Hold Me, Cowboy by Maisey Yates

Hold Me, Cowboy is the continuation of the Copper Ridge series. The series seem to circle around a couple groups of people, so I'm not clear on if this is the end or not. Sadly, I missed the one before this, and it's the one I'd most like to know the story on!  I started Hold Me, Cowboy several weeks ago, and through no fault of the book, set it aside and forgot about it. Occasionally, I like to go through and finish up anything I've started, and swept this one up again.

Here's the summary:
Oil and water have nothing on Sam McCormack and Madison West. The wealthy rancher has never met a haughtier—or more appealing—woman in his life. And when they're snowed in, he's forced to admit this ice queen can scorch him with one touch…

Madison had plans for the weekend! Instead she's stranded with a man who drives her wild. A night of no-strings fun leaves both of them wanting more when they return to Copper Ridge. His proposal: twelve days of hot sex before Christmas! But will it ever be enough?

So I didn't really like Madison in the previous books, and the other book with Sam (his brother's book) is the one book in the series that I DNF, so going into this my expectations were not high. Madison is just a total bitch, and she knows it. Amazingly, Yates is able to take her from a bitch to someone you can understand, who is a bitch for good reason. Madison learns early that men can't be trusted and that even if they were equally complicit in scandal that the blame will be unevenly places (very Scarlet Letter.) She's ready to start enjoying life again after a decade of playing the ice queen, and the first man she finds is Sam.

Sam doesn't like Maddy, because he buys into her persona. Sam doesn't like to admit that he has emotion, and as an artist he's completely blocked without admitting he is feeling things. He's determined to fight his way through artist's block without thinking about the things he's pushed down. When he starts this 12 day affair with Maddy it forces him to realize that by ignoring what he feels, he'll be in the same place looking in forever. I liked Sam quite a bit. He's bluntly honest about everyone's life but his own, and doesn't take anything from Maddy.

Is the romance believable? It is very fast (WHAT IS WITH FAST IN EVERY BOOK???) and the climatic ending is fairly anti-climatic. It is true that they have known each other for a long time, and the 12 days are very emotionally intense so I suppose it is entirely possible. Is it a satisfactory ending to the Copper Ridge series? No, I really need to see Daddy West get his, but as everyone pairs up and has babies it seems that the end is nigh without that bit of resolution. Would I recommend the series as a whole? Yes-- but only to someone who has already developed a love for a small intertwined town. I would not recommend this one to a new reader as it is very hit or miss.

Hold Me, Cowboy comes out on November 8th.