Monday, April 6, 2015

Review: Slow Hand

Slow Hand (Hot Cowboy Nights #1)

by Victoria Vane

Blurb:

 In rural Montana...

Wade Knowlton is a hardworking lawyer who's torn between his small-town Montana law practice and a struggling family ranch. He's on the brink of exhaustion from trying to save everybody and everything, when gorgeous Nicole Powell walks into his office. She's a damsel in distress and the breath of fresh air he needs.
Even the lawyers wear boots...

Nicole Powell is a sassy Southern girl who has officially sworn off cowboys after a spate of bad seeds-until her father's death sends her to Montana and into the arms of a man who seems too good to be true. Her instincts tell her to high tail it out of Montana, but she can't resist a cowboy with a slow hand...
Themes: contemporary, cowboy
Rating: 3.5 stars
Heat Rating:
Review:
A new author is always an interesting experience, whether you end up hating or loving their work, or something in between, having the chance to listen to a new voice and explore a new world is the best part of reading.  So when I got the chance to try Victoria Vane’s writing in her new Hot Cowboy Nights series I was thrilled.  I enjoyed Wade and Nicole’s story, even if I didn’t fall madly in love with it, and am looking forward to reading more by this author.  Vane’s characters are deep, interesting, and sometimes frustrating, but I found something to like about each of them, even if I had a few issues here and there.  The setting, of course, was beyond beautiful and played a big part in the story and the overall storyline was well written, with interesting little twists and ultimately a successful HEA.  I will be jumping to read the next book in the series in the hope that Dirk proves he’s not as big of an asshole as he seemed in this story.  Overall this author is one I will be keeping an eye on as I browse the romance section and one that I will continue to request for review copies. 

Wade has had a tough time of it in the past 5 or so years, with tragey hitting his family and stupid youthful decisions continuing to haunt him, but he remains a sweet and simple man with a serious sexy streak.  I loved Wade and wish I could find a man just like him here in the real world.  I even loved that he stood up for his desires and forced Nicole to deal with her shit instead of kowtowing to her and her insecurities.  And that brings me to Nicole and my serious dislike of her.  I understand she needed to have issues to work through to give her character room to grow, but I just did not like her for the majority of the book.  She was wish-washy, unable to make a decision that might differ from the way her life has always been, and unwilling to give up her perceived control of her life, even for the chance at a meaningful and loving relationship with a man like Wade.  She just seemed like one of those women that can’t see the forest for the trees in any relationship and lets past assholes color her perception of a truly good man, and I cannot abide those types of women.  Thankfully she finally got her stuff together and was able to earn the love and respect that Wade offered her and a future with him. 

In the end I liked Slow Hand very much, especially Wade and his family, but didn’t care much for a heroine that refused to embrace the opportunities that were just dropped into her lap for love and life.  The premise of the story itself is one that has been done for a long time, in a lot of different ways, but that portion of the book was actually surprisingly interesting, especially the little twists in their relationship.  The side characters weren’t well developed but we got just enough info to be intrigued for the future novels in the series.  The passion between the characters was written well, but some of the fire was lost for me because Nicole was so much in her head and worrying about past mistakes to appreciate the sexy as hell cowboy right in front of her.  Wade was an awesome charcter and I am looking forward to seeing where his future leads as the series progresses and I am thrilled that he was able to find his HEA.  Once I got over my issues with her and she grew up a bit, I liked Nicole and could see her being a decent match for Wade as she continued to embrace the world and changes around her and finally spread her wings.  I like Vane’s writing style and hopefully future heroines will live up to her heroes and earn her a permanent section in my shelves.  

*eARC provided by publisher (via netgalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided. 


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