Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy of this book!

The premise of this book is cute but all of the characters need therapy and a lot of it. I just couldn’t get on board with how the mmc treated the fmc. Everything was very stilted.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book! I love a good cowboy romance but for me this book didn’t hit the spot. I enjoyed the story of the two main characters but it just left me a little frustrated Perry deserved so much and Carson… well he needed to talk to someone.

2.5 star

After the loss of his wife, Carson leans on his best friend Perry for support. They have relied on each other for decades to escape their traumatic childhoods. After 25 years of friendship, Perry decides that enough is enough and she needs to start a new life, breaking their cycle of codependency.

I thought the premise of the story was cute and I didn’t mind the characters per se. What really grated on me were the extremely frequent run-on monologues about their feelings that went on for pages. If they had told each other those feelings instead of endlessly reflecting on them, they would have been far happier much sooner. Every chapter had some form of drawn-out, soul-searching manifesto, and I couldn’t get past it.

While this wasn’t my favorite of the first two books in the series, I do plan to keep reading. I love the historical details on the chapter pages and I think the overall series will be strong.

This book was definitely swoon worthy! It reminds me of Elsie Silvers books! I honestly got lost in it! This is such a cute read!

Because I enjoyed the first of this series so much I was eager to read this one. Good characters but too much repetition during their personal growth. I always skip intimate scenes. I began skipping each one's personal reflections. Enough already. I wanted them to grow up and get to their happily ever after. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy. My review is voluntary.

This is a “western” romance book involving two best friends who are secretly in love with each other but both afraid to make the leap to more. Well, one friend is completely in denial but refuses to let her go. When Perry decides she needs to get away for her own sanity, Carson decides that he wants her then and there.

I loosely use the term western as a descriptor because we get a very brief, “he works and lives on a ranch”. There’s no sweaty horseback riding moment that makes your cheeks flush, no real outlaw vibes other than an almost bar fight and a history reenactment. I wanted real backwoods vibes and I didn’t get them.

The friends to lovers trope is a good one, and I love all the angst that can go with it. This books definitely had some of that and I could feel Perry yearning for him. However, this book also had a lot of miscommunication, which is a HUGE turn off for me.

These two have a lot of trauma and definitely are trauma bonded. That creates some co-dependency (as stated in book) and I didn’t like it. They just kept reminding each other (even though they’ve been besties for 25 years) that they act this way because of their separate daddy issues. Shouldn’t they already know that? I felt like it was more of an excuse than a justification. Explaining once is good, but to use the same line over and over really just is too much. I also feel like after 3 deployments, Carson would have some serious issues that either didn’t pop or were never addressed.

Perry and Carson have been friends since childhood and fell in love with each other over the years, but neither one wanted to risk their friendship so they never let the other one know. Perry wants to move to another town to expand her floral business but also to finally try to break free from her seemingly unreciprocated feelings and maybe find someone to love and start a family. Carson can’t understand why she would want to leave and doesn’t like the idea at all, but he’ll help her in any way he can. They even try dating apps but aren’t happy with the results and are jealous of each other’s dates.

There’s a lack of true communication between them both and they waste a lot of time stressing themselves out. I wanted to smack them both upside the head but overall, thoroughly enjoyed the story.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I sure do love Maisey Yates! I’ll literally read anything she comes out with. This was the perfect friends to lovers romance, full of all the best tropes.

Thank you NetGalley & the publisher for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3.

This was not my favorite Western type romance and I didn't feel immersed in the small town feel that I normally get when I'm reading books within this genre. The plot to begin with was hard for me to believe and relate to. I am all for best friend's to lovers as a trope but what this actually was ended up being the FMC, Perry, holding a torch for her best friend the MMC, Carson, for literally their entire lives. That torch was held through Carson's marriage as well and then Perry decides that she might not want to live in the same town as Carson anymore because she thinks their friendship is toxic. That just felt almost forced and similar to an ultimatum, even though at that point in the book one was not necessarily given.

Carson. This man was so annoying to me, he didn't take anything seriously which was increasingly frustrating the further in the book I got. Also, his initial reaction to Perry wanting to move away was outrageous *in my opinion*

I am glad that Perry stood up for herself in the third act of this book and quite honestly that character growth for her is what raised my rating from 2 stars to 2.5 stars. I think this book would have worked better for me if it was in 1st person rather than 3rd person, but that is a fully personal preference and I know a lot of readers LOVE 3rd person.

Oh and I really liked Carson's family members that were throughout the book. I was intrigued by Carson's story because he was a veteran and also had trauma surrounding previous relationships, but by the end of the book I still kind of felt like he had not fully tapped into that trauma. I am curious to see where this series will go and I do want to check out the first book.

I really did try with this one, but I found the dialogue frustrating to get through, the MMC...I just can't. I'm all for a good joke, but there's a time and a place and every single time he speaks... that's too much. Can we just have a serious conversation for a second? I found him to be too insufferable for me to get through this.

I'm sorry, but this one was not for me, unfortunately.

There’s a funny song that my husband and I always laugh at when it comes on the radio, then of course we sing along. Cause that’s just what we do.
In OUTLAW LAKE Maisie Yates has an undercurrent theme. It gets bounced around. Especially when it concerns Perry, short for Periwinkle, and her best friend Carson Wild. They are like two magnets whose friendship meant so much that they feared putting any new feelings on the line. The cost was too high.
So back to the song. If you wanted to be happy for the rest of your life, never make a pretty woman your wife, so in my personal point of view get an ugly woman to may you.
So with this philosophy in mind, the same should hold true for best friends.
That’s the lesson to learn in OUTLAW LAKE. Are there any unwritten laws about friendship and its boundaries. It is realistic to put feelings on a back burner because you are scared witless of the repercussions of the friendship disappearing if the love thing doesn’t work out.
In true Maisie Yates fashion, as fans of this prolific author would testify, there are equal amounts of humor and angst in her latest OUTLAW LAKE. Marvelous characters with spiffy dialog and attitudes. All fans have become accustomed to it. Purposely not giving away any of the plot, just suffice it to say OUTLAW LAKE was a delight to read and if I must admit re-read. Maisie Yates sets out to entertain and leave you with a satisfied conclusion to still another lovely story.

I enjoyed this one. I appreciated the boundaries and communication throughout the story that made it feel like a genuine connection between the characters. I do wish there would’ve been more to the story as a whole.
Tropes: Friends to lovers, cowboy romance, it’s always been you!

This book was a good cowboy romance! I did like it, but I also thought it felt rushed at some places, but dragged at others. I don’t think the widow trope was done well in this book. However, everything was entertaining!

I find that I have enjoyed going back to Rustler’s Mountain with Carson and Perry’s story. Maisey Yates has a knack for writing a good tale, with enough spice to heat up the pages without overwhelming the message in the book! I always enjoy reading stories that I sort of know how they’ll end, but enjoy all the twists and turns that get me to the last page. Thanks, NetGalley for a chance to read and advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to the books that will follow this one.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

Best friends Carson and Perry have known each other for 25 years. They have remained friends through deployment, familial abuse, marriage, and tragedy. .

But when Perry wants to step outside their normal routine and find something else outside their small town, it gives them both the push they need to see what has been there all along.

This was a sweet, quick and easy read I finished in an afternoon.

This book was such a beautiful friends to lovers romance. I feel if you are a fan of Elsie Silver then you will absolutely love this book, im running to read the first book in the series immediately.
You are rooting for Carson and Perry from the very start, there are a few touchy topics in this book so a little warning for that but overall a gorgeous book. Maisey is such a talented writer, i will absolutely be reading more of her in the future.

I really enjoyed this book. It was steamy and romantic. I love reading best friends to lovers romances, especially the small town ones. The ending was really good. I look forward to the next book that Maisey Yates writes. I'm grateful that netgalley and the publishers let me read this in exchange for an honest review.

My experience with cowboy/western romance is limited (the sole competitor being Flawless by Elsie Silver), so by no means do I consider myself an expert in this genre- regardless, I found it hard to label this book in a similar vein. Beyond the mention of the town's Wild West reenactments and decades-old lore, I didn't particularly feel immersed in the small town/country vibes like I was expecting.

While I appreciate Yates's dedication to fleshing out the inner worlds of our two main characters, this book can be labeled as one big miscommunication- until it's not in the latter half when we get cyclical, repetitive monologues of where our characters were coming from/their upbringing. Carson Wilder and Perry Bramble both come from a lot of hardship and I found their tension believable, but what I didn't buy into was our character's friendship. Aside from the same 2 references of times when they were growing up, I didn't understand their connection as "best friends who knew each other better than anyone else". For two best friends, they seemed to avoid a lot of difficult conversations (which made sense with certain topics, but not for others). Their dynamic fell into this strange, tortured, "Look at me! This isn't you" vibe. I think this book could have benefitted from more dialogue scenes- there was a lot of telling, not showing. But again, I do appreciate giving our character's complex inner worlds.

Overall, I struggled to find the plot particularly interesting and I wasn't able to connect to either character. Carson suffers from deep-rooted family trauma turned into toxic masculinity and his possessive obsession with being Perry's 'protector' (keeper) was not for me. They both needed to be in therapy with some much needed separation. I wish we got to see this part of the plot through. Props to Perry for sticking up for herself in our third act conflict and knowing she deserves better!

Maisey Yates brings us the story of best friends Carson and Perry. The problem is that Perry has always loved Carson. The other problem is that Carson has no idea. So, what's a girl to do? She runs. But she tells Carson her plan that she plans on expanding her flower business in the next town over. His problem is that she has never been that far from him except when he ran away. Will this move push both of them closer together or farther apart? Will they each be brave enough to face the past so they can have a future?

Maisey Yates brings us a story of love. We meet friends who have been in each other's lives for years and have become so dependent on each other that they shut everyone else out. Perry forgoes going on a date so she can have dinner with her best friend. Carson doesn't open up to his late wife, but he will share his thoughts with his best friend. She weaves a story that brings the reader along with her as you get to know Carson and Perry. You follow along their story and see where their story takes them.

I have received and read an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I would like to thank NetGalley and Kensington Publishing | Kensington for this privilege.

Outlaw Lake is childhood friends to lovers story that was messy, heartfelt, full of yearning and it hit the spot.

Carson Wilder and Perry Bramble were a hot mess and I kind of loved it. They struggled and fell into a routine of supporting each other but missed the rut this created. They were not honest with themselves or each other until Perry drops a bomb and alters the course of their relationship.

A few notes: I did not love the third person POV, there were some pacing issues, and this is cowboy light IMP.

I really enjoyed this book and please to jump into Maisey Yates back list.

Thanks to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing and Maisey Yates for this ARC.