ROUGH RIDER expands on the story of Dirk Knowlton, whose
life was briefly touched upon in the book 'Slow Hand'.
Dirk has known Janice Combes all his life, but their paths
don't really connect until they are both on the rodeo
circuit. There is an attraction between the pair, but
Dirk is involved in a long-standing relationship with
rodeo queen Rachel Carson; and Janice is being pursued by
the cocky bull rider Grady Garrison. When Dirk and Rachel
have an ugly breakup, he has a one-night rebound fling
with Janice. However, events in their lives soon send the
couple spinning in different directions.
The next time they meet up is four years later. Janice is
married to Grady and has a young son with him. The
marriage is rocky, as Grady is still riding bulls and
constantly unfaithful to Janice. Dirk has been in the
Marines, and they have a brief, platonic reunion. Life
changes drastically for Janice after Grady dies in a
gruesome bull riding accident. She hangs on for a few
years in Las Vegas, but finally takes her now ten year old
son home to Twin Bridges to live with her mother.
Dirk is out of the Marines, with a prosthetic leg and a
bad outlook on life. He is carrying scars on his body, as
well as in his soul. Dirk is attempting to keep the
family ranch going in tough economic times, even while his
brother Wade is trying to negotiate a sale of the ranch.
Janice is struggling to make ends meet, and takes a job
with Dirk as a ranch hand, where they must work long hours
closely together. Will the third time be the charm for
this duo that has been so unlucky in love?
ROUGH RIDER brings the reader back to Twin Bridges,
Montana; the site of the first book of the Hot Cowboy
Nights Contemporary Western series by Victoria Vane.
As
with the first book of the series 'Slow Hand', ROUGH RIDER
is a sprawling saga that takes place over time and
distance. Vane has once again pulled no punches in
bringing this ten year saga to life. The research that
has gone into the story - the rodeo life, the world of
ranching, and life in a small town in Montana is
spectacular and meticulous. The love story and history
between Dirk and Janice is no less breath-taking. I was
rooting for them to make it together, especially after
having false starts and previously tragic endings. I
wondered if they would ever finally be able to be with
each other; much less make a life together. Every heart-
breaking aspect of the couple and their story is steeped
in sometimes painful reality.
Although ROUGH RIDER is the second book in Vane's Hot
Cowboy Nights series, it can be read standalone. I
would
recommend reading 'Slow Hand' first, however, where Dirk
and Janice are introduced to the reader as secondary
characters; and with plot threads carrying through and
tying up. ROUGH RIDER is a wonderful read in an excellent
series. Author Victoria Vane has outdone herself bringing
this complex tale and its fully believable characters to
poignant, vivid life for the reader.
Two wary hearts ... Janice Combes has two loves, bucking bulls and Dirk Knowlton. But Dirk only has eyes for a dazzling rodeo queen. How can Janice ever compete while mired ankle-deep in manure? Exchanging playful banter with Dirk is all Janice can expect-until the stormy night he knocks on her door dripping wet and needing a place to crash. Different Dreams... Dirk Knowlton is living the cowboy dream. Life should be good-roping, branding, backing broncs, riding bulls, but there's a void he can't seem to fill. After getting hung up by a bull, he wonders if this is really the life he wants. Restless and rebellious, he bolts...but there's a certain cowgirl he can't forget. When a battle-scarred Dirk returns to his Montana ranch he's determined to hang on at any cost. Janice has come back home to lick her own wounds. When old dreams turn to dust, can two wary hearts take another chance on love?
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