Back in the Saddle is the book I've been waiting so long to have in my hands! Look at that cover! Maggie Eckersley is an amazing writer; the emotions she can draw from the reader are so raw! And this is a debut! Unbelievable! I can't wait to read more! It very much gives Paige Toon x Abby Jimenez vibes, where the heavy stuff is covered alongside some light hearted moments too.

Back in the Saddle is a Doctor x Rancher trope with a reverse age gap (she's 5 years older). I'm obsessed with the meet cute - the tension and that first kiss was electric! Their first date is super cute and there's even a photo booth moment that makes me throw up my feet and giggle!

Caroline is a doctor and the book covers clinical trials and clinical research end of medicine (and she doesn't quit her job for love in the end). It does deal with some heavy content e.g. terminal illness - MMC parent.

Based between Oklahoma and Scotland Caroline and Hunter have a time limit to their romance - one year. Hunter falls first, and harder, and isn't afraid to let her know what he's feeling. But Caroline is more guarded, having a failed marriage behind her.

It touches on tough topics apart from cancer, such as Caroline's anxiety and Hunter's grief. But it has a serendipitous ending that shows sometimes love really can be enough! 💜

A thoroughly enjoyable story of Caroline who flees to Oklahoma after ending her marriage in Scotland. One night in a bar she meets a stranger who catches her eye and this sets off a chain of events following Caroline and Hunters attraction to one another.
This explores the love between a cowboy and a woman who has been hurt in the past and each has their secrets, A real page turner that keeps you wanting to read more with some lovely touching moments.

I absolutely loved this book—five stars, no hesitation! Back in the Saddle gave me everything I crave in a romance: emotional depth, slow-burn chemistry, and characters who feel real. Caroline was such a refreshing heroine—smart, strong, and beautifully flawed. Her journey from heartbreak to healing was so relatable, and I admired her resilience. And Hunter? Whew. A cowboy with emotional depth? Yes please. Their connection was electric, and I was rooting for them from their first whisky-soaked kiss.

The small-town Oklahoma setting added cozy charm, and the themes of grief, second chances, and self-discovery were handled with such care. I laughed, I cried, and I swooned—sometimes all in the same chapter. Maggie Eckersley’s writing is heartfelt and honest, with just the right amount of spice. This book felt like a warm hug and a gentle nudge to believe in love again.
I didn’t want it to end. Saddle up, folks—this one’s a gem. Move over Elsie Silver!

This was a short quick read - FMC was from Scotland which drew me in. I love a Scottish element to any book.

DNF at 23% - I just could not get into the writing at all. I love a cowboy romance but the writing just wasn't working for me nor was the cancer storyline that there was no warning about. Would highly recommend including some trigger warnings so readers like me could make a better decision for themselves than picking this book up.

Could not get into this. Ended up DNF at about 30%. Characters felt very flat. FMC seemed like her only personality trait was her trauma.

I really love cowboy romance but I really struggled with this book. I couldn’t get into it and the plot just wasn’t there for me.

Back in the Saddle was such a great read. It had the emotional pull, the cowboy charm, and a romance that felt both believable and satisfying. Caroline heads to smalltown Oklahoma to escape a difficult divorce and try to rebuild her life. What she doesn’t expect is to fall into a steamy, unexpected connection with local rancher Hunter after meeting one night in a bar. And from there, things get complicated in the best way.

I really enjoyed Caroline as a main character. She’s smart and capable but clearly hurting, and her journey to finding her confidence again was so well written. Hunter was a standout too. He’s the kind of love interest who feels gruff at first - HELLO reformed playboy! - but slowly reveals all this warmth and protectiveness that completely wins you over. Their chemistry is there from the start, but what really stood out for me was the way their emotional connection grew alongside the physical one.

The setting added so much atmosphere. The small-town life, the rodeo scenes, the ranch work, it all felt grounded and real. The pacing dipped slightly in the middle for me, and I would have loved a little more breathing room at the end, but those are small things in the grand scheme of a very enjoyable romance.

If you like strong heroines, rough around the edges cowboys, and subtle second chances, this one’s definitely worth picking up. A really lovely story that I’ll be recommending for sure.

Unfortunately, I ended up dnf-ing this book. While I loved the concept and the setting, the execution was lacklustre. The writing was very simple and I didn’t really feel a connection to the characters. I usually don’t mind miscommunication if it feels warranted, but it just felt unnecessary in this. I did however like the characters romance, just the rest of it wasn’t for me!

This is a solid cowboy romance. Enjoyed reading Caroline's journey of figuring out her life and what she wants. This would be a great book for a quick read this summer.

✨DNF :( ✨

I've been really in my cowboy romance era recently so when I saw this book on NetGalley I immediately requested and was like giddy up!!

Unfortunately, this book is just not hitting for me. I don't have a lot of love for the characters and I think the subject matter is just too deep at this moment in my life... after reading some other reviews I made the choice to not finish the book.

Thank you to Avon Books UK, Avon, and Net Galley for the ARC ✨

Caroline is from Scotland and meets Hunter when she is in the US for work. As they spend time together they call for each other so what will happen when she has to return home sooner than planned? I liked how it was told from both points of view. An emotional read at times.

This was cute! I did love the FMC being from Scotland and ending up in Oklahoma! I did at times get bored as I felt the pacing was slow at times and nothing really was moving forward. Otherwise, it was an enjoyable story that I would definitely recommend to my friends who love a western romance!

Caroline heads to Oklahoma after her marriage dissolves. There she meets Hunter, a rancher with a heart of gold. The two keep crossing paths and engage in a relationship, despite neither of them being 100% ready. Trigger warning: cancer.

This read like a western written by someone with very little real life experience with America. The fact that a character was named Alan Jackson and no one brought up the king of country even though the main character loved country music, left me baffled. I kept complaining about it to my husband until it was finally acknowledged at the end of the book.

I think this may do very well with the UK audience but perhaps not as well with the Americans. I like the author’s writing overall, so would be willing to give her another chance.

Thank you to Avon Books UK, Avon, and Net Galley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Eckersley's contemporary debut is sure to delight readers of cowboy romance. I was shocked to see that she lives in Scotland because she expertly depicted life in Oklahoma on a ranch!

4.5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was like a warm hug and a little emotional slap at the same time.

Back in the Saddle gave exactly what I needed: small town vibes, emotional baggage, and a romance that doesn’t feel fake or forced. The main character? Messy in the best way. She’s trying her best and honestly, same. Coming home after running from your problems? Big mood. And the love interest? A cowboy but make him emotionally available. Yes pls.

It’s got that “I left town to escape everything, but now I’m back and it’s complicated” energy and somehow it works. Their chemistry was slowburn but real. Nothing felt overly dramatized, just honest and kind of beautiful.

Only thing that bugged me was that some of the deeper emotional stuff wrapped up a little too neatly, like “oh we’re healed now?” But honestly? I forgave it because I was rooting for them hard.

If you’re into secondchance romance, soft cowboys, and stories about coming home (physically and emotionally), this one’s worth picking up.

Cozy read. Slightly emotional. Might make you text your ex (don’t). 10/10 would read again with a glass of wine and a blanket.



❤️shaye.readss

I really struggled to get through this and I’m not sure why. I think it might be the feeling that some depth in the characters and their relationship was missing. I found it hard to root for them, and there wasn’t much respite or comedic relief from the heavier themes of the story. Sadly just not one for me I think!

I love country books so much! And this one was no exception. The romance was very well written and the plot kept my attention the whole time.

Obsessed! Though I’m curious as to why we didn’t know Hunter’s history until towards the end- history of previous relationships

I expected to quite enjoy the book, from the blurb and the tropes which were right up my alley, but I never managed to completely get into Caroline and Hunter’s story. The main issue for me was that most of the writing felt too clinical, rather than emotional. Caroline is a doctor so you could justify it to some extend, but it didn’t read well - especially in the spice scenes.

There were quite a few good things, notably the family dynamics and grief topics which I thought were really well done, and some of the emotional connection between Hunter and Caroline as well, but almost everything else was described that a form of coldness that isn’t what I want in a romance book.

I considered DNFing several times… the last 25% were a bit better but that came too last to make up for the rest of the book.
M