When Love Returns: Three Rivers Cowboys, Book 1

by Liz Isaacson, Shannon Nicole Locke (Narrator)

He's been serving in the military for a decade. She's been quietly grieving a devastating loss.

When Finn and Edith reunite in small-town Three Rivers, where they grew up together, can their second-chance romance provide hope, healing, and the happily-ever-after they both crave?

Finley Ackerman left home ten years ago, determined to figure out who he was and what he wanted his life to be. He's been serving in the Army, but when the opportunity to get out of intelligence and go home to Three Rivers comes up, Finn jumps at it.

He's expecting a huge homecoming at Three Rivers Ranch. He's even expecting the Welcome Home banners draped across Main Street in town. He's not expecting to run into Edith Baxter literally the moment he gets out of his truck.

Edith is just as surprised to see Finn—decked out in his uniform, no less—as she comes out of her equine therapy appointment at Three Rivers Ranch. But the moment she steps into his arms and welcomes him home, it's as if choirs of angels start singing.

Perhaps he's what she needs to finally move past the tragedies life has dealt her. She's done her best to put her heart back together after the devastating loss of her fiancé a few years ago, and she does that by pouring everything she has into her children's books and working a small patch of land not far from Finn's sprawling family operation.

But she's not whole, and she knows it. He does too, and as Finn and Edith start finding solace in one another, she learns that he carries his own scars. She's not sure her heart will ever be whole enough to give to another cowboy, and Finn's not sure exactly what's next for him or how long he's actually going to stay in town.

Can Edith and Finn make their second chance into a forever love? Or will life's paths once again diverge, driving them apart for good?

Journey to Three Rivers in this small-town saga romance where the legacy of the past meets the promise of the future. Connect with beloved characters and fall in love with a cowboy in the Three Rivers Romance series!

Genres: Audiobook

Audible Audio

Published November 11, 2025

About the author

★ USA TODAY BESTSELLER, AMAZON BESTSELLING AUTHOR, and KINDLE ALL STAR! ★

Liz Isaacson writes inspirational cowboy romances. Her Three Rivers Ranch Romance series has multiple #1 bestsellers in half a dozen categories. She loves all things to do with contemporary cowboys, and will write romance in Texas, Montana, Vermont, Wyoming, and anywhere else she can find horses and mountains. Find out more at lizisaacson.com. Join her fandom by texting COWBOY to 801-618-2114 for exclusive sales and freebies.

Reviews

[Shae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this one a lot!

For more of my thoughts, check out this video: https://youtu.be/e2zrjFPygsg?si=maTYq...

[Pat Chandler]

This is a good love story. It is a quick read. Edith and her fiancé moves home to live with her brother when her fiancé is given just 30 days to live. After he passes she is lost and feeling so unloved. Soon her school sweetheart returns home from service looking for purpose in his life. When they see each each other again the feelings are still there for both of them and there starts a wonderful story.

[Kris Lodwig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bonus Borrow. I’m kind of torn, it’s a Christian series, kind of nice to read, but also I think you can be Christian and not be so corny. I did like the cowboy ranching stuff and other characters introduced, but not sure if I can handle Edith’s nicknames for Finn. 🙄

[Jen Fox · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK story, a little slow.
Lots of characters.
Too much Religion for me.