Marietta has a way of bringing people together…

Cowboy Chet Hardwick is in Marietta, Montana, to compete in the 85th Copper Mountain Rodeo. Chet’s not there to make any waves, he needs to focus on the rodeo, avoid his deadbeat father, and return home. But when the beautiful owner at his bed-and-breakfast needs assistance, Chet can’t resist stepping in to help.

After a life-altering accident, Amy Arden left her Wall Street job and impulsively bought Bramble House B&B. While she learns the ropes, she’s also determined to uncover a secret from her late mother’s past—Amy’s birth father. The staff aren’t happy with Amy’s new ideas and quit, leaving Amy struggling to keep the fully booked inn operating. She finds an unexpected ally in one of her guests, a handsome, lone-wolf cowboy who is surprisingly easy to talk to. But just as their friendship heats up, ghosts from both their pasts arrive at Bramble House.

Amy knows Chet is the man she wants, but as Chet receives news that will take him far from Marietta, will he find his way back to her?

Titles in the 85th Copper Mountain Rodeo series include — Take Me Please, Cowboy by Jane Porter —♥— Tempt Me Please, Cowboy by Megan Crane —♥— Marry Me Please, Cowboy by Sinclair Jayne —♥— Promise Me Please, Cowboy by CJ Carmichael —♥— The Untold Story of Carol Bingley by Jane Hartley —♥—

This is an adult 18+ story that may contain language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult audience.

Love Marietta, Montana stories?  Then please visit our Marietta, Montana page for more titles.

Title:  Promise Me Please, Cowboy
Series: The 85th Copper Mountain Rodeo #4
Author:  C.J. Carmichael
Genre:  Contemporary Romance, Modern Western Romance
Published:  September 27, 2023
Publisher:  Tule Publishing
My Rating:  4.5

It’s hard to believe that it’s been a decade since I first discovered my favorite fictional town of Marietta, Montana.  I’m so glad that we got to go back (in some ways) to how it all started for the 10th Anniversary of Tule Publishing and this particular well-loved world with its numerous series set here.  Promise Me Please, Cowboy is such a well-plotted, well-written way to wrap up the cowboy part of The 85th Copper Mountain Rodeo series.  I got to go back, in so many ways, to how it all began… and for that gift, I have to say thank you.

Frankly, just like many of the residents of Marietta, it took me a while to warm up to Amy.  She’s bought the beloved Bramble House B&B and come into this small community with ideas and opinions, with no clue whatsoever of how small towns like this function.  The staff left over the changes she planned to implement immediately.  She certainly hasn’t spent any time getting to know even the most basic details about this town, so when she does have guests, well, she has no idea where the best coffee is, or the reasonably priced place for dinner, or even (although it is rodeo week) anything at all to do with the 85th Copper Mountain Rodeo events.  She’s doing absolutely everything on her own with no staff, no help… and everything is starting to fall apart around her.

And, really, it was an ingenious way to introduce a woman who has lived her entire life in New York City, who has just had life-changing events in her own life, as well as her own agenda for moving to this particular town.  She’s ruffled feathers and doesn’t realize that she’s going to need the residents of Marietta far more than she could have imagined in order to make her business prosper.  She is struggling on so many levels, and as we slowly learn more details, her standoffish attitude makes more sense, and empathy comes into play.  I ended up liking Amy very much, but it took understanding her journey for that to happen.

I adored Chet from the start.  He’s a loner, a man who stands on the edge of most situations, an observer with only a few well-trusted friends.  His lifestyle during the rodeo season, as well as having such a total jerk for a father, only adds to that impression of a man who stays apart from so much in life… it’s what he’s been taught, that people don’t stay, and most cannot be trusted.  Yet, as a man who doesn’t fit in (or allow himself to), he is also the best bet for Amy to understand what small-town living is all about… if she’ll listen to him.

I loved watching their romance unfold as barriers were dropped, understanding and changes took place, and knowing that here was the one person who truly “got” why they made the choices they did.  Their love story certainly wasn’t easy; there are a lot of rough roads ahead before that happily ever after can become a reality… but it was well worth the journey for both Chet and Amy and for me as a reader as well.  Running into so many familiar faces in Marietta brought back good memories that now I’ll be doing a re-read of many favorites of mine.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the author or author’s team via Booksprout, and I sincerely thank them for their trust. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

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