Christmas in Cowboy Country

The Bennetts #3

by Janet Dailey

"A master storyteller. . .one of the world's most popular novelists." –The Des Moines Register

The greatest gift is love. . .

Ski instructor Annie Bennett doesn't have time to miss the twinkling lights and holiday parties in Aspen and Vail. With her older brothers gone and winter just around the corner, her parents need help with their sprawling Colorado ranch. The most wonderful time of the year isn't always easy for a lot of the folks in their town, but Annie does her best--until the tall, dark, and rugged surveyor on their neighbor's land becomes a potent distraction. . .

Wyoming born and bred, Marshall Stone is a practical man. But there's something about Annie that's as wild and sweet as the mountain wind. He doesn't want to tame her. Just love her. Annie Bennett is all he wants for Christmas. And for always. But she's too wary to believe he means it. Until he takes her in his arms and explains without saying a single word. . .

Genres: Romance, Christmas, Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Adult Fiction, Westerns

336 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Janet Anne Haradon Dailey was an American author of numerous romance novels as Janet Dailey (her married name). Her novels have been translated into nineteen languages and have sold over 300 million copies worldwide.

Born in 1944 in Storm Lake, Iowa, she attended secretarial school in Omaha, Nebraska before meeting her husband, Bill. Bill and Janet worked together in construction and land development until they "retired" to travel throughout the United States, inspiring Janet to write the Americana series of romances, where she set a novel in every state of the Union. In 1974, Janet Dailey was the first American author to write for Harlequin. Her first novel was NO QUARTER ASKED.

She had since gone on to write approximately 90 novels, 21 of which have appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List. She won many awards and accolades for her work, appearing widely on Radio and Television. Today, there are over three hundred million Janet Dailey books in print in 19 different languages, making her one of the most popular novelists in the world.

Janet Dailey passed away peacefully in her home in Branson on Saturday, December 14, 2013. She was 69.

Reviews

[Lily (Night Owl Book Cafe)]

DNF @ 45%

I got a copy of this book through netgalley in exchange of an honest review..

I don't know where to start with this book. I was really hoping to enjoy it, Christmas + Cowboy = Yes please!

Unfortunately it did not turn out to be what I expected.

I don't feel this book accurately portrayed Janet Dailey's writing, which is a shame that it ended up being the last book published from her. I found myself completely lost with this story and had a hard time paying attention. It was slow and very uninteresting.

I did not like the main character at all, at all. There seemed to be an insta-love type of deal going on, and Annie seemed to be very obsessed with Marshall, who she just met.

The turning point of me giving up on this was
1. The strange stalking. After one kiss a day or less after they met, Annie became strangely obsessed with Marshall to the point where she went driving around town literally trying to spy on him...Awkward...
2. When Marshall asks Annie to help him find his dog, she agrees. This takes us to a scene where Marshall finds the dog with a couple of college girls who end up flirting with him and he barely flirted back, but we find Annie sitting in the seat in his truck blowing up steam and getting pissed at the man for no reason. First, she had no rights to him. Second, I think this was only their second of third encounter at the most. Just because he kissed you, doesn't mean you are married to him woman. None of them laid claims to any relationship, in fact, Marshall at this point does not want one, so Annie's reaction is completely over the top, immature, and it made me so angry that I gave up on the book. Seriously, that bad...

I feel bad that this turned out the way it did.. I really wanted to like it.

[JoAnne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable read by a favorite author. Some suspense along with romance but needed a few more chapters or an epilogue for better closure. There was a happily ever after. Lots of family and friends in a small town set at Christmas with all the pageants and festivities associated with one along with helpful neighbors and friends.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pleasant predictable seasonal romance.

[Jonel · Rating 3 out of 5]

What an intriguing novel. Dailey tells a suspenseful, romantic tale, while remaining low key and approachable. The suspense in this tale is of a low key variety. It’s the type where you know what’s going on and want to shout it at the characters. Take this and set it in an immaculately developed world where you can picture yourself in the snow alongside the characters and you have a fantastic read. That said, there were a few times where I found the story jumping around. One second you were in one place, the next you were somewhere completely different with another character. After the first few jolts I didn’t notice it as much.

I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the main characters in this novel. Both are well developed individuals who aren’t afraid to stand for what they believe in. Seeing them get to know one another while attempting to do what they thought was the right thing was comical at times. That said, as a leading couple, they didn’t spend too much time together. I would have loved to see the relationship develop some more. It went from 0 to 60 in the flip of a page. The supporting cast in this novel didn’t get very much development.

Wrapping up, I should probably mention that I was extremely excited when I got my hands on a copy of this novel. It sounded fantastic and I counted down the minutes until I could read it. I’m not saying that this was not an enjoyable read, as I fully enjoyed my time with the story, but it’s quite possible that I had it built up in my head long before I started reading this novel.

Please note that I received a complimentary copy of this work in exchange for an honest review.

[Alima Livzletlivz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I grew up on Janet Dailey’s books published via Mills & Boon. She was one of my favorite authors and it was a monthly ritual to raid a bookstore for her books. I’ve enjoyed her Bannon Brothers Series and the Calder Series and have enjoyed them.

Her latest “Christmas In Cowboy Country” (Bennett Series), is unfortunately a disappointment for me. Considering that Janet Dailey is no more, and am guessing that someone else’s completed her unfinished works. I can definitely see the difference in the narration and writing and was not able to hold my interest.

Ski instructor Annie Bennett is back at her home ranch as she recovers from an accident and helps around her parents ranch. Marshall Stone is in Vail under the guise of a real estate surveyor trying to apprehend some real estate con artists. Annie meets Marshall, love blossoms and as the truth is revealed, they fall in love.

I couldn’t relate to Annie and Marshall. The plot was very thin and the characters did not have any depth and was hard for me to like them or be in their minds to enjoy the book. The romance was lackluster and I couldn’t feel the chemistry between Annie and Marshall.

It really saddens me to write an unsatisfactory review, as I've always enjoyed her previous works. Die-hard fans of Janet Dailey may still enjoy the book.

Received an ARC from Netgalley for an honest review.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I debated on this one - 3 or 4? In the end, if you picked this up, you probably weren't looking for serious literature. It's your typical warm, fuzzy, cheesey-Hallmark-Christmas-movie type book. A heartwarming easy read.

[Marilyn Miles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy any Janet Daily book, and particularly the Christmas ones. Even though it took me over a month to read, because of a move and illness in the family, I kept the book with me and could pick it up anytime and get back into the story.

[Mary Pauline M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each year around the holidays, I find some time for myself and a Christmas themed novel. This was the book I read this season and I loved it! I didn't want it to end!

[Malena Goerl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't believe their relationship. Why does he like her? Other than a hot makeout session when they first meet, she's extremely standoffish towards him. And why does she act like that? She keeps acting jealous when all they did was makeout. No relationship. Not even a date. Quit being a jerk to him. She came off as very immature in how she reacted to anything involving him. Also, his true FBI identity kept trying to build drama in the plot without actually building drama. What was he even doing in that town? We never see him do any investigating, just brooding about this girl who acts like she doesn't like him.

Also, I love a good bow that prettily ties up the end of a book, but this one was way too cheesy for me. And it seemed uncharacteristic for both main characters.

[Stephenee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have an unhealthy obsession with Christmas books - I have no boundaries, I buy them all! This was my first book by author Janet Dailey, but it won't be my last! I may even venture into her non-Christmas books to see what they are like and if I would enjoy them as much. I will be reading more by her soon!

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great holiday romance with a little mystery thrown in.

[Savannah Irlenborn]

This book was written like the author was given a 320 page limit and got to page 310 and was like “oh shoot, they aren’t magically together yet” and just threw some crap on the page to make it happen. No details about them explaining their feelings and having a truly romantic moment, just one page they’re still fighting it and then literally all of the sudden they’re together. Like what??? You can’t have 310 pages of yearning & then not give me details.

[Kerry Goerl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the storyline a lot. I only gave this 3 stars though as some of the events between the two main characters were just a bit hard to believe. From how you portrayed these characters, you would never have them getting that "friendly" after only exchanging a couple of sentences. I am still recommending this book. Maybe it was just me.........

[Mechel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christmas in Cowboy Country

Tall, handsome, dark, and mysterious is Marshall Stone. Annie Bennett can’t resist the attraction. The plot has just enough suspense to keep the reader involved and interested. In this third installment of the Bennett family, there is not as many side stories to draw you away from the protagonists.

[Sheri · Rating 3 out of 5]

My MIL found this at a thriftstore and then I proceeded to steal it from her. It is a cute story, the perfect thing to read to help you out of a reading slump, however, the end was kinda quick. That's my one complaint.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is just not good. I kept waiting for it to get better, but it didn’t. The plot drags on and Annie is a weird character. She’s almost obsessed with Stone from the first time she sees him. It’s kind of a creepy obsession. I wish I hadn’t wasted my time reading it.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up at the library... just needed a fluff book to read, and this certainly fits the bill. I've never read this author before so bear that in mind when I say, I wasn't all that impressed with the writing. Think Hallmark movie as a book 😂 it was ok

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read, much better than the first book I read last week. The main characters had chemistry and the story line was more believable and flowed better. This is a 2014 book, I imagine that writing and story lines for authors improve with age I will read any newer books by this author.

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the actual Christmas aspects of the book and loved the small town feel of it, but the love story was lacking. Not a fan of the jumping pov that isn't consistent. I like alternating pov but this was just too chaotic and random.

[Jill Remich · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book was ok. I was disappointed in the ending. It was predictable which is fine, but it felt like the author was told she had one hour to finish writing and she just threw it all together quickly to be done with it.
Again not a bad book or ending but not great.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute story. Definitely in the heartwarming category rather than the steamy category. It felt a bit too traditional for me at times, so I lost interest by the end.

[Mande Garrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loves the story. Detrmination and romance.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a bad story.

[Audra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an intriguing story and loved imagining the scenery.

[Ann Klein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick read, sweet, daring and great story line.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story. Kept you wanting to read more.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t typically go for books like this but I decided to give it a shot. Quick read that I enjoyed!

[Beth Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

first book of this author. It was all right. just lots of jumping around without a smooth transition from a to b.

[jackie smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Christmas in cowboy country

Another lovely story from Janet Dailey and as always.A happy ending as expected. I enjoyed it very much, looking forward to more books from this author!

[Jennipher Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this book is was realistic