RELEASE DAY REVIEW: 'Wild Trail' by A.M. Arthur
Title: Wild Trail
Series: Clean Slate Ranch #1
Author: A.M. Arthur
Published: December 11, 2017
Publisher: Carina Press
Genre: Contemporary Romance; Erotic Romance
Length: 384 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Law Enforcement (Ex); Fireman (Ex); Western/Cowboys; Opposites Attract; HEA; CW: Violence (Western-Style Shoot-Out)
About Wild Trail
Welcome to Clean Slate Ranch: home of tight jeans, cowboy boots, and rough trails. For some men, it’s a fantasy come true.
Mack Garrett loves the rolling hills surrounding his Northern California dude ranch. Leading vacationers on horse trails with his two best friends is enough—romance is definitely not in the cards. When a sexy tourist shows up at Clean Slate, he’s as far from Mack’s type as can be. So why is the handsome city slicker so far under his skin in less than a day?
Roughing it in the middle of nowhere isn’t anywhere near Wes Bentley’s idea of fun. Then he lays eyes on the gruffest, hottest papa bear he’s ever seen. But Mack is as hard to pin down as he looks—distant, sharp-tongued, and in desperate need of a shave. Until a campout gone wrong strands both men in the mountains with nothing to do but get to know each other.
Mack intends to keep his closely guarded heart out of Wes’s very talented hands. But for a seven-day cowboy, Wes is packing some long-term possibility. The cold country air can do wonders for bringing bodies together—but it will take more than that to bridge the distance between two men whose lives are worlds apart.
4 HEART READ
REVIEW:
Wild Trail, the first of A.M. Arthur’s Clean Slate Ranch novels, initiates what promises to be a sexy, entertaining Western romp.
When Wes Bentley, a dinner-theater actor, books his sister’s wedding-planning retreat on a “gay friendly” dude ranch, he expects to honor family and friends while enjoying a little eye candy. Instead, he’s shaken by an urge to seduce a gruff ranch hand, Mack Garrett.
Wes is still skittish from his last relationship, years earlier, which sidetracked his career, as well as his heart. So is Mack, who fled the LA SWAT team to work on his grandfather’s ranch after unspecified troubles with his ex. As an adult, Mack learned of his grandfather, and the town of Garrett, which his forefathers founded. Now wed to the land, Mack’s intimacy-avoidance is shredded by Wes, a refreshingly up-front flirt.
But there are hidden strains on the ranch. Arthur, Mack’s grandfather, is aging and forgetful. Although the town is declining, someone is mysteriously interested in purchasing their back 40 wild acres. And Mack’s two best friends, who are also ranch hands, have secrets of their own.
What happens when opposites give into their attraction? And what can save the ranch, much less the declining fortunes of Garrett?
Arthur specializes in gradually building romances. When this slow pace is paired with hints of unknown dangers, tension is multiplied. Suspense ratchets as blocks toward intimacy fall. I found myself flying over pages, such that a lengthy book seemed quite short!
Never an author to stick to stereotypes, Wes may call Mack “‘daddy,’” but Mack’s nickname for Wes is “‘boss.’” Wes is no twink and Mack no steel fortress.
Their personalities are layered, as is the plot. Readers are halfway through before they understand how Arthur’s clues are aligning. And the mood thickens accordingly.
Arthur's language is deceptively simple; her characters appear straight-forward. But there are enigmas upon cryptic puzzles in this well-crafted novel. As the cherry on the sundae, Arthur draws a series of complex secondary characters, who pull us into the series, fascinating us to know their stories as well.
For sweetly satisfying romance, salty cowboys, hot sex scenes, and plenty of sour grapes in the back plots, feast on Wild Trail. You’ll come away full, while anticipating the next course.
A copy of Wild Trail was provided to Kimmers’ Erotic Book Banter, by A.M. Arthur, at no cost and with no expectations in return. We offer our fair and honest opinion on behalf of our readers.
Meet the Author
A.M. Arthur was born and raised in the same kind of small town that she likes to write about, a stone's throw from both beach resorts and generational farmland. She's been creating stories in her head since she was a child and scribbling them down nearly as long, in a losing battle to make the fictional voices stop. She credits an early fascination with male friendships (bromance hadn't been coined yet back then) with her later discovery of and subsequent love affair with m/m romance stories. A.M. Arthur's work is available from Samhain Publishing, Carina Press, Dreamspinner Press, SMP Swerve, and Briggs-King Books.
When not exorcising the voices in her head, she toils away in a retail job that tests her patience and gives her lots of story fodder. She can also be found in her kitchen, pretending she's an amateur chef and trying to not poison herself or others with her cuisine experiments.
For more from A.M. be sure and visit her website.
