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Bezig met laden... The Cowboy Soldier (editie 2010)door Roz Denny Fox
Informatie over het werkThe Cowboy Soldier door Roz Denny Fox
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Meld je aan bij LibraryThing om erachter te komen of je dit boek goed zult vinden. Op dit moment geen Discussie gesprekken over dit boek. rabck from aramena; writing not as smooth as author's other works. Rafe, a former rodeo cowboy is left blind in an ambush that killed his two best friends. His sister takes him to a "healer", who doesn't believe in herself treating human patients any more, after a friend dies in her care. Alexa doesn't coddle Rafe - he's expected to work on the ranch, blind or not. And Rafe comes to respect that & wants to be with her, not as a patient. geen besprekingen | voeg een bespreking toe
Onderdeel van de uitgeversreeks(en)Harlequin Superromance (1648) Home on the Ranch (HRS 1648 - July 2010)
Major Rafe Eaglefeather loves a challenge--the riskier the better. A former rodeo champion, he's also served his country. So is it too much to ask for a little solitude to heal from the effects of his deployment? With pushy relatives like his, apparently it is. Despite his protests, they've arranged for naturopath Alexa Robinson to treat him. Since treatment involves staying at Alexa's remote Texas ranch, Rafe sort of gets his wish for peace. Surprisingly, spending time with Alexa helps him feel more like himself. Something about her is irresistible and the attraction between them is growing. It's so strong he's tempted to take the biggest risk of all...committing to her. Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
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Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999WaarderingGemiddelde:
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Rafe was having a good time as a rodeo cowboy, but then he and his two best friends decided to enlist, eventually ending up in Afghanistan, where they were in the same unit, which Rafe commanded. On their last mission, both of Rafe’s friends were killed and he was left with several injuries, including a mysterious case of blindness. His sister and her kids are his last living family, but he feels completely useless at her house, suffering from depression and not sure what to do with his life. Then she comes up with her scheme to send him to live with a holistic healer for a month, something Rafe isn’t too sure about. Alexa turns out to be more than he expected, though, with her prompting him to do things for himself and entrusting him with the training of one of her horses, as well as taking him riding. For the first time since returning home, he finally feels like he has something to live for and he’s falling for Alexa at the same time. However, even though she seems interested in him as well, she keeps the door to romance closed. At the end of his month, Rafe voluntarily leaves with the idea to return as Alexa’s ranch hand rather than her patient so that she won’t say no to a relationship. Eventually it works, but Rafe’s guilt over his friends’ deaths and his feeling that Alexa deserves more than a blind guy can provide get in the way of their budding romance. Rafe is a good guy who’s been dealt a bad hand in life. I understood his feelings surrounding the loss of his friends and his blindness. I’m glad that he was able to find some closure on the former and that he was able to rebuild his confidence to help with the latter.
Alexa is a genius who graduated from college at fifteen. She wanted to go to medical school, but the only one that would take someone that young was an osteopathic college, so she got a medical degree there, as well as completing several courses in natural medicine, herbs, acupuncture, etc. She had a thriving holistic medical practice until she was wrongly accused of malpractice when her best friend died while under her care. Even though it wasn’t her fault, she blames herself, and ever since, she’s been reluctant to take on human patients. Instead, she took up residence on the remote ranch she inherited from her grandparents, where she trains horses and rehabs wildlife that the local park rangers bring to her. When Rafe’s sister comes to her, at first Alexa refuses to take him on as a patient, but eventually, she agrees to try treating him for one month. Initially he’s a bit of a grump, but when she treats him like a man and not an invalid, he slowly starts to warm up, allowing her more leeway in her treatments. Having the handsome cowboy living with her presents all sorts of temptations, but she sticks to her guns about keeping things strictly professional between them. But later, after Rafe leaves and then comes back with his proposition to become her ranch hand instead of a patient, Alexa can no longer resist their magnetic attraction. Rafe still has a lot to overcome, though, in order for them to have a successful relationship. Alexa is a kind, caring person who treats Rafe with respect, giving him something to live for in spite his disability. Overall, I really liked her, but there were a couple of things about her character I thought could have been better. First, she’s billed as a genius, but we don’t really get to see her super-intelligence in action. Second, she’s been carrying a massive weight of guilt about her friend’s death, but one conversation with Rafe about it seems to completely change her outlook. She has a troubled relationship with her parents that was a little too easily overcome as well.
By the time I’ve finished a book, I don’t usually have a great deal of indecision about how to rate it, but The Cowboy Soldier became my second read in close succession where that was the case. I really liked Rafe and Alexa as the hero and heroine, and thought they fit well together. Despite them being likable characters, though, IMHO their characterizations could have gone a little deeper. I already mentioned the things about Alexa I felt could have been better, but Rafe, too, could be a little uneven at times. In spite of him gradually regaining his confidence while working with Alexa, he goes right back downhill when he leaves her ranch. I realize some of that could be chalked up to him missing her and no longer having the distraction of training horses and riding, but he’d made a plan to get back to her and perhaps wasn’t being as proactive as I wanted him to be about it. Also he no sooner reunites with her and they’ve made love for the first time, than there’s suddenly a rift between them, with him still feeling like he isn’t good enough for her because of his blindness. Again, I realize this was kind of a set up for the exciting finale of man vs. the elements in which he saves the day, but I guess it sort of felt like the author was skipping from one thing to the next without a lot of deep introspection going into the characters’ actions. This is also a rather slow-paced, low-key romance, which isn’t going to be for everyone. Except for the climax, most of the conflict is of an internal nature, which made the story feel pretty languid at times. I had enough misgivings to potentially drop the rating below four stars. However, I finally decided to give it four after all. Overall, it’s not a bad little story in spite of its weaknesses and my overall liking for the characters helped to elevate it, making it a decent read. ( )