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Heartstone Ranch #1

West of Forever

Not yet published
Expected 16 Jun 26
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The first book in the Heartstone Ranch series by Corinne Michaels.

384 pages, Paperback

Expected publication June 16, 2026

10 people are currently reading
8186 people want to read

About the author

Corinne Michaels

76 books15.3k followers
Corinne Michaels is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of romance novels. Her stories are chock full of emotion, humor, and unrelenting love, and she enjoys putting her characters through intense heartbreak before finding a way to heal them through their struggles.

Corinne is a former Navy wife and happily married to the man of her dreams. She began her writing career after spending months away from her husband while he was deployed—reading and writing were her escapes from the loneliness. Corinne now lives in Virginia with her husband and is the emotional, witty, sarcastic, and fun-loving mom of two beautiful children.


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5 stars
16 (61%)
4 stars
6 (23%)
3 stars
4 (15%)
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
Profile Image for Morgan Ruffner.
128 reviews578 followers
May 3, 2026
3.5 🌟 really sweet small town western romance. Sadie was absolutely one of my favorite characters. There were certain moments where I didn’t like our MMC but then moments I really loved him. Wish we had a little more relationship building and REALLY wish we had a resolution on who is messing with her families farm. Without that part, the story just felt unfinished to me. But still enjoyed the book overall and will absolutely pick up more from this author!
Profile Image for Alexandra.
379 reviews86 followers
April 29, 2026
As soon as I started I literally couldn’t put it down. Truly beautiful. I loved this book from start to finish. Lark and Tristan had perfect chemistry. Even though they are meant to hate each other and their family rivalry runs deep, the attraction and the tension between them was undeniable.

I think this was the most well rounded story I’ve read from Corinne. It had fun light moments, steamy intense ones, and was really emotional too. This is exactly how you write forbidden romance.

I can’t wait for everyone to experience Heartstone Ranch on June 16th! I’m so excited for what’s to come in the series.

Cowboy x Cowgirl
Single Dad
Rival Families
Sneaking Around
Small Town

Profile Image for Blendy.
440 reviews115 followers
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
March 17, 2026
What in the unfinished storyline????

Okay...first, let's back up. I do not normally read "cowboy romance." However, there are times that I am in the mood for a little 'Dutton Style' drama in my life, so I grab the first "cowboy" book that catches my eye. This time around, it just so happened to be West of Forever.

Overall, this isn't a bad book. The plot and characters are interesting, and there is a little spice to keep things steamy. However, this book almost feels like it bit off more than it could chew. There are soooo many different subplots that seem to be happening, and really....none of them are resolved by the end of the book, for example: Like...I understand that this is book one in a series, but does book two follow the same characters? I thought maybe that was how this was going to play out, until the prologue that happens a year later. Like, huh? There are just a lot of questions, and I do not like feeling like that after reading a book that acts like it's a stand alone novel.

The banter between the MC and FMC is cute, and I did enjoy that. I just....I wish that this book had either focused more on just the FMC and MC or spent more time finishing out some of those subplots.
Profile Image for Ally Griffeth.
674 reviews647 followers
Review of advance copy received from Author
May 11, 2026
HOW. AM. I. SUPPOSED. TO. MOVE. ON????

Because this might actually be the most perfect cowboy romance to ever exist. Cowboy x cowgirl, small town, family rivalry, AND he’s a broody single dad?? Yeah… I was done for immediately and absolutely DEVOURED this book.

This story follows Tristan a broody single dad carrying more pain than one person should have to hold. Between losing his wife and everything surrounding Sadie, he’s just trying to survive and do what he believes is best for his daughter. Then there’s Lark, who comes back home after her wedding falls apart, trying to figure out where life goes from here. But when she ends up stranded with a flat tire, of course Tristan is the one who shows up to help her.

The problem? Their families are hardcore rivals, and they absolutely should not be spending time together. But the tension, the pull between them, the way they keep finding their way back to each other??? I ate up every single second of it.

The chemistry was insane, the emotional depth HURT in the best way, and Sadie honestly owned a piece of my heart too. Corinne Michaels always knows how to wreck me emotionally, and this book was no exception.

But ALSO… I HAVE QUESTIONS.
CORRINE. PLEASE. I NEED ANSWERS. IMMEDIATELY.
Profile Image for Stephanie Hubenak.
667 reviews100 followers
Review of advance copy received from Author
March 27, 2026
As I'm writing this, it's March and Tristan and Lark are still a few months out and I'm sitting here just thankful that I got to read them early. If there is one thing that Corinne can do well...it's make me cry. I honestly got through almost the entire book thinking "Well, she didn't do it this time! HA!" Well joke was on me. I ended up sobbing and sending her crying selfies. But listen, crying is something that I love to do with books. So, for me, this is great. The emotions that I felt throughout this book was spectacular.

What you'll get:
- Cowboy romance....TRUE cowboy romance
- Enemies to lovers
- Small town romance
- Single dad
- Neighbors
- Rival families

The way that I need everyone to take a second and really prepare yourself for how much you're going to love these two...plus Sadie, Tristan's daughter. They were perfection!
Profile Image for MissPetiteBrunetteBookBlog.
1,487 reviews273 followers
Review of advance copy
May 6, 2026
Lark Gatlin & Tristian Stone are from rival ranching families and should steer clear of each other. That is until Lark finds herself stranded by a flat tire and who shows up to help her…none other than Tristian. He is a hunky, single dad but can they even be friendly with their family’s feud? Maybe behind the scenes when no one is watching these two rivals will start to go from enemies to more. Get ready for all those small town vibes. What sweet moments Tristian has with his daughter Sadie and also some fun family moments for both families. You can feel Tristian and Lark’s spark coming off the pages! This is such a perfect cowboy/cowgirl secret romance with all the feels. I do still want to know who is causing all the ruckus on the farm but I’m guessing that will be in the next book. Are you ready to saddle up and ride that cowboy? ;) Told in first person and dual POV.
Profile Image for Turn the Pages.
214 reviews17 followers
Review of advance copy received from Author
April 26, 2026
This book threw me straight into book hangover territory and I'm not at all mad about it. I graciously was gifted a physical arc by the author, and when I tell you I cried, I mean it. This book has been top of my most wanted since she announced it, and I couldn't wait to dive in. I started reading it immediately the next morning and had such a hard time putting the book down.


I really connected with main characters and I felt all their emotions and chemistry. I loved that Lark was a bit of a firecracker. I also loved that this wasn't a single dad with a young child. Sadie was 12 and had opinions and a voice, and I find that missing SO often in single-parent romances. I enjoyed the bonus chapter as well and HIGHLY recommend reading it!

What a top tier read for me!!!
Profile Image for Amani Altwam.
42 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
April 16, 2026
I am a sucker for Corinne Michaels! I've really enjoyed her other series' and I'm looking forward reading the next ones in this series! I love a good enemies to lovers and this one was done really well. Their families are actually real enemies... The slow burn was done perfectly and the relationship/chemistry between Lark and Tristan was so so good. Oh and their banter! I love some good banter between "enemies". Overall, highly recommend this one for your next cowboy romance :)
Profile Image for Tori Ann.
313 reviews259 followers
Review of advance copy received from Author
April 14, 2026
Only the most perfect of perfect cowboy romances to ever exist. A cowboy x cowgirl romance and he’s a single dad??? Yeah I’m sold.

Corinne Michaels is back with a western small town romance series and Tristan Lark is the oldest brother. A grumpy, single dad who stole my heart from chapter one.

Cannot wait to see what’s in store for the next books 🤠🤠
Profile Image for McKenzi.
824 reviews33 followers
March 15, 2026
What a wonderful introduction to Corinne’s new world. I enjoyed getting to know Tristan and Lark plus theirs families. I have to say Papa Stone certainly had me howling. I really enjoyed the book and can’t wait to see who book two is about!
Profile Image for Keisha Cook.
140 reviews3 followers
Review of advance copy
May 8, 2026
Checked ALL my boxes.

✔️ Single Hot Dad
✔️ Enemies to lovers
✔️ Swoon worthy romance

Corinne Micheals is my auto buy and read! I haven’t been disappointed by her yet!

Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews