THE DUKE’S COWBOY by Andrew Grey

Fiction, Contemporary Romance, LGBTQ+, 211 pages

4****

Blurb: George Lester, the Duke of Northumberland, flees familial expectations in Britain for the promise of freedom of San Francisco, looking for the chance to be himself. But before he even gets close, a blizzard forces him off the road, and he finds himself freezing half to death in a small town with no motel… with a litter of puppies to look after. Luckily for George, he also finds Alan. As the heir to his family’s ranch, Alan Justice knows the burden of being the oldest son. He doesn’t have time to show George, the stranger his brother dragged home, what it takes to be a cowboy. But that very night, George surprises him by helping a mare in distress through a difficult birth. Maybe the duke is made of sterner stuff than Alan thought. George and Alan keep surprising each other, and every day they grow a little closer. But when George’s responsibilities call him home, Alan finds he’s the one who has something to prove—that he can handle what it means to be the duke’s cowboy. 

Thoughts: The first thing I thought of when reading this was how desolate (and beautiful) it is driving across Wyoming/Montana/Dakotas/etc. I’ve done it and you can drive for miles and see nothing but landscape. Add in a blizzard and someone not used to this kind of country and you have a disaster waiting to happen. And that is what happens to George. Fortunately for him, he finds a place and a family to hunker down until the storms pass. Alan isn’t quite sure what to make of the British aristocrat, but at least the man joins in and helps out on the ranch instead of just sitting around expecting to be waited on.

Both men have issues that need to be addressed before they can commit to each other—and they do. This is a romance after all so there’s a HEA that satisfies. There’s a good bit of heat in the story, but it works. 

Recommended. 

Disclaimer: Disclosure of Material: I received a final and/or advanced reader copy of this book with the hope that I will leave my unbiased opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that… My Opinions. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”