Category Archives: Texas Hustle

Review: Texas Hustle by Cynthia D’Alba

texas hustleTitle: Texas Hustle by Cynthia D’Alba
Texas Montgomery Mavericks Series Book Six
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Suspense
Length: 244 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by the Author

Summary:

They’re different as night and day…but it’s the right time for love.

Texas Montgomery Mavericks, Book 6

Porchia Summers was born into a family who gave her everything except affection. She acted out until her parents sent her to Whispering Springs before their high-society friends found out about her arrest record.

She builds a good life in Texas, but then the old boyfriend who got her in trouble tracks her down. Desperate to find a way to keep her past and present separate, she places a bid at a bachelor auction on the one man who’ll get her out of town for a few days.

Darren Montgomery is thrilled when Porchia wins him and a week of camping with his entire family in a charity bachelor auction. He’s also curious. He’s been flirting with the town’s sweet, sexy baker for years. Sometimes she flirts back, but she’s never let things go further than that. Darren’s not complaining, but he wonders just what’s going on behind Porchia’s pretty eyes.

Product Warnings: Watch out for chigger bites, love bites, and secrets that bite.

Review:

With a unique premise and a slight suspense element to the storyline, Cynthia D’Alba does a wonderful job keeping the Texas Montgomery Mavericks series fresh with her latest release, Texas Hustle.

Bakery owner Porchia Summers’s past has caught up with her and in an effort to buy time to figure out how to defuse the situation, she bids on local rancher Darren Montgomery at a charity bachelor auction. Not realizing their “date” is a weeklong camping adventure with the rest of the Montgomery clan, her dismay quickly turns to delight as she gets to know Darren’s extended family. Porchia and Darren have a smoking hot attraction that she has managed to ignore up until now but spending so much time in close proximity to the charming cowboy makes it very difficult to avoid giving in to their mutual desire.

Porchia is a likable but somewhat frustrating heroine. She is sassy, smart and well-liked but she continues to allow a youthful mistake to cloud her judgment about herself and her family. Her parents’ overreaction to that long ago event continues to plague her and instead of telling anyone about her current situation, Porchia refuses to ask for help in an effort to keep her indiscretion from being exposed. Equally exasperating is the reason she has kept Darren at arms’ length despite his obvious interest in her. Just when their relationship finally takes a romantic turn, Porchia makes a decision that that jeopardizes their future together.

Darren is a sexy, fun and hardworking hero with a heart of gold. He has been interested in Porchia for quite some time and he is a little confused as to why she flirts with him only to turn around and put him back in the friend zone. Knowing how skittish she is, Darren patiently waits until she is ready to take their relationship to the next level. His romantic side is a little unexpected but this gentle wooing is incredibly sweet and heartwarming. While Darren is taken aback by Porchia’s sudden decision, he tries to give her the space and time she needs to figure out what comes next. However, this does not mean Darren sits idly by and lets her walk out of his life without voicing his opinion about what she is hoping to accomplish.

The suspense element is the weakest part of the storyline and Porchia’s reaction to something that happened seventeen years earlier seems a little overblown. The incident was definitely a defining moment in her life but her inability to move past it is a little difficult to believe. Wanting to make peace with her family is understandable but watching her turn into a doormat seems out of character considering the happy and successful life she created for herself in Texas. Fortunately Darren is not willing to let their relationship go without a fight, but will Porchia realize what is most important to her before it is too late?

Texas Hustle is another well-written and engaging addition to Cynthia D’Alba’s Texas Montgomery Mavericks series. The characters are delightfully appealing with believable strengths and weaknesses. The storyline is interesting with a few unexpected twists and turns. All in all, a sweet, sensual love story that fans of contemporary western romances are sure to enjoy.

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Filed under Contemporary, Cynthia D'Alba, Rated B, Review, Romance, Samhain Publishing Limited, Texas Hustle, Texas Montgomery Mavericks