Red Rock Ranch (Red Rock Ranch, #1)

by Brittney Joy

[Nicole Lynn]

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Final Grade: B+
Read Why below:

This read was a true summer beach book. It's a quick read about a sixteen-year-old girl finding her confidence and strengths. Lucy is a lover of horses and excited to be at the ranch for the summer working as a stable-hand. In the beginning she's trying to find her place among the people at the ranch--feeling a little alone and homesick. Until one day while out on a trail ride and a mysterious and dangerous horse appears. Casey is able to rope him down the mountain to the ranch where Lucy finds a connection with the black horse. After a few days she begins to gain his trust and Lucy finds a kindred-soul.

I really enjoyed seeing Lucy's struggle to gain the horse's trust and eventually have him riding in a race. Lucy's growth as a character came out really well as she worked with the black horse she perfectly named Chance. The novel seemed to focus more on Lucy and Chance then it really did with Lucy and Casey.

With Lucy and Casey's romance it was a little unclear at some parts. It really seemed like a one-sided affair from Lucy until close to the end. I never really saw any hints from Casey that he liked her. It was mostly him being nice to her and helping her out with Chance. The novel was written in first person so this could be a reason why Casey's interest in Lucy as more than a friend didn't come out as clear to the reader.

The only real problems I had with the novel were the ending and my overall interest. First, with the ending I felt it was cut very abruptly. I didn't find that the story actually closed. It was like 'oh wait it ended?' I had no idea the story was over until when I went to swipe to the next page nothing appeared. I was a little confused on why Joy would end the novel right at that moment. It seemed like something else needed to be said or shown to the reader.

Secondly, my overall interest in the novel was weak. Although it was a cute read, it isn't one I'd see myself rereading. I enjoyed the challenging-horse story line with a little romance thrown in, but it just didn't hold my interest in it to leave me wanting to revisit the story. It might be that the story just wasn't in my current genre or maybe that I've outgrown this type of story line. Either way it was a nice read that I would recommend to others. It just wasn't a comeback read for me.