cover image Jake

Jake

R.C. Ryan. Grand Central/Forever, $7.99 mass market (448p) ISBN 978-1-4555-0244-8

Country veterinarian Jake Conway and big city lawyer Meg Stanford share a common background and instant sexual heat in Ryan’s predictable third Wyoming Sky contemporary western (after Josh). Meg is unwillingly called back to her rural childhood home when her estranged father dies. Meg has her hands full as she attempts to catalogue and sell the ranch so she can return to her own life. Working against her are a grieving seven-year-old half-brother she never knew she had, a series of break-ins at the ranch, and her attraction to laid-back, compassionate Jake. As Meg wrestles with her painful childhood memories, a potential new future beckons in the form of Jake and the loving family life she’s never had yet desperately longed for—if she’s willing to give up her ritzy lifestyle. Though not particularly memorable, the sappy story might appeal to undemanding fans of feel-good cowboy romances. (Mar.)