'It's not the horse, it's the rider. Maverick is here and making me itch to grab a hat and ride a, well...you know. Kelly Elliott outshines herself here in Loved Enough! - The British Bibliophile
Thank you to Kelly Elliott for sending me an ebook Advanced Readers Copy for me to read and leave an honest review, as part of her ARC/ team.
NOTE - This review will be spoiler-free as standard, but will make reference to the book's blurb. So if you wish to go into this book blind without knowing as single thing about it, please scroll away from my review now :)
Loved Enough is the fifth book in Kelly Elliott's Love in Montana series. A second-generation small town, wholesome romance series which branches off from the original series, Meet Me in Montana . Each of the original main characters' children gets their own book and a shot at happily-ever-after.
For the full Montana effect, I would highly recommend going back to the start and the very beginning of it all with Never Enough . As a seasoned reader of Kelly's for over a decade, I've read everything this woman has written and can hand-on-heart say that the Meet Me in Montana is one of my favourite series' she's ever written. It's worth the journey through those four books, plus the four before this one, to constantly fall for its characters and their love stories. For a small town and close-knit family/friend group, each story truly is unique in its own way and you'll for sure find your favourite cowboy in the mix while getting to know them all.
Five years on from the conception of this world, and I'm still just as much in love with it then as I am now. More, if that's possible.
For those who have followed this series from the beginning, you will already be familiar with some of the characters who will make an appearance as well as some supporting characters making an appearance or two here and there. If you haven't read books one to four, then everyone here will be new to you as an adult from their births in the original series. The little lads and ladies are all grown up, spitting images of their beloved mothers and fathers.
Time to meet Lily Shaw and Maverick Prescott.
Have you ever loved someone for so long from afar? Lily Shaw has. Assuming she'd end up in a relationship with her long-time best friend Ben, she's understandably heartbroken when she finds out that he's getting married and having a child with his fiancée. A double-hit to the heart. Though she was shocked this news, she finds herself lacking the emotional upset that would come with such news. The cause of the lack of upset? One smoking-hot horse trainer on her parents' ranch. It seems though, that Lily is being set up for more heartbreak as though he is attracted to Lily as she is to him, Maverick has decided he has nothing to offer her other than a good time. Nothing more.
Working on a ranch with employers who are all about family is something Maverick Prescott admires and respects the hell out of. His boss doesn't treat him like a mere employee under his thumb, but as a son. Someone seeing him as something like that is not something he's ever had before. So how can he love the daughter of the boss that has his utmost respect and loyalty? Starting something with her that he knows he can never finish is not even an option this time. He has nothing to offer her, not even heritage. Only the pain that comes with the past that he has long-since left behind. Instead, he resigns himself to living a life of solitude--something he decided on a long time ago. Sticking to tending to the rescue horses who are just as damaged as him is the only thing he will ever do.
Ever the typical Shaw we have all come to know and love, Lily is determined and not easily swayed by Maverick's decision and logic, and her stubborn streak is a mile times ten wide. She's not giving up at the starting line. Getting him into bed--his or any other--was the easy part, as there's no denying the sizzling attraction between them, the hard part comes after that. Getting Maverick to let her into and wrap around his heart is going to be the biggest challenge she has ever set her mind to achieving. Perhaps when she's given it her all and shown him that he is in fact worthy of the love that he's avoided from others, that he is loved enough, she'll win his fragile heart for herself.
When you've immersed and invested yourself into a series for so long--which includes a second generation series if you are given one--, you'll find that the results pay off in spades and that's what has happened here with this novel. Sometimes novels dry out as the series expands, with all of the good stuff being used up in the first few. That is not the case here. Because the characters are both as similar to and different from one another, there's an endless tap to keep coming back to for a drink and dang, we thirsty for this one!
Anyone who knows me knows that I have had a long-standing favourite Main Male Character (MMC), which is none other than the man himself who started the book boyfriend obsession within this series, Blayze Shaw. With the swagger and charm equal to that of his father, Brock, it's no wonder that he's had a firm grip on my heart since meeting his adult self. If you've read his story, you'll know what I'm on about. However, there was always the possibility of his spot being taken by another as each new book in the series came along. That time has now officially come. Edging out just in front as my new favourite book boyfriend is none other than Maverick Prescott. Blayze sits comfortably a point or two behind him, but Maverick has done it. There's something mesmerising about him that can only be understood when reading this book, so what are you waiting for? Hit that pre-order button and see why I'm one-click away from booking a plane seat to Montana to find a real-life Maverick Prescott.
Everything I know and love about Kelly from ten years until now, is all wrapped up within this read. It proves in many ways why I am still so head-over-pages in love with her, her writing, her characters and the stories that just wrap around your heart and never let go. I hope people give this book and Kelly a chance just to see why she deserves to be an author for life and on your shelf.
A big hee-haw to Maverick, Lily and Kelly! You have all made me feel very much loved enough!