Book Reviews

Book Blurb

George Lester, the Duke of Northumberland, flees familial expectations in Britain for the promise of freedom of San Francisco, looking for the chance to be himself. But before he even gets close, a blizzard forces him off the road, and he finds himself freezing half to death in a small town with no motel… with a litter of puppies to look after.

Luckily for George, he also finds Alan.

As the heir to his family’s ranch, Alan Justice knows the burden of being the oldest son. He doesn’t have time to show George, the stranger his brother dragged home, what it takes to be a cowboy. But that very night, George surprises him by helping a mare in distress through a difficult birth. Maybe the duke is made of sterner stuff than Alan thought.

George and Alan keep surprising each other, and every day they grow a little closer. But when George’s responsibilities call him home, Alan finds he’s the one who has something to prove—that he can handle what it means to be the duke’s cowboy. 

 

Book Review

Were this review not constricted in size, and were my attempts at erudition not limited by editorial standards (and my humble ego) I would entertain you with a discourse on Romance, its relationship to the style of romanticized writing, heavy on emotional fiction. As approaches to romance – personal or literary (or perhaps even musical) – seem variable in the extreme, I recommend (or rashly condemn?) you to a dictionary. Suffice it to say that works with unusual settings, mysterious personae (at least to each other), growing and captive feelings, including physiologic interactions, all seem both commercially and colloquially romantic – and a little sexual intercourse ain’t far amiss.

 

Those familiar with Andrew Grey’s general opus know his talent at story telling featuring genuine people with true feelings, expressed realistically. What his characters do, so might we, and which are unlikely to be featured piquantly on some t—room walls. Nonetheless, it works.

 

Meet an English traveler, George, new to snowy Wyoming. “The back tires slid again, kicking the old truck out to the side. … He was in trouble. The snow was getting heavier and the highway more dangerous.” Yes. Literati will remember the classic – “It was a dark and stormy night.” Big deal! But the opening style nicely sets the scene. And the place is quickly contrasted to George’s emotional connection to his home – particularly as he is in great need to pee, which as he does roadside, allows him to find an abandoned mother dog and her puppies. Note an author’s old trick, revealing humanity by treatment of needy animals. Works every time! This allows a cleaver introduction to Chip, a member of the family which will provide overnight board and an introduction to our remaining cast. With Chip’s widowed mother Maureen and older brother Alan, they operate a cattle ranch.

 

Alan is wonderfully limned by the author as a detailed cowboy with rough hands that stir George’s attraction, and “a tight ass of stone encased in a pair of low-slung jeans.” While Alan seems guarded, George becomes surprisingly useful during the emergency birth of a foal. This leads to further disclosure of George’s English agricultural background, and other farm knowledge. Andrew Grey, with the necessary talents of skill and style, proceeds to introduce people, problems, relationships. All flow with rational order. We know that George is a titled Englishman, and when the weather forces him to extend his stay with his hosts, he chips in with services acquired through his background – ingratiating himself. And the reader witnesses a portrait of rural America hospitality fringed with caution, but also neighborly assistance when needed. George: “Where I come from, everyone helps when necessary. Even me.”

 

Almost episodic, the tale proceeds with issues, problems, disclosure of character facets (such as George being comfortably and openly gay), and relationships. Providing too much detail would be much as stealing bread from your table, so no reader will be disappointed. The characters are disclosed fully, and become the readers’ friends. Then, at the appropriate time, as affection blooms, George is revealed on TV by Netflix. Maureen: “I have just one question. What the hell is the Duke of Northumberland doing in Covington, Wyoming?” And too soon, George must return to England.

 

At the heart of the tale is identifying parallelism as a main literary trait. We see common wants and obligations, permitting comparisons to places and problems, but more important, it poses an investigation of truths. So, correction, as parallel lines never meet, take comfort that Alan and George's will do otherwise. The next portion of the novel is set in England, and a fine read. There, too, we have a villain – George’s mother who is (incompatibly) deliciously unpleasant.

 

Oh, hell. A clue – all will end well and getting there will be wonderful. Enough of my menu, open the book and chow down on the meal.

 

Notes:

 

1. Sweet double biography, told as a single story. It is a love story, but sufficiently realistic as to be identifiable to most readers. And there is sex! George: “I am many things. But I am not, nor have I ever been a tease… I intend to put out, unless you decide it’s too much and go running from the room.”

 

2. Exploring an apocalyptic end, I am mindful of Yeats’ classic poetic phrase – “turning and turning in the widening gyre.” In a varied application, Andrew Grey provides a cyclonic centering of the heroes’ desires and focusing of their intentions, until happy stability is attained.

 

3. Odd to the end, Alan – stoic, good-heated and true to his word – is an exemplar of an American hero – a gay man perhaps best described by a misnomer: as straight as an arrow!

 

4. Huzzah! Good writing about coitus is an exercise attempting the portrayal of emotional expression and physiological reaction. It is tempting to lift sexy quotes, especially for the reader drawn to self-pleasure (tsk, tsk) but it may also offer reference to experience, evoking a stronger connection to the reality of the text. Author Grey does an excellent job of this communication.

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by the author for the purpose of a review.

 

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novel, 177 pages/67984 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	05-March-2024
Price	$6.99 ebook, $16.99 paperback
Buy Link	https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/the-dukes-cowboy-by-andrew-grey-12431-b