This second chance romance was a really fun and fast read. I finished it in a weekend and I think that speaks to how I enjoyed the flow and pacing of the story. I'm not a huge fan of grumpy sunshine but I did enjoy how he fell first but it did feel like their relationship was very abrupt. I don't think I was a huge fan of how fast they got together and it felt like they went from 0 to 100 really fast. I don't know if this story was my cup of tea, I think I was expecting more yearning and got less than what I was hoping for.

This book was so fun. Lyla Sage fans, pick this book up! It feels fresh and unique while also touching on all the romance tropes we love.

This book was a super cute romance with a ton of hot banter and tension! The southern twang and influence was very obvious and could have been toned down in some spots but definitely added to the overall picture.

A lot of tension, brooding, feisty FMC, golden retriever MMC, single dad, bull rider x hockey player, hometown childhood crush, friends to lovers, jealousy, forced proximity

This is a great soft romance summer read. Dakota and Wyatt stole my heart. This second-chance, small-town romance will make you giggle and smile with every page turn. We have our golden retriever MMC, Wyatt, who has returned home and is determined to win his girl back. Dakota (FMC) has been bull riding her whole life; it is her job, it is her sport, and her passion, but lately her confidence has been shaken. Wyatt might be what she needs, but right now, she wants nothing to do with him. However, Wyatt is determined to show up, and that is exactly what he does.

Such a cute fun read! I loved all the cheesy parts , I love a good small town romance and after watching ransom canyon . Im a sucker for a cowboy romance!

Tropes:
friends to lovers
forced proximity.
single dad
Small town romance

Thank you so much to Atria for the ability to read this ahead of time!!

Tropes:
🌸friends to lovers
🌼slow burn
🌸forced proximity
🌼single dad
🌸small town
🌼black cat/golden retriever
🌸he falls first, she falls harder

I ATE THIS BOOK UP! It had absolutely everything I look for in a good, small town romance. I absolutely loved the twist in the conventional cowboy romance roles where Dakota is our spit-fire who rides bulls like hell and gives men a run for their money. Wyatt is the golden retriever of my dreams and Vi is absolutely the cutest thing in the world. This book had it all and I ate it up from start to finish. I can’t wait for the next!

Homebound // Meredith Trapp
Publishes June 17, 2025

Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for this digital ARC! Getting approved for two cowboy romances in one week feels like a plethora of riches.

Every cowboy romance seems to have a friend who’s in the NHL, but this book takes that and makes our MMC the best right winger in the NHL. And our FMC, well she’s the cowgirl, a bull riding, rough and tough, Texan.

Dakota, the cowgirl, helps care for Wyatt, the hockey star, parent’s flower farm while they are out of town. Growing up Wyatt would spend the summers at the flower farm and quickly became Dakota’s best friend. He has always harbored feelings for Dakota but feels the need to move on once she’s engaged. Years later, a broken engagement for Dakota, and a new baby for Wyatt, they reconnect. And Wyatt is determined this time he will get the girl.

This book has:
Grumpy/Sunshine
Single Dad
Friends to Lovers
Second Chances

And my favorite setting, a Barndominium. A barn that has been turned into a condominium.

This one is also super spicy!

This is the first book I’ve read from Meredith Trapp, but I will definitely read more!

#cowboyromance #bookrecommendations #homebound #friendstolovers #singledadromance

This is a super cute book about old friends to lovers. Where he (Wyatt) is a single dad who is visiting back home while on a summer break for the NHL. His only goal to finally get the girl of his dreams, Dakota. She is a bull rider who is in a really bad slump and is having a hard time staying on long enough.

This book has made me giggle and kick my feet at the super cute parts, as well as get nervous at parts where she is on a bull. We get to see Wyatt, Dakota, and Wyatt’s baby daughter, Vienna, transverse life in this romance book. It touches on topics that are very real, while still managing to keep the book overall light hearted.

Overall a book that I’ll definitely be recommending to friends.

This was such a cute book. This is a fun small town/cowboy friends to lovers romance. It’s an easy read. The protagonist is a tough nut to crack, but the romantic lead is a strong, wonderful dad who pursues her relentlessly (in a respectful way). So fun.

⭐ 3.5
🏒 MMC/🤠 MFC
🌶️🌶️
❤️ Young love to End Game

This was my first book by Meredith Trapp, and I really enjoyed it. The book was a light romance, easy to read and had plenty of spicy scenes.

I didn’t realize that Homebound was the second book in the Boundless Players series, so now I’m definitely going back to read the first book, Icebound. There were a couple of mentions of Wyatt's fellow hockey players and am intrigued with Trembley's story.

Wyatt, the MMC is the epitome of a golden retriever for the women in his world. Loved that kept that love and faith for Dakota all these years (quite frankly, I could NEVER LOL).

Dakota, the MFC, took a bit of warming up to. She’s had a tough go with her ex, Boone, and her strong desire to be self-reliant was super apparent and repetitive - ok girl, we get it. Relieved for her to finally see the light with Wyatt.

I adored the dynamic between Lana and Willie! Love the country tough man and city girl trope, and I’m really hoping they get their own storyline in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read an early copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for gifting me an advanced readers copy for Homebound! This was a cute little friends to lovers cowboy romance that took a lot of tropes and gender-swapped them in a unique and fun way.

There was a lot that worked in Homebound and a few things I didn’t love. I’d rate it as a solid 3.5 stars, but rounded it up because of Wyatt.

The best thing about this book was the main male character, Wyatt. I adored him. His charisma and love for his daughter jumped off the page. He was the perfect golden retriever boyfriend and I loved the chapters from his point of view. Wyatt gets all 5 stars from me.

I wasn’t as big a fan of the main female character, Dakota. I loved the way Trapp gender-swapped so many romance tropes with her. She was the grumpy one. She was the cowboy. She was the one that slept around. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel like we got to see enough of the evolution of her feelings. We saw friendship shift to lust, but the jump from lust to love felt invisible/instant. The character she was with Wyatt felt almost like an entirely different Dakota from the begging of the book.

Trapp is great at crafting the flirty, fun scenes that happen before the couple inevitably get together. The book started a little unsteady for me, but when Wyatt started flirting, I was all in.

Another highlight was the way Trapp wrote about early parenthood. I’m the mother of a two year old and so much of what she wrote felt so real to me.

I would like to vent that I HATED their nicknames for each other. “Summer boy” made my skin crawl.

There were some plot points that felt awkward. I was let down by how their first kiss played out. Some of the beginning of the book could feel uncomfortable because of the premise: him being obsessed. Her being indifferent. But overall, I enjoyed this one - mostly because of Wyatt and his charm.

The author also did a great job setting up what (I assume) will be the next book between Willie and Lana. I loooooooove hate to love books and their banter was so fun.

**ARC** I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest feedback. Thank you NetGalley.

This was a really fun small town romance book! This book was about two childhood best friends finding their way back to each other and falling in love. The FMC is Dakota, she is a bull rider, which is a main part of the book. The MMC is Wyatt, he is a professional hockey player, who is also a single dad. It was kind of a slow burn but there was a lot of flirting before anything happened between them. Dakota didn't want to allow herself to fall for Wyatt because she didn't think she deserved someone as nice as him. Eventually she ends up letting herself fall for him. Wyatt was perfection and I loved that he helped Dakota heal. Some parts of the book made me cringe a little bit so that's why I rated it 3.75 stars. Other than those parts, I thought it was fun and it was very spicy 🌶️

i just didn’t like this book. there was nothing interesting or catching; plot felt uneventful; characters were annoying.

i want to start with characters and interactions because those were actually annoying and embarrassing. both of main characters are adults, but for some reason, they acted like teenagers. i don’t know why, maybe it’s the love effect or not seeing each other for so long 😭 no idea. the conversation were so uncomfortable, i had to take breaks every couple of chapters because of how awkward everything was. from settings to words to chemistry.

mmc is a hockey player, even more, he’s an nhl player. however, this detail was only mentioned twice throughout the book, therefore, i actually don’t think it was needed. feels like a detail used to attract sport readers🤷‍♀️

plot was promising and i enjoyed the setting, but there was nothing outside their house, bar and wherever dakota was competing. i didn’t get the atmosphere of that small town or people who were living there.

Homebound by Meredith Trapp takes the cowboy romance trope and gives us cowgirl and hockey-boy romance instead!

The story follows Dakota, a bull rider and Wyatt, a professional hockey player and single dad. Wyatt and his daughter Vienna are back in Texas for the summer where they end up staying with his childhood best friend Dakota, who he ghosted out of the blue. Wyatt has always been in love with Dakota but she never reciprocated the feelings. While back in Texas for the summer, he is determined to make her seem him as more than just a goofy kid and best friend.

I loved the southern charm this story brought to life! The setting and characters were cute and fun to read about. At first I was put off by Dakota and her roughness, especially toward Wyatt when he comes back to Texas. However, once we really got to understand her character I couldn't help but relate to her and her "spiciness" as she would say! I loved how soft and caring she was for Vienna and how she instantly loved her from the moment she met her. Wyatt is the ultimate girl dad! The lengths he would go to for his daughter is so heartwarming. I loved watching their relationship develop and how much they truly loved and cared for one another. The support and belief they have in one another as well as each other's dreams and goals, is truly special and something to strive to find in your own life!

This is a quick, fun, steamy read perfect for summer!

Black cat x golden retriever is one of my FAVORITE tropes so when you add in the fact that SHE'S the bull rider. Yeah. I knew it was going to be a five star read early on.

I lovedddd Wyatt's determinedness and I loved watching Dakota slowly realize that her oldest friend is now hot. Hehe.

Thank you so much to Meredith Trapp, Atria and NetGalley for the early copy.

I am sorry but this book was not for me. Right off the bat, the FMC was way too mean to Wyatt. Like, why are you acting this way? It is not nice. There was way too much telling and not showing about their past. Just did not enjoy.

4⭐️ Badass bull rider FMC and a NHL hockey player MMC who has been OBSESSED with her since they were kids??? Literally say less! This was my first read my this author and I had a great time. 🧡🤎

𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝘁𝘆𝗹𝗲:

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ This was a first person dual POV that was easy to read and follow and had lots of relatable moments without being too “cringy” (there were some that could be deemed “cringy moments” but for me it wasn’t too bad).

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ I haven’t read book 1 in this series, and I was still able to enjoy this so I also appreciate that.

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ There were some moments and phrases that felt a little repetitive but, again, nothing too bad in my opinion.

𝗣𝗹𝗼𝘁 / 𝗣𝗮𝗰𝗲:

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ The plot was decently steady paced and the chapter lengths were short and sweet which made for a quick read which I personally love.

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Again, a litleeee repetitive in terms of occurring scenes but I still very much enjoyed. The quick pace helped with this aspect for sure though.

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵 / 𝗗𝘆𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗰𝘀:

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ I liked that Dakota (FMC) wasn’t exactly “perfect” at the beginning - without being super annoying to read about. It made for lovely character growth / development for her throughout the story. Her naive-ness about Wyatt in the first bit of the book ALMSOT got me, but I’m glad to say things progressed well.

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ I LOVED Wyatt - DEFINITELY a new book boyfriend! He’s such a good Dad to Vi and is so freaking sweet. He’s a sweetheart cinnamon roll that will stand up and advocate for his girls in a heartbeat, and we love that. Somehow wished there was a little bit of hockey or more of Wyatt and his career intertwined but can’t do much in between seasons so I get it lol.

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ Dakota and Wyatt’s dynamics, especially as the plot progressed was great. I loved when Dakota and Wyatt were with Vi - those moments were so wholesome and cute!

╰┈➤ˎˊ˗ I also really enjoyed Lana and Willie’s dynamic LOL! Their banter was great - Can’t wait to read more of them in the future!

Overall, this makes for a quick and cute cowboy/cowgirl romance read! Also LOVE this cover btw!! 🧡🤎🤠

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this as an e-arc ahead of re-release in exchange for an honest review!

—

𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 ↴
Star: 4⭐️/5
Spice: 2.5-3🌶️/5
Emotion: 1-1.5💧/5

𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀 ↴
🧡 It’s Always Been You
🤎 Single Dad & NHL Hockey Player MMC
🧡 Bull Rider / Cowgirl FMC
🤎 Small Town
🧡 Childhood Friends to Lovers
🤎 Forced Proximity
🧡 Grumpy (fmc) x Sunshine (mmc)
🤎 Dual POV

Homebound is an intimate, emotionally resonant story that quietly wrecked me in the best way. Meredith Trapp writes with aching vulnerability, crafting a narrative that feels both deeply personal and universally relatable. At its core, this is a story about grief, growth, and the slow, often painful process of returning to yourself after everything has changed.

The prose is lyrical without being flowery—sharp when it needs to be, tender when it matters most. Trapp captures the small moments with such care: the silence between two people who don’t know what to say anymore, the sting of memories that won’t stay buried, the tentative hope of something new taking root in familiar soil.

The characters are messy and real, especially the protagonist, whose internal journey is just as compelling as the external one. I found myself rooting for her healing—not in a neat, linear way, but in the honest, fractured way it happens in real life.

This book isn’t about big plot twists or grand gestures; it’s about quiet resilience, soft rediscovery, and learning to breathe again in the spaces you thought you’d lost. Fans of character-driven contemporary fiction with emotional depth will find Homebound unforgettable.

I loved the parallel father-daughter roles in this sweet Texas rom com! Colt’s role as Dakota’s coach and biggest fan is only rivaled by Wyatt’s life-long crush on Dakota, and his summer goal to get out of the friend zone. Vi, and her role is fun and well-created as I feel like quite often the babies get a less-than-realistic portrayal. Dakota’s overthinking and fears as a bull rider are a fun twist, and I enjoyed seeing how she overcomes so many that underestimate her and her own insecurities as well. This is the perfect summer read, and makes you laugh, smile, and swoon!

I loved this so much!! The friends to lovers, childhood best friend, obsession and yearning, it was all my favorite tropes!! Devoured this one and will be reading the rest in this series ASAP.