A fun, swoon-worthy, feet-kicking good time!! Cowboys, found family, overcoming childhood trauma, learning how to communicate and what it truly means to lay down roots…. This book had it all without ever feeling like it tipped over into “cheesy hallmark movie” territory.

I will say, at least on NetGalley, this book was advertised as “steamy and hot”. To be fair, Eric is definitely hot, but in my opinion this story doesn’t fall under “steamy” (for me at least). I don’t typically read closed-door romances, but I actually really enjoyed this one and will probably read the author’s other work as well!

An advanced copy of story was kindly shared with me in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity!

Set on a ranch on the Colorado plains, Amelia spends the summer fixing her latest novel with on the ground research by staying with a friend's family. As the summer progresses, she and grumpy eldest brother Eric are thrown together. This novel features a single POV (Amelia) and a song for each chapter. I can't wait to read more by this author!

What I loved:
🤠 Grumpy Cowboy x Sunshine Author
🤠 Forced Proximity (and matchmaking family members)
🤠 Roper the horse!
🤠 Words + Action
🤠 Slow Burn
🤠 A secondary romance to root for!
🤠 Nicknames
🤠 Rodeos
🤠 Wearing his hat means something
🤠 Found family
🤠 Epilogue set one year later

4.5 / 5 Stars

Closed door / kissing only

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC!

This book is was stinking cute I can’t! Eric was so perfect, I don’t think there has ever been a cowboy as amazing as he was.
One of the overarching themes was building a life for someone vs building a life with someone. This was really interesting and important to the story line as Amelia has had bad experiences with this in her own family and doesn’t want the same thing happening to her. This topic is normally almost always brushed over but I am so glad that the author took time to really explain the difference.
I saw somewhere recently that the book social media world has become so spice oriented that it has been impacting how and what authors write. This really resonated with me and I was so excited to see that this was a closed door romance but I feel like I got so much more out of it because the characters were not hooking up the entire time! The characters got to know each other and grew together, Amelia found her people and being able to see that without the haze of smut over everything was so great!
The only issue I had with this book were the many typos and mistakes within the writing. Lots of words that did not need to be there, homophone mistakes (‘waste’ was written instead of ‘waist’). Plot errors as well, the order of the brothers was messed up. Eric was the mentioned to be the oldest, but then called the youngest, then back to the oldest again (this could have been a reading mistake made by me).
Overall I really enjoyed this story and would recommend to anyone looking for a slow burn cowboy romance, grumpy turned softy, writer looking for real world experience, and found family!
In this book there are basically two romance stories taking place and I absolutely loved that aspect as well!

3.75 ⭐

I really enjoyed this book, though it took a little while to get into since the beginning was a bit slow. Once things picked up, the storyline pulled me in, and I ended up loving it! I’m excited to read more from this author in the future!


Thank you to NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Amelia is a successful writer who is trying to break into the cowboy genre. Her past successes don’t seem to matter much when 14 publishers deny her most recent draft. Humbled, Amelia decides to do her research and heads to cowboy country in Colorado to better understand the subjects she’s been attempting to write about. Does she almost immediately get a flat tire and have an incredibly grumpy and incredibly handsome cowboy help her out? Of course. Is there tension and attraction between her and Eric? Another of course. But how do they make it work when she lives in California and his life is in Colorado? How do they trust each other and figure out their feelings for each other? Why is he so grumpy and so hot? I highly recommend reading Waitlyn Andrews’ book to find out.

As a lover of the cowboy romance genre, I was very excited to read this book. I usually love a dual POV but I also enjoyed that we only got Amelia’s POV in this book. It was almost refreshing to not be in the male main character’s head and to only see him through Amelia’s eyes and to better understand him as she did. And like some other cowboy romance book, I loved the tight family aspect of this book. Eric’s family welcomed Amelia immediately and made her feel at home, even when Eric was a grump. I love reading the inner workings of a close family and getting to see the humor and love in those relationships.

Originally, I found Amelia’s reservations and concerns about having a relationship to be a bit repetitive and slightly frustrating. But upon reflection, I think that the way that Waitlyn wrote about her concerns is really realistic. In real life, if someone has deep-seated trust issues and fear of abandonment, it wouldn’t just magically go away after a month. Those thought patterns take actual work to change and I am glad that Waitlyn wrote them in a realistic way that made their arc of love and relationship feel all that more real.

For anyone who is looking for a spicy cowboy romance, this is not that book. While there is no spice, there is a lot of slowburn that feels incredibly rewarding and magical by itself.

Rider’s Block by Waitlyn Andrews is a sweet, cowboy romance, set in the backdrop of a Colorado ranch. Amelia’s journey to write a more authentic cowboy novel is fun to follow, and the side characters and small-town charm add some heart to the story.

That said, the romance itself felt a bit slow and lacked depth, especially since we don’t get much insight into Eric’s character. This was a closed door slow burn.

It’s an easy, feel-good read, but it didn’t fully pull me in. Great for anyone looking for a cozy, no-drama escape.

Thankyou to netgalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Short review: I devoured this book, I started it at around 9pm and then finished it at 1am - I didn't stop reading once, I loved every moment of it. I loved the characters, I loved plot, I loved the world building. It's such a perfect slowburn romance. Eric was a grumpy, but lovable asshole & Amelia was a fun, sweet sunshine character. I would definitely recommend this for anyone who enjoyed books like the chestnut springs series!

One thing I will note is that it's a very slowburn, clean romance with lovable characters. It's got a grumpy/sunshine trope as well, one of my personal favourites.


Longer review, may contain mild spoilers: So, first topic is the plot.

Amelia, our main female character, is a best-selling author who decided to branch out into a different type of book. However unfortunately she was denied because the story wasn't "real" enough. Her close friend basically suggests that she goes and stays with the Randall family for a few months to get the idea of the true scenery.

She meets our grumpy asshole, Eric before she even enters the land when her car tyre pops! Eric is immediately annoyed at her existence but helps her anyways. Over the next few months, Eric and Amelia slowly get closer. Eric is very protective and quite frankly adorable; he leaves her little treats and takes care of her. They continue to get closer until finally they get together.

Next up, my thoughts in general: I loved Eric, but I loved Amelia even more. She's got deep-rooted trauma and she needs a lot of reassurance, my heart hurt for her but she is so strong. I think they are a beautiful couple that deserve each other.

I also loved how realistic this was, especially when it comes to ranching and also the different rodeos. You see a lot of books about bull riders, but Eric is a saddle bronc - it was so interesting to learn about all of the different events.

Waitlyn, our lovely author, gave each horse such a different personality as well; a lot of authors just write a generic horse, but the author gave each horse it's own unique personality. Denis, our grumpy accounting horse. Roper, our sweet, loving horse. Ringo, the slightly angry palamino (the hat destroyer). There were more as well. Roper was my favourite, very clear to see why he's Eric's favourite.

I loved the family dynamic, the only critic I have is that I wished we got to meet those who worked at the ranch itself. Although there was quite a lot of characters to begin with, so maybe it would have been too overwhelming? I also wish we got to see more of Amelia's family.

Other characters: I loved all of the side characters. Dean & Trevor, Eric's brother's. Christine, Trevor's wife. Penny, the boutique shop owner in the town. Nancy & George, Eric's brother's. I won't go into much detail but I fell in love with every character and their individual dynamics.

Overall: I think there were times where it was a little repetitive and I wish we had more information on Amelia's family and past - the issues were her father just seemed to be brushed past. But other than that, there was no other issues; it was a perfect read if you're looking for something cosy, lighthearted and romantic. I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to Waitlyn Andrews and Netgalley for providing me with an e-arc! This review is entirely my own honest opinion.

There was a lot to like here. I loved the setting of the ranch but also California. I loved the family and togetherness and love these people shared. I loved the horses and the cat. The characters all felt real and lovely and funny, especially Dean. I loved how gentle Eric was, even though he was a grump, and how he brought her treats and motivational notes every morning and how secure he was in their relationship even though it must have been hell to wait for months for the confirmation. I loved the friendship between the three women. Mostly, I loved that there wasn't a third act conflict. The story and the events all felt beilevable and there was just such a happy and loving vibe to it all, and that's the most important part. It was really engaging and I was very interested, so I read most of it in one sitting.

There were a couple of things in the story itself that I wasn't a fan of. I would've liked to have seen some sort of resolve with the dad, not because he deserved one but because the sister does. I also think Amelia should've had the conversation with her mom, who by the way is not some pure, sweet, innocent angel baby but a real person and a strong one at that. It could have been cathartic for both of them and Amelia could have gotten to know her new sister.

Another thing was the abstinence. Why? It wasn't something that they ever mentioned in conversation or inner monologue that this is something they wanted to do so I don't understand it at all. They had to do such mental gymnastics for these sleeping arrangements sometimes. Why would you not have sex and sleep in the same bed, as an adult in their 30s, with your partner whom you know, trust and love? They literally waited until marriage (in this relationship).

The real problem though was the wtiting. There were A LOT of mistakes - typos, missing or extra words, incorrect grammar, weird or plain wrong sentence structures and repetition. Sometimes I wasn't sure if something was technically incorrect but still some sentences were just indecipherable to me. Also, why would the author, a grown, adult woman, write "dammit" like an 8-year-old??? It's two words: damn and it. The good news is, this is the part that's easiest to fix but it desperately does need fixing.

The writing took me out of the story a lot which definitely lessened the emotional impact for me but I don't think it's the only reason that I didn't even smile while reading this book, let alone laugh or cry. I was vaguely happy but that's pretty much the extent of my emotions towards this book. It could be so much more because the important stuff is already really good, it just needs more emotion. There could have been a conversation with the California friends, or at least Olivia. What was the point of Jeff texting her in the beginning if nothing ever came from it? The conversation with the mom would have been a big deal, like I already mentioned, or maybe officially meeting the sister and her mother so Amelia wouldn't have to irrationally hate her for "taking" her own mother's place. There was zero relationship between Amelia and her brother, besides Thanksgiving and there wasn't even a single conversation between them there? That's what this book needs, more real, emotional interactions with different people.

Hopefully they fix at least some of these issues before this book publishes.

P.S. My favourite scene was definitely the whole tornado day 👀

Yee-fucking-haw

FIVE STARS! I don’t care if the plot and romance was predictable or if Amelia was accident prone and sorta basic!

We got not one, but TWO love stories and there wasn’t an unnecessary third act breakup, five stars alone just for that. Everything was wrapped up nicely and I’m satisfied.

Eric was swoon worthy and his little actions made me giddy. I love a grumpy cowboy who acts like he doesn’t care but everything he does shows he cares.

Amelia was extremely relatable! It was sometimes too much that she kept getting hurt, but who cares? Don’t lie, we all loved Eric caring for her every time an injury befell upon her.

Dean and Penny are so cute! I didn’t expect them to actually happen — maybe thinking they’d get their own book— but I loved it ! IM OBSESSED. Also the way Trevor worships Christine?! I need!

Thank you NetGalley:,)

I love love love a cowboy romance. Amelia is a successful author but has decided that she wants to switch genres. After she gets denied by several publishers, she decides to do some more research on the subject and finds herself in Colorado with her own grumpy cowboy. This is reflected in Andrews writing, as she herself is very knowledgeable on the cowboy/ranch lifestyle.

I loved the banter between Amelia and Eric, the relationships between family, and loved that there was no unnecessary 3rd act breakup or drama!!! The song titles at the beginning of each chapter were also such a fun touch!!

If you are a fan of the Rebel Blue Ranch or the Chestnut Springs series, you will absolutely adore this one too!!

**Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC and the chance to read and review. All opinions are my own**

3.5 ★

This cowboy romance features Amelia, a writer from the city (I always love it when books are about authors writing a book), and Eric, a grumpy and at first glance silent cowboy. This is a fun, light romance without spice.

What to expect:
- 1st person POV
- A song for each chapter
-No spice/clean romance
-No third-act breakup (thank God)

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wonderful story, great character development, great writing! Highly recommend this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it

I absolutely fell in love with this book. It was a nice easy read with alot of action but very little spice. While reading I could feel myself slowly growing close to each of the characters and at points felt like I myself was right in the book!

Eric is my new book boyfriend. I love him. I love the way he let Amelia find her way to him swoon! Amelia’s decision to do in person research absolutely paid off. And the side love story that we got to see build in the process, I would read a book about them hands down!
I seriously loved this book so much, and for this to be self-published, are you kidding me? Give me a movie about Amelia and Eric and I’d watch it in a heartbeat!

I love both characters. It took me around 30% to fully be invested in this book. It's not your typical city girl settled down in the countryside for love. They both put in the work, effort and communicate properly to get where they are.

I love a cowboy romance but this just wasn’t it for me.
I could t really click with the characters or the plot.
The MMC was tolerable but the FMC really rubbed me the wrong way.

I really enjoyed this book. I love a cowboy romance, so this was perfect for me. I found the fmc to be quite confused about her feelings for the mmc throughout most of the book, which sort of bothered me a bit because he seemed to be straightforward about his yet she was constantly confused about his feelings for her. I really liked the mmc and how he was with his family and the fmc. I feel like the side characters really made this story great. There was no miscommunication, which was nice to see. I loved the setting and I really enjoyed the story.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this ARC.

Personally, I thought the book was okay. I couldn’t connect with the plot and the characters, and I didn’t really like the fmc. It wasn’t bad a book, I just think it wasn’t for me. Everything felt too fast paced in love which I felt it didn’t make sense because there was barely any relationship development.

Thank you so much to netgalley, the publisher and the author for providing me with a copy for review purposes!

2.5 ⭐

I really enjoyed the setting of the story, I had a great time for the first 30%ish of the book but then I started feeling like the story was stalling and there was no progression. Things got boring and repetitive pretty quickly, and the very detailed descriptions of random things didn’t help. Tha love story between the main characters is marketed as a slow burn, but I personally felt like there was nothing “to burn” because while the main mmc was trying to move forward the fmc was stuck and didn’t really show any sign of wanting to same things as the mmc.

That being said if you’re looking for a book that is more a journey of self growth than a romance and has cowboy vibes this might be your cup of tea!

"Rider’s Block" is a cozy, slow-burn romance that tells the story of Amelia, a successful author who, after facing constant rejection, decides to take matters into her own hands and immerse herself in the world of rodeos and ranch life in Colorado. She’s hoping a few months in the cowboy-rich heart of the country will inspire the perfect cowboy romance novel to get her career back on track. What she doesn’t expect is to end up under the same roof as Eric, a grumpy cowboy who’s as resistant to her presence as he is to her attempts to get any real research done. Their forced proximity quickly turns into a battle of wills, with Amelia trying to survive the summer without upsetting Eric further (especially since he has this annoying habit of drunkenly admitting how attracted he is to her).

As the weeks roll by, though, their friction starts to simmer into something a bit more complicated, and Amelia begins to question what’s happening between them. Is it just the isolation, or is there really something there with the gruff, standoffish cowboy? The entire dynamic is a slow-burn, with plenty of tension, mixed emotions, and reluctant attraction. While the backdrop of Colorado’s stunning scenery and rodeo culture is beautifully captured, it’s the chemistry between Amelia and Eric that makes the story shine (even if it takes its sweet time to fully come together).

For me, this book hit the right notes for a low-key, feel-good read, but I can see how some people might want more depth from Eric’s character. We only get Amelia’s POV, so Eric’s thoughts and feelings are mostly a mystery, which left me wanting a bit more insight into why he’s so closed off. The romance is definitely slow and steady, which I liked, but it might be too slow for some. The writing does feel a little stiff in places, especially early on, and there are a few small inconsistencies that took me out of the flow at times. But honestly, these are minor bumps in what is otherwise a charming, low-stakes romance. If you’re into feel-good stories with a slow-burn romance and a bit of cowboy charm, this one’s worth picking up.