Jodi's Reviews > Calder Brand

The book is a western, and from what appears to be a spin off of a larger series. irst book read in this series. I have not previously read about the Calders. I received this from Netgalley - thank you. The book takes off from the beginning and does a good job following Joe and Sarah. The relationship develops and is interesting to see the interactions. Joe Dollarhide is nearly 16 when readers meet him on a cattle drive from Texas headed to Montana. He is left for dead after a freak thunderstorm and vows vengeance against Bentsen Calder, who made the decision not to check more thoroughly for him. He falls into bad company later and is shot. Taken to aspiring doctor Sarah Foxworth in Ogallala, Nebraska, he recovers and falls in love. However, the course of true love never does run smoothly, and Joe and Sarah are separated by circumstances. The plot was well thought out and developed, and kept me engaged the entire time. The timeline was what I enjoyed most. Because this book followed Joe from 16 to 28 years old, nothing about the plot was rushed. Not usually a Western book reader and this was engaging and well laid out. I enjoyed Joe's time learning the training of the stallions and the gentle nature approach versus the breaking. Nice book to read during these troubling times. I did enjoy it and want to thank Netgalley for the opportunity to provide an honest review of this ARC.