Cowboys do indeed do it better in this absolutely swoon-worthy MM romance! This is particularly true for Raine, and how absolutely filthy his mouth was!

There is just so much to love with this book. First, I am so happy that Kasey is finally getting his spicy storybook ending, and that it is to the grumpy protective Raine is just perfection. Beyond that you have the remote ranch and small town vibes, you have personal growth and caretaking, you have some danger and a bit of taboo, and last but definitely not least, a LOT of smut.

Honestly, my only complaint was that the pacing seemed slightly off at some points and the danger at the end was a bit predictable. BUT, still so much fun!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for an ARC of this book. This is the final installment in the series and it’s actually my favorite so far. I’ve only read two out of four and these are standalone, but they are interconnected so you get the best experience if you read them on order but you can also read them out of order. Kayce and Raine are the definition of enemies to lovers!! This is an enemies to lovers, cowboy romance, and y’all the tension between them is crazy as well as the yearning! They have a really complicated past, but can their present and their future be something beautiful, that’s the question. I loved seeing how their relationship blossomed and how you saw both of them grow as individuals and as a couple. They both had their own personal issues that they needed to work on, but one accident brings them together and changes the trajectory of their lives.

Crimson Ridge has been my fav small-town cowboy series this year. I’d been waiting on this one since it was announced, especially about Kayce’s story. I didn’t love him in book one he just seemed like a mess who wasn’t ready to face anything. But this book? Totally changed my mind.

Kayce’s growth was honestly so moving. He’s been through a lot, and watching him face it all while staying sober hit me way harder than I expected. Then Raine comes in (hello, rival-stepbrother energy), and whew… the tension was real. Their relationship slowly building into something healing and safe? So well done.

Kayce is that soft, needs-to-be-loved kind of MMC, and Raine is solid, protective, and exactly what he needed. Their connection felt real, not rushed, and the way they helped each other heal from their pasts was beautiful. Also yes, it’s spicy—but the emotional depth?? So good.

I cried and laughed throughout the entire book. The epilogue was amazing. What a beautiful way to wrap up this series. I am going to miss all of them on crimson ridge.


“Maybe one day you’ll let me love you the way you deserve"

Easy 5 stars from me. THIS WAS EVERYTHING.

ELLIOT Rose is a great writer her books come to life while you read them. They are long romance books.

Talk about a wild ride!! I loved this book SO much! I don’t even know where to start.
Kayce and Raine have a complicated past, and both have to work to overcome their past (Raine starts to work on it before Kayce comes back into his life)

They can’t decide if they hate each other or what at first and it’s amazing how thin the line is between love and hate!
This is such an amazing story and it’s definitely emotional but oh so amazing!!

Super grateful to have been able to ARC read this, I think it’s tied with book 3 for being my favorite of the series

I laughed, I cried, I swooned!
Even though I don’t usually read MM romances, when Elliott drops one, I read it, plus the fact that I was given an ARC from NetGalley (thank you for that), I just couldn’t wait and dive straight in!
Beautiful and angsty story, just overall something to come back to over and over.

I did enjoy this book but I had super high expectations as I ADORE step sibling romances, ESPECIALLY if it’s MM. However, this, SADLY, fell flat for me.

My honest and major qualms with this book:

❌ The tension and chemistry with Kayce and Raine was lost in favour of throwing in as many spicy scenes as possible. Yes Elliott writes epic spice, but I think less would’ve been more in this situation.
❌ A MAJOR thing, like we’re talking HUGE LIFE CHANGE, happens to Kayce and then we don’t really get an inkling with his next steps, his future, and that just felt fucking unresolved for me.
❌ I was really hoping Elliott would go in a different direction and not, ya know, opt for the third act breakup lol. I really don’t like it as a trope and given the other books had it, I don’t know why Saving the Rain also had to go down that route?
❌ Following on from the above point, the drama towards the end… WHY. It just felt like throwing drama in for drama’s sake, we definitely didn’t need the third act breakup AND that.
❌ I KNOW this is Kayce and Raine’s story, but fuck I wish we had a little more interactions with Kayce and Colton. There could’ve been a really nice full circle moment, this series STARTED with Colton and ended with his son.

The first half of this book was strong and I’ve said it before, Elliott writes some of the most delicious, filthiest spice, but I think the story, the relationship dynamics, and the character chemistry was lost in the second half.

Little sad as I was expecting this to be my favourite romance of the year, but Elliott will still be an auto buy author for me.

OFFICIAL RANKING now that I’ve read all the books and can compare:
Chasing the Wild - 5 stars
Braving the Storm - 4.5 stars
Taming the Heart - 4 stars
Bouquets & Buckles - 3.5 stars
Saving the Rain - 3 stars

I was not aware of what I getting into when I started reading this book.
I looked up the author after and realized very quickly their writing is not for me.
From the start, there is constant swearing and sexual innuendos.
It was a DNF for me, but I do hope other people like it.

🐎🌲🏕This was such a sweet, angsty story with so much history, heartbreak, and healing . Kayce and Raine went through so much, and honestly, watching them get their happy ending after everything? So well deserved. I was an emotional mess in the best way. It all just hit so hard. I legit cried multiple times. 🐎🌲🏕

🐎 Wilder really got me. Seeing him work through his past and figure out who he is—especially when it comes to Raine—was so raw and real. He’s the golden boy with all this hidden hurt, and watching him grow into himself was beautiful.

🐎 And Raine? Whew. Grumpy, rugged and ahh that mouth of his I melted. The way he was with Kayce—oh my goodness. He loved him fiercely, with every part of him. I’ll carry that kind of love in my heart forever.

🐎🌲🏕 Saving Rain will always hold a special place in my heart🐎🌲🏕

okay it’s been a few days and honestly this story will forever live rent free in my mind. I absolutely love love LOVE Kayce & Raine. I cannot wait for the audio to release so I can reread 🥹

For a while I felt like omg WHEN will these two cave and gahhhh it was perfect once they did. Raine is such a prickly cowboy that you just have to love. Everything he did whether subconsciously or intentionally to protect Kayce ripped my heart out. Kayce baby…. the man that you are 😭😭😭 I love his growth but gawd my heart hurts for him and his mental turmoil.

this one here had my awake until 330am with tears going down my cheeks✋🏼

Raine & Kayce have my entire heart and soul.







Thank you so much Kensington, Netgalley and Elliott Rose for this gifted earc in exchange for an honest review 🫂

Loved it so much. Excellent story. Taboo with great spice. I love this entire series and this one as well.

I don’t think there are words to describe how much I love Kayce and Raine’s story. It was literally everything. I was kicking my feet reading all the sweet and spicy moments between these two. Kayce needed and deserved the kind of all consuming love that Raine gives him. The character development these two had was incredible. The perfect balance of plot and spice. This may be my favorite in the series!

My Favourite of the Series – Kayce Deserved This

Saving the Rain is hands down my favourite book in the series. I’ve loved every couple Elliot Rose has written, but there was just something about Kayce that hit deeper—and this book delivered the emotional payoff he so deserved.

From the very beginning, I’ve been rooting for Kayce. His journey has been one of the most quietly heartbreaking, and finally seeing him open up, find love, and actually believe he deserves it? Utterly beautiful. The chemistry in this book is electric, but it’s the emotional vulnerability that makes it unforgettable.

The romance? Flawless. The pacing? Perfect. The writing? As always, gorgeous and immersive. But it’s the healing that really stuck with me. Elliot Rose gave Kayce the ending that felt like coming home, and I was crying happy tears by the end.

This book was a fantastic end to a fantastic series.

This was beautifully written and emotional. I caught myself crying more than once but also smiling ear to ear at other times, and even blushing. Kayce and Raine were perfection. Raine was the support that Kayce always needed and Kayce was that soft place to land. They taught each other how to truly love and be loved. And Raine gave Kayce a safe space to explore who he was and what that meant for him. Kayce's growth from the first book to this one was amazing, and being able to see inside his head and get a better understanding of the how and why he acted the way he did in the first book.

Elliott Rose has smashed it out of the park with this book and this series.

Whooo this book is angsty, tension filled perfection! It was from the very beginning one you didn’t want to put down, these boys grab at you and etch themselves in your heart and you want their happy ever after SO badly!

Kayce, the sweet boy, ohhh he was so insecure and vulnerable, it was so emotional, I just wanted to give him the biggest hug. Affected by his past he had a lot to work through especially when his stepbrother comes in to his world looking like a damn snack and suddenly everything Kayce could dream to have!

Raine, the moody, broody cowboy, who we fall hard and fast for. So protective and strong despite his past. With a filthy mouth and a don’t mess with me attitude, no wonder he had Kayce blushing 😅

The CHEMISTRY!!! Oh my goodness 🥵 they were sizzling, the hate to love, the tension, the teasing, the possessiveness! Gimme gimme all of THAT. The spice was spicing, the tender moments had you swooning and the sweet moments were everything. I loved this I am 100% team Kayce & Raine!

🧡Forbidden Love
🤠Stepbrother
🧡 Angsty Rivals to Lovers
🤠Bareback Bronc Riders
🧡Hurt / Comfort

Bonus points for the supportive family in this, I wish everyone had the opportunity to be able to be who they are and have the acceptance and love that Kayce had, special mention to Sage - this just confirms how much I loved her!! 🥰

4.5 stars rounded up!!

I was nervous going into this one. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but yesss! This was an Angsty, forbidden, taboo, age gap, cowboy romance! Kayce & Raine’s story was so messy, emotional, and absolutely beautiful!! Literal tears for the last few chapters. This was just so good!!

Thank you Elliot Rose, Kensington Publishing, and NetGalley for this ARC opportunity!

I’ve been perched on the edge of my seat waiting for Kayce to get his happy ending since book one. Elliott Rose once again gives us exactly what we crave… a steamy, emotional, angst ridden ride that hits in all the right places. This was a one handed read, you feel me? And the forbidden stepbrother trope was perfection. 🥵

The tenderness between Kayce and Raine absolutely melted me. Watching Kayce evolve from the broken boy we first met into someone ready to accept love was just chef’s kiss. I wanted to wrap him in a blanket and protect him from the world. I wanted to throttle Raine for a good chunk of the book, but of course, he completely stole my heart, just like he did Kayce’s.

I’ll admit, the beginning was a slow burn for me, but once the emotional unraveling started, I was all in. The contrast between Kayce and Raine, like oil and water, only made their connection feel even more magnetic. And the way both of them wrestle with their painful childhoods adds such a raw, heartfelt depth to their story.

As always, Elliott Rose does not miss when it comes to spice. The chemistry is Off. The. Charts. This book is a sizzling, soul wrenching addition to the series and a deeply satisfying conclusion to Kayce’s arc.

Saving the Rain: ★ ★ ★ ★ . 5

Elliott Rose (Crimson Ridge, #4)

"Never not obsessed with you."

What do you do when you're trying to straighten out your life but then you walk into a bar and see a real hot cowboy but it turns out to be... your stepbrother that you hate?

Tropes:
– Bronc rider
– Stepbrothers
– Enemies to lovers
– Age gap
– Hurt/comfort

WOOOOW. This was my first book by Elliott Rose and it will NOT be the last. I loved this book. It was so hot and emotional with palpable tension between these two stepbrothers, Kayce (who you may remember from Chasing the Wild as the absolutely terrible ex) and Raine, who have always hated one another. The extremely rough conditions that they both grew up in took such a heavy toll on them both and there's so much healing they need to do as a result of it. It was quite possibly one of the hottest books I have ever read (my God, the mouth on Raine... I was sweating the whole time) but also filled with such tender and sweet moments about self-love, acceptance and most of all, healing.

My only very minor qualm was that there was A LOT of internal monologue that went back and forth and I think some of it could definitely have been cut down, but not a big deal because I still breezed through this book in less than 24 hours.

I loved this book soooo much. I need to go back and read the rest of this series, but I just know they can't top this one. I will never not be obsessed with Kayce and Raine's story, that is for sure!

Thank you Kensington Books for the ARC!

In this final installment we watch as Kayce figures out his sexuality and his confusing feelings towards his stepbrother who he thought he'd left in his past. Raine storms into Kayce's life again like a bull out the chute and turns his world on its axis.

They are so aggressive towards eachother you're left genuinely wondering how there could possibly be a romance between them. Elliott Rose does forbidden love & hate/rivals to lovers perfectly.

The flashbacks and the guys' POVs will rip your heart apart and stitch it back together. The spice will leave you fanning yourself and wondering who has the heating on in summer.

The guys are stepbrothers - Kayce's mother married Raine's dad when they were teenagers, there's no real brotherly bond. I feel this is how Elliott Rose does 'forbidden romance' so well - it's not taboo but it's also not the 'social norm'

The perfect send off for this series. Thank you to Kensington & Netgalley for the opportunity to read early.

I probably shouldn’t admit this, but OH WELL 😉

Saving the Rain was my first ever Elliott Rose book.

And after finishing Saving the Rain all I have to say is WHERE HAVE THESE BOOKS BEEN ALL MY LIFE?!?!!!!!!

I request this from NetGalley because I’m a sucker for a cowboy romance. But when I learned this was MM Cowboy romance insert immediate grabby hands. I had no clue this book was apart of an interconnected series. Now my new obsession will be going backwards and reading the rest and I can’t freaking wait.

Because Saving the Rain is going down as one of my favorite books of 2025. Kayce & Raine’s story was perfection from beginning to end. I loved watching these two go from hate to love. The banter, the will they/wont they, the SPICE!!! Everything was just chef kiss 😘

Elliott Rose you have a fan for life after this book. And all I can say is THANK YOU! Everyone do yourself a favor read this book. I cannot recommend it enough. Lastly big thank you to NetGalley & Kensington Publishing for providing me an ARC copy. I can’t wait to buy my trophy copy on August 26th!