. John Cordero groomed Noah to take over the Montana spread where he learned to ride and work the land. But when John unexpectedly dies, he leaves half the ranch to a woman Noah doesn’t even know.
Roxy shares Noah’s last name, but not his blood. Estranged from her father, haunted by regrets, and eager to escape her notorious mother’s past, she is forced to fulfill her father’s last wishes. Inheriting means sharing a home with infuriating, challenging, and oh-so-tempting Noah. But John didn’t just make her owner of his ranch and guardian to her sister, his hidden sideline is her worst nightmare—she’s the new owner of the notorious Nevada brothel called Wild Rose Ranch where she grew up.
As their strictly business relationship starts to turn to true love, Roxy begins to wonder, what will happen when Noah discovers her dirty little secret?
Dirty Little Secret is the first book in the newest series of Jennifer Ryan. I absolutely adore this author and even though her previous series I struggled with at times, this book was AMAZING. I just didn’t want to put this one down and I easily breezed through it like I have in many of Jennifer Ryan’s Earlier books. I simply loved the set up of the story and seeing everything fall into place as it does. I definitely believe if you are a fan of Jennifer Ryan (even if you didn’t care for her previous series) you will love this one. But I will warn you it deals with an aspect in romance that I don’t normally go for but Jennifer Ryan wrote it so well that I don’t think you will have a problem with it. Read below for more information.
Our tale in Dirty Little Secret begins with Roxy who is our delightful female lead in the story. Roxy grew up with a mother who was into drugs, drinking and being a prostitute. Her birth father, is a highly respected rancher in a small town in Montana. Roxy has had to deal with her mother’s drama, only seeing her father a handful of times, who for some reason unknown to her was unable to take her away from the abusive lifestyle her mother was in. But Roxy is tough and strong and has had to be self-sufficient. Her father eventually led them to the Wild Rose Ranch which is where she met her sisters who are also daughters of women who work at the Wild Rose Ranch which is a modern day brothel of sorts. Roxy has never understood why women sell themselves like that, and her mother has influenced much of that. Roxy has worked hard at rodeos and making herself to be a success. But she has never earned her father’s love, she feels he is ashamed of her because of who her mother is. But now her father is on his deathbed and is asking for her and so she heads to Montana to get her answers and say goodbye.
Noah Cordero grew up on the spread in Montana where he learned everything to do about ranching and learning to love the man that raised him even if he wasn’t his birth father. He and his sister have loved living on the ranch and have a close relationship with their father. But when Noah’s father collapses and finds out that he is dying, he is devastated. But is shocked to learn that his father had a birth child that he never knew about, a daughter and whom he left half of his ranch to. At first, Noah is furious because he doesn’t understand why his father never told him of Roxy. But he soon realizes that she deserves a place on the ranch as much as he does because she didn’t have the loving home that Noah did. There is a chemistry that builds between Noah and Roxy. But Roxy has some secrets and she wonders if she can trust Noah with them or will he spurn and mock her like everyone else in her life has…
This book was simply incredible. And yes I don’t normally go for the whole step sibling romance but this wasn’t quite like that. Since Noah and Roxy have NO blood ties and didn’t grow up together at all. I found the way that Jennifer Ryan wrote this book to be very interesting and once I understand the complexity of the relations between Roxy and Noah, then I really delved into this book. I absolutely adore it when an author spins an issue that isn’t commonly used in romance and tackles a tough subject like for example prostitution and the consequences of being connected to it and how people view you differently. We see how small town people treat Roxy and its NOT pretty. Men view her as an easy lay in the sheets and women view her with contempt. But Roxy, has lived with it all of her life and handles it with such great care. She is not ashamed of who she is. She knows that she is a strong independent woman who creates her own success but you see how challenging it is for her. But I love how she handles it though, and how she treats others. She treats other with respect even while they ridicule her but speaks with them honestly about their treatment and how wrong it is but without mocking them in return and I admired that so much. She becomes such a great guardian for the teenager (Noah’s sister) and I love seeing their relationship bloom in this book. You see how Roxy wants to be her friend but also won’t tolerate any bad behavior but she handles her with care.
The romance that forms between Noah and Roxy is so delectable and sweet and heartwarming. We see them grow together and seeing them develop a strong bond in addition to the powerful sexual chemistry. You just feel how strong they want each other sexually and there are many moments that you become lost in the moment for them. In the beginning they both have many reservations and misunderstandings about each other. But as they learn each other and start being open and honest with one another, their relationship develops into one you can get on board with very easily. I had a blast seeing them find some common ground and deal with issues and learning to accept each other.
There are some other aspects in the plot that you will recognize as a Jennifer Ryan aspect in her books. There is a villain or two, there is some complex issues put into play and the main characters are put in danger and there is some suspense and what I find enjoyable is that it didn’t detract from the story overall. I liked that it was a small aspect of the story and slowly builds into the climax at the end. I find that I really got a kick out of the way that this story played out overall. Its a romance that adds complexity, diverse issues and vibrant emotion. It will bring you to tears, have you laughing in public and making you want to grab your partner due to the sensuality that packs a punch. Simply a romance that is outsanding in every way, shape and form!
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