Healing the Rancher

by Melinda Curtis

The story of the Mountain Monroes in Idaho continues in Healing the Rancher with a focus on Kendall Monroe, a city-girl with a knack for twenty-first century PR through social media. Needing employment, she decides to try to land a contract with a Texas ranch, but she needs to prove her cowgirl credentials to the owners. The problem is that she never really took to ranch life when she visited Grandpa Harlan in Idaho as a child. She returns to the little town of Second Chance where most of her cousins have relocated and agrees to intern on a ranch owned by Finn McAfee, a handsome but scarred ex-Marine. Besides his physical scars, he is weighted by the death of his young wife and his own cancer diagnosis.

Sparks fly when Kendall meets her tough new boss Finn who views her as a “princess.” She shows him how strong she is while keeping a smile on her face. The back and forth between the two will keep the reader smiling as will Lizzie, Finn’s adorable four year old daughter and their collection of “misfits,” animals dropped off at the ranch because their owners didn’t want them.

All kinds of problems arise as Kendall tries to become a cowgirl, but she owns up to her mistakes. Other difficulties have to be faced up to as well, things that are not her fault—cattle rustling and financial issues for both of them.

Several of the Monroe cousins play supporting roles and for those readers who have followed the Monroe saga, it is fun to see how those cousins’ lives are progressing. As with all the books in this series, the conclusion is more than satisfactory and will leave you with smiles just thinking about the future for Kendall and Finn.

I would like to extend my thanks to Melinda Curtis for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 5/5

Category: Romance

Notes: 1. While Healing the Rancher (#11 in the Mountain Monroes series) could be read as a standalone, I recommend reading the whole series in order.
2. All the books in this series are clean romances.

Publication: May 24, 2022—Harlequin

Memorable Lines:

“I feel like my grandfather wasn’t afraid to reinvent himself. Or afraid of failure. That’s what makes people succeed, I think. They want something more than they fear going belly-up.”

The grand Sawtooth Mountain range was just as imposing here as it was in Second Chance. The jagged mountains were as hard as she imagined the life here was. Or maybe that was just her perception as someone from the city.

“Boo, this is why I need to learn how to be a ranch boss and move on. The man is more irresistible than chocolate to me. And I’m like day-old bread to him.”