Who’s weak for a filthy mouthed cowboy who’s completely obsessed?! 🙋‍♀️ ME! That’s who!

Quinn’s life is a hot mess, so when her dad needs help, she packs up and heads back home…right into the orbit of Tripp: her childhood crush, her constant protector, and the one man she’s always trusted with her whole heart.

Enter tequila. Bad decisions. And one very reckless proposal. Quinn asks Tripp to help her work through her kinky bucket list. Is it a terrible idea? Yes. Will his best friend murder him? Also yes. But Tripp has never ever been able to say no to his Quinnie. And let me tell you… that bucket list? 🥵 Unhinged. Filthy. Delicious. I devoured every single page.

This is forbidden romance at its finest (best friend’s little sister), with years of mutual pining, stolen looks, and two idiots who’ve been in love since childhood but are too scared to admit it. I swear, I wanted to smash their heads together…and then thank them for the chaos. 🤣🔥

Thank you @netgalley and @e.a.buckingham_young for the advanced copy to read 🫶

4.5⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

First off I have to say this book is super cute! Adult romance, cowboy romance, it has so much humor in it! Tripp and Quinn can not get enough of each other! It’s just all around a cute love story and quick read. Trip is Quinn’s big brother’s best friend and also his ranch hand. It has spice which I would rate 3 out of 5 stars. But still super good for this book! It has humor that will make you laugh out loud at part(especially anything to do with Quinn’s papa) it has deep feelings, hurt feelings, heartbreak, but finding out who they are and where they belong. All in all this book was super good, super easy and quick to read and just adorable. I ate this book up and can’t wait to read the next one coming out in 2026!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC 🫶
📚 Brothers best friend
📚 Wear the hat 😜
📚 Spicy bucket list
This is my first read by the author and im hooked!
Thoroughly enjoyed Tripp and Quinns story 👌
Quinn arrives back at the family ranch to help out after Pops suffers another heart attack. Or so she tells her family. Really she is fleeing a cheating ex and is homeless and unemployed.
She immediately encounters brothers best friend and childhood mate Tripp who is smoking hot. After too many tequilas she spills her sexual secret and tells him about her spicy bucket list thinking he will laugh her off. But Tripp is more than happy to tick off Quinns list 🥰
Didn't love the 3rd act breakup not going to lie but overall I enjoyed the spice and thought it was well written. 😊🤠

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing me with an ARC of this title.

Let me start by saying… this was my first cowboy romance, and I’m officially obsessed. I now need to add many more cowboy romances to my TBR.

I’m usually not a fan of friends-to-lovers stories, but this one completely exceeded my expectations. The plot was phenomenal. Quinn has always had a crush on her brother’s best friend, Tripp, but she’s never been able to explore that connection due to fear, timing, and the fact that they don’t live in the same city.

She ends up returning home under less-than-ideal circumstances to take care of her grandpa after he suffers a heart attack. That’s when she asks Tripp to help her complete a “bucket list,” and from there… everything changes.

Quinn has always been very career-focused, but now she’s forced to confront what she really wants and whether she’s willing to risk it all for the love of her life.

This book truly has everything: comedy, romance, forbidden love, family drama, emotional depth, and plenty of spicy, steamy moments. I was fully invested from start to finish.

If you’re even slightly curious about cowboy romances — trust me, start here

First of all I want to thank Victory Editing and NetGalley Co-op for the ARC provided to me.

This was my first book written by E.A. Buckingham-Young and so the first book in the Cottonwood Creek series, and let’s just say that I LOVED it!

“Back in the saddle” was funny as hell, sexy as much and filled with chemistry between the main characters: I loved following Quinn in her journey finding herself and getting to know Tripp.
If I have to find a flaw in the book, it’s the way the characters acted considering their age, I expected 30 years olds to be more mature about the circumstances. I get the whole “forbidden love” thing, and the “brother’s best friend” quite always has some sneaking behind everyone’s back, but it was a bit forced: for example, Wes finds out that his sister has a relationship with his childhood best friend and the first thing he thinks about doing is punching him in the face and roll with him in the mud?🧍‍♀️
you’re full on grown-ups. Same reason why I felt like i couldn’t deal with the miscommunication near the ending, it was SO frustrating.

However, I can overlook all that considering the plot, the way the relationships between the characters developed, the realness I found in the book: I loved how the ranch life and all the aspects involving Quinn’s job were portrayed.

Apart from some passages, I appreciated the characters too: how can I not love a mmc who’s not afraid to show his emotions, to cry, to act on his responsibilities, especially when said responsibilities involve putting the fmc on a pedestal and treating her as such.

I liked the way we can see bits of Quinn and Tripp's relationships through the years, even tho for me it resulted kind of forced: the flashbacks were an obvious way the author introduced aspects of their dynamic, maybe she could've found a way to make it flow better with the plot. It was like "Oh, character A said such thing to character B, let me tell you about when they said the exact same thing to each other twenty years ago". It wasn't needed at all, but I get the choice and how it could add to the story.

The ending hit just right, it lived up to the expectations and I loved it.
I’m 100% going to catch up on “Roped In” as I fell in love with Wes and Sawyer's characters: I know their couple and their dynamic made up for a great story and since I was so positively surprised by E.A. Buckingham Young's writing I can't wait to read more from her hand. As a cowboy romance enthusiast, and former horse rider, I am so excited to get to know Sawyer better considering "Back in the saddle" was one of the fews that really got a well done representation of the cowboy lifestyle and that Sawyer herself is a horse trainer.
I absolutely recommend "Back in the saddle" if you're in your cowboy/Elsie Silver era: this book thoroughly scratches the itch!

As a professional cowboy romance coinsure, I can officially say this one gave exactly what was needed. I am honestly sick of cowboy romance books that skip over the real farm life (messy, chores, cluttered). As someone who grew up around cows it is a hugeee pet peeve of mine when authors leave out these essential details. We want REAL cowboys!!! E.A. Buckingham-Young gave us a REAL cowboy, Tripp Matthews.

We had our swoon worthy moments (getting the car door, taking care of her, etc.) but then we also got the SPICE!! One of my favorite micro tropes is a spicy bucket list, this one was spot on. It hit all those green lights and had me giggling, swinging my feet off the bed.

If are looking for your next cowboy to adore and FMC to inspire you, Back in the Saddle will give it to you! It has the perfect mix of all romance elements!

Back in the Saddle — E.A. Buckingham Young
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)

This one is heartfelt, grounded, and quietly emotional — a story about second chances, healing old wounds, and finding your footing again when life knocks you off balance.

At its core, this is a return-to-your-roots kind of romance. The story leans into small-town vibes, unresolved pasts, and the kind of attraction that never fully fades, even after time and distance. There’s a strong sense of reflection throughout — characters carrying regret, learning to communicate, and deciding whether love is worth the risk again.

The vibes:
🐎 Small-town setting
💔 Second-chance romance
🌾 Slower pacing with emotional payoff
🫶 Healing, growth, and forgiveness
🔥 Quiet chemistry that builds

What really worked for me was the emotional realism. This isn’t flashy or over-the-top — it’s about showing up, doing the work, and choosing love with open eyes. The tension comes less from drama and more from what’s left unsaid, which made the payoff feel earned.

If you enjoy character-driven romances with depth, maturity, and a strong sense of place, Back in the Saddle is a solid, satisfying read that I enjoyed and would recommend.

This book did not just hit — it slapped! As a certified connoisseur of cowboy romance, I can confidently say this one DELIVERED. That trope list? ELITE. NO NOTES. Brother’s best friend? Small town? Golden retriever MMC? Career-focused FMC? A celibate cowboy with feelings?? I was already seated.

I was instantly hooked from page one. The writing is smooth and the story just flows. Quinn’s journey of unraveling her perfectly curated life felt so real, and Tripp Matthews… sir. He has officially galloped his way straight into book boyfriend territory. This man is the walking embodiment of why the Brother’s Best Friend trope will always have me in a chokehold. The flashbacks are used perfectly, building the story instead of pulling you out of it.

And the spice?? So many sexy little microtropes — absolute catnip for smut readers.
Top-tier, toe-curling, screaming-into-the-pillow, fan-yourself-and-pace-the-room kind of hot. No filler, no dragging, no rushed chaos, the pacing was chef’s kiss. I was never bored, never skimming, never wanting it to hurry up… just fully feral and along for the ride.

If small-town romance that actually delivers on emotion and chemistry is your thing, this is a must-read.

This book is the reason I love cowboy romance. The reason I love coming-home stories. The reason I will never shut up about the Brother’s Best Friend trope ever again.

If you're looking for a wholesome cowboy romance, this isn't that. Yes, it is a cowboy romance, but it's filth. Like mostly filth with a little bit of plot sprinkled in (a good thing in my opinion). So, if you're just trying to get in your slutty little cowboy fix, this is the book for you.

Now for the tropes - did it have the cliche brothers best friend + friends to lovers? Yeah. But the cliches are popular for a reason. It was good.

The book did start off a little slow. Up until about 30% of the way through, I was a little worried, but then it picked up and I literally couldn't put it down (finished it in an evening). Now could I see the ending from a mile away? Sure, but it's not like this was a murder mystery so who really cares.

I will say, one issue I had was that there were some parts/word choices that were a little cringe, but you can ignore them and move on with your day and it's fine. It felt like it was done in a way that you shouldn't take it too seriously, and I can appreciate that.

Basically, if you want a quick, slutty little cowboy romance with some humor, this will do it for you.

I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book!!

Love Tripp....a recovering playboy who has chosen to be celibate for the past 5 years after he made his dad a promise... truly swoonworthy!!

Love Quinn... who has always wanted Tripp, her brother's best friend.

Full of hilarious moments, witty banter, lots of steamy scenes as Tripp helps Quinn with her bucket list.

Pops is fantastic as is Quinn's pig Wilbur. This is a must read!! Can't wait to read it again & more books by this author!!

Thanks to the author, publisher & Netgalley for the ARC read. All opinions are my own.

Good one! I liked the MMCs golden retriever personality. Usually I find that character annoying but I loved it in this case. The main characters were destined to end up together!

If you’re in your cowboy era of reading like me, this is the book for you! It is phenomenal. I could not put this book down for days. I cherished the characters and their sweet story!

🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 I love the characters in this book! Tripp and Quinn have my heart 100%! The characters were hilarious! This is the first book in 2026 that I just did not want to end! I am not going to give spoilers! I went in blind and I SOOO do not regret it! "You've got the hat" ❤️ if you know then OMG! The writing was sooo good, this author wrote with heart. I am so going to read other books. I ate this book up in 24 hrs, I could not and did not want to put it down! Booktok NEEDS this book! Screaming this from the mountaintops!

My first cowboy romance of the year and it was SO GOOD! I loved Roped In and was looking very forward to learning more about Tripp. This story had the best of all worlds - emotional depth, character growth, so many spicy micro tropes. One of my least favorite tropes is dual timeline… probably because I also dislike second chance and they usually go hand in hand. Anyway! I love that the past timelines were woven into the chapters, didn’t seem disruptive and were short n’ sweet. Tripp is immediately on my book boyfriend list. I think I melted a little every time Tripp called her Quinnie. And the pig? I loved this book so much that I have already ordered a copy from the author’s store.

Really enjoyed Roped In and this was a great second in the series. Friends-to-lovers isn’t always a go-to of mine but I loved Quinn and Tripp’s story. Great plot, chemistry and a good level of spice. Definitely recommend to anyone who loves a cowboy romance