Under the bright arena lights of a rodeo show, young Avelina Belo falls for a handsome cowboy with a larger-than-life personality. After a whirlwind courtship, she happily moves away from her family in northern California and settles into married life with her cowboy on a seven-thousand-acre cattle ranch in Montana. One freak accident later, Avelina's hopes for the future come to an end.
Nate Myers graduated from UCLA medical school at the top of his class, ready to follow in the footsteps of his father, a superstar cardiothoracic surgeon. Six years later, Nate's career is being ruined by a malpractice suit. Questioning himself for the first time, he retreats to a Montana cattle ranch to visit his uncle and gain perspective. There, he meets a beautiful young woman named Avelina who teaches him more than he ever knew about matters of the heart.
The beginning of this book is so tragic. I was near weeping. Avelina had lost so much, so soon, and was not healing at all. I was elated when Nate entered the picture and helped her bandage the wounds and acknowledge that she still has some living to do.
I liked Nate a lot more than Avelina. He grew a ton, but didn't have to do it at the expense of others. He also wore his heart on his sleeve when it came to Avelina, and my heart could not resist all that swoon worthy stuff.
Overall, I enjoyed this book. There was a lot of drama, tension, romance (seriously, 12 months of letters), but I was frustrated by how many times Avelina changed her mind. I know she had the right to be wary, but all the rebuffing went on for way too long for me.
