Blog Tour Review: The Talk of Coyote Canyon by Brenda Novak

 

The Talk of Coyote Canyon (Coyote Canyon #2) by Brenda Novak

Publication Date: November 28th 2023 by MIRA

Pages: 432

Source: Publisher 

Rating: ★★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Harlequin | Bookshop,org | Goodreads 

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My Thoughts:

Ellen’s father, Stuart, left her and her mother when she was young and didn’t make any effort to see Ellen after, and the abandonment still stings. Ellen inherited her grandparents’ house and property in Coyote Canyon, so she moved there to set up her own well-drilling business in direct competition with her father’s business. Ellen’s set on taking his business down one client at a time to pay him back for carelessly tossing her aside. However, when Hendrix, Stuart’s business partner and stand-in-son, stirs things up with her only employee, Ellen’s left high and dry on an important job. Hendrix steps in to help, feeling guilty and then ends up striking up a reluctant friendship.

 

Hendrix didn’t find Ellen attractive when she first moved to town, with her short spiky hair and tattoos, isn’t what he’d normally been into.  Also, with all the family/business turmoil, he’s only viewed her as an adversary, but as they work together, Hendrix starts to see her in a different light. He also starts to question the events of the past, how his aunt, Stuart’s wife, treated Ellen as a little girl and realizes how unfair they’ve all been to her. His opinions start to cause waves.

 

Ellen and Hendrix’s romance was a challenge because of the family/business aspect, and because Ellen had excellent reasons to be guarded, but most of the conflict was external. Hearing Ellen’s past and how she was treated, by Stuart, his new wife and even her mother I was outraged in her behalf! I was so happy she had Talulah and then Hendrix to take up for her!

Complicated family relationships, sabotage, and an online dating experience gone awry factor into the story; there’s so much more going on than just a romance, and I loved every minute! The story was captivating, and I didn’t want to put it down!

The Talk of Coyote Canyon can be read as a standalone, but I recommend reading Talulah’s Back in Town first as some of the events come into play here. I highly recommend both romances! Brenda Novak’s stories are compelling and addictive! You think you’re just going to read a few chapters and end up finishing the book in one sitting!

 

5 Stars

Book Description:

She’s not here to make friends. She’s here to make trouble.

With her piercings, tattoos and spiky blond hair, Ellen Truesdale doesn’t quite fit in with the other folks in Coyote Canyon—and that’s just fine with her. She’s only here to put her father out of business, as payback for abandoning her when she was young.

Or is she more interested in finally proving that she was worth keeping?

Either way, she’s struggling to keep her rival well-drilling company afloat. And being a single woman in a male-dominated field has started to take a toll. So when Hendrix Durrant steps in to help, Ellen has no choice but to let him—even though he happens to be her father’s business partner and therefore her enemy. But the closer she works with him, the more she sees what she’s been missing…in life and love. And once she lets go of her anger long enough to learn the truth about her past, she might just find the family she’s always wanted.

Photo Credit: Rudy Meyers Photography

Author Bio: 

Brenda Novak, a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author, has penned over sixty novels. She is a five-time nominee for the RITA Award and has won the National Reader's Choice, the Bookseller's Best, the Bookbuyer's Best, and many other awards. She also runs Brenda Novak for the Cure, a charity to raise money for diabetes research (her youngest son has this disease). To date, she’s raised $2.5 million. For more about Brenda, please visit www.brendanovak.com. 

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