Why aren’t these novels rated X if they contain explicit sex scenes?
Book Blurb:
Every Christmas, Red Hart Ranch opens their doors, and Montana provides the perfect backdrop for good company and better food. But this year, the table won’t be as full.
Eve Beaumont is a twin heir to Red Hart Ranch. She loves the land, loves the people, and will do anything for them. Christmas sees most of the ranch hands return to their own homes to celebrate. Only a few long term cowboys remain with the family.
When Eve and her brother Trav go into town to collect supplies, they each bring home a drifter for Christmas. Rhys Archer and Simon Haldon are as different as two cowpokes can be. One rough edged who can work the land and animals with a firm hand; the other a smooth talker with a devilish charm. Eve finds both men attractive against her better judgement, but when tragedy hits the ranch, romance is the last thing on her mind.
Vandalisms happen around the ranch, and Eve isn’t sure who she can trust. She knows neither man is who he pretends to be — but when no one listens to her, she has to prove her suspicions on her own.
My Review:
Still wish there was some kind of content rating for books as there are for movies. I may be among the minority when I say this book was WAY over my censor level for sexual content. I’m not a fan of strong adult or language content and whatever possessed me to download a book in a romance genre is beyond me.
The blurb tells you there is a plot—but no mystery here—it can’t be more obvious. The main character, Eve, is twenty-five and horny. It’s nearing Christmas and one of the two drifters (not Montana cowboys) they’ve taken in for the holidays is yanking her chain. The other would like to. Ugh.
There are so many contradictions, omissions, edit misses and plot holes, I was constantly trying to “fix” as I went along. Eve is one of a fraternal twin, immature, obnoxious, and did I mention horny? They have a deer ranch—and bison. Huh? And wait—hoping for a white Christmas? The white can happen prior to Halloween up there.
Some of the descriptions of the area pull you in, then throw you right back out with another inconsistency. (“He picked leaves out of my hair.” Yeah, leaves. In December. In Montana.) It’s a tell not show and dialogue is weak. Eve is petulant, scattered, and clumsy. Most characters are one-dimensional, the ranch hands thrown in for elusive background.
The conclusion makes as little sense as most of the rest of the narrative, (it appears to be a vehicle for the graphic sex scene). The whole thing would have benefited from several more editors.
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. These are my honest thoughts. I won’t be reading another.
Book Details:
Genre: Holiday Fiction, Western Romance
Publisher: Little Quail Press
- ASIN : B08CVFJZ4Q
Print Length: 212 pages
Publication Date: December 1, 2020
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link: Snow on the Range [Amazon]
The Author: Sofia is a romantic suspense author from Brisbane, Australia. She started writing romance when she couldn’t find the books she wanted on the shelves in her local bookstore and became addicted to story telling. She exists on a diet of coffee and champagne and routinely kills her collection of orchids. sofiaaves.com
©2021 V Williams 
Ugghh explicit scenes… More than required? Not for me. I sometimes hear audiobooks on my speaker. Can you imagine parents hearing such a scene? Hence audio is thrillers only
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not for me either–i couldn’t believe what i was reading. yeah, not for parents. i had a very Victorian mother. no profanity much less sex.
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Mum is okay. Dad… I would cringe. Most times while watching TV… I end up forwarding the sexy bits. Hehehe
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my dad wasn’t there, but i certainly took care around my mother.
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I can handle explicit sex scenes if it’s a good book but wanting to edit as you read and a failing plot… I will give this one a miss. Thanks for your review.
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It is explicit but so many problems that hadn’t been cleaned up and so obvious…thank you for the comment.
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I agree about content warnings. I’ve started many a book only to be put off by the over the top graphic language and explicit sex scenes. That’s not what makes a good book to me.
Thanks for the honest review.
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Thank you for the comment…guess I went on a bit of a rant but i thot it was going to be about a Montana Christmas and was very disappointed when I got into it.
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It didn’t sound like a rant to me at all. It sounded like a person who was disappointed by a book that suggested one thing but delivered something else entirely. I feel just like you when I find myself reading some salacious book that I wasn’t expecting. 🙄 I’m not one who craves the debauchery, so I truly appreciated your opinion. 🙂
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Wow! Thank you! That’s it exactly and I couldn’t have said it better.
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