A review by roksyreads
Claw Marks & Card Games by Maz Maddox

adventurous lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

As a widowed father with a crippling gambling debt, Cooper Woodlock can’t seem to get Lady Luck back on his side. Desperate to keep the bloodthirsty Spades at bay, Cooper hits the saloons in the hopes of a winning hand. But when a black-clad gunslinger enters the game, tempting Cooper with a slice of freedom, Cooper realises too late that the stakes are much higher than he’s ever wagered. 

Maz Maddox continues to cement her place on my list of all time favourite authors with book two of the Stallion Ridge series, a paranormal take on the wild west. Maddox does well to weave world building into the story without heavy exposition, and I loved learning more about the setting, lore, and the characters. The cast is especially fascinating, being diverse in every way imaginable. Learning more about both MMCs Cooper and Gunner was especially rewarding. They both have their own baggage to work through, and though it made for a few tense moments, their romance was as natural as it was steamy. I didn’t even mind that Cooper was a single parent, a trope I’d normally avoid—I find that the kid(s) and the related tropes that often come with them usually ruin the story for me. In this instance, though, having met his daughter in the previous novel, I knew her presence wouldn’t overwhelm the story. Plus, the little ball of chaos who had some of the best lines.