Review of Racked and Stacked (Blacktop Cowboys #9) by Lorelei James
Racked and Stacked was the ninth book in the Blacktop Cowboys series.
Larissa "Riss" Thorpe is a sassy, mouthy truck driver who calls it like it is. She grew up with three brothers and knows how to handle herself. The one thing that leaves her breathless is Ike Palmer, and she covers it with insults and sass.
Ike is a player, but Riss gets under his skin. He's ready for a change, and Riss offers the ability to do something different.
They call a truce in their bickering and fighting to do their duties as maid of honor and best man in Jade and Tobin's wedding. In that truce, they begin to see the possibilities, though both try to deny it. When Riss has an accident and is in need of help, Ike swoops in to care for her while she recuperates. She's unsure what to do about the growing attraction between them, but Ike knows what he wants.
This was probably the weakest book in the series so far, and I didn't enjoy it as much. Ike and Riss have been in several books now, and Riss was a good friend to both Harlow and Jade. I never really saw possibilities between the pair before this book because they really seemed to hate each other.
Riss was a funny yet touching character. It was interesting to see her open up to Ike even as he confused her with hot and cold signals. She wasn't explored as deeply as some of the past characters, and that made the book suffer.
Ike was gruff but ultimately sweet and caring. When he swooped in to take care of Riss, brooking no refusal, it was insulting to her brothers and confusing to Riss. His gruffness soon turned to tenderness as he cared for her, though the exterior remained gruff, grumpy, and bossy. The brief shows of tender affection for Riss were a sweet thing to behold, but his subsequent shutdowns frustrated me.
This book moved much slower than the others in the series, and it took a long time for the couple to finally come together. There wasn't as much sex as in the previous books, and it wasn't as steamy. I enjoyed the book, but found it not as engaging as the others.
The dialog was good, smooth and realistic, and I liked the way they both spoke differently, though it was more similar than in previous books.
Descriptions were, as always with this author, excellent. Settings were good, especially Ike's house, and other locations were given enough of a description to let the reader see where the characters are and what's happening.
The writing was wonderful, but the characters weaker than others in previous books so I didn't enjoy this novel nearly as much. It was still fun to read, and I would still recommend it as part of the series.
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