Black Gold

The Boomtown Boys #1

by Ruby Laska

When country singer Chase Warner’s father dies, he finally realizes he’ll never impress the man who raised him and hangs up his guitar for good. Soon after he moves to North Dakota and signs on as a derrick hand, he learns that an honest day’s work bringing oil from the earth gives him far more satisfaction than performing ever did.

When his friends take him to the local tavern to celebrate his birthday, Chase agrees to sing one song for old times. When he looks out into the audience, he finds himself staring at a rockabilly dream come true: blue eyes, blond curls and sweet curves in the kind of dress just made to show them off.

Nashville talent scout Regina McCary is taking a forced “vacation” after a bad breakup when she stumbles on the voice she’s sure will take her career to the next level: the smoldering, if slightly drunk, man singing in a North Dakota honkeytonk isn’t just talented but gorgeous, too. Regina is sure she can package and promote the reluctant singer - but soon she realizes she wants Chase for far more than a client.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Fiction

128 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 13, 2013

About the author

Ruby Laska grew up in a small midwestern town, where her passions included state fairs, Vince Gill, and the local library. A recent West Coast transplant, she lives and works in Emeryville, California. When not writing, Ruby loves to explore San Francisco’s neighborhoods, stopping in at every shoe store and searching for the perfect cup of joe.

Ruby is the author of:

BLACK GOLD (Boomtown Boys Series)
BLACK HEAT (Boomtown Boys Series)
BLACK FLAME (Boomtown Boys Series)

LARISSA LEARNS TO BREATHE (Cupid Island Series)
MANDY MAKES HER MARK (Cupid Island Series)
PLAIN JANE'S BIRTHDAY WISH (Cupid Island Series)

A MAN FOR THE SUMMER
ALONG FOR THE RIDE
HEARTBREAK, TENNESSEE
MINE 'TIL MONDAY
MOUNTAIN SONG

MISS BONNY'S BURIED TREASURE (Short Story)

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Regina McCary, agent for country music stars, dresses in vintage clothes and is searching for a way to make a difference, although she hasn't realized it yet. Chase Warner, an oil rig worker thinks he is content in his job in the Conway, North Dakota in the middle of nowhere until he realized he was missing one important part of life, having a partner.

Sparks fly between Chase and Regina from the start as this odd couple find what they each need in the other in a sweet romance. Their differences and the way they figured out to make a relationship work touched a special place for me, never liking those round holes that my square personality never quite fit.

[Ronnae Stately · Rating 4 out of 5]

Regina McCary is a talent agent who is suppose to be on vacation but for some reason she lied to her boss. She’s in Conway, North Dakota trying to sign a young woman to her agency. She gets more than she bargains for at the bar that she is at. She comes across a talent she wasn’t looking for and things get hot from there. Chase Warner is an oil rigger hanging out at a bar with some friends celebrating his birthday. They manage to talk him into singing and Regina just happens to catch his crooning ways. She approaches him and he likes what he sees not knowing what she really wants. Things get awkward for awhile but everybody has a niche and these two find theirs.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

Very nice read about a hidden gem of a man and a woman who isn’t clear on what she wants. Flowed nicely and characters were nice. Did wish Regina would deck Carl but hey I just think a bit of retribution is worth visiting.

[Thieryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

They say that the majority of Americans pick country music to make love to. While I can't in my right mind understand why, I can't deny the appeal of that particular genre, even though it does absolutely nothing for me. In literature though, well, it doesn't "sound" as bad ;)

Regina and Carl are talent hunters. They also used to be together, until Regina caught him together with his new assistant. Taking a forced and long-needed break from her not-all-that successful career, Regina finds herself in the middle of nowhere, trying to sign "Stiletta", a talented young girl. So what is Carl doing there, trying to mend their relationship AND steal her new prospect at the same time? Yet it is Chase, a ridiculously talented yet stubbornly denying talent that has her life and love in shambles.

There were a few things I loved about this book. The past stories of the characters were really nice, very deep (in Chase's case) and very beautifully presented. I also absolutely cheered when Regina turned her life and luck around, and Mason was finally righted. This book had "happily ever afters" all the way, even if Sherry was won over by the enemy.

And I will tell you right now why I gave it the extra 4th star. It was because of one scene which had me grinning stupidly, not because of anything crazy special about it, but because I could bet my right eye's lashes most other stories would have the heroine give in. The part where Carl asks Regina to crash on her couch and despite her initial hesitance, she slows her car down to let him in... Hell.Yes. After the resolution of that scene, my respect for Ms. Laska shot up by quite a notch!

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall the story was simple and sweet but I was kind of disappointed that when things were building up, suddenly everything ended in a rushed epilogue that tried to connect all the loose endings. The main couple was good but quite plain and underdeveloped, leaving me with the feeling that something was missing from the whole relationship. Most of all I think is quite funny that Regina is a scout but we basically see no professional behavior on her part despite not being a novice in her job. The direction her career took was interesting but it all just ended in an idea that was never given true completion in the story but, according to the short epilogue was fruitful.

Simple, sweet story with okay characters, and a rushed ending.

[SandyL · Rating 3 out of 5]

Regina is a country music scout who has been struggling for years to prove herself - to her family, to her boss and co-workers, to herself. Close to burnout, her boss has sent her on a forced vacation. But, unable to really relax, Regina goes to North Dakota to meet a young singer she heard about, hoping to sign her. While at the club listening to Stiletta, she also hears Chase and she tries to sign them both. Unfortunately, she's got two problems - her ex-boyfriend, Carl, has showed up and is relentlessly trying to do the same thing. And Chase doesn't want to sing - he'd rather work the oil rigs. This was a short story and I never really connected with the characters. 2.5 stars.

[Tait Klein · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, not much of a page-turner

I am a big fan of Ruby Laska's books. They are usually very sweet. However,paying for this book left me a little flat when, for the first time, I had to force myself to finish it. The characters were underdeveloped and there really was no attachment I felt to any of them. The story really dragged and when the plot got interesting it was ,well, over. Try Ruby's other great books...but do yourself so financial favor and skip this one!

[Cheri Morningstar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finding your true passion.

Black Gold is a good fast read. I would have given this story 5*s if there had been hot steamy erotica. But this probably wasn't the author's intention. The story had a message and good plot. Very nice ending with no cliffhanger. I appreciate stories that have enough tension without putting your heart through a shredder. Still, I was hoping for more of a passionate love story.

[Leigh · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an OK romance. Certainly a subject I've not read much about...talent agents in Country Music and oil rig workers. The characters were ok. As I like a lot of steam (read sex) with my romance this was just ok for me. One "sex" scene that was not very sexy IMO.

[Paige · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a sweet little read, I did get a little annoyed with one of the characters, Carl. Only reason I didn't give it more stars than I did was simply that it seemed a little too fast moving for my tastes.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute Little Romance

This was a cute little clean romance. While I cannot say it had me in it's grips the whole way, I still would recommend it if you are looking for a clean romance book with no cliffhanger.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is a great book to read

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good, was hoping for more oilfield and more of the actual way a oilfield relationship is. Rather a short story at 162 pages.

[Sue Miller]

Fun read.

while it wasn't Nora Roberts it was a cute story
with attractive characters and who isn't fascinated by the Nashville country music scene especially with a twist.

[Kath · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent story! Music and a well written love story that does a great job of telling the story without too much information.