What do you think?
Rate this book
A Ranch to Keep
What she planned…or what she wants?
Samantha Rylant's life is coming together as planned—promising career, awesome friends, perfect boyfriend. Then she inherits her grandmother's ranch and sweet childhood memories come rushing back to her. Now this city girl is torn, wondering where she truly belongs. And the gorgeous cowboy down the lane is only complicating matters!
Jack Baron and his handsome, aggravating self are around every corner offering a helping hand, sharing his unwanted opinions and in general messing with Sam's heart. The logical thing to do is to sell the ranch and return to San Francisco. But maybe this is one decision that requires the heart, not the head….
Samantha Rylant's life is coming together as planned—promising career, awesome friends, perfect boyfriend. Then she inherits her grandmother's ranch and sweet childhood memories come rushing back to her. Now this city girl is torn, wondering where she truly belongs. And the gorgeous cowboy down the lane is only complicating matters!
Jack Baron and his handsome, aggravating self are around every corner offering a helping hand, sharing his unwanted opinions and in general messing with Sam's heart. The logical thing to do is to sell the ranch and return to San Francisco. But maybe this is one decision that requires the heart, not the head….
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
6 people are currently reading
444 people want to read
About the author
Claire McEwen
45 books616 followersClaire McEwen lives by the ocean in Northern California with her family and a scruffy, mischievous terrier. When not dreaming up new stories, she can be found digging in her garden with a lot of enthusiasm but, unfortunately, no green thumb. She loves discovering flea-market treasures, walking on the beach, dancing, traveling and reading, of course!
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
December 1, 2018
Love this book can't wait to read more books by her
August 23, 2016
why are ranchers so damn hot?
June 22, 2018
Claire McEwen is one of my favorite authors! I liked her Harlequin book, A Ranch to Keep. Main characters Samantha Rylant and Jack Baron, meet when Sam inherits her grandmother's ranch. Sam is a workaholic advertiser in San Francisco and Jack is a cowboy rancher living hours away in Benson. Both seem to be happy with where they live and with the work they do. But when Sam returns to the family ranch, she can't help but remember how much her summers there meant to her. One of the things I like best about this book is the fact that McEwen doesn't use pages and pages to describe the growing romance between Sam and Jack. Instead of it being "in your face" it is tastefully done. She has written likable characters and given us insight into how their pasts have shaped them. She also has added a few interesting secondary characters. The main characters are both strong, smart, and independent. It was easy to cheer for them!
April 23, 2018
Samantha works for an advertising agency and is dating her boss. When her grandmother dies she takes time off to go to the funeral and then goes to the ranch she inherited from her grandmother. Her boss gets mad because she took extra time away. At her ranch she meets Jack and is instantly attracted to him. However she has her life planned and even though she is having a hard time giving up her ranch, she can’t give up her job. When her boss turns out to be a sleeve getting another woman pregnant while still dating her. She starts to see things differently. A good book.
July 28, 2018
Samantha and Jack's story is a sweet romance with great characters, humor, drama, and some mystery and suspense. I was instantly drawn into the story and loved every page. Samantha is very independent and doesn't want to ask for help and this leads to some very comical results. Jack ends up being her knight in shining armor many times. Samantha and Jack had an instant attraction the first time they met and after a bumpy road get their happy ever after. Loved the ending!
October 1, 2018
I was so happy to get the chance to read this book. It was the only one I hadn't read in this series. Definitely a fantastic read. Claire McEwen has a way of writing fantastic cowboy stories.
August 14, 2019
A little longer than most but worth the effort - will read more from this author.
February 22, 2014
This was my first time reading a Harlequin Romance novel, and I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised. This was a well-written, fast-paced novel that I actually could not put down. It was a great read, from beginning to end with strong, yet real characters that one could identify with. The backdrop was San Francisco and the sweeping beauty of the Northern California countryside, hours outside of the city.
Meet Samantha Rylant, a strong female character that has an awesome career, great friends and a boyfriend. Her grandmother passes away and Samantha inherits the family ranch full of fond memories, where Samantha spent many of her childhood summers. But are the memories enough to keep the ranch or sell it? Samantha is a city girl with a big advertising job that is extremely demanding of her time. But it is her dream job, until she meets the gorgeous cowboy, Jack Baron. But Jack is a complication that Samantha isn’t ready to have. And is country life what she really wants? Samantha is a city girl at heart.
With humor, tenderness and matters of the heart this is a wonderful book from beginning to end. I can’t wait to read more of what author Claire McEwen has in store for us.
Meet Samantha Rylant, a strong female character that has an awesome career, great friends and a boyfriend. Her grandmother passes away and Samantha inherits the family ranch full of fond memories, where Samantha spent many of her childhood summers. But are the memories enough to keep the ranch or sell it? Samantha is a city girl with a big advertising job that is extremely demanding of her time. But it is her dream job, until she meets the gorgeous cowboy, Jack Baron. But Jack is a complication that Samantha isn’t ready to have. And is country life what she really wants? Samantha is a city girl at heart.
With humor, tenderness and matters of the heart this is a wonderful book from beginning to end. I can’t wait to read more of what author Claire McEwen has in store for us.
January 19, 2014
Samantha Rylant is heavily into her marketing career, aiming for a big promotion and secretly dating her boss. (A first no-no). Then her grandmother dies and leaves the ranch in the Sierras to Samantha. The tenant and nearest neighbor is a hunky rancher with a NYC financier background. He engages in several "rescues" of Samantha that she appreciates, but only after the fact. Life has taught her to take care of herself, to not depend on others, which helps explain why she covers up that she's doing her job and her boss'es job, too--until Sam learns that he got his assistant pregnant while maintaining his relationship with Sam (oh dear).
But Sam can't let go of her work in San Francisco, which means she needs to sell the ranch, in spite (she refuses to think of it as because)of whomever has caused several acts of vandalism to scare her out. When they discover the culprit, it's not really a surprise, though Sam seems to be the last to figure it out.
How things end seem almost formulaic, though the setting for this ranch is anything but. And, somehow, given how much that big job means to her throughout the story, it's hard for me to see Sam simply shucking it the way she does.
But Sam can't let go of her work in San Francisco, which means she needs to sell the ranch, in spite (she refuses to think of it as because)of whomever has caused several acts of vandalism to scare her out. When they discover the culprit, it's not really a surprise, though Sam seems to be the last to figure it out.
How things end seem almost formulaic, though the setting for this ranch is anything but. And, somehow, given how much that big job means to her throughout the story, it's hard for me to see Sam simply shucking it the way she does.
April 6, 2014
I just finished this book by new author Claire McEwen and it was wonderful. The longer length of Superromance is always a treat but the charming, heartfelt story just swept me away romantically.
The characters are people you can relate to and believe in and the way this author writes, you can feel their emotions so well. Her writing style is crisp and clean and flows smoothly like water trickling in a stream. The descriptions were amazing and brought you right into the lovely mountain filled world that the hero and heroine both loved so much.
But what I really liked about this story was that it took its time. It didn't happen over the course of a few days or a week. The characters didn't fall in bed with each other hours after meeting. Their romance unfolds and grows and is much more realistic than so many other books nowadays.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely buy anything else she writes in the future. Well done!!
The characters are people you can relate to and believe in and the way this author writes, you can feel their emotions so well. Her writing style is crisp and clean and flows smoothly like water trickling in a stream. The descriptions were amazing and brought you right into the lovely mountain filled world that the hero and heroine both loved so much.
But what I really liked about this story was that it took its time. It didn't happen over the course of a few days or a week. The characters didn't fall in bed with each other hours after meeting. Their romance unfolds and grows and is much more realistic than so many other books nowadays.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely buy anything else she writes in the future. Well done!!
March 25, 2014
A Ranch To Keep was a good book. I think it dragged on in some spots. Samantha's grandmother left her a ranch in the middle of nowhere. She works at a very demanding job in New York City. Her boss is her boyfriend but no one at works know they are dating. She finds out he is dating someone else at work and she is three months pregnant. She spends weekend at the ranch to clean it up and do some fixing on the place. It's a beautiful area. Jack lives next door and rented land from her grandmother. Jack raises horses. Jack want the ranch if she is going to sell. A developer wants the land also. Jack does everything he can to convince Samantha to stay in the area. In the end she gives up her fancy job in N.Y.C. and starts a business of her own in the small town.
March 8, 2014
The title gives part of the story away and you expect there to be a happy ending, and yet this book is a real page-turner!
Not only are the descriptions of SF and the Ranch so vivid you are compelled to read on, but the internal thoughts of the characters are, too. And, for me, it was the unexpected misunderstandings between the two main characters and their constant (internal) self-flagellations that really caught my attention; these made the characters more real and kept me wondering how on earth they'd ever get to that happily-ever-after....
An excellent and quick read!
Not only are the descriptions of SF and the Ranch so vivid you are compelled to read on, but the internal thoughts of the characters are, too. And, for me, it was the unexpected misunderstandings between the two main characters and their constant (internal) self-flagellations that really caught my attention; these made the characters more real and kept me wondering how on earth they'd ever get to that happily-ever-after....
An excellent and quick read!
March 11, 2014
I enjoyed this book, in fact, I had trouble putting it down. It's a simple, uncomplicated romance novel about a city girl who inherits her grandparent's farm in the country and falls hard for her hunky cowboy neighbor while struggling to keep up with her active life and career in San Francisco. It wasn't hard to figure out where the plotline was going to go but it was fun going there. McEwen is a good author and the book is well written, with the exception of a few typos.
January 22, 2014
I haven't read a lot of SuperRomance but found myself enjoying A Ranch To Keep. This was a smart, sweet story set in the High Sierras and features a heroine from San Francisco. I devoured the book in two sessions. I enjoyed the character development, swooned over cowboys and found the romance developed at just the right pace.
April 28, 2014
Samantha and Jack were such a likable couple that I cheered for their happy ending all the way. I loved that these characters weren't stereotypes of the damsel in distress or the uber macho cowboy. Instead, they were complex characters and the author did a superb job with the romance - showing why these two people were perfect for one another. Lots of tender moments filled with magic!
August 15, 2014
I wish I had a hunky cowboy next door. Great chemistry. I loved that the heroine was willing to give up everything for him but she managed to hold on to her important career. The vivid nature descriptions made the book come alive for me.
August 24, 2014
I loved everything about this book - the characters, the setting and the romance. The author did a great job of making me want to turn every page and keep on reading. I'm waiting patiently for the next book in the series.
January 22, 2014
Vivid prose that transports you to the Eastern Sierras. Snappy dialog that make you laugh out loud. And memorable characters that stuck with you long after you've finished reading it. Loved it!!
March 12, 2014
I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads for a honest review. I enjoyed this book. It pulled you in with the first page. Samantha the city girl and Jack the handsome rancher.
Read
January 12, 2016"A Ranch to Keep is a well-constructed and nicely paced novel with an interesting storyline and characters." RT Book Reviews, rated 4 stars
September 3, 2016
This book was great. I was laughing in the first 20 pages and the interaction between Sam and Jack was sweet and funny and very "feel good." Very much enjoyed this book.
May 1, 2014
Nice story. A little slow paced, but a good read.
December 7, 2014
I love this story very good, A new Author for me and I will be reading many more by her.
March 24, 2015
nice read
April 13, 2015
An easy, predictable read. Overall it was a bit predictable romance, but worth the reading.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews