THE HAWK’S SHADOW * Diana Palmer* Diana Palmer
Two and a half stars.
No character connection and the mystery subplot is so easy to solve. RANCHER STYLE * Rebecca Zanetti
Three stars.
A second-chance romance with mature characters.
A COWBOY KIND OF ROMANCE * Delores Fossen
Two stars.
Childish to an absurd degree from the beginning to the end of the book.

I received an arc from NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

These three short stories are filled with what I call Quirky but lovable romances on a ranch. I definitely love a ranch themed romance and while they do have some unique and sometimes unrealistic storylines they do have their charm.

You will go from snakes to second chances made to marry romance to returning home to your ex and major family issues and changes. Hold on for the ride with this one.

The Hawk’s Shadow – Diana Palmer
Nemara and Gil are trying to discover the name of the person whose remains are found in a ditch. She’s a forensic archaeologist and he’s an undersheriff. She’s a little over-the-top and he’s a quiet one. They bond over their love for snakes.
The body has been there for a long time and they must work together to discover who it is. Nemara starts falling in love with Gil. Gil runs scared and goes on a date with a co-worker so Nemara decides that once the case has been solved, she is going back home. Gil discovers he is lost without her. So he drives to her home and apologizes for his behavior and they decide to give their love a chance.
Rescue: Rancher Style – Rebecca Zanetti
Greg Simpson – the football star and Tara Webber – the cheerleader. Once upon a time they were together….Greg returns to the place he grew up after the death of his brother to take care of the ranch and his brother’s three kids and to keep his brother’s widow from getting her hands on the ranch. He doesn’t know anything about raising kids; he’s a military man; but he certainly knows that he wants them to stay together and he’ll do whatever he needs to do to make that happen.
Tara runs into Greg again when he rescues her after she gets her car stuck trying to avoid Harley, the local wolf! She agrees to go to court for him as a character witness, and is dumbfounded when the judge says they should be married to raise those kids! Sneaky judge. But, for the kids, she agrees to marry him for two months. The sparks start flying and she knows if she doesn’t stay strong she’ll up back in his bed.
Greg’s teenage niece Hannah is hanging with a dangerous boy and he’s not sure how to stop her. However, it’s worse than he knows, as she’s kidnapped by the boy who she’s charmed by and he plans to sell her into a human trafficking ring for her virginity. Johnny, a boy in her class, tries to save her and ends up in the trunk with her. But Roland not only has Hannah and Johnny, he kidnaps Tara too! Greg comes after Roland and ends up having to shoot him, but not fatally, and discovers Hannah and Johnny in the trunk, shaken up but alive.
Greg realizes that Tara still thinks he’s going back into the Marines so he lets her know that he’s not and that he wants to stay married to her, if she’ll have him. All three of the kids are happy that he’s staying too. Another happy ending in another wonderful story by the incomparable Rebecca Zanetti!
A Cowboy Kind of Romance – Delores Fossen
Brenna and Theo were a couple when they were younger and Theo broke her heart. Now she’s back in the town she grew up in and Theo’s career as a bull rider is over. There’s a lot of matchmaking going on…
After all the years apart, they realize they still love each other and decide to give their rekindled romance a shot. First book I’ve read by this author, but a wonderful little story. Love definitely survives time!

A great anthology with 3 stories in one book. Each one is a stand alone and they are not connecting in any way. I enjoyed reading each one.

I don't read many cowboy books anymore - and this one was delightful! It was so great to enjoy 3 of the very best at writing this genre all in one sitting! A 5plus star rating from me!

Rancher Style is a novella in the anthology He’s my Cowboy by Diana Palmer, Rebecca Zanetti and Delores Fossen

Tropes:
✔️ fake marriage
✔️ ex-military cowboy / school teacher
✔️ small-town

Rancher Style by Rebecca Zanetti follows Greg, a former Marine who returns to Redemption as the heir to his family's ranch and guardian to three troubled teenagers.

Despite feeling overwhelmed by his new responsibilities, Greg is determined to make things work. However, things take an unexpected turn when he reaches out to his former fiancée Tara, an English teacher, to be a character witness in a custody and property dispute. The judge's decision at the hearing sets off a chain of events that brings Greg and Tara back together and reignites the feelings they once had for each other.

I absolutely loved this story. The author did an excellent job of capturing the essence of small-town life and the struggles that come with taking on a father figure responsibility. The chemistry between Greg and Tara was palpable, and I found myself rooting for them to rekindle their romance.

Greg and Tara both have to deal with teenage defiance and the feasible dire consequences of bad decisions at that age. But the twist and suspense got me even more hooked.

Rancher Style is great for anyone looking for a short, sweet, and romantic read. The plot is engaging, and the writing is top-notch.

Wow this is kind of hard to review because Rebecca Zanetti is one of my favorite authors and I've enjoyed several of Diane Palmer's books, Delores Fossen is a new to me author. With that said I just had a hard time reading these three stories. They started out slow, seemed to pick up but then fell flat. I really wanted to enjoy this book and I gave it 3 starts because parts of each story was really well writen.

Review for three short stories by Diana Palmer “The Hawk’s Shadow” ⭐️⭐️⭐️; Rescue: Ranchers Style” by Rebecca Zanetti ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ & “A Cowboy Kind of Romance” by Delores Fossen ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3.5). I initially requested the book for Rebecca Zanetti’s story but did enjoy all of them overall. I did like most of the characters in all three stories & the writing but was very distracted by all the “exclamation marks !” in The Hawk’s Shadow which took away from the story for me. Also, in “A Cowboy Kind of Romance” the sister’s character was juvenile & annoying but did like Brenna & Theo. Overall a quick, entertaining book. I received an arc from Netgalley & the publisher for an honest review.

This is a hard review for me to write I put this book down several times beause I just couldn't get into the stories I've read each of these authors in the past and Rebecca Zanetti is my favorite. However, I didn't care for any of these stories. They were slow to start, Diana Palmer's story made no sense at all and thd stories were just well...tame. I was looking foward to Zanetti's new series and I feel awful saying this, but I just don't this book is for me. That said, if cozy romance is your thing, then this book may be for you

Wonderful set of books by fabulous authors. Each book has interesting characters including a sexy cowboy! There are twists and turns in all the stories and some unexpected things happen as romance tries to blossom. Entertaining reading as each story has couples that fight their attraction to each other but eventually they can't fight it anymore. Great set of books!

I liked the 2 from Diana Palmer and Rebecca Zanetti but couldn't get into the story by Delores Fossen. After reading the 2 novellas I am hoping Ms Zanetti is going to write about the cattle club group

A big thank you to NetGalley and Kensington/Zebra Books for the eARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. This is an anthology of 3 short stories, all are new. All 3 authors are really well known. All three were pretty good. I liked A Cowboy kind of romance the least, and Rescue-Rancher style the best. All three are fun. This is well worth the read. 4 stars total

Three excellent authors offering three great stories! You can't go wrong with that. I recommend this book.

I really liked this collection of 3 short stories. I felt the writing style of all 3 authors were very similar that at one point I forgot I was reading 3 different authors. But I think that’s a good thing. I wasn’t too thrown or pulled out of the moment with each story.

I think Rescue: Rancher Style was my favourite but I did really enjoy all 3.

4 starts for this one. I really liked it.

My comments for the 3 stories individually:

The Hawk’s Shadow
I was a little confused going in, I assumed Jane would be the heroine, I’m very keen to read if there is a Jane/Jeff story though. Would read. I did like the story between Gil and Nemara though. They were kinda nerds but so gosh darn adorable. I really did want them together in the end. No 2 characters were more perfect for each other.

Rescue: Rancher Style
Loved the twist with Rodger and I adored how Greg found his fitting with the kids as well as with Tara. I loved this story. I hate Joe and Sharon!

A Cowboy Kind of Romance:
I did enjoy this one, I liked the meddling family but I would have liked more from Theo by way of a grovel. I felt Brenna took him back a little too quickly. But I enjoyed it all the same.

I love these short story compilations from great authors. I read each one before bed and had a wonderful story to finish my day. First up was Diana Palmer's The Hawk's Shadow. It was cute and a bit quirky. The main characters had to grow on me and they may have jumped to an HEA a bit too fast but that's romance after all, unpredictable.

The next story was by my all time favorite author Rebecca Zanetti, I love everything she writes. Rescue: Rancher Style was awesome. I love the fictional town of Redemption and I hope the author visits it again and often. The story was perfection from beginning until the very end, the right mixture of action and romance the author knows how to blend.

Last but not least was Delores Fossen's A Cowboy Kind of Romance. A tried and true romance about rekindling lost love. I enjoyed the strength of Theo and Brenna. You rooted for them from the start.

This was three great stories that I could have read as full novels. Each author had their own great storyline and was completely grabbing my attention. I personally could have enjoyed some heat from the scenes, these were a solid pg13, but definitely didn’t lower the value of each story.

Diana Palmer, Rebecca Zanetti, and Delores Fossen brings us stories of cowboys and love. Diana Palmer brings us Colorado's newest Sheriff's investigator Gil. When dead remains are found, he needs the assistance of state crime lab expert. As they work together to solve the mystery, will they find commonalities that could turn into something more? Or, will there be too many difficulties and hurdles in their way? Rebecca Zanetti brings us former Marine Greg back home to take care of his niece and nephews. He needs the help of those around him so that he can keep his family intact. Will he be able to juggle everything, or will his former training get in his way of finding and keeping love and family together? Delores Fossen brings us retired Air Force Brenna back home to a homecoming she did not expect involving both her family and her ex's which brings them back together. Once Brenna's shock is over, will the constant contact be enough to give them the push or will it be all too much for them?

We get three different stories from three different authors. Each author gives us a story with a cowboy in it. Go along with Gil, Greg, and Brenna as they each battle with themselves and see how they handle all that life throws at them. Each story keeps you wanting to turn the page and see what they will do. I look forward to reading more from these authors.

I read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I would like to thank NetGalley and Kensington Books, Zebra for this privilege.

I’m a big fan of Rebecca Zanetti’s Cattle Club stories, so I was eager to read another story taking place in Redemption, Wyoming. The three stories in this anthology weren’t connected, but all involved cowboys and romance.

What worked:
1. Rebecca Zanetti’s story featured many of the characters from the Redemption, Wyoming Cattle Club stories. I liked revisiting these characters. Tara and Greg’s second chance romance was endearing, though he was controlling. As guardian to his niece and nephews, he must learn to work with Tara to create a family and protect them while also respecting them.
2. The Cattle Club in Zanetti’s story should definitely have their own books. They were mentioned sporadically throughout the story and I’m looking forward to a series about the characters.
3. Gil and Nemara were a great match. They definitely weren’t the typical lead characters of a romance, and that was refreshing. Their handling of the cold case murder investigation was riveting at times, while still maintaining a “wholesome” small town feel to the story.
4. Though Theo broke Brenna’s heart 8 years before, when she returns to town she’s determined to prove she’s over him. They was the entire town worked to get them back together was hilarious and while it was intrusive and farfetched at times, it was a cute story.
5. All three stories featured small towns where everyone was involved in each other’s lives. In each instance, the author made it work to the betterment of the main characters. Judge Maloney in Zanetti's story was hilarious and I hope he also appears in more stories.

What didn’t:
1. I think Nemara was portrayed as too confrontational and negative at first. I was hoping she wasn’t the main female character before she found her footing in her role.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Three stories in one collection. The first of the stories ended really abruptly. The second story was such a unique story that I wished it had the space and time to elaborate and expand. And the third was a sweet story.

Each was about what I would expect considering the title. Romantic cowboy ranch stories that are just long enough to enjoy a quick read while satisfying the theme and genre

This anthology was written by three wonderful authors. I enjoyed each of their stories however Rebecca Zanetti’s was my favorite. The other two books felt rushed. Maybe they just needed to be longer. Enjoyable reading.