Monday, June 16, 2008

Faall in love with a cowboy

I live in the Texas Hill Country, where ranching is the primary business. Although we have only five acres and no cattle ()but we do have a herd of deer and a tame raccoon as well as a family of cave swalllows), we are surrounded by some of the biggest ranches in the area. In the good ol' days the cowboy was the glue that held the West together. Ranchers would hire cowboys to keep a watchful eye over the herds on the wide open range. Although the addition of the fenced in herds has removed some of the need for cowboys, you can still see the skills that these old cowboys had by attending a rodeo. Even today cowboys show off their talent with bullriding, using the lasso, and roping and tying steers. The herding technique was brought over to the New World in the early 15th century by the Spanish and used by Americans who had to control large herds of cattle over a wide open space. The traditional cowboy look didn't come about until after the Mexican-American War in the 1850s.

Many of the ranchers around here, whther they raise cutting horses or Tennessee Walkers or Santa Gertrudis or Charollais cattle, have been kind en ough to elt me visit their ranches and give me an insight into what today's cowboy lifestyle is all about. Many of them have excellent ranch m,anagers that allow the owners to have dual careers, like Ryan Cutter in Love With a Proper Rancher. Here's a taste for you of my cowboys, published by The Wild Rose Press and available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other online book stores. And be suire to visit me at http://www.judithrochelle.com/

Love With a Proper Rancher
All Paige Cavanaugh wanted in life was a fairy tale romance with a happily ending. Too bad she kept getting frogs
instead of princes. Running from the wedding, she finds herself out of gas in the little West Texas town of White Tail.
She’s sworn off men, but here comes sexy, mouth-watering, let-me-drag-you-into-my-bed rancher/attorney Ryan Cutter,
a meeting closer to warfare than romance. When they least expect it, passion explodes between them and the rules of the
game suddenly change. But how will this fragile relationship survive when the jilted fiancé, hungry to complete his
business deal, shows up prepared to drag Paige back to the altar?
Cutter’s Law
Morgan Cutter’s disastrous marriage has soured him on permanent relationships. Especially with women who
think life begins and ends in “the city.” He is perfectly content with his life as Chief of Police in tiny White Tail, Texas,
until Allison Moore comes into his life and makes him feel things he hasn’t felt in a long time. A weekend visit to San
Antonio with her turns into a catastrophe and convinces him he’d been right in the first place. Allie has fallen in love
with the tall, hunky lawman, and has quit her job and moved to White Tail to begin her pursuit of him. Only now his exwife
shows up with a string of bad guys on her tail!
One Hot Texas Night
Tate Donovan was sure The Yellow Rose ranch would be his when his father died. After all, he’d grown up there
and it was his legacy. But Abby Culhane was King’s stepdaughter for many years and held a place in the old man’s heart
right up to the end. When King leaves her one fourth of the ranch and Tate’s grandparents’ home, Tate is shocked. Then
he sees the grown-up Abby and can’t decide whether he wants to fight her over the will or take her to bed. The entire
town of White Tail, Texas rolls up its sleeves and sits back to watch the fireworks.
Shadow of the Hawk
Hawk Riley’s life is in a downward spiral until his truck falls on him and he meets Maggie Devereaux. Maggie has
problems of her own. Lots of them. A neighbor is out to destroy her. On the verge of losing her cutting horse ranch, she
needs help to prepare for the Wayback Grand Rodeo, her make-it-or-break-it moment. Pursued by a red tailed hawk and
haunted by a persistent nightmare, can Hawk help Maggie save Mercy Creek and in doing so, save himself?
So come visit my cowboys. They'll spice up your life.

8 comments:

Cindy K. Green said...

I've read a couple of Judith's cowboy books and they are wonderful! How great that you are able to get onto those ranches and see what life for them is really like.

Wendi said...

Judith, I love cowboys! And yours ROCK! Now, I know why. :)

Wendi Darlin

Cindy Spencer Pape said...

Gotta love those cowboys!

Phoenix said...

Something about those cowboys. Yum.

Regina Carlysle said...

I've written a number of hot Texas cowboys lately and have read yours as well. There's just something HOT about a slow talkin', slow walkin', slow kissin' man. Your cowboys always make me sigh. You nail them every time.

Judith Rochelle said...

Thanks for all the great comments, everyone. I wish I could send you each a cowboy!

Mary Ellen Ashman said...

Oh for the love of a cowboy! The era of the cattle drives in Texas history fascinates me. Charles Goodnight- let me climb on board!! LOL
My dream is to someday go to Texas and visit the various museums Someday. Until then I'll read the novels!

Anonymous said...

Thanks, Judith, for the excellent insight into cowboys. When I was a child I lived in the Whitney area, near Hillsboro. That's north of the Hill Country, right?

I set my book, Heart of Stone, in the Hill Country of Texas because it has always sounded so romantic to me. I hope my research payed off in the descriptives I used. :-)

Sandra Kay