Stray

Rowe Ranch, Book 1

De: DJ Krimmer

Narrado por: Maxine Mitchell, Sean Masters

A Steamy Small-Town Romance with a Grumpy Cowboy, Found Family, and Heartbreak

"She’s a firestorm in scrubs, and I’m about to get burned."

Ozzy
Taking a job as a private nurse on a family ranch in Virginia was supposed to be a temporary fix—a way to disappear, lay low, and keep my past where it belongs. My patient? A grumpy old man with one foot in the grave and a foul mouth to match my own. Easy enough. His family? A whole different story. Jackson Rowe is a problem I don’t need. A rugged cowboy with a sharp stare, a sharper tongue, and a body carved by hard work and bad decisions. He’s watching me too closely, peeling back my layers with nothing but silence and those storm-cloud eyes. He wants to know my secrets. But trust isn’t something I give, and getting close to me comes with consequences.

Jackson
My father is dying, and my family is barely holding it together. The last thing we need is a sarcastic, guarded-as-hell nurse stirring up trouble. But Ozzy Davenport isn’t just trouble—she’s a goddamn hurricane in eight inch heels. She pushes, I push back, and somehow, that friction turns into something neither of us saw coming. She acts like she’s untouchable, like she’s already halfway out the door. But I see her. I see the fight in her, the fire. And I know one thing for sure—whatever she’s running from is catching up. And this time, I won’t let her run alone.

©2025 DJ Krimmer (P)2025 Blue Nose Publishing, DJ Krimmer

a beautiful cowboy romance -DJ does it again!

Finished the audio in a day!

Obsessed! Narrators are both FANTASTIC! Maxine and Sean KILLED IT! the emotions, the pain, and the laughs! could not get enough!

And of course DJ wrote another beautiful story! So much pain and so much emotion. It was amazing! A perfect amount of dark romance and cowboy romance. DJ is the queen of banter again! Making me feel all of Ozzy's emotion along with Jackson's grief. Chefs kiss.

HIGHLY RECCOMMEND!

This one will stay with me…

DJ Krimmer writes pure magic. Ozzy’s and Jackson’s love story is one of my favorites I have ever read and having her words brought to life via audiobook only amplifies my love for this story.

Maxine Mitchell left me with my jaw open at certain points in the book. The vulnerability and emotion portrayed by her as Ozzy made this character even more real to me. Her performance made me feel Ozzy’s emotions on a deeper level than I had when I was reading it on the page and imagining Ozzy in my own way inside my head.

I’ve listened to many stories that Sean Masters has narrated but this one is up there in the top. Every emotion that Jackson experienced, Sean performed it expertly. Honestly, I just needed a whole box a tissues during the barn scene with Jackson and Morris.

This is definitely one of my favorite performances from both Maxine and Sean and it is an story/audio that will be sticking with me for a while to come.

Maxine & Sean deliver Ozzy & Jackson with love

Stray, written by DJ Krimmer is one of my top books of the year. The characters of Ozzy Davenport and Jackson Rowe are uniquely DJ — wounded yet resilient. And Ozzy? She’s overcome the unspeakable, only to find strength in her voice as a traveling nurse. When she ends up at the Rowe ranch, she is surviving on her sarcasm, quick wit and resourcefulness. When she meets Jackson, she finds a level of comfort and healing she never knew she could attain.

Maxine Mitchell and Sean Masters traverse the landscape of enemies-to-friends-to-lovers with a delicious blend of attraction and chemistry. The 12 hour audiobook is told in duet narration and examines how healing is possible when you surround and surrender yourself to the goodness around you.

Ozzy, though scarred, is performed flawlessly by Maxine. Maxine marches Ozzy’s sharp tongue with the delivery of a woman who has a whole lot of tenderness under her rugged exterior. Ozzy’s story is emotional and at times painful to read — and Maxine is at her rawest in many of these scenes. My favorite scenes, much like when I eyeballed the story, is when Ozzy is spending time with Morris. Maxine dances around Ozzy’s demons and embraces them and breathes humor and carnality into Ozzy’s protected heart. The voice I love the most is a tie between Ozzy’s absolute menacing of Carter and Theo. Maxine’s comedic inflection is infallible.

Sean sold me on his emotional range in this story. Jackson, by all appearances could be classified as the older, stoic rancher with “don’t get close to me” vibes. DJ writes him as a harborer of hidden anxieties and fear in a way that Sean doesn’t shy away from. Jackson is unprepared to lose his father. Sean’s scenes as Jackson as Morris’s son are heartbreaking. Jackson is the male main character of DJ’s universe who gives his eldest brother Derek a true run for “ultimate book boyfriend” — the way Jackson sees and envelopes Ozzy, while still allowing her room to breathe? Sean is powerful as the ever intuitive and swoon worthy Jackson Rowe.

This book canvases a rough landscape, and the character and plot development is some of the best I’ve read. Maxine and Sean not only give voice to Ozzy and Jackson, they truly enhance the magic of storytelling. And I couldn’t have been more honored to listen.

Maxine and Sean!!

This was such a heavy book, but I loved every single minute of it. *****CHECK TRIGGER WARNINGS*** There were some scenes in this book that were very hard to read, your mental health matters, so make sure to check the triggers at the beginning of the book.

Ozzy Davenport is headed to Rowe Ranch to help an elderly man feel comfortable in his last days, she knows this job, she knows how to take care of her patients. But what she didn't expect was for Jackson to walk into her life and make her feel so dang safe. So safe that she could spill some of her secretes. Her dark and depraved secrets and thoughts. Jackson is loyal to a fault, has always worked the ranch and never strayed too far away. When Ozzy comes to help his dad make it through the next few months, he doesn't know what to think of her in the beginning, she's all curvy hips, tattooed skin, pierced... EVERYWHERE? lol and with an attitude that could knock you back a few. But Jackson see's her under all that sarcasm and wit, that dark makeup and heavy attitude. Could Jackson be the home she never had? Could Ozzy be the woman he didn't know he needed?

WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!! Legit, LOVED the crap out of this book. This was such a heartbreaking story to read, and with Maxine Mitchell and Sean Masters voicing these characters... it was so freaking good. Mesmerizing. I could not stop listening, I finished this story in a day. I had to know how they were going to work out in the end.

I have read a few stories now by DJ and I have to say that she doesn't do third act breakups. AND I LOVE THAT. There was a set back for them at one point because Jackson did something he regretted the moment he did it, but he had to know. Ozzy is such a strong and powerful character, she may seem weak and like she can't defend herself, but that girl is a fighter, she escaped, she made it out alive. She asked for help and she wanted to make something of the life she had left to live. She was so BRAVE. Sweet Jackson, cinnamon roll hero, SUPERMAN! He was such a great book boyfriend. I loved him so much. He wanted to know everything about her, what she needed and how to take care of her, and he never left her. It was like two souls had found their match.

I cannot wait for the rest of this series, Carter... he was such a little scamp but it turns out he forgot to rubber up about 4 years ago, and one morning that decision lands on his porch. Wyatt, was a sweet adorable kid he was, I loved that he called Ozzy Zeze, I need more of him ASAP. Jensen was so sweet, but he was getting on my nerves with Niamh, I need that boy to buck up and treat her the way she wants to be treated. and Theo, gahhh I loved her, she was so sassy and the way she always flirted with Ozzy, it was so cute. Sweet Morris, I cried so hard when he passed, it was a beautiful scene, just him and Jackie and his horse watching the sunset. It's what he wanted and he knew it was his time to go. That scene gutted me so much, Dorothy screaming the way she did, and falling to the ground to just kiss him one last time. ohhh man, I'm going to cry just writing this.

Thank you to Blue Nose Audio and DJ Krimmer for the ALC, it was so magical. I loved every single minute of this story. I cannot wait to continue the series.

Narrators Really Brought this Story to Life!

Stray by DJ Krimmer is an emotional and deeply immersive listening experience that pulls you in straight from the Prologue. The story balances grit and tenderness, showing how strength can coexist with vulnerability. It's a powerful journey about resilience, learning to trust again, and finding light after darkness.
The audiobook's duet narration by Maxine Mitchell and Sean Masters is exceptional.

Their performances bring raw emotion and nuance to every moment, making the characters feel real and layered. They capture every shift in tone, from quiet reflection to fierce determination, with natural chemistry that keeps you completely absorbed.

With beautiful pacing, emotional depth, and performances that elevate every scene, Stray is more than a romance. It's a story about survival, connection, and the healing power of love. It's the kind of audiobook that lingers long after you finish listening.

Amazing

This book sent me through such an emotional roller coaster. I laughed I cried I got angry and most importantly I fell in love with the characters and the story line and the trials and triumphs of them. This is hands down the most well written, thought out, and developed book I’ve read this year. Read your trigger warnings before diving in, there’s a lot of rough topics but somehow they are written so eloquently and so realistic that you can’t help but celebrate the survival and feel every single emotion. This is just a testament to the writing of this amazing author. This story 5/5 the spice 5/5. It’s outstanding
The audio book was absolutely incredible. Maxine Mitchell and Sean Masters were perfect casting and exactly what I envisioned. Blue nose audio again knocked it out of the park.