Review of Saddled and Spurred (Blacktop Cowboys #2) by Lorelei James

Saddled and Spurred is the second book in the Blacktop Cowboys series.

Bran Turner's ranch hand has a broken hip and he can't do everything on his own. His friend Celia tells him she had the perfect solution and promises his new hand will be there. He's shocked to find the town beauty queen Harper Masterson waiting for him.

Harper needs a job to support her sister as her guardian in the last few months of Bailey's senior year, then they'll be leaving Muddy Gap for wherever Bailey goes to college. Working for Bran is short term until his regular hand gets back, and that works just fine for her. Not a stranger to working hard, she dives into work on a ranch.

Much to Bran's surprise, Harper is a good hand. And to his surprise, his attraction to her hasn't dimmed over the last few years. He can't stand working with her in close quarters every day and not having her for himself. As her boss, he shouldn't go there, but he can't deny wanting her. And she can't deny her own attraction.

This book wasn't as good as Corralled, but I enjoyed it.

Bran and Harper weren't as filled out as they could be, but they had clear personalities and dreams of their own. How those crossed and what they mean for the other makes up much of the conflict of the story. The plot kept their feelings secret and things fairly positive for most of the book, but the characters' inner conflict brought the tangle of the story. However, that plot wasn't as interesting as Corralled.

I did like seeing what happened to the characters from the first book—Lainie, Hank, Kyle, and Celia. Since Harper is Celia's friend and Bran is Hank's friend, they popped up in the book plenty. I'm hoping this is one of those series where the books build on the ones that come before and feature characters from them. I love when that happens.

The dialog was cheesy at times, but I liked that Harper and Bran had their own manner of speaking, and much of the time, I'd be able to tell which one was speaking without being told. They had their own mannerisms and quirks, like Bran's inability to keep track of his travel mugs as he leaves them all over the barn and Harper's love for the goats and inexplicable need to feed the rabbits in a den under Bran's trailer.

Overall, it could have been better, but I did enjoy it. I'm looking forward to the next book.

Photo Credit Katherine Elizabeth

Stars Image Credit lovethenerddesigns