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teresab78's review
3.0
****Reviewed for Prism Book Alliance®****
Cattle Baron’s Bogus Boyfriend is a misleading title for this book. To me, it implies the mc’s conspired to trick people about their relationship, however I found this wasn’t exactly the case, although there was confusion over their relationship.
The book is rife with misunderstandings and assumptions that hinder their relationship and yet they make up too easily. The “villains” were homophobic and self-centered women with nothing redeeming in them.
And yet, it was still entertaining in a bubblegum sort of way. It had a ranch, a ball, and sickeningly sweet Happily Ever After. I liked Jonah and Lincoln, even if Jonah needs to learn how to communicate.
I guess it was a typical harlequin type romance with two men and explicit sex thrown in. While I’ve read better, it was a still an enjoyable way to while away an afternoon.
Narration Review:
I think Rusty Topsfield did a great job with this narration. Each character had a unique voice complete with appropriate accents. He was able to emote and increase my enjoyment of the book.
Cattle Baron’s Bogus Boyfriend is a misleading title for this book. To me, it implies the mc’s conspired to trick people about their relationship, however I found this wasn’t exactly the case, although there was confusion over their relationship.
The book is rife with misunderstandings and assumptions that hinder their relationship and yet they make up too easily. The “villains” were homophobic and self-centered women with nothing redeeming in them.
And yet, it was still entertaining in a bubblegum sort of way. It had a ranch, a ball, and sickeningly sweet Happily Ever After. I liked Jonah and Lincoln, even if Jonah needs to learn how to communicate.
I guess it was a typical harlequin type romance with two men and explicit sex thrown in. While I’ve read better, it was a still an enjoyable way to while away an afternoon.
Narration Review:
I think Rusty Topsfield did a great job with this narration. Each character had a unique voice complete with appropriate accents. He was able to emote and increase my enjoyment of the book.
jrv45's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
katmoreid's review
4.0
4 Stars. Based on the summary my book has, I was expecting a fake boyfriend story. That is not what this is. There is no fake boyfriend. I love the trope, so I was excited for it. Despite that, I enjoyed the book. Jonah and Linc had great chemistry, they were friends who become more. I laughed, I cried. I got lost in the cattle baron world.
Until the phone call. Why? I think everyone can agree the conflict at the end was stupid and melodramatic. Are authors watching too many soap operas while writing?
The epilogue was sweet but the 180 turnaround of one of the side characters was strange. I would have liked to see the slow turnaround instead of the abrupt 180. It would have been more believeable. As much as I liked this story, if the conflict and the 180 turnaround were changed, it would be a great story instead of a good one. The end needs to be as good as the rest of it.
Until the phone call. Why? I think everyone can agree the conflict at the end was stupid and melodramatic. Are authors watching too many soap operas while writing?
The epilogue was sweet but the 180 turnaround of one of the side characters was strange. I would have liked to see the slow turnaround instead of the abrupt 180. It would have been more believeable. As much as I liked this story, if the conflict and the 180 turnaround were changed, it would be a great story instead of a good one. The end needs to be as good as the rest of it.
aligroen's review
3.0
A Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Review An Alisa Audiobook Review:
Rating: 3 stars out of 5
This was a sweet story. Jonah has always known he was gay, but has never found anyone that he wanted to explore it with. The only person he can’t stop thinking about is his straight boss even though he knows nothing will ever happen.
When Jonah and Linc begin to grow a friendship and Jonah begins to learn new things about Linc he can’t even begin to believe that anything could happen. He can’t seem to keep his feelings separate when Linc seems so genuine. When someone uses his worst fears against him Linc does anything he can to show Jonah how he really feels. The family they make with Caylee and other friends at the end of this story is wonderful to see.
Rusty Topsfield did a great job narrating this story. I enjoyed listening and was able to keep track of the stories and characters which is always nice. He was able to portray the characters emotions in his reading.
Cover art by Paul Richmond is nice and follows the pattern for the series.
Rating: 3 stars out of 5
This was a sweet story. Jonah has always known he was gay, but has never found anyone that he wanted to explore it with. The only person he can’t stop thinking about is his straight boss even though he knows nothing will ever happen.
When Jonah and Linc begin to grow a friendship and Jonah begins to learn new things about Linc he can’t even begin to believe that anything could happen. He can’t seem to keep his feelings separate when Linc seems so genuine. When someone uses his worst fears against him Linc does anything he can to show Jonah how he really feels. The family they make with Caylee and other friends at the end of this story is wonderful to see.
Rusty Topsfield did a great job narrating this story. I enjoyed listening and was able to keep track of the stories and characters which is always nice. He was able to portray the characters emotions in his reading.
Cover art by Paul Richmond is nice and follows the pattern for the series.
shile87's review
2.0
And so it begins
Time of death 70%.
It is me not the book! or maybe it is the book.
After reading so many books lately that don't have the typical, Crush on straight guy-date-kiss-sex-then the 70% miscommunication-Draaaaaaama LLaaaaama! I just couldn't continue anymore.
What can i say, i have been spoiled with books where MC's TALK! not jump into conclusions and literally ran off.
All i wanted was a sweet no drama little romance, too bad!
Or i am just grumpy and miss my dark corner and my dark passenger needs to be fed soon or is gonna be a DNF festival.
Time of death 70%.
It is me not the book! or maybe it is the book.
After reading so many books lately that don't have the typical, Crush on straight guy-date-kiss-sex-then the 70% miscommunication-Draaaaaaama LLaaaaama! I just couldn't continue anymore.
What can i say, i have been spoiled with books where MC's TALK! not jump into conclusions and literally ran off.
All i wanted was a sweet no drama little romance, too bad!
Or i am just grumpy and miss my dark corner and my dark passenger needs to be fed soon or is gonna be a DNF festival.
the_novel_approach's review against another edition
4.0
Yea! I’m loving these Dreamspun Desires books so far, and The Cattle Baron’s Bogus Boyfriend is no exception. This book is a classic boss/secretary-with-a-crush trope, with all the cowboy goodness thrown in as well.
Hot as hell millionaire boss? Check. “Country” boy leaving town for the big city? Check. Best friend dating a douche? Check. Harpy and narcissistic girlfriend? Check! Manipulative step-mother? Check. Crush on the boss? Check. Big misunderstanding/miscommunication? Check. Reconciliation that makes everything right with the world? Check.
But then we bring in the new twists. Jonah is Linc’s Admin. He’s going to college in the evenings and working in Dallas after leaving his family farm in his teeny tiny home town in Oklahoma—where they are not so supportive of the gay. He’s left his BF Caylee behind, largely to alleviate problems that surfaced with her homophobic boyfriend. He’s been lucky enough to find some great roommates (Wes, Aidan and Sammy) and get a great job through a temp agency, which brings him to Linc.
Linc Courtwright is a millionaire cattle rancher and also has a gas and oil leasing business on the side. He also has a demanding rodeo rider girlfriend, Melissa, who isn’t very nice to Jonah. Let this be a lesson—if your SO treats your AA like crap, RUN!!! Finally, Linc has had enough and a confrontation leads to a breakup, and Melissa pretty much promises to get revenge.
Jonah and Linc are both embarrassed, but they work well together, and Linc really appreciates Jonah’s hard work and wants to reward him. Jonah always goes above and beyond, and he and Linc begin spending more and more time together. Jonah gets a raise, and Linc invites him out to the ranch to see the operations that he’s always working on at the office in Dallas. This visit is the catalyst for a number of things—some serious and some comical. Wes is the best comic relief in this story, and he deserves his own book for sure (hint, hint, Ms. Bennett).
It turns out that Linc is not as straight as Jonah thought. When Jonah finds out that Linc is bi, he begins to hope that the relationship they are forging might be more than friends. When Linc invites him to the Cattle Baron’s Ball, Jonah is reluctant to accept. He’s truly not sure of Linc’s motives. There are some other required social engagements that Jonah is to attend as well, and despite Heloise, Linc’s stepmother, doing her best to belittle Jonah, he still manages to have a good time.
Then things begin to go south—waaaaay south. There are some manipulations, some avoidance and some complications that threaten Linc and Jonah’s fledgling romance. Luckily, this is a Dreamspun Desires book, so all’s well that ends well.
This was such an enjoyable read. Even though I pretty much knew what was going to happen, the ride was so fun! That is the great thing about these tropes: while there are so many required elements, it’s the twists and turns between them that keep us reading. Jonah is, of course, adorable. His roommates are helpful and nosy. His boss is a “dreamboat” and a nice guy. His BFF, Caylee, is a sweetheart who is down on her luck. Linc’s stepmother is judgmental and a little bit mean, while Jonah’s folks haven’t kicked him out or anything—they just don’t understand. Melissa is a bit of a shrew, which is why we root against her. But each character gets to have moments in this story, and that’s what brings it all together to be so satisfying. Welcome back, Nicki Bennett! I hope we get more fun stories from you. And I really, really want Wes’s story in another book, please. He’s an awesome character with the best t-shirt collection I’ve ever read.
Reviewed by Sadonna for The Novel Approach Reviews
http://www.thenovelapproachreviews.com/review-the-cattle-barons-bogus-boyfriend-by-nicki-bennet/
Hot as hell millionaire boss? Check. “Country” boy leaving town for the big city? Check. Best friend dating a douche? Check. Harpy and narcissistic girlfriend? Check! Manipulative step-mother? Check. Crush on the boss? Check. Big misunderstanding/miscommunication? Check. Reconciliation that makes everything right with the world? Check.
But then we bring in the new twists. Jonah is Linc’s Admin. He’s going to college in the evenings and working in Dallas after leaving his family farm in his teeny tiny home town in Oklahoma—where they are not so supportive of the gay. He’s left his BF Caylee behind, largely to alleviate problems that surfaced with her homophobic boyfriend. He’s been lucky enough to find some great roommates (Wes, Aidan and Sammy) and get a great job through a temp agency, which brings him to Linc.
Linc Courtwright is a millionaire cattle rancher and also has a gas and oil leasing business on the side. He also has a demanding rodeo rider girlfriend, Melissa, who isn’t very nice to Jonah. Let this be a lesson—if your SO treats your AA like crap, RUN!!! Finally, Linc has had enough and a confrontation leads to a breakup, and Melissa pretty much promises to get revenge.
Jonah and Linc are both embarrassed, but they work well together, and Linc really appreciates Jonah’s hard work and wants to reward him. Jonah always goes above and beyond, and he and Linc begin spending more and more time together. Jonah gets a raise, and Linc invites him out to the ranch to see the operations that he’s always working on at the office in Dallas. This visit is the catalyst for a number of things—some serious and some comical. Wes is the best comic relief in this story, and he deserves his own book for sure (hint, hint, Ms. Bennett).
It turns out that Linc is not as straight as Jonah thought. When Jonah finds out that Linc is bi, he begins to hope that the relationship they are forging might be more than friends. When Linc invites him to the Cattle Baron’s Ball, Jonah is reluctant to accept. He’s truly not sure of Linc’s motives. There are some other required social engagements that Jonah is to attend as well, and despite Heloise, Linc’s stepmother, doing her best to belittle Jonah, he still manages to have a good time.
Then things begin to go south—waaaaay south. There are some manipulations, some avoidance and some complications that threaten Linc and Jonah’s fledgling romance. Luckily, this is a Dreamspun Desires book, so all’s well that ends well.
This was such an enjoyable read. Even though I pretty much knew what was going to happen, the ride was so fun! That is the great thing about these tropes: while there are so many required elements, it’s the twists and turns between them that keep us reading. Jonah is, of course, adorable. His roommates are helpful and nosy. His boss is a “dreamboat” and a nice guy. His BFF, Caylee, is a sweetheart who is down on her luck. Linc’s stepmother is judgmental and a little bit mean, while Jonah’s folks haven’t kicked him out or anything—they just don’t understand. Melissa is a bit of a shrew, which is why we root against her. But each character gets to have moments in this story, and that’s what brings it all together to be so satisfying. Welcome back, Nicki Bennett! I hope we get more fun stories from you. And I really, really want Wes’s story in another book, please. He’s an awesome character with the best t-shirt collection I’ve ever read.
Reviewed by Sadonna for The Novel Approach Reviews
http://www.thenovelapproachreviews.com/review-the-cattle-barons-bogus-boyfriend-by-nicki-bennet/
teenykins's review against another edition
2.0
So I was itching for some M/M Harlequin so Dreamspinner's Dreamspun Desires should be the bomb right? WRONG, at least for this book.
I've read alot, and I mean *ALOT* of Harlequin romances and though some were disappointing, NONE had such a stupid misunderstanding out of freaking NOWHERE with no effing base!!! The book started great, it continued great and when the time for the misunderstanding came it was so OTT and it dived into unbelievable that I skimmed everything passed that and I didn't even cared for the HEA.
Jonah was portrayed throughout the book as a solid character, with the typical heroine self-esteem issues when it comes toward her crush, but after Eloise's phone call that lead to the misunderstand, he made one stupid decision after another it was just unbelievably stupid.
*spoilers ahead*
Linc was and still is a mystery to me. He is apparently bi, but we only learn that around 40%. By the end of the book and after spending the night with Jonah, Linc was ready to marry him. WHAT?! How? When?
When exactly Linc's feelings grew to that proportion? Is getting lunch/dinners with your employee and not discussing work during them count as a date now? Shouldn't the other party know that it was thought as that? Do long phone calls without flirting but talking about their day count as phone-sex? What did I miss exactly that spelled Linc's desire to marry Jonah?
Also something else that annoyed me is the undetermined age of Linc.
PS: Oh can someone point me to those multi-millionaire companies that take temp-workers, make them administrative assistants WITHOUT a degree in this day and age, 'cos I'd like to work for them and I'll bring my college degree as well.
I've read alot, and I mean *ALOT* of Harlequin romances and though some were disappointing, NONE had such a stupid misunderstanding out of freaking NOWHERE with no effing base!!! The book started great, it continued great and when the time for the misunderstanding came it was so OTT and it dived into unbelievable that I skimmed everything passed that and I didn't even cared for the HEA.
Jonah was portrayed throughout the book as a solid character, with the typical heroine self-esteem issues when it comes toward her crush, but after Eloise's phone call that lead to the misunderstand, he made one stupid decision after another it was just unbelievably stupid.
*spoilers ahead*
Linc was and still is a mystery to me. He is apparently bi, but we only learn that around 40%. By the end of the book and after spending the night with Jonah, Linc was ready to marry him. WHAT?! How? When?
When exactly Linc's feelings grew to that proportion? Is getting lunch/dinners with your employee and not discussing work during them count as a date now? Shouldn't the other party know that it was thought as that? Do long phone calls without flirting but talking about their day count as phone-sex? What did I miss exactly that spelled Linc's desire to marry Jonah?
Also something else that annoyed me is the undetermined age of Linc.
PS: Oh can someone point me to those multi-millionaire companies that take temp-workers, make them administrative assistants WITHOUT a degree in this day and age, 'cos I'd like to work for them and I'll bring my college degree as well.
swamphag's review against another edition
3.0
The fake relationship trope is one of my favorite tropes ever because I really like reading about how people get to know each other and fall in love. That’s the best part of any romance for me so this trope nails it. It also has a bit of a Cinderella/unexpected romance going on so that was pretty great too.
All in all I thought this book was lining up to be a slam dunk 5 out of 5 stars, but then the last part of the book was a disaster. To be honest the book was pretty disjointed and it was almost as if the book was written by two different people.
The beginning was sooo great and had the whole Cinderella/Fake Dating thing going on and the writing was really good. I loved Jonah and his friends and the whole setup until about 75% of the way through the book. After that it became a bit of a hot mess and was so stupid I wish I could have DNFed it.
If the ending was different and less… hasty I would have for sure given this four stars at least, but the ending was way too rushed. Too much got resolved too quickly and to be quite honest the book had a little bit too much going on that didn’t really add to the plot or get addressed. I feel like the author wanted a twist so they added like twenty at once and it made it dissatisfying after reading the first half of the book.
It was an incredible waste because of how good the rest of the book was, but if you are into drama you might like it more than I did.
Originally posted over at JLR: https://justloveromance.wordpress.com/2016/05/31/cattle-baron-bogus-boyfriend-bennett/
All in all I thought this book was lining up to be a slam dunk 5 out of 5 stars, but then the last part of the book was a disaster. To be honest the book was pretty disjointed and it was almost as if the book was written by two different people.
The beginning was sooo great and had the whole Cinderella/Fake Dating thing going on and the writing was really good. I loved Jonah and his friends and the whole setup until about 75% of the way through the book. After that it became a bit of a hot mess and was so stupid I wish I could have DNFed it.
If the ending was different and less… hasty I would have for sure given this four stars at least, but the ending was way too rushed. Too much got resolved too quickly and to be quite honest the book had a little bit too much going on that didn’t really add to the plot or get addressed. I feel like the author wanted a twist so they added like twenty at once and it made it dissatisfying after reading the first half of the book.
It was an incredible waste because of how good the rest of the book was, but if you are into drama you might like it more than I did.
Originally posted over at JLR: https://justloveromance.wordpress.com/2016/05/31/cattle-baron-bogus-boyfriend-bennett/
anitalouise's review
4.0
Very sweet. One of the reasons, aside from the lack of real sexy time, I stopped reading Harlequins so many years ago is because so many books used the old assumptions which lead to misunderstandings as part of the action. Made me absolutely crazy. Found myself yelling "just talk to him/her, ffs!" I experienced a little of that in this book which is quite funny since the Dreamspun Desires series are supposed to mimic, in many ways, those old romances. Jonah works for Lincoln Courtwright and has had a crush on him for months. But Linc is straight and has a rather high maintenance girlfriend. Jonah has some lovely supportive friends. That's another thing I like about the Dreamspun books. Of those I've read, the MCs are surrounded by a stellar cast of well drawn friends. So much so, that I am hoping for a book with Wes and Ford from this book. Anyway, Jonah thinks of himself as blah, ordinary and just plods on through life. He grew up in a small town in Oklahoma that wasn't terribly welcoming when he finally came out. Anyway, Linc needs a date at the Cattle Baron's ball. Who does he choose??? Such a sweet book. Great MCs - funnily enough I like Jonah a lot better than Linc but that may be because, for me, Jonah was much more of a 3D character than Linc. Sexy time was sweet and though it comes late in the book, that was totally fine. Strong writing, good action, laugh out loud dialogue and great MCs.