Knight in a White Stetson

TEST

What a debut! This first novel by Claire King is one of the best I’ve read in a long while. Engaging main characters, intense attraction and a small dose of suspense make this story a winner.

Calla Bishop runs her family’s ranch. She promised her mother that she’d keep the ranch in the family, and since her father has no aptitude for it, Calla runs the place. Henry Beckett rescues Calla when her truck has a flat tire, and the sparks fly for both. When he shows up at her ranch later, Calla hires him for the summer.

Calla is a strong, straightforward woman who knows what she wants and is used to taking care of herself. She fights her attraction to Henry so she can marry Clark (nicknamed Dartmouth) – her boyfriend and a real jerk. Clark is rich and has enough money to save Calla’s ranch from being foreclosed; unfortunately, he’s scum. Calla doesn’t realize it right away, but when she figures out what Clark is hiding, her revenge is sweet indeed.

Calla thinks Henry is just a summer cowboy with no education. In reality, he’s a chemical engineer hiding out from people who want a formula from him. He also has quite a sense of humor. One of the most entertaining scenes in this books comes when Henry has dinner with Calla’s family and Clark. Both men are drinking, and there’s enough testosterone in the room to actually touch. I loved Henry’s parting shot. “And I played hockey.” He turned and walked calmly toward the door. “Not tennis. There’s blood in hockey. That’s what I liked about it. Remember that Dartmouth, next time you try to jerk me around.”

Henry is attracted to Calla the minute he sees her lying underneath her dead truck for shade. He thinks she’s beautiful and perfect and can’t believe how powerful his attraction is. One of the things I love about this guy is that he’s a scientist, but he can be protective and quite threatening when he needs to be.

The sexual tension between these two is unbelievable. Their first kiss curled my toes. The only thing I had to shake my head at is when Henry is thinking about Calla, wondering what she looks like naked, he wonders what color her nipples are. Do guys really wonder about that? It didn’t sound particularly romantic to me, and I’m dying of curiosity to find out if real guys really think this.

Not only are Calla and Henry combustible, they are funny. Several of their exchanges had me cracking up. Calla’s dad, aunt and ranch hand are colorful secondary characters. Some suspense crops up at the last minute that I didn’t expect. The villain was slightly wacko and not too believable. While I liked Henry’s solution to his problem with his former employers, I thought it might have occurred to him sooner. Just two minor nits in an otherwise stellar story.

I can’t recommend Knight In a White Stetson enough. I smiled, my toes curled, and I laughed all the way through it. Do yourself a favor and try this book. I can’t wait for the next one.

Reviewed by Andrea Pool

Grade: A-

Sensuality: Hot

Review Date: 29/04/99

Publication Date: 1999/04

Recent Comments …

  1. excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.

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