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A review by kfriend
Live, Ranch, Love by Emma Lucy
3.25
Live, Ranch, Love follows Rory, a city-dwelling wellness influencer who’s at a crossroads. After a painful betrayal by her boyfriend, she inherits her great-aunt’s ranch in rural Colorado—a perfect excuse to leave the chaos behind and find clarity. Her plan is to fix up the ranch, sell it, and then move on. But that becomes a little more complicated when she meets Wyatt, the gruff cowboy who’s been managing the land and who isn’t too thrilled about an outsider showing up and messing with the ranch.
Rory’s journey—both literal and emotional—is relatable. She’s seeking clarity and a sense of self after being knocked down, and the ranch becomes a allegorical symbol of healing and her self-rediscovery. Wyatt, on the other hand, is holding on tightly to a life he doesn’t want to lose. When Rory suggests a plan that might benefit them both, they’re forced into close proximity, and the lines between annoyance and affection start to blur.
While the premise is solid, I found myself wanting more development in their emotional connection. Rory and Wyatt are polar opposites—she’s sunshine and manifestation journals, he’s stoicism and hard-earned grit. Their initial tension seems to be setting up an enemies-to-lovers setup, but that tension fizzles out rather quickly. What could’ve been rich with banter and that delicious hate to love you emotional push-pull turns into attraction without much build-up or progression, which made their dynamic feel a bit underdeveloped. And the chemistry a bit unsubstantive or evovled.
That said, the romance does have some sweet and spicy fun. There’s something undeniably charming about a small-town cowboy romance with a cowboy and a city girl, and the Colorado setting adds a warm, rustic atmosphere- the vibes do some work here. The story is pretty quickly paced. And the third act conflict felt a bit overly dramatic and forced, tonally disconnected from the otherwise light tone of their romance.
But there’s plenty to enjoy here—plenty of charming small-town moments, plenty of heart, and that always delicious grumpy cowboy energy. The characters are likable and the story has just enough steam to keep things interesting.
I listened to this on audio, and this is the kind of book that I think normally I'd enjoy more on audio. I know duet narration is super special/rare, but in this case it might have helped just because of the accents. Our heroine is British, and the female narrator's country boy accent was just...odd. And the male narrator also didn't really nail the British accent. He also didn't really embody the vibe I had for our leading man. Once I let go of that perception, his narration was fine, just now the casting I envisioned.
Rory’s journey—both literal and emotional—is relatable. She’s seeking clarity and a sense of self after being knocked down, and the ranch becomes a allegorical symbol of healing and her self-rediscovery. Wyatt, on the other hand, is holding on tightly to a life he doesn’t want to lose. When Rory suggests a plan that might benefit them both, they’re forced into close proximity, and the lines between annoyance and affection start to blur.
While the premise is solid, I found myself wanting more development in their emotional connection. Rory and Wyatt are polar opposites—she’s sunshine and manifestation journals, he’s stoicism and hard-earned grit. Their initial tension seems to be setting up an enemies-to-lovers setup, but that tension fizzles out rather quickly. What could’ve been rich with banter and that delicious hate to love you emotional push-pull turns into attraction without much build-up or progression, which made their dynamic feel a bit underdeveloped. And the chemistry a bit unsubstantive or evovled.
That said, the romance does have some sweet and spicy fun. There’s something undeniably charming about a small-town cowboy romance with a cowboy and a city girl, and the Colorado setting adds a warm, rustic atmosphere- the vibes do some work here. The story is pretty quickly paced. And the third act conflict felt a bit overly dramatic and forced, tonally disconnected from the otherwise light tone of their romance.
But there’s plenty to enjoy here—plenty of charming small-town moments, plenty of heart, and that always delicious grumpy cowboy energy. The characters are likable and the story has just enough steam to keep things interesting.
I listened to this on audio, and this is the kind of book that I think normally I'd enjoy more on audio. I know duet narration is super special/rare, but in this case it might have helped just because of the accents. Our heroine is British, and the female narrator's country boy accent was just...odd. And the male narrator also didn't really nail the British accent. He also didn't really embody the vibe I had for our leading man. Once I let go of that perception, his narration was fine, just now the casting I envisioned.