This was such an easy, enjoyable read. A hockey player and a cowboy? Literally my two favorite things combined—I’m obsessed. It’s a solid start to the series, and I’m so ready to dive into the sequel.

The spicy scenes? Amazing. And THE WAY HE CRAWLED TO HER? I was done. CeCe was such a great character, but I can’t lie, Nash had some red flags that made me pause. Like that chapter where he showed up in Seattle after she specifically said she needed to go alone? Even though her ex, Andrew, ended up playing her, it still gave major stalker vibes.

Also, I could’ve done without the epilogue. It felt a little too corny and predictable for my taste.

Buckle up, cowgirls this one is for all the cowboy loving romance readers. Whew, can Paisley Hope write a fantastic cowboy romance. Seriously, this series is top notch and one of my absolute favorites this year. She quickly has become one of my absolute favorite authors. Her plot and characters are just so perfect and I adore every word of her writing. And how perfect are her covers? It just fits the whole vibe.

Quick Summary: A small town, forbidden love romance

My Review: Holding the Reins by Paisley Hope is book #1 in the Silver Pines Ranch romance.

About the Book: "Cecilia “CeCe” Ashby is finally escaping the toxic relationship that has consumed her entire adult life.. She returns to her hometown of Laurel Creek, Kentucky..."

In My Own Words: A woman returns to her hometown and finds everything she ever wanted. She didn't expect her forever to be linked to her "brother" from another mother.

My Final Say: This was a great forbidden love story. The whole "like a brother" angle worked well. The tension between CeCe and Nash was easy to pick up on from the start. Their conflict points were realistic. The support of their family and friends helped to move the story along and provided good texture. (I cannot wait to read the stories of the other characters. They were introduced in such a way that it was easy to see how their stories might unfold.)

Other: This story had so many levels of heat that I didn't quite know how to rate it. It was pretty darn intense. It went in a direction I did not expect, at times.

Rating: 4.25/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: A
Status/Level: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Chemistry: Yes
Tension: Yes
Conflict: Yes
Heat/Spice: Yes
Series: Yes

Appreciation is extended to the author, to the publisher (Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Dell), and to NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to review this title. The words I have shared are my own.

I first read this book on Kindle Unlimited and fell in love with these characters. I didn't realize until its re-release how much I really loved this story. This series is the perfect combo of small town, sports romance and workplace romance, all in one. The perfect amount of plot and spice to keep you equally excited about the love story and falling even harder for the MMC when he's in the bedroom! I highly recommend this book and I can't wait to read the rest of this series and any series Paisley Hope writes in the future!

Thank you so much for the ARC!

This was a cute and sexy romance. If you like the Rebel Blue Ranch series, I am sure you will like this book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for my honest review.

I’m always going to be down for a cowboy romance. But can we TAKE A MOMENT for the MMC! Okay Nash! The setting was great and I can’t wait to see more from Paisley!

I am definitely in my cowboy romance era again and boy did this one hit the mark! I loved that the chapters were short because I found myself saying “one more chapter” and then was somehow halfway through the book 😂 excited to go back to silver pines for book 2!

DNF - there were just tropes in this one that I can't abide by. I cannot deal with "she is gorgeous and everyone knows it except for her", there were too many times in his POV where we are told that he is well endowed, and I really had enough of the best friend's sister/off limits romances. Was not for me.

“𝑵𝒂𝒔𝒉 𝒄𝒂𝒏’𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒆𝒚𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇𝒇 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅’𝒔 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓, 𝒗𝒖𝒍𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒆’𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌.”

A retired hockey player turned part-time cowboy AND the brother’s best friend trope? PLS I'M HERE FOR IT! 🏒🤠

This book gave me everything I needed and more!! The author did NOT hold back she gave us bread and left NO BREAD CRUMBS!

The story follows CeCe, who returns home after leaving her fiancé to start fresh in the small town where she grew up. And guess who’s still around? Her brother’s best friend, Nash Carter a recently retired hockey player who now helps out at the family ranch. He’s been like family for years, but with time as they both age like fiiiiine wine, CeCe starts to wonder if there’s something more between them. DUUUH THERE’S A TON MORE. 😏🔥

I’m obsessed with cowboy romances🤠 , and this book just proved why. Nash is the ultimate small-town protector who will do anything to keep CeCe safe even if it means throwing punches at her ex-fiancé (which was tooootally necessary, btw). Both CeCe and Nash have that "I’m trouble" vibe, and their chemistry made this such an entertaining read. The banter? Yes. The tension? IMMACULATE. And let’s not forget the classic “touch her and you’ll regret it” moment; a classic trope that never gets old! 🥵

Holding the reins isn’t just about their sizzling attraction; it’s also about digging into their pasts, facing old wounds, and navigating the complexities of falling for someone who’s technically off-limits. Their romance is messy, layered, and anything but simple and that’s EXACTLY why I loved it.
💗🌾🐴

Tropes
✨ best friend's little sister
✨ small town
✨ cowboy romance
✨ found family
✨ secret hookups
✨ boss x employee (ish)

Thank you DellRomance & Netgalley for giving me an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

CeCe Ashby has returned to her family’s ranch in Laurel Creek, Kentucky, after breaking her engagement and leaving what had become a toxic relationship. Almost as soon as she returns, she runs into her brother’s sexy best friend, Nash Carter, the newly retired superstar of the Dallas Stars hockey team. Nash is a hometown hero, local business owner, and a notorious bachelor. He and CeCe immediately hit it off and when he learns she is back for good and in need of a job, he hires her.

This was a super spicy western romance! It was a lot of fun watching CeCe and Nash get to know each other as something more than the brother’s best friend dynamic that they had both grown up with, and oh boy, the spice was definitely spicing the more they got reacquainted! I also loved the small town vibes, the secret dating, and of course, that there’s my favorite trope of all, found family, and that it’s so well done.

Holding the Reins is the first installment in the Silver Pines Ranch series and it’s Paisley Hope’s debut. I look forward to reading more from her.

This is a new author for me but I’ve enjoyed this taste of her voice. Characters are solid, could use more originality or depth. Plot was promising and intriguing, could be refined a bit more. Romance was a balance of emotional and realistic! This was a beautiful book! Looking forward to more!

Cute spicy ranch novel! When CeCe returns to her family's ranch in Kentucky after breaking off her engagement in Seattle, she decides she's taking time to focus on herself. Although, being back is difficult since her dad passed away a few years prior.
Nash is a full time resident in town after a successful NHL career. Best friends with CeCe's brothers, like another son to her mom, and hero to residents and hockey fans- Nash bought and renovated the hockey center into a modern marvel. He also helps run the local bar, and works on the ranch. One other catch... he's CeCe's new boss.
Working together and seeing each other on the ranch every morning wears the sexual tension thin between CeCe and Nash. Her bothers would flip if something happened between them. Maybe just once to get out of their system? What's the worst that could happen?

A steamy tropey read that's just fun. Cece's come home, as has Nash, a retired NHL player. Sparks fly almost immediately. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Not deep (not at all) but entertaining.

Now listen, everyone knows I am an absolute sucker for a hockey romance. There's just something about them that hits different, every single time. On the other hand, cowboy romances are also pretty high on my face tropes list. I didn't think that I would ever find a book that somehow incorporated both of those things. Until Holding The Reins.

Nash Carter is a retired NHL hockey player, part-time cowboy, part time bartender, full time owner of the community ice center. Reformed playboy and never one to settle down, his world is thrown off when the little sister of his 2 best friends comes back to town after a bad breakup. She's all sass and Kentucky fire. Suddenly he doesn't just see her as the pseudo little sister.

I loved Cecelia. She really is fiery, sassy, and strong. She's also incredibly smart and creative. All around well rounded. While heavy topics are discussed and mentioned in the story, it was still so warm hearted and really made me feel for the characters. Also, hot damn this book has some spicy scenes. Buckle up for Nash the epic dirty talker. Have mercy.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What’s inside:
Small town romance
Brothers best friend
Age gap (8 years)
Sports romance (retired NHL player)
Cowboy romance

Holding the Reins was my first cowboy romance. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it was probably more cowboys. That being said, the stage is set for future books that would probably lean more cowboy than small town.

CeCe is 25 years old and just got out of a long term relationship hen she found her fiancé cheating on her. She moves back home from Seattle ti her family’s ranch in Kentucky.

Nash Carter is 33 and a retired NHL star. He grew up with CeCe’s family, is best friends with her older brother, and is considered a “bonus” son after having lost both his parents in a tragic accident. Nash has recently moved back home to Kentucky, is working on the ranch, bartends at the local bar, and also runs the local ice rink (I’m still not sure when he slept…)

Nash and CeCe were not close growing up, due to their age difference (Nash is 8 years older). But they quickly fall into insta lust and begin a secret no strings attached relationship. I had a hard time connecting with their relationship as it was never made clear what changed. Neither was pining after the other for years. So how did they see each other differently now than when they were kids and basically siblings?

The pacing was a bit weird or wonky. CeCe goes to work for Nash at the rink and they start putting together a fundraiser for the rink. They plan it for a date 6 weeks away, which seems like a rather short amount of time for the type of fundraiser they planned. There were also times where the author would tell us rather than show us what was happening. As well as using time jumps where days or weeks will have flown by. I feel like a lot of the relationship growth between Nash and CeCe happens off page in these times.

Overall, there was way more spice than plot and very little actual conflict. If that’s your thing, then this is your book!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the ARC of this novel.

I am in my cowboy romance reading era so when I saw the cover of this book I was all in. Unfortunately this book didn’t work for me. I didn’t bond with the decision making of the heroine. I found myself to be super annoyed with her a lot of the book. There were some repetitive aspects in sentences that I had a hard time with. And honestly I just could not with Cece.

There was a lot of smut in this book. And honestly, I read basically anything that I vibe with and there have been plenty of smutty books that I’ve vibed with just fine. This one was not one of them.

This felt like a book with too many tropes. Nash is a cowboy. He’s a hockey player. He’s loaded. He’s her brothers best friend. It’s a forbidden romance because he’s practically family. One likes relationships and the other one doesn’t. Cece and Nash are childhood enemies… so it’s enemies to lovers. It’s a lot. And it’s too much to be done well.

Overall, as we can tell, this one was not for me.

2 stars
5 steam level

This was the cowboy/hockey crossover I didn’t know I needed. I have seriously been missing out by skipping over the cowboy romance novels. I loved everything about the family and friend dynamic in this story. Everyone was truly a ride or die for one another. Not to mention the spice was definitely there. I can’t wait to read the rest of the books in this series.

🖤Former NHL player turned part time cowboy
🖤Boss/Employee
🖤Brother’s best friend
🖤Dual POV
🖤Spicy small town
🖤Found family

Thank you, NetGalley, for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Super cute brother's best friend romance. This book has all the tropes I enjoy, the brother's best friend trope, small town romance. I devoured this book so quick.

Admittedly, I don't read cowboy romance. I saw this absolutely cute cover and was immediately drawn to it. I decided to give Paisley Hope a chance and I do not regret it for one second. This was a phenomenal debut. Half way through, I was already trying to look up the next book in the series. Cece is coming back to her home town to start over after escaping a bad relationship. She sees her brother's best friend (and the boy she grew up with), Nash and has an immediate reaction. These two could not stay away from each other and their chemistry is off the charts. Nash is a former hockey player/part time cowboy who tries his hardest not to be attracted to his best friend's little sister. Man, there are some steamy scenes in this one. Their banter and the push and pull of personalities made it. I cannot wait to read the second in the series. We get a preview of the couple towards the end of the book and their's already so much tension. 5 stars *chef's kiss!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Paisely Hope, and Random House/Ballentine for this eARC. All opinions expressed are my own. #netgalley #holdingthereins #paisleyhope #randomhousepublishing

This was good. I liked all the characters and the town was cute. Will read the next one in the series.