I’m trying a dual review because I breezed through these two books belonging to the same series as audiobooks, and I figured – why not write one review instead of two? This is just an experiment, might not do this again. Let me know what you think!

Rating: 3.5 / 5 ⭐️
Done and Dusted (Rebel Blue Ranch #1)
Author: Lyla Sage
Published: 2023 (Random House Audio)
Pages: Audiobook Version
Genres: Romance, Western, Adult Fiction
CW: Strong Sexual Content, Strong Language, Sports Trauma, Family Trauma, Mental Health/ADHD

It’s been awhile! Life has kept me busy for the past month unexpectedly, so I’ve been delaying writing and posting. Reading has been a priority though, I’ve been in an audiobook kick recently. My next few reviews will likely be audiobooks. And if you don’t care for audiobooks then I have plenty of other blog posts regarding physical books! My grandma told me that she doesn’t consider listening to audiobooks like ‘reading real books’, and I highly disagree. Reading lovers come in all forms, and audiobooks are an accessibility tool and just another way for a reader to enjoy a book.

“You know, if you don’t like the road you’re on, you can always pave a new one” “Who said that? Robert Frost?” Brooks smiled and shook his head. “Dolly Parton,” he responded. “Ah, God herself,” I said with a laugh”

– Lyla Sage, “Done and Dusted”

Anyways, I read a book from a genre outside of my usual repertoire – western romance. “Done and Dusted” is by Lyla Sage. I saw the hype online about this one, and decided to branch out. Branching ended up being rewarding this time because I enjoyed this one (except for a few details)! Synopsis: Emmy Ryder is a competitive horse racer in the rodeo world, but after an accident from her last competition, she’s left wondering if she’ll ever race again. She then moves back to her hometown of Meadowlark, WY where she stays on her family’s horse ranch and reconnects with her best friend, Teddy, and the rest of the family. She also gets closer to Luke Brooks, her older brother’s attractive best friend, bar owner and bad boy of Meadowlark. From enemies to friends, Emmy and Luke wonder if there’s something more between them as they face their own troubles and their attraction to each other.

This was a fun and breezy romance! I felt like I was transported to the wild west, and I live in the wild west at that. The story was good, and I liked the chemistry between the main characters. The only criticism I have is there are so many plot holes. Like details introduced as a sub-plot were often left unresolved and just forgotten about. As a reader who likes having details wrapped up or just addressed if they’re going to be left unfinished, this drove me nuts at some points. I definitely recommend this book if you like romance novels and cowboys, the spicy scenes were pretty spicy… lets just put it at that, but not too ‘adventurous’. Or if you’re just looking for a fun, enemies-to-lovers story line. The ADHD and mental health representation was also refreshing to read and well covered.

---

Rating: 4 / 5 ⭐️
Swift and Saddled (Rebel Blue Ranch #2)
Author: Lyla Sage
Published: 2024 (Random House Audio)
Pages: Audiobook Version
Genres: Romance, Western, Adult Fiction
CW: Strong Sexual Content, Strong Language, Emotional Abuse, Mental Health/Depression

This is a separate review for Rebel Blue Ranch Series #2, “Swift and Saddled“. I listened to this next book in the series after “Done and Dusted” immediately after finishing it. I think the third and final book in the Rebel Blue Ranch Series, “Lost and Lassoed” is coming out later this year. I’ll probably read that one too, and it couldn’t come fast enough!

“If you like who you are, why is it so hard to believe other people do too?”

– Lyla Sage, “Swift and Saddled”

Taking place in Meadowlark, WY on the Ryder’s ranch, this story is about Emmy’s always-positive older brother Wes, who is in the middle of renovating the ranch’s guest house for his dream project. But the San Franciscan interior designer for the project, Ada Hart, captures Wes’ heart immediately after her arrival to Meadowlark. Ada is talented and smart, and has her own sharp edges and trust issues from a failed marriage, but her attraction to Wes is undeniable. Can Ada overcome her fears for a chance at love, and can both of them meet in the middle even though their separate dreams could keep them apart?

I enjoyed this one more than “Done and Dusted” for sure. The plot holes from book #1 were not present in “Swift and Saddled“. I enjoyed the ride of getting to know the main characters more, and their chemistry was also undeniable. This book dives into more serious topics about mental health and abuse, and the author covered it very well. This was a fun romance with some spicy scenes (less spicy than “Done and Dusted“, in my opinion). But this book really evaluates the relationship between the main characters and the difficult aspects from either side and I loved every minute of it. Both of their desire’s for something real was just so relatable and well-written. I also enjoyed how the author wrote Ada realizing her own issues away from Wes as well, and her own personal healing from her trauma. It was just so, so good. My only criticism was the person narrating Wes’ character in the audiobook version was not my favorite narrator and his voice bothered me sometimes – but that’s all personal preference. And I found some dialogue and details just too cheesy on the point of thinking ‘ugh this would never happen this way in real life’ that I could not get on board with. Overall, definitely recommend this book if you’re looking for a fun and hard-earned romance with some hugely relatable characters.

_ Elizabeth

---

How do I rate the books I write about? Click here