Marisa was kidnapped and let loose and is no longer the same after what she went though. On a path of vengeance she isolates herself and prepares for him to keep his promise of coming back for her. Until then she's got a broken horse she's trying to bring life to and Mac a horse trainer is there to help.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved hearing as she was taking her power back after what she went though problem was that she had every intention of not bringing the law into it and ending her kidnapper herself. I was curious to see how that would turn out when it came right down to it. Then there was Mac who was helping with the horse and seemingly helping her be a bit more open when she meant to stay closed off because she refuses to let any one else in and has her kidnapper in mind to take him down so things can get messy. I also loved the bit of the kidnappers mindset here and there throughout the book so I couldn't help but wonder when he would really strike and how it would all come down especially knowing that Marisa got something planned in mind. Overall great book I really enjoyed it.

A terrific blend of suspense and romance in the final book of the Cowboys of Holiday Ranch series. The series follows twelve boys pulled from the streets and courtrooms of Oklahoma City and taken to Big Cass's Holiday Ranch. Her version of hard work and tough love turned those boys into good, honest men. I've loved following this series over the last several years and seeing those same men find love.

The last cowboy left unmarried is Mac McBride. He's a bit envious of his friends and their happiness but has just about accepted that he's unlikely to find love at this stage of his life. As the ranch's horse trainer, he has a reputation as a "horse whisperer" who can gentle almost any horse. He's surprised when he gets a call from local recluse Marisa, asking him to work with the starved and abused horse she rescued and named "Spirit."

Years earlier, Marisa was kidnapped off the streets and held captive for sixty days, kept naked in total darkness, tortured, and abused by her captor. When he tired of the game, he left her tied up and naked in front of the Bitterroot Post Office, but not before telling her that he would kidnap her again when he wanted to have more fun. After years away, many hours of therapy, and every self-defense class she could take, Marisa has been back home for a year. She trusts no one and lives with her guard dog in a cabin on her mother's ranch, seeing no one. When she learns of Mac's reputation with horses, she hires him to work with Spirit.

I loved watching the relationship develop between Mac and Marisa. Abused himself as a child, Mac understands both the horse and the woman. His calmness and patience as he works to earn the horse's trust also work on Marisa. Watching Mac work with Spirit gives her a sense of peace she hasn't felt since her kidnapping. The time they spend together is more than enough for Mac to begin to fall for her. There were some sweet scenes of the two of them together as Marisa slowly relaxed in his company.

But when the threats against her started up again, Marisa tried to push Mac away. She didn't want him to get hurt, but she also didn't want him to interfere with her plans. For many years, she's planned her revenge, which involves letting her tormentor get close enough for her to kill him. She's prepared for the possibility for a year, with weapons stashed around her home and confidence in her self-defense skills. Mac is horrified by her plans and fears the effect that success would have on her. Determined to protect her despite herself, Mac takes his own steps to watch over her. When it's all over, he must find a way to overcome her anger and her belief that she's still too broken for him. I loved seeing his persistence and care for her pay off in the end.

The suspense of the story was intense from the start. The first part of the book had that sense of impending doom as Marisa waited for the threats to begin. Because of where she was found the first time, she's confident that her tormentor is someone who lives in the Bitterroot area. As the threats began, she tried to hide them from Mac and keep him away. I liked how Mac insisted on getting the sheriff involved and how they tried to figure out who it was. There were several possibilities, and I was anxious to see if my suspicions were correct. The intensity increased with the escalation of the threats. I feared for Marisa when all her planning turned out to be worthless. Mac's fear for her was palpable when her captor got away with her again. The final confrontation had me on the edge of my seat until it was all over.

I also loved that the ongoing feud between Holiday Ranch and the ranch next door finally ended. From the very first book, our cowboys fought against constant vandalism, theft, and general nuisance behavior with no way to prove it. I was happy to see that the worst instigators finally got careless enough to get caught.

It was great fun to catch up with couples from previous books in the series and see how life and love have changed them. I can't wait to see what's next from the author.

This is a Romantic Suspense, and this is the 12th in the Cowboys of Holiday Ranch series. I read and review the 11th book in this book series, but I have not read the other books in this series yet. I really enjoyed this book, but there where parts I found the characters to be weird. I did enjoyed the characters in this book. There was a lot of action and suspense in this book. One of the main characters is trying to get over and move on from being kidnapped and being put in the dark for sixty days while being abused. I have to say this book gets darker then most Harlequin Romantic Suspense, but I really enjoyed it covering something darker. I love Holiday Ranch. There is not as many twists in this book, but There is a ton of suspense that builds up to the ending. The ending was done really well. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Harlequin Romantic Suspense) or author (Carla Cassidy) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

I am immensely grateful to Harlequin Romantic Suspense for my complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Trigger warnings: Death of a parent/assault

The last cowboy standing is book 12 in a series but it can be read as a standalone. The book follows the 'horse whisperer' Mac McBride who is hired by Marisa who needs help training her house. It was enduring watching two different people find themselves and their way to each other. And buddy the dog was such a protective and lovable dog. I thoroughly enjoyed the book but felt like some of the themes tackled were heavy.

The 12th and the last book of the original lost boys of the Holiday Ranch series. We have been waiting a long time for our singing guitar playing Mac to get his HEA. The woman he finds it with is suffering from PTSD from a brutal kidnapping. The suspense in the story centers around her captor coming back for her and what she is willing to do about it. When the story focuses on Mac and Marisa it was well done. The lead characters were charming and fit together. I especially enjoyed reconnecting with some of the previous characters from the other books in the series.

The places I felt could have been handled better were Marissa's plan for her captor. For someone who has been plotting her revenge for over 2 years, she really does not seem to have a solid plan. This aspect of the story could have been a little tighter. There were some things that just did not make sense. But overall a good finish to the series.

Thank you Netgalley and Harlequin for the ARC.

The Last Cowboy Standing is the 12th book in Carla Cassidy's Cowboys of Holiday Ranch series, and I've read and reviewed almost all of them. The series follows a dozen boys who were abandoned, abused, and sometimes homeless runaways, brought to Holiday Ranch by Big Cass, whose guidance, work ethic, and tough love turned these boys into good, honest, hard-working cowboys, and, who now, at the end of this series, have all found love, except for one, Mac McBride, and he's the last cowboy standing, that is until he gets a request to help gentle and tame a starved and abused horse belonging to the ultra-reclusive, Marissa Lindale.

Years earlier, Marissa was kidnapped, locked naked in a bare, dark basement, toyed with, tortured and abused by a man who disguised his voice. She was there for 60 days, after which she was left bound, gagged, and almost naked in front of the Bitterroot Post Office, unable to provide any information about who had done this to her. Before leaving her there, her abductor promised to kidnap her again, having so enjoyed torturing her for the past 60 days. Trusting no one, and after years away, lots of therapy, and plenty of training in self-defense, Marissa has been back in town for a year, secluded in a small cabin on her mother's ranch, never leaving or seeing a soul. When she spots a starved and beaten horse online, she feels a kinship with the poor, abused animal, and purchases it. After learning that Mac is well known in town for his abilities as a horse whisperer, she meets and hires him.

Mac, who was abused as a child, not only understands the broken horse he was hired to cure, but also understands the reclusive woman who hired him, a woman who views herself as broken and beyond repair, and whose only other goal is finding and killing her abductor, a secret she doesn't share with anyone, including Mac. The attraction between the two grows slowly, as expected in a novel of romantic suspense, and I wish there had been a bit more of that romance in this novel, which is the reason for my 4-star, rather than 5-star rating.

If what Marissa suffered at the hands of her abductor is a trigger for you, I recommend choosing another novel to read, but if not, I will tell you that Ms. Cassidy has done a remarkable job creating these two characters, as well as the other novels in this series. It's both heart-wrenching, tender, and exciting as Marissa tries to identify and find her abductor, and her abductor tries to kidnap her again. It has its sweet, quiet moments, it's riveting and suspenseful moments, and a sweet love story between two characters who never thought they'd ever find someone to love, who would love them back. All in all, a very good read, and a very good ending to this series.

I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions stated are my own.

Mac McBride is a ranch hand and horse whisperer. When he is hired by the reclusive Marisa Lindale, he is intrigued by her as well as her mustang. But they both have issues of trust. Marisa was kidnapped and traumatized two years earlier. She is a survivor with a dark desire for revenge when her stalker promises he will kidnap her again. Will her hatred for her stalker prevent any kind of relationship with Mac? Will he be able to break through the mistrust she has towards men to build a relationship? A lot of suspense and mystery makes for a good story, one worth reading.

I enjoyed this book. Couple that owned the Holiday Ranch in Bitterroot, Oklahoma needed cowboys to help maintain their ranch. They offered jobs and training for the jobs to young orphans from the city. They took in 12 young boys the first time. Mac McBride came to the ranch as a 15 year old. He was was the last single one of the group. Ten others had grown up and found their significant others. One of the was found to be a serial killer and then Mac the single one. Mac was known as a horse whisperer. He received a call from Marisa Lindale to train her new horse Spirit that had been badly abused. Marisa had been stalked two years before and was kidnapped by her stalker. After being abused by the stalker he eventually released her but he was coming back into her life by starting the stalking again. The story unfolded with the training of the horse, the new stalking of Marisa’s stalker and the closeness growing between Marisa and Mac.

Our library doesn’t by paperbacks but if it was donated I would recommend it to others. I would buy the book for myself.

As with all Harlequin Romantic Suspense, romance often takes a back seat to the mystery & suspense but surprisingly in this one it did not.

Heroine was kidnapped and abused and let go. Her stalker tells her he will be back for her so she lives in fear every day and has taken measures to protect herself but she’s still afraid.

She meets Hero who is good with horses (she bought herself a horse) and though he has his own sad history of abuse, they end up falling in love, she pushes him away when the stalker comes back, he fights for her & HEA.
I was kindly provided a free copy by NetGalley, publishers and author for an honest review and I want to thank them very much.