I AM UNDONE, THIS BOOK HAS BROKEN ME

I have not cried this hard over a book in a long time but Dani Collins took my heart, grew it 12 sizes, crushed it, ran it through a sluice box, panned the gold out of it, and then reformed it into a bigger, more beautiful heart. Jesus! Did I mention this book broke me? I mean like set it down and cry big ugly sobs into a pillow for five minutes and just think about love and how gorgeous it is to be alive and have a heart 😭😭😭

This is honestly my favorite book since Kit McBride and the most emotional roller coaster I've read in at least 6 months (and with the rate at which I read books that says a LOT). This book is like "what if Kit McBride was a grumpy widowed prospector and he's also incredibly lonely and horny and tormented? What if Kit had a damaging first marriage and was left stranded with 3 kids and a huge scar down his face, all alone?"

I could not put this book down, it consumed me body and soul. I was thinking about it when I wasn't reading it and I'm still thinking about it, these characters are as real to me as the lines on my hand.

Dual POV is wonderful here because you really get to see how each of them is dealing with this situation and it kept me so engaged.

For once I love the heroine as much as the hero. Marigold is perfection. She's insecure, a total chaos agent, can't stay out of her own way, stubborn, and so ridiculously good-hearted. The way she loves these three babies and takes a terrifying situation head on is .. she's goals. 😍 When she throws the chamber pot at his feet I was like wait .. am <i> I</i> falling in love with her now? Oops, too late.

Virgil is brooding and scarred (literally) and so haunted it's magical watching his heart crack open to let his kids and Marigold in. Honestly I am going to start crying again if I think about it too hard oof 😩 I just love a hard-working man who will do anything to protect his loved ones, but is also a grumpy smart-ass who is numbed out from his own feelings by a terrified fear of not being good enough. He's defined SO clearly in this book, you know exactly who Virgil is and why you love him. It's me. i love him. The only thing that could've possibly improved this already perfect book would've been a good shirtless ditch-digging scene.

The kids are fantastic and fun and funny, while they tear your heart out at how frightened and alone they are, stuck here in the wildneress with their cold and overwhelmed dad. All the side characters are so great too, and I am hoping a few get their own love stories please!

The pacing was perfection, and I needed to know what was going to happen next at every turn. There was never a dull moment. And I actually LOVED the third-act breakup even though it surprised me and ripped my heart out and stomped on it. Because goddamn it if Marigold isn't exactly what Virgil needs and this was the only way for him to really know it.

The sex scenes were out-of-this-world hot because they were both so desperate for each other. Marigold has never orgasmed before so you got a little bit of sex lessons here and Virgil was understandably beside-himself horned up out in the wilderness with no woman for years on end. It was a slow burn where they are trying not to lust after each other but of course that's impossible. The love scenes build on one another so by the time they do the deed you're like yes yes YESSSS! 😮🔥🔥🔥

<spoiler> When the gold nugget plops down on the blank piece of paper and all she sees is his muddy boots and jeans I mean .. </spoiler> this part completely wrecked me. This whole scene, I want it embroidered on a pillow and then I can cry into it every night. WHAT IS SHE EVEN DOING WRITING SOMETHING SO BEAUTIFUL 😭😩🥺😭😭

The setting is the wilds of Colorado and it really paints a picture of how stark and grim it was. They didn't have mattresses, pillows, windows, y'know, all the luxuries of life. Something about these kinds of settings really makes me appreciate my own life that much more.

This book is set in prospector time so it feels so much more modern and fresh than a regency. There is a lot of cursing and so much humor and warmth. I really think I'm falling deeply in love with western romances and I sincerely hope Dani Collins writes more of these because holy hell. I will be buying this in every format because these two (well 5, counting the 3 kids) have my heart and soul.

I wish there was a higher rating than 5 because I would give this one eleventy stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. And honestly? Will I be able to stop gushing about this book? No, probably not.

This was so much fun and I want to read more from this author. I love a western setting, I love a fish out of water and I love a cowboy who has NEEDS but also honor, this books have me all of that. I loved the saucy heroine, I loved the taciturn prospector, and his kids were really cute too. I thought the sister might spoil things, but I feel like her book is next, even if she was a bit annoying.

“Goodnight, hard-ass” … “Goodnight, lady”
“I don’t like to hear that he hurt you so bad he nearly broke you. Makes me want to crack his skull in”
I’m so in love with every book this imprint produces!!!! This one was just … my heart was overwhelmed with love and tenderness !!!! A forced proximity with an arranged marriage between a widower and a divorced woman who’s supposed to take care of his three children. They are too much alike, with constant banter and witty remarks they will have your heart soar and those babies … they have my entire year !!! When you put children in the mix I just instantly melt !!! On the spot !!! Marigold and Virgil are not common at all, and definitely what they expected but somehow exactly what they turned out needing !!!
Add a grumpy sunshine dynamic and a sexual tension to cut the air and you have this amazing and so enjoyable romance book !!!
Plus the discussion about what it means to be a “fallen woman” and the mention of suffragettes for that time … historical fiction to its finest !!!!
I so can’t wait for this to be out !!!
“Since when have I been able to ignore you?”
“Have I mentioned lately what a pain in the ass you are?”
"You lied when you said we didn't love each other. You cheated me out of three days of marriage we could have already had. And you've stolen my heart."

As a historical romance fan, I was very pleased with this read! Not only did I like main characters that this book provided, but it also had a very well-thought-out and constructed plot. There were enough shifts to keep me guessing the whole way. I was also very happy with the dialogue: it can always be a hit or miss in historical reads, and bad or inaccurate dialogue yanks me straight out of any escapism. Collins gave me no problems in that regard!

I really liked this one! I never expected the Gold Rush to be a time I would enjoy reading about, but it appears that I should be. Because I loved this! I've been reading a ton of Victorian-era historical romance recently, so this was super refreshing. I loved being able to change it up.

Like almost every book with found family, I loved it. Watching bonds slowly grow between Harley, Nettie, Levi, and Marigold was so adorable. I'm a sucker for close family bonds, and this book did them all so well. Especially whenever we got to see Virgil be tender with his kids. That was even more adorable.

I also liked how tough and plucky Marigold was. The synopsis made it sound like she really struggled to settle in, but she didn't. Of course, there was a learning curve, but she was determined to make the situation work. And I loved her for that! Life in the camp was no sweet living, but she made herself a full like there.

I'm really not sure if Collins plans to return to this world, but I really want her to. I mean, Pearl is right there. Let's get a Pearl book!

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!