A ranchers only dating site? Go ahead, read it again, I’ll wait. No, this is not a joke.
Just ask Ophelia Cooper.
Her life is quickly spinning out of control and her best friend decides to cheer her up by setting her up with an account on a ranchers only matchmaking site. Lia scoffs at the idea, but eventually, a cold, empty bed and dirty dreams about the obnoxious, egotistical, but really freaking hot cowboy next door, are enough to convince her to give it a shot.
Or you could talk to James Locke.
His little sister, Rose, insists that he needs to date or he’ll wind up even grumpier and alone. A misunderstanding causes him to fight his strong attraction to his sexy, red-headed neighbor, turning him into a jerk and burning that bridge. Rose takes matters into her own hands and sets him up on a dating site for ranchers only. A wake up call makes him realize what he might have had with the beautiful Ophelia. So, he decides to try out the site, hoping he still has a chance at love.
We all know you’re thinking that people using an online dating site are desperate. Don’t deny it. Besides, you may be right. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t work. Hopefully, James and Lia will have the last laugh as they ride off into the sunset, happy and in love.
I’m a lover of all things books, a hopeless romantic, and have always had a passion for writing. Between being a sappy romantic, my love of an HEA, my crazy imagination, and ok, let’s be real, my dirty mind, I fell easily into writing romance. I’m a huge baseball fan and yet, a complete girly, girl. I’m an obsessive reader and have a slight (hahaha! Slight? Yeah, right) addiction to signed books. I’m married to my very own book boyfriend, an alpha male with a sexy, sweet side. He is the best inspiration, my biggest supporter and the love of my life. He is also incredibly patient and understanding about the fact that he has to fight the voices in my head for my attention. I hope you enjoy reading my books as much as I enjoyed writing them!
It's not available in Canada. For now, it's only available in the US. Therefore, I tired to read this book but failed! It's the second time this has happened with this author. I think it's just best if I avoid the drama and skip this.
I wished when authors had limited released books they would be clearly indicated. I wasted my time trying to find both these books.
I even wrote to Amazon they told me it would only be delivered to an American address. NO BOOK IS WORTH THIS MUCH HASSLE. DONE!
I have to tell you, this book really surprised me. Please don't let the silly premise or not so great cover (sorry) fool you. I really enjoyed this story!
HERO~James was that broody kind of alpha that I love. He was tough, sexy and raising his little sister. He had feelings for his neighbor, Ophelia (Lia) and it drove him nuts because he didn't feel he could act on them. He made some less that stellar assumptions about her and they were holding him back. HEROINE~Lia moved back to the ranch she loved after her grandfather's death. She loved him so much and was crushed when he kept his illness from her. She was strong and determined, but she was also lovely. Since she was 10 years old, she'd loved her neighbor James and he was always cold and distant.
When two meddling loved ones sign them up on a ranchers only dating site, they both are resistant. That is until one night, neither are able to sleep and start chatting. Not knowing who they were actually talking to. It was so cute.
~no cheating ~sexual experience ~no ow/om drama whatsoever ~some steamy sex scenes ~they kinda pushed each other away for a bit ~HEA with a great epilogue. Also a set up for James little sister Rose's story. (Which if it's safe like this one, I'm in! )
This is a short read that packed a good punch. I loved all of the characters especially James the dirty talking rancher. He was always pretty cold to Lia. He made assumptions about her that were totally wrong. Once he realized his error though, that man was all in and would settle for nothing less than everything. I HOPE we get Rose and Garrison's story. That man will have some groveling to do also.
Ophelia, aka Lia, is in danger of losing her grandfather's beloved farm due to everything that was neglected when he was sick. Something she didn't know until it was too late as he, and everyone else, kept it from her. Though she knows he believed keeping it secret was for the best as she was close to achieving her Olympic dreams, she would've preferred being with him as opposed to not being able to say good-bye. As she's struggling on a daily basis to recover the farm financially, she's dealing with the judgmental commentary her sexy next door neighbor insists upon bestowing upon her. She doesn't know why he views her as nothing more than a nuisance.
James, owner of the ranch next to Lia's, is determined to buy her ranch. All he sees when he looks at her, aside from a beautiful woman, is someone in over their head merely playing at ranching, who couldn't take the time to visit her grandfather when he was sick and dying. James is doing the best he can raising his sixteen-year-old sister, Rose, after the death of their mother and her father two years ago. He doesn't need the hassle that Lia represents, though he does enjoy the view.
When those close to James and Lia, his sister, Rose, and Lia's best friend, Helena, separately register them for an online dating service, both are hesitant to actually engage in the possibility, yet they each yearn for what's missing from their life. James and Lia each believe their attraction to the other is one-sided and decide to take a chance with the website. It isn't long before both are communicating with someone that truly seems to be perfect for them and when they agree to meet in person, only one of them is shocked at the other's identity.
What happens when James realizes how wrongly he misjudged Lia? Can James convince her to forgive him and give him a chance? How will Lia react upon learning that James is her date and that he's known almost since the beginning he was talking to her? Will she believe that his intentions are pure and not an attempt to get her ranch? Will James and Lia decide to explore the connection and attraction between them? Will they get their HEA? What is going on between Garrison, James's best friend, and Rose? Will we get their story soon? *fingers crossed the answer is yes*
One-click now and follow along as two people, both highly attracted to one another, realize the misperceptions they've had of each other have kept them from exploring something life changing. I loved this book. I really liked both characters and truly felt for both of them and what they've experienced in their lives. I'm looking forward to reading more about Garrison and Rose and hope the wait isn't a long one...I may not make it. *wink*
Lia has taken over her grandpas drowning ranch trying to make ends meet. James is the sexy ahole next door that is trying to buy the ranch out from under her. That is until friends and family step in to help them realize their fate.
-safe read -h is a virgin -no talk about H history -no om/ow drama -epilogue 6 years and a glimpse at Rose’s story.
3.5⭐️’s : Yeah, I read these back-arse-wards, but ever since I listened to (and really enjoyed) Helena & Stone’s story in “Ride A Rancher” (via the Read Me Romance podcast), I knew at some point I’d come back and get James & Lia’s story. (Garrett and Rose are next, coz those two are snarky-kinda-enemies-to-lovers gold and they’re ready to explode - squeee!)
This novella delivered exactly what I’d expected: the feels of family, plenty of funny, sexy, sassy & snarky banter, chemistry out the whazoo and sweet romantic cheesy-goodness, all set against the backdrop of life on a ranch.
This was such a great quick read. Fast paced and super fun. Just what I needed to get out of my book slump. I really enjoyed the connection between Lia and James, the online/blind date was a great feature. I jumped right into the next book in the series. Can't wait to see happens.
This is a relatively short book and I enjoyed it a lot. This is my first book by Elle Christensen and I definitely recommend it.
Our handsome hero is James Locke who is a horse rancher. He raises and trains horses for racing. His next door neighbor's ranch is owned by the beautiful Ophelia Cooper (she goes by Lia). He misunderstands some of her actions and places a lot of blame on her that she is innocent of. So this causes him to steer clear although he is VERY drawn to her.
Our lovely heroine is Ophelia Cooper. She learned to ranch at her beloved grandfather's knee. When he passed away his ranch became Lia's but he left it so debt-heavy that she may not be able to dig herself out. She has been in love with her neighbor James since she was ten years old and I think it is one of the reasons she is still a virgin. No one measured up to him. But he has always been a bit cruel verbally to her and I found that quite sad. Even as a young child he was unduly grouchy and unkind...he couldn't be bothered to speak to a child.
Unbeknownst to both of them James' sister, Rose, has signed him up for an online dating service for ranchers only. Lia's best friend has done the same for her.
I am so excited to read about Rose and Garrison, James' sister and his ranch manager, who is his best friend.
I need to stop reading novellas that I find on TikTok, because what the actual fuck was this? How this has as many 4 and 5 star reviews is beyond me unless we read entirely different stories.
This is going to be riddled with spoilers because it's only like 120 pages and frankly the entire plot can be spoiled in a sentence. First of all, the dialogue was so bad. We were given half page explanations on who was who and what was happening in dialogue. No one talks like that. Not a single human alive.
And then we can move on to the "relationship building," even if we account for the fact that they chatted online for 3 weeks. This dude was expecting her to move in with him for the rest of her life after the first date. She hated him (I know she also lusted after him, but she didn't like his personality) right up until that date. All of a sudden, this guy is paying off her mortgage and professing his undying love.
But you want to know at what point I really contemplated smashing my iPad while reading this? It was the fact that the DAY AFTER she had sex for the first time, and had just stopped taking her birth control the day before, she's in thee bathroom puking from morning sickness and getting positive pregnancy tests. At this point, I'm convinced that Elle Christensen is a pen name for a man.
Ohmigosh! That was such a fun novella <3 Yes, it was a quickie, but there was tenderness, agitation, love (all sorts, not just romantic), and heat. Did I say heat? Because that's a dozy! One second you're going along reading a sweetheart of a book and then BAM! You need new underwear.
If you like sexy cowboys, feisty women, romance, and sex, grab this book ASAP. Then wait (im)patiently for the next one like I am.
As seen on my blog (Jessie's Reading Corner): Looking for a short (less than 100 pages) and spicy hot, cowboy romance? Do you like your romance with a bit of age gap (9 years; OM/YW), next door neighbors, second chance with a virgin heroine and a grumpy hero? Look no further than Ranchers Only.
I pre-ordered this book from Elle at Charm City Romanticon, and having read 16 of her books (3 as herself, 13 with Rochelle Paige as Fiona Davenport), I love that I know what I’m getting when I’m reading her books: short stories with slightly over-the-top characters, virgin heroines, possessive heroes who fall hard for their heroines, and couples that just love to ride bareback 😉
Ophelia and James are neighbors. Their grandparents owned ranches that they passed onto them. James is 9 years Ophelia’s senior. Ever since she was a little girl, she’s had a crush on him, despite him being asshole to her. Ophelia is drowning in ranch work, as the bank is threatening to foreclose on the ranch due to nonpayment, and her friend decides to set her up on a website called ranchersonly.com as she wants to see Ophelia happy and in love with someone. James’ sister Rose wants to see him happy with someone before she goes off to college (in two years) and sets him up on that very same website. And guess who they end up connecting with? James is the one to realize that this person he’s connected with is Ophelia after they’ve chatted online for a little bit, and he’s instantly regretful of how he’s treated her; the things he said.
I really liked the growth that James had in this book, and I really loved the relationship that he had with his sister, Rose. Rose actually is the heroine in the next book in the series, The Rancher’s Rose, and I am so looking forward to reading that next! We meet Rose’s hero in this book, Garrison, and their chemistry just exploded off the page when they were in the same scenes together! Garrison also happens to be James’ best friend, so it will be interesting to see how Elle handled that, especially given James’ stance on Rose dating in this book.
Side note: there is an actual farmersonly.com dating site! When I was prepping this review, I typed in “ranchers only” on Google as the cover on Goodreads is not the current cover, and it was the first option in their dropdown menu!! 😂
DNF at 60% in. I'm FLOORED there are so many raving reviews. I gave 2 stars because I didn't H.ATE it, but there was so much cringe and lack of reality that I just couldn't. Either readers don't know how anatomy works or they are really REALLY good at ignoring things. Direct quote during the h losing her virginity from the H's POV, "I reached her barrier and lowered my head for a scorching kiss as I thrust in and broke through it."
If by the barrier the author means the hymen, then that's literally not how things work. First off all the dude would never know if he reached her "barrier" LOL. Yikes omg. And second she rode horses competitively for yeaaaaars and was in the OLYMPICS, she 99.9% did not have a hymen anymore. That really sold me on closing the book for good.
The premise was great, but the execution was not. We started off good then it went from hate to obsessed and in love in the blink of an eye. No lead up. At all. Okay I'm sorry we get maybe 2 paragraphs of us knowing they've been messaging for two weeks. I got whiplash.
The cherry on top was the absolute cringe addition of Rose and Garrison's little thing. She's 14 and he's 29. Just the way it was written gave me the ick. This almost 30 year old dude shouldn't care SO much about what this teenager is doing. I get that it's setting up for their book, but nope. I love taboo, age gap, and brother's best best friend books. But the way that snippet was laid out just nope not for me. I'm not sure if they are brought up again since I stopped a little more than halfway.
Let's not forget the sprinkles on top. He's so desperate to b.ang her he rushes to a hotel and they have zero conversation before he basically says hey you're on birth control right cause I wanna take you bare. What a sweet way to lose her virginity to a guy that hated her 2 weeks ago. 🤣 At least show me some groveling first dang.
I feel like with this book that the author had a bunch of ideas for scenes but didn’t quite know how to connect them. The book doesn’t flow at all. It’s rushed and scenes don’t make sense.
As a plot, it’s one done a thousand times before with only one unique twist, the onlyranch.com idea which was one caught my attention. But it plays such a tiny part to the story and truly nothing else happens.
They own ranches next to eachother and don’t get along. Both get signed up from someone else to a dating site. 3 weeks talking, they go on a date. You’re only privy to the first night talking to eachother online. That’s it. No build up. MMC figured out who she was after a week. The dinner is over quick, pretty much no conversation no build up. They go off and have sex. Next morning he’s talking about moving in together blah blah and she runs out. They agree to “slow” after no real conversation or resolve lol and a month later, she’s engaged, pregnant and moving in together.
That’s it. There’s so substance. No build up. You don’t really get to know the characters. You don’t get to connect with anyone. The scenes are bland and basic with no actual set up or description and the few there was, doesn’t really make much sense. A few moments of sex talk was ick too. Juvenile at best. It’s all so very rushed.
Based off this, I won’t bother reading anything else. It’s only redeeming quality was its quick.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Ofelia, también conocida como Lia, corre el peligro de perder la querida granja de su abuelo debido a todo lo que se descuidó cuando él estuvo enfermo. Algo que ella no supo hasta que fue demasiado tarde, ya que él y todos los demás se lo ocultaron. Aunque sabe que él creía que mantenerlo en secreto era lo mejor ya que estaba cerca de lograr sus sueños olímpicos, hubiera preferido estar con él en lugar de no poder despedirse. Mientras lucha a diario por recuperar financieramente la granja, se enfrenta a los comentarios críticos que su sexy vecino de al lado insiste en hacerle. James, dueño del rancho contiguo al de Lia, está decidido a comprar su rancho. Todo lo que ve cuando la mira, aparte de una mujer hermosa, es a alguien que simplemente juega en el rancho y que no pudo tomarse el tiempo para visitar a su abuelo cuando estaba enfermo y moribundo. James está haciendo lo mejor que puede para criar a su hermana Rose, de dieciséis años, después de la muerte de su madre y su padre hace dos años. No necesita la molestia que representa Lia. Ambos estan muy atraídos entre sí, se dan cuenta de que las percepciones erróneas que han tenido el uno del otro les han impedido explorar algo que les cambiará la vida.
Ranching is grueling. Keeping a family ranch going and fighting off others from buying it is even harder. When would anyone have time to date let along socialize. Well Ophelia’s closest friend thought she needed to live a little and see what’s out in the real world. James was grumpy and lived for his ranch, raising his very ambition teenage sister added extra to his life. Now all Rose wanted is to see her brother happy and enjoy life a little. Ranchers Only website is a perfect site for someone looking for someone with similar tastes. Lia(Ophelia) started to chat with one of her matches; James started to chat with one of his matches. As time went on James figured out that the person that has been his pain in his side for years, was his match. They finally met and Lia was shocked to see it was the man that consumes her dreams. Now two budding ranch owners find more than common ground in working together, they found lasting love. Incredible read from one of my favorite authors Elle Christenson, this is a MUST READ.
Romance trope: neighbors/enemies to lovers Series: Ranchers Only/Lone Star Burn Universe Length: 118 pages
Plot: Ophelia loved spending time with her grandfather, learning how to run his ranch, and it was a short leap from there to riding in the Olympics. But a career-ending injury sent her back to the ranch, trying to sort out the financial mess her grandfather left the ranch in. One stumbling block? Her neighbor, James. He's always acted like she was a burden, even when she was young. Now that she's back, he can't stand the thought of the inexperienced brat keeping him from buying the land that he wants. There will be a reckoning, and it will start with a dating app!
Commentary: Ugh, James! He literally had no reason to hate Ophelia. I think it was supposed to be the whole "I hate her because I love her so much and I hate loving her" kind of a vibe at first, but when she came back he made all kinds of assumptions about her even though his sister was telling him he was wrong. I was really mad at him. He did apologize, but dang, he put her through some stress!
This is a fast paced romance. I liked Ophelia and James as a couple. They were sweet together. I will admit that I disliked James at first. He was abrupt, cold & judgemental towards Ophelia. Parts of this story were a little predictable. I had already figured out that James was going to be the guy off of the dating site. I liked that once James got to know Ophelia he realised he was wrong about here. Once they got together I adored them as a couple. I was happy Ophelia got her happily ever after. The storyline for this book is easy to follow and an enjoyable read. I hope that there is going to be a next book. I want to know Rose’s story.
Ophelia Cooper has a passion for horses. Since she was a little girl she has loved her grandfathers ranch. After getting injured in the Olympics she moves to the ranch. Still hurt other the loss of her grandfather, she struggles to cope with the mounting bills. James Locke cannot stand his neighbour Ophelia. He thinks that she is a spoiled princess that doesn’t know anything about horses. He is also under the impression that she knew of her grandfather’s illness and left him alone to die. When James little sister signs him up to the ranchers only dating site he is reluctant. Ophelia hasn’t got time for a relationship; she has to find a way to save her ranch. When her best friend informs her that she has been signed up to the ranchers only dating site, she is reluctant. Soon throwing caution to the wind, she gets talking to a guy. After weeks of speaking online, its time for Ophelia to meet her man in person. James realised that the girl he was speaking to online was Ophelia weeks ago. He soon realised she is not what he expects. Soon realising Ophelia is his one, he just needs to do is convince Ophelia to give him a chance.
This was my first read from Elle and it was good read. I absolutely loved how you can feel the characters develop over time. James is a few years older than Ophelia and has had quite a few misgivings about her. After his sister signs him up on a dating site and her best friend signs her up they begin chatting online. Initially neither of them know who they are talking to but after a few clues James figures out that it’s his annoying younger neighbor. He is amazed and in awe of her. She has endured more than he ever realized, but how would they he never had any interest in Ophelia. After weeks of pursuing her James must meet her, he wants a real future with her but can she forgive him for his cruel interactions of his past with her?
This was my first book by this author and I really enjoyed it. I loved Ophelia's determination and perseverance to succeed. When she inherits her grandfather's ranch, it was already in trouble and she is doing everything in her power to save it. James has been the neighbor who has always been a grumpy a$$. Lia has always crushed on him, though he has never really treated her well. The chemistry and sparks are heavy between the two characters. There are times when James wasn't easy to like. I loved it when he softens a bit with Lia. This was a fun, quick, and steamy read. There is a little bit of a You've Got Mail piece that I loved. It is written in first person from an alternating dual POV.
This book had lots of things I look for in a book, I was in the mood for a rancher romance, bonus points for a series & grumpy/sunshine. It started off well James was the grumpy, older rancher next door. Lia came back to her Grandfather’s ranch after he died. He didn’t have much respect for her, she had a crush on him when she was younger, but his rudeness snuffed that out. They are both set-up on the same dating site and start communicating without knowing who they really are. James works out who Lia really is but doesn’t tell her right away. When she finds out she gives him a chance. He is very bossy and demanding which I didn’t like and she just seemed to go ok almost straight away. There was plenty of steam.
Sweet, sexy, short tale about the girl next door who falls in love with her brooding, slightly older neighbor only to be rebuffed by him in their youth. She moves away to chase Olympic dreams and returns home to save the ranch her beloved grandfather left as his legacy. H and h both join a dating site called ranchersonly.com in an attempt at a social life and unbeknownst to them, strike up surprising online chemistry. I loved it! Not the most thought-provoking read ever but when can you expect from such a short read? Perfect for a Friday morning. Now, I'm anxious to read about Rose and Garrison (the hero's little sister and his BFF)!!!!
I love the chemistry between the main couple when they got together and the sex scenes were hot/explicit. Our hero was a stubborn take charge alpha while our heroine was a sweet and down to earth. The hero went from avoiding the heroine and being very gruff to being all “mine”. It kind of came out of no where and was a bit confusing. I would have liked to see the couple talk out the misunderstandings instead of seeing how it was resolved after the fact. The ranching lifestyle also did not play a big part in this book nor did the “accident”.