This Ain’t Our First Rodeo by Liara Tamani
Greenwillow Books
Publisher summary: Love is a wild ride. Hold on.
This ain’t Josie’s first rodeo. Her parents own several fancy restaurants in Houston, and they just opened a new one right outside the stadium. Josie is expected to stay inside the restaurant and help, and maybe take over their growing empire one day, but that isn’t what Josie wants. She’d rather be at the rodeo itself than in a high-end restaurant next to it. Or eating funnel cakes and Texas-sized corn dogs at the carnival on the grounds. Or better yet, riding her horse at her grandparents’ ranch, the very place her mom wants to sell.
It ain’t Shawn’s first rodeo either. He’s been riding bulls since his mom died, doing everything he can to live up to his rodeo-champion stepfather’s sky-high expectations. But as Shawn’s stardom rises, so do tensions in their relationship. His stepfather’s drinking and gambling problems sure don’t help.
After one unforgettable night leaves Josie and Shawn wanting nothing but each other, their lives become entwined in increasingly complex ways. Can they save Josie’s family land? Or will Shawn’s stepfather and his shady plan be the ranch’s ruin? Will one wrong move cost them everything? Rodeo after rodeo, year after year, can Josie and Shawn keep their hearts open through the secrets, twists, and turns?
My thoughts: A Texas rodeo with a romance was definitely a draw for me. I’ve been to multiple rodeos in Texas and visiting one again on the pages of this book definitely brought back memories. It’s got some action with the rodeo scenes along with horseback riding on the ranch, but also has the sweet romantic moments scattered throughout.
The format of the book is a back and forth between Shawn and Josie. Because of the way it’s laid out, sometimes the pages only have a paragraph or two or even just a sentence and it helps the pace feel pretty quick especially when the two are just meeting and getting to know each other. There is an almost immediate attraction, between them, but with how they meet and the time they spend together it makes sense.
Though their initial meeting is quick and they are both attracted, they run into an issue almost immediately and readers get to experience a three year time jump. They’re apart for quite a while, but of course haven’t forgotten about each other.
Apart from this being a love story, it’s also a story of two young people figuring out what they want from life and how they’re going to achieve that. Will they just take the expected path that is already laid out or is it better to do the hard thing and step into the unknown?
For readers who live in or have been to Texas, there will be lots of little things to notice like Bluebell ice cream, bluebonnets and mentions of things like the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo (BPIR) and the history of Black cowboys and cowgirls. I would also offer that there is a picture book from Andrea D. Pinkney and Brian Pinkney, Bill Pickett: Rodeo-Ridin’ Cowboy, that gives a quick overview of Bill Pickett. That and a display I’d seen in Fort Worth, came to mind when the BPIR was mentioned. In the achnowledgments, the author included a list of some of the resources that “are helping to reclaim the long-overlooked legacy of African Americans in rodeo and cowboy history.”
Recommendation: If contemporary romance is your thing, get it soon. It has a unique premise and setting. For readers who’ve never experienced Texas or the rodeo scene, this should be an interesting view into that world and it’s complete with a love story that warms the heart.
Extra: News Interview with author
Pages: 336
Review copy: Final copy via publisher
Availability: On shelves now