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Rodeo Rebels #3
A Rodeo Man's Promise
Hot, Young Cowboy…
Winning dominated Riley Fitzgerald's mind…until the day he met Maria Alvarez. Now, all the rodeo champ can think about is winning Maria's heart—a task that may be tougher than busting broncs.
Beautiful, Older Teacher…
As a struggling teacher of at-risk teens in an impoverished, gang-infested neighborhood, Maria doesn't trust the affections of a rich, hot-shot cowboy, especially one who's ten years her junior. But she can't deny the attraction between them—and luckily, Riley's never been one to back down from a challenge.
Is She Out Of Her Mind?
There's only one thing that's more important to Riley than earning another world title, and that's earning Maria's trust. He's got one chance to prove to Maria that he's all the man she'll ever need, and she's the only woman he'll ever want.
Winning dominated Riley Fitzgerald's mind…until the day he met Maria Alvarez. Now, all the rodeo champ can think about is winning Maria's heart—a task that may be tougher than busting broncs.
Beautiful, Older Teacher…
As a struggling teacher of at-risk teens in an impoverished, gang-infested neighborhood, Maria doesn't trust the affections of a rich, hot-shot cowboy, especially one who's ten years her junior. But she can't deny the attraction between them—and luckily, Riley's never been one to back down from a challenge.
Is She Out Of Her Mind?
There's only one thing that's more important to Riley than earning another world title, and that's earning Maria's trust. He's got one chance to prove to Maria that he's all the man she'll ever need, and she's the only woman he'll ever want.
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
7 people are currently reading
160 people want to read
About the author
Marin Thomas
108 books672 followersWelcome to my corner of Goodreads!
I was born in Janesville, Wisconsin. I played D-I Basketball for the University of Arizona in Tucson then married my college sweetheart in a five-minute ceremony in Las Vegas. My husband and I are empty nesters living in Phoenix, Arizona.
I've written two women's fiction novels for Berkley Books and contemporary romances for Harlequin Books and Tule Publishing. To date I've published over 40 books. My women's fiction novel, The Promise of Forgiveness, won First Place in the 2017 Book Buyer's Best contest. My second novel, The Future She Left Behind was featured on Southern Living "Books we can't wait to read this fall" list and "was the Award Winner in the "Fiction: Chick Lit/Women's Lit" category of the 2017 Best Book Awards."
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Keep up to date on all my writing news, travels and my obsession with Route 66 sign up for my Newsletter at https://www.marinthomas.com/sign-up-f...
I was born in Janesville, Wisconsin. I played D-I Basketball for the University of Arizona in Tucson then married my college sweetheart in a five-minute ceremony in Las Vegas. My husband and I are empty nesters living in Phoenix, Arizona.
I've written two women's fiction novels for Berkley Books and contemporary romances for Harlequin Books and Tule Publishing. To date I've published over 40 books. My women's fiction novel, The Promise of Forgiveness, won First Place in the 2017 Book Buyer's Best contest. My second novel, The Future She Left Behind was featured on Southern Living "Books we can't wait to read this fall" list and "was the Award Winner in the "Fiction: Chick Lit/Women's Lit" category of the 2017 Best Book Awards."
Come hang out with me...
FB https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marin-...
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/marinthomas...
Keep up to date on all my writing news, travels and my obsession with Route 66 sign up for my Newsletter at https://www.marinthomas.com/sign-up-f...
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
September 10, 2013
Synopsis
Riley Fitzgerald is a twenty-five-year-old bronc rider in the rodeo circuit who comes from Kentucky whiskey and horse-breeding money. He knows he is fortunate that he doesn't have to work for a living, and can pursue his love of rodeo, but his father is leaning on him to join the family business. Riley wants one more Rodeo Championship win behind him before he'll think of moving on from rodeo, even though he doesn't know what career he'll ultimately settle on. When his plane sustains in-flight damage, he is forced to land near a derelict parts warehouse outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico. There he meets Maria Alvarez, who warns him he is in gang territory.
Maria is a thirty-five-year-old Latina teacher who works with disadvantaged students to help them to get their GEDs, since she believes education is the only way to save them from the dead-end lifestyle of gangs. She is at the warehouse looking for three of her latest students at the gang hangout, and encounters Riley. He's definitely one sexy cowboy, even if she knows he's too young for her. Not to mention he is white and comes from money. How on earth can he understand her values and what it's like being raised in the Albuquerque hood, where she works to keep youngsters from befalling the same fate as her deceased younger brother? She is determined to help to save Cruz, Alonso, and Victor from the cycle of poverty and violence that led to her brother's demise.
Riley becomes a close friend and something more, as he helps her work with the young men. He arranges for them to work and live on a friend's horse ranch while they study for their GEDs. He is intrigued and impressed with the beautiful, sexy, and together older woman, and he's not bothered in the least by the age difference or their different backgrounds. Not only does Riley intend to qualify for and win the Rodeo Championship, but he also plans to win Maria's heart. Maria finds it very hard to resist Riley, because he is gorgeous, fun to be around, and has a good heart. Can she get past the seemingly insurmountable barriers of race, age, and background to find the love of her life with Riley?
Review
A Rodeo Man's Promise was a quick, involving, fulfilling read. Marin Thomas has a breezy style that keeps the story flowing. Riley was a sweetheart. I appreciated the vigorous and vital impact of his youthful masculine energy, but also the fact that he was mature, confident and generous. I loved the fact that he didn't let issues of race and social status stand between him and the woman he wanted. Equally important was the fact that although Riley recognized he was born to privilege, he lacked a sense of arrogance and entitlement because of that. He embraced the fact that he was blessed in his background, and was willing to get outside his privileged upbringing and its accompanying mindset to help to mentor three young Latino boys from the rough part of town.
Maria was a compelling and likable character. The pain of losing her brother had driven her to help youngsters. She was realistic in her wants, needs and desires. I could understand why she would have some fears and reservations about becoming involved with Riley, considering her past hurts and their disparate backgrounds. I loved that Riley was determined and committed to win her trust and to convince her to give them a chance together.
The sparks fly between Maria and Riley and make a great romance. I felt the strong bond between them that transcends any obvious differences. Sometimes you find ‘the one' and they are nothing like you, and that can be a very good thing. In addition, the inclusion of the three teens, Cruz, Victor, and Alonso, with their troubled lives, and hopes and fears for the future, helps to round out the romance and make for a deeper read. The rodeo elements were interesting, and I loved how they became a bridge between Riley and Cruz, the most troubled of the trio of teens. Rodeo is a metaphor for hanging onto one's dreams in life, even when the going gets tough. If you can stay on the bronco for eight seconds, then you can do just about anything. That's a great take home message. A Rodeo Man's Promise is a book I thoroughly enjoyed, and would recommend to readers of romance.
Reviewed for THC Reviews.
http://www.thcreviews.com/cgi-bin/vts...
Riley Fitzgerald is a twenty-five-year-old bronc rider in the rodeo circuit who comes from Kentucky whiskey and horse-breeding money. He knows he is fortunate that he doesn't have to work for a living, and can pursue his love of rodeo, but his father is leaning on him to join the family business. Riley wants one more Rodeo Championship win behind him before he'll think of moving on from rodeo, even though he doesn't know what career he'll ultimately settle on. When his plane sustains in-flight damage, he is forced to land near a derelict parts warehouse outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico. There he meets Maria Alvarez, who warns him he is in gang territory.
Maria is a thirty-five-year-old Latina teacher who works with disadvantaged students to help them to get their GEDs, since she believes education is the only way to save them from the dead-end lifestyle of gangs. She is at the warehouse looking for three of her latest students at the gang hangout, and encounters Riley. He's definitely one sexy cowboy, even if she knows he's too young for her. Not to mention he is white and comes from money. How on earth can he understand her values and what it's like being raised in the Albuquerque hood, where she works to keep youngsters from befalling the same fate as her deceased younger brother? She is determined to help to save Cruz, Alonso, and Victor from the cycle of poverty and violence that led to her brother's demise.
Riley becomes a close friend and something more, as he helps her work with the young men. He arranges for them to work and live on a friend's horse ranch while they study for their GEDs. He is intrigued and impressed with the beautiful, sexy, and together older woman, and he's not bothered in the least by the age difference or their different backgrounds. Not only does Riley intend to qualify for and win the Rodeo Championship, but he also plans to win Maria's heart. Maria finds it very hard to resist Riley, because he is gorgeous, fun to be around, and has a good heart. Can she get past the seemingly insurmountable barriers of race, age, and background to find the love of her life with Riley?
Review
A Rodeo Man's Promise was a quick, involving, fulfilling read. Marin Thomas has a breezy style that keeps the story flowing. Riley was a sweetheart. I appreciated the vigorous and vital impact of his youthful masculine energy, but also the fact that he was mature, confident and generous. I loved the fact that he didn't let issues of race and social status stand between him and the woman he wanted. Equally important was the fact that although Riley recognized he was born to privilege, he lacked a sense of arrogance and entitlement because of that. He embraced the fact that he was blessed in his background, and was willing to get outside his privileged upbringing and its accompanying mindset to help to mentor three young Latino boys from the rough part of town.
Maria was a compelling and likable character. The pain of losing her brother had driven her to help youngsters. She was realistic in her wants, needs and desires. I could understand why she would have some fears and reservations about becoming involved with Riley, considering her past hurts and their disparate backgrounds. I loved that Riley was determined and committed to win her trust and to convince her to give them a chance together.
The sparks fly between Maria and Riley and make a great romance. I felt the strong bond between them that transcends any obvious differences. Sometimes you find ‘the one' and they are nothing like you, and that can be a very good thing. In addition, the inclusion of the three teens, Cruz, Victor, and Alonso, with their troubled lives, and hopes and fears for the future, helps to round out the romance and make for a deeper read. The rodeo elements were interesting, and I loved how they became a bridge between Riley and Cruz, the most troubled of the trio of teens. Rodeo is a metaphor for hanging onto one's dreams in life, even when the going gets tough. If you can stay on the bronco for eight seconds, then you can do just about anything. That's a great take home message. A Rodeo Man's Promise is a book I thoroughly enjoyed, and would recommend to readers of romance.
Reviewed for THC Reviews.
http://www.thcreviews.com/cgi-bin/vts...
August 27, 2016
Good book. I really liked the way that Riley took an interest in Maria's teens and tried to help them. Being independently wealthy, he was never exposed to that side of life. The more time he spent with Maria and the teens, the more he came to admire and love her. He didn't see the age difference as being important. Maria got involved in helping at-risk teens because of the death of her brother. She appreciated Riley's help, but saw no future for them on a personal level. I really liked Riley's plans for after he was done with doing rodeo.
December 14, 2011
The two main characters are Riley, a cowboy, and Maria, a teacher. The two of them cross paths early on in the book and never seem to spend much time apart after their initial meeting. Maria is older than Riley by about 10yrs but that doesn't stop the young cowboy from pursuing her. Having had a failed engagement Maria is very guarded and tries hard not to let Riley in. The two grow closer as Riley helps Maria and the at risk teens she works with.
Although this book is a romance novel there isn't too much adult situations and is a pretty innocent read. The book is short and to the point, but tells a great story. I kind of wished there was a part two to see where the two end up.
Although this book is a romance novel there isn't too much adult situations and is a pretty innocent read. The book is short and to the point, but tells a great story. I kind of wished there was a part two to see where the two end up.
February 22, 2018
Loved reading how Maria and Riley got together.
September 12, 2019
Age, race or financial means should never stand in the way of love or striving to be the best you can be in whatever you want to do in life.
July 16, 2016
I always love a good cowboy book and Marin Thomas never fails to deliver. Riley and Maria's story is one of two worlds that shouldn't collide, but due to a freak aviation accident, the unlikely couple meets. Riley is a white, priviledged, rodeo cowboy, while Maria is a Latino, inner city school teacher, fighting against losing students to gangs. Riley is in his mid-twenties and she is in her mid-thirties; nothing about their attraction should work but it does. Maria has built some pretty strong defenses, after losing a brother to gang violence and a cheating ex-fiance. Riley really has to work to not only win his second world saddle bronc title, but to win Maria's heart as well. The story is timely, well paced, and the characters are relatable. I believe the Maria's three young charges have books of their own, so I'm hoping to read them and perhaps get a glimpse into this couple's life.
June 1, 2015
"A Rodeo Man's Promise" by Marin Thomas is part of her 'Rodeo Rebels' series. This is my first read from the series and I really enjoyed it. Ms. Marin writes contemporary/classic romances. I really love the Cowboy's in her books because I grew up in a rural setting in New Mexico.
We meet Riley Fitzgerald and Maria Alvarez in this book. Riley is an ex-rodeo champ who has engine trouble and brings his plane down in a rural NM town. Maria is a teacher who works with at-risk teens that would otherwise be involved in local gangs. She doesn't believe that Riley is who he says he is she thinks he is trying to bring drugs into the town.
This is a story that will keep you on your toes, and we find that Riley is finding himself falling for the older teacher. Loved it.
We meet Riley Fitzgerald and Maria Alvarez in this book. Riley is an ex-rodeo champ who has engine trouble and brings his plane down in a rural NM town. Maria is a teacher who works with at-risk teens that would otherwise be involved in local gangs. She doesn't believe that Riley is who he says he is she thinks he is trying to bring drugs into the town.
This is a story that will keep you on your toes, and we find that Riley is finding himself falling for the older teacher. Loved it.
August 13, 2016
Pretty good story. Again a different background for both characters which was fun to read.
July 19, 2014
Great little story about about how love devlops even with a little age difference and social status, cant hold back love.
May 9, 2016
Surprisingly, I really enjoyed this one. Touched on themes of class and race, hard realities for those who are poor and Latino.
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June 30, 2016Miniseries: Rodeo Rebels
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews