Cowboy for Keeps

COWBOY FOR KEEPS by talented newcomer Kristi Gold is the rarest of finds for me -- a one sitting read! Gold's characters jump to life from the very first page and quickly embroil you in their world. The emotional aspect of the book (a mother's deep love for her child) balances nicely with the sexual sparks flying between the hero and heroine. How wonderful that the sexual soon turns emotional, too! I, for one, certainly look forward to more works by Ms. Gold - and soon!

I remember when Kristy Gold announced the sale of her first book to Silhouette Desire, how excited and thrilled she was. Then, in short order, she announced a second sale. . .then a third. . .and (I believe) a fourth. . .all before her first book, COWBOY FOR KEEPS, hit the stands.Now I know why.Ms. Gold writes about people, not characters. Real people with weaknesses as well as strengths, with the courage to make -- and stand by -- sometimes difficult, even painful decisions. And the reader can't help but get caught up in their trials, by turns agonizing and joying with them as those hard choices become RIGHT choices.Will Baker, a quiet-spoken, man-oh-man cowboy affiliated with the stable where Dana Landry's young, profoundly deaf daughter is about to start riding lessons, can do the one thing with her daughter that Dana can't, which is communicate with her. Since Callie's father Rob -- Dana's ex and easily a contender for Jerk of the Century -- has severely interfered in his daughter's special communication needs, Dana has never learned to sign, a skill which her extremely bright and determined daughter has picked up on her own. Will, however, signs fluently, and thus is a bond forged between the kind cowboy with his carefully guarded reasons for refusing himself the one thing he wants most in the world, and the child who finds in Will the father she certainly doesn't have in the flagrantly obnoxious Rob.But the bond that seems intent on forging itself between Will and Callie's mother proves to be far more problematic. At first, Dana is more than willing to admit her attraction to Will is predominantly physical, but she soon realizes what she most wants is to break down the barriers this wonderful man has erected around his good-as-gold heart, maybe even bring healing to a soul she intuitively knows is wounded.But he seems equally intent on not letting her accomplish her mission. This is a beautifully crafted novel, from start to finish. While there's plenty of sexual tension -- and no skimping on the lovescenes, either -- Ms. Gold deftly intertwines the physical with the emotional on every page. She handles the issue of what it's like to live with a deaf family member with poignancy, sensitivity, and most of all, realism. These are people to care about and root for. . .and Kristi Gold an author to watch.Brava.