Title: Cowboy
Author: L.B. Dunbar, Heart Eyes Press
Series: Busy Bean #2
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2021

I like that this novel had a little bit of gender flipping in that it is Bull who is the serial dumpee. And Scarlet is the one who isn’t entirely sure of how much she wants to commit. The fact that these two meet and anticipate a one-night stand as a bit of a palate cleanser for both of them, and then can’t quite move on is also gorgeous. And then they get their gorgeous surprise. I might not be a huge fan of pregnancy as a driver to keep a couple together, but it really worked for this story. After all, it’s made very clear that these two really want to be together from the get-go. Which makes the pregnancy a convenient excuse, not a point of pressure.

Scarlett is an incredibly feisty pregnant woman, and this made me ridiculously happy. I don’t actually know many women who were totally mellow in their pregnancies (although my husband is convinced that I was actually the calmest I’d ever been). The final scene when she gives birth is actually my favourite of the whole book. I mean, everything in this is fantastic. But her feistiness and willingness to yell at just about everyone in that moment had me genuinely laughing out loud. It makes me wonder if Dunbar has had experience with feisty pregnant women in her history – she writes passionate and strong women with a heavy dose of sass so well.

I love that Bull completely lives up to his name in this book. There’s a few more sexually charged “living up to the name” aspects. But it was his bullheadedness that made me smile. Instead of confronting Scarlett head on and trying to gently sway her to his way of thinking, he just continues to silently work on her. This stubbornness is brilliant and a lot of fun to read. I seriously enjoyed how he is able to be patient and work with Scarlett’s insecurities and issues. Plus, when her ex appears, he continues to be kind of steadfast in his commitment to Scarlett. I also love that although the ex is sinister and causes a whole heap of uncomfortable issues, it ends up being Bull who really gets in his own damn way. There’s nothing like a character who makes silly decisions and ends up (sometimes hilariously) harming his own plans.

This was a fantastic read. It was fun, light and easy. But there was also just enough angst and trouble that it was impossible to put down. I had a lot of fun reading this. And the many sneaky cow / pregnant woman comparisons had me giggling. Since I’ve recently been through all of the joys of pregnancy, I was able to find this even more relevant and entertaining – a lot of laughter and smiles throughout this very sweet and cute romance.

<- Sweetheart

Cakewalk ->

Image source: Goodreads