Saddling the Orc Cowboy

by Ava Ross

Jessi: Ever since my dad passed, I've been drowning in medical bills. When my estranged grandmother offers to pay the debt if I prove I'm “respectable and settled,” i.e., married, I see no other way out. But my love life is non-existent. Then I stumble across an unusual solution: a Bride Wanted ad in a dating app. I apply and I'm matched with an orc cowboy, Greel. After we chat, he agrees to a fake marriage for one year only. But when I move into Greel’s ranch to maintain the appearance of a “real” marriage, Greel's quiet kindness and unwavering support begin to soften my bruised heart. He's a balm to my grief, and his shy yet heartfelt attempts to make me smile make it hard to remember our agreement will only last for a year.

Greel: I'm an awkward and lonely orc rancher, and I have no plans to find a bride through the ad my mischievous brother posted. But when Jessi reaches out, and we talk, burgeoning hope sends my world spinning. Her upfront request for a fake marriage crushes my heart, but her fiery determination and sweet smile spur something unexpected inside me. I start falling in love. Pretending our connection isn’t growing becomes harder each day. I don’t care about her debt or her grandmother. I only care about her. I’ll prove to her that this marriage, fake or not, was meant to be real.

Saddling the Orc Cowboy is a prequel story set in the Brides of the Lonesome Creek Orcs Series. A steamy monster romance, it features fated mates, lots of pining, touch-her-and-die vibes, plus only one bed and he falls first tropes. Expect size difference, a cinnamon roll hero, cute shenanigans, plus a new, cozy monster contemporary world.

160 pages, ebook

About the author

AVA ROSS fell for men with unusual features when she first watched Star Wars, where alien creatures have gone mainstream. She lives in New England with her husband (who is sadly not an alien, though he is still cute in his own way), her kids, and assorted pets, including a yorkie pup and three cats.

Reviews

[Emily-Anne Andersen]

very silly very quick

[Sil]

“El duelo es un camino, no una carrera”

📖: Ensillando al vaquero orco
✏️: Ava Ross
⭐️: 2

𝐋𝐨 𝐪𝐮𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐝𝐫𝐚́𝐬 𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞
📚 Monster romance
🐴 Orcos + ambiente ranchero
💍 Matrimonio falso
💚 Almas gemelas
⚡ Instalove
🛏️ Compartir cama
🌾 Pueblo pequeño
🗣️ Falta de comunicación
📖 Precuela de una serie
⚠️ Duelo, deudas, traición familiar, baja autoestima
🗣️ Primera persona • 2 POV’s


La historia arranca con Jessi, quien está atravesando el duelo por la muerte de su padre y además cargando con deudas médicas.

💍 A partir de ahí, todo se mueve rápido: su abuela le propone pagar la deuda si se casa, y Jessi termina respondiendo a un anuncio de “se busca esposa”. Así es como conoce a Greel, un orco ranchero bastante reservado.

💚 Greel es ese tipo de personaje callado, torpe emocionalmente pero con buen corazón. De hecho, siento que fue lo que más disfruté: su forma de querer, tan tranquila y sincera, tipo “cinnamon roll”.

⚡ Todo ocurre demasiado rápido: instalove, almas gemelas, el vínculo… y eso hizo que no terminara de creerme del todo la conexión entre ellos.

🛏️ Tiene varios elementos clásicos: matrimonio falso, compartir cama, almas destinadas… que pueden funcionar si te gustan estos clichés, pero en este caso sentí que faltó más desarrollo y eso que son de mis favoritos. Y el que menos me gusta, la falta de comunicación, que sí, aparece en la historia.

🤏 Al ser un libro corto (179 páginas), la historia es bastante directa y sin muchas complicaciones. Se lee rápido, pero también se siente superficial en el desarrollo de personajes y romance.

😕 No logré conectar del todo ni con los personajes ni con la relación. No me dejó esa sensación de “quiero seguir con la serie”, que normalmente busco en este tipo de libros.

✨ Es una lectura ligera, rápida y fácil de leer. Puede funcionar si te gustan los romances de monstruos con clichés claros y sin demasiada complejidad, pero a mí personalmente me dejó un poco indiferente.

[Orcficionado]

Sometimes a book gives you exactly what you didn't know you needed.

In this case: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, but with orcs.

Excellent.

Greel and Jessi are wonderful together. Despite the fated-mates premise, their relationship never feels like destiny has done all the work for them. The attraction is there, certainly, but they still have to get to know one another, make choices, and actually earn their romance.

The world-building is equally enjoyable. Orcs emerging from their underground world and attempting to make lives on the surface is explained just enough to make the setting believable without burying a quirky romance beneath pages of lore.

And it is wonderfully quirky. The humour landed beautifully for me, particularly once the extended family gets involved. Grandma Lil, Aunt Inla, and Greel's brothers make the world feel populated rather than simply providing scenery for the central couple.

Funny, warm, delightfully strange, and full of personality.

I shall absolutely be continuing the series.

Verdict: ★★★★★

Orcs, cowboys, meddling relatives and a properly earned mating. No notes. Saddle the beast.

— Kalarak Hellgrip

[anonymous]

Another surprisingly enjoyable read!
Grannie Lil needs someone to teach her to respect boundaries and Jessie needs to put on her big girl pants and MAKE some boundaries but other than the indigestion from that, this book was short, sweet, and fun.

Greel is a cutie. Loved that he was able to relax into himself with Jessi and we actually got to see it (unlike in the Wrangling one with Tark and what’s-her-face).

I’m assuming Dungar is next in line, mainly because he’s the only other brother we’ve even met at this point. Why are these orcs so close with their aunt, but all of the brothers don’t seem to interact with eachother at all. I guess the author wasn’t confident in her ability to introduce that many characters in a meaningful way without taking away from the main couple? I hope the relationships between the brothers and the wives grows as the series continues instead of each story being so self-contained and insular.

Also, will Grannie Lil end up finding an Orc for herself on her dating app? What about a human for Aunt Inla?

[Gayle9015]

Cute story. Odd setting, but fun to read if you like monster romance.

[Isa Newbury | reading_isa]

3.5 ⭐️
2 🌶

[Glorialys]

Una historia cortita, ligera y muy bonita 👌 tiene la mezcla perfecta de drama y amor. 🤩