UNBROKEN COWBOY

A young Oregon woman must confront her longtime crush on her
former sister-in-law’s brother, a professional bull rider, after a serious
injury lands him in her care.

Beatrix Leighton is used to
being the odd one. With a history of taking in any and every wounded animal,
Bea has a knack for rehabilitating those in need, though her patients are
always of the four-legged variety. When Dane Parker gets trampled by a bull, it
could mean the end of his career. It’s eight months into his recovery, and Dane
is going stir crazy, tired of his sister, Lindy, and his friend Bea waiting on
him hand and foot. He needs a purpose, and Bea might be able to give him
something temporary as she puts her dreams of opening an animal sanctuary into
effect. As the pair spend an increasing amount of time together, Bea suspects
her crush might not be as one-sided as she thought. Newcomers to Yates’ (The
Spaniard’s Untouched Bride, 2019, etc.) Gold Valley series will be lost,
thrust into a quagmire of family relationships that have been built up through
the previous books. Dane is a rather unlikable hero with his constant infantilizing
of Bea. He also offensively refers to himself as “looking like a damned
cripple” and laments the fact that he’s been unable to pick up women while
healing. Bea struggles with feelings of abandonment and harbors a heartbreaking
family secret, but neither character’s baggage is a realistic explanation for
the cyclical arguments they have regarding commitment. The conflicts, internal
and external, are messy and nonsensical.

Needlessly dramatic, with too many characters for a new reader
to keep straight.