The Rancher

Redbourne Series, Book One - Cole's Story

De: Kelli Ann Morgan

Narrado por: Troy Duran

This Western Historical Romance is set in Colorado 1876.

The deal was to share her ranch, not her heart....

Abby McCallister can ride and shoot better than any man she's ever met, but when the threat of losing her ranch forces her to find a husband, she is unprepared for the mysterious stranger who takes her hand and evokes in her a sudden desire to be a lady fit for his arm.

He'd sworn to protect her. He couldn't do that if she married someone else....

Cole Redbourne, immersed in guilt over the accident that claimed his best friend, discovers there was nothing accidental about it. When he sets out for Silver Falls, Colorado, to fulfill his friend's dying wish and to flush out his killer, the last thing he expected was to find hope again disguised as his impromptu bride.

©2012 Kelli Ann Morgan (P)2013 Kelli Ann Morgan

A Good One!

A great beginning to a new series.

Set in 19th century Colorado, a feisty tomboy must find a husband fast or be shipped off to her Aunt to learn how to act like a lady. With likable characters, excellent descriptions, and well-paced plot lines, "The Rancher" is a western historical romance with plenty of action, mystery and romance you won't want to miss.

This is my first book by Kelli Ann Morgan, but I enjoyed it so much, I've just purchased the next book in the series.

Troy Duran gave a good performance.

Bottom line -- it was an enjoyable listening experience, and I highly recommend it.

Great beginning to a series....I hope!

This is a historical western romance novel just in case that is an issue for anyone. It wasn't for me but I missed that info at the time of purchase. The story was good. A couple of twists and turns keeps you guessing and all the characters were very likable.
Cole's Story is the first in what I assume will be a series. He is the youngest of seven brothers. All totally hot and I can't wait to meet them.

I'm getting to where I do more research on the narrator because that is such a huge factor in how I feel about the characters. The story can be great and have strong characters but if the narrator stinks and makes them sound horrible then its really hard to get past it. That said, Troy Duran is AWESOME!!!!!! He makes the big studly cowboys come to life and all the secondary characters become exactly who they need to be. He also does a great job with his female characters. Everyone was very believable and paired with a good story makes this a really good book.

I will definitely buy the rest of the series especially is Duran continues to be the narrator.

Why Did it Take Me So Long to Listen?

If you've read my other reviews, you know I'm a huge Troy Duran fan, particularly when he narrates alone, but I'll take any format, if not every genre, I can get! I've been so enamored of a couple other series Troy rocks that this one got pushed to the back burner. Well, what a terrific listen! There's plenty of sweetness, adventure and mystery, and after hearing so many steamy love scenes in other books, it was great to listen to a story whose plot is so strong and engaging that the love scenes were not missed one bit!

I love books with great characters, and they abound here, brought to life amazingly by Troy's smooth, deep voice. As always, he made me feel everything throughout the story, down to the tiniest detail and description, and boy would I love to have a bunch of brothers like the Redbournes! Kelli Ann Morgan is wonderful with words and added interesting twists that kept me guessing. Can't wait to start book two!

Good story. Christian based. Clean; suspenseful.

Where does The Rancher rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Very good story. Clean.

What did you like best about this story?

The interaction between the hero and heroine.

Which character – as performed by Troy Duran – was your favorite?

Cole and his brothers.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

there were several parts that made me laugh. Several suspenseful parts.

loved it

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com."

i.loved the whole storyline and book. definitely will read more by this author. i couldnt stop listening

An excellent listen.

I downloaded this book with some trepidation since the author was new to me. I'm glad I took the chance. I truly enjoyed the listen and headed straight back to Audible to look for additons to the series. If you enjoy historic western romance this is a 'must have'. I can't wait for the next in the series and have queued Keli Ann Morgan as an author I'm going follow.

Excellent story - Old West at it's best

I loved the story, the time period setting, the plot twists and mostly the characters. A man with too many secrets and a woman with a stubborn will and a strong mentality....makes for a great page turner.

Sweet and clean, but oh so good!

What did you like best about this story?

The story is sweet and clean with only a kiss or two in the whole book. However, don't let that dissuade you from this awesome listen. I generally look at the overall book rating and overview, but tend to not read the reviews (some of my fave have bad reviews). Had I read the reviews, I most likely wouldn't have purchased the book since sweet and clean is not my thing. Therefore, this book was a wonderful surprise. The story keeps you on edge and is suspenseful to the very end. I generally know who did it about a quarter of the way into a book, but not this one! I love this series and plan on enjoying more of the Redbournes.

What does Troy Duran bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I love Troy Duran! He did a wonderful job with the story and characters. I had no trouble with character distinction, so I was able to immerse myself in the story. I simply could not stop listening!

A great first book to this series

What other book might you compare The Rancher to and why?

I would put this book and the author right up there with my top Romance Westerns authors Debra Holland, Caroline Fyffe, Shanna Hatfield, EE Burke, Linda Warren, Cynthia D'Alba, Kathleen Rice Adams, Kirsten Osbourne and the list goes on. This being the first I have listen/read anything by this author I was blow away and couldn't put the book down.

Any additional comments?

This was a book that I had trouble putting down. The author keeps her cards close to her chest not revealing to much and keeps you guessing as to what is going to happen. It is packed full of action, a few thrills, excitement as the author takes you through the who and why. She gives you danger, romance and passion on the clean side. This is one read that you will find a little bite of very thing in. I thought when we go to the last 30 minutes that it was going to end in a cliffhanger. This author pulls off fitting a lot into a little time which blow me away. It is a believable account of times gone past which is what out great nation is built on. This is one author that makes me wish I lived back in this time with these wonderful characters. Time might have been hard but they sure knew how to have fun, take care of business, handle issues and build a wonderful life.

The right narrator for an audio is very important, the voices and tones must fit the characters. I have not had the pleasure of listening to anything by Troy Duran. He was a delight with a warm strong smooth voice I could listen to for hours. His male voices are strong, pleasant you never are left guessing as to how the character feels or what their emotions are. His Female voices were soft, smooth even tones again never leaving you guessing to their emotions. There are no breaks that the reader can tell just smooth even tones that gives the listener the pleasure to being taken back in time. Mr. Duran tones are strong, smooth and fits each character with the correct tones so you have no doubt how they feel whether it be happy, sad, angry etc. I cannot wait to listen to more from this narrator.

Abby is a girl after my own heart there isn't much she can't do just as good or better than any man. When she sets her mind to something she is full steam ahead. Lord does this little lady get into trouble as she keeps you laughing at the messes she gets into. Starting off by getting the best on a bet with her father. She must marry by the end of the week or go live with her aunt. Never did her father think she would pull it off nor in the way she does. There were so many funny parts in this book that made me laugh out loud but I would have to say the start of the book was the most funny. One man steps up to her bold question as he punches out a few unkindly men who are making fun of her. Well she has herself a husband now what is she going to do with him. She has won her bet with her father who is one unhappy man lol. There is nothing not to love about the bullheaded, strong willed women.

Cole will steal your heart as he makes you laugh. Oh he steps up and agrees to marry Abby but lord she is turning out to be a handful. Once daddy gets over the marriage he sets back and chuckles as Cole deals with his strong willed wife. Cole is everything any women would want in a man. He is strong, caring, loving and dependable as he promises to keep his wife safe. The only thing is his wife is just looking for away to stay home she doesn't want a man telling her what to do. Poor Cole finds he spends more time chasing down his wife getting her out of mess after mess not leaving much time to take care of the business that brought him there. He is still out to find out who killed his best friend along with all the mishap that keep going on around him.

This author starts off with a bang that will keep you in stitches as you feel sorry for Abby you cannot help but laugh as the book takes off. The author keeps you laughing throughout this read. She gives you sadness, sorrow and pain as she takes you on a thrilling adventure of who is after their land and what they have plan for this couple. You will know the who but the author leaves it to the end for the characters to know and the why of it all. I totally loved this book so much that I checked out the next book in this series which totally had me thrilled to find out I already had bought it. I just had to hope over to take the deal for the audio. This may have been the first time I have read/listen to anything by this author or narrator but it sure will not be the last. She gives you outstanding wonderful characters you can relate to as she brings you outstanding humor. This sure was a page turner that I could not put down. I found things to do around the house so I could listen to it all at once. I doubt my house has been this clean in a long time. If you are looking for a book that pulls you in and you won't be able to put down this is the one for you.

Unusual twists kept my attention. Awaiting #2.

Not your typical twists. Not your typical book. This author has penned this book well. The characters have self esteem issues, and are not over the top on self pity either. I look forward to getting the rest of the Redbourne Series.