What do you think?
Rate this book
The Codys: The First Family of Rodeo #2
Dexter: Honorable Cowboy
Josie Charles was back in town, and Dexter Cody desired her as much as ever. She was his twin brother's girl, but it was hard to act honorable when all he wanted was to stake his claim on the woman and her boy. Sooner or later, his brother was going to step up and do the right thing. And when that time came, would Dexter be able to step aside and lose Josie all over again?
No way was Josie losing her heart to the sexy-as-all-get-out rancher. The last thing the single mother needed was another Cody messing with her life. But her high school pal had sure grown into one fine-looking cowboy. Caring. Hardworking. Responsible. Exactly the kind of man she'd want to be a father to her son.
Which one is the right brother? Looks as if there's going to be a showdown….
No way was Josie losing her heart to the sexy-as-all-get-out rancher. The last thing the single mother needed was another Cody messing with her life. But her high school pal had sure grown into one fine-looking cowboy. Caring. Hardworking. Responsible. Exactly the kind of man she'd want to be a father to her son.
Which one is the right brother? Looks as if there's going to be a showdown….
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 2010
3 people are currently reading
85 people want to read
About the author
Marin Thomas
108 books672 followersWelcome to my corner of Goodreads!
I was born in Janesville, Wisconsin. I played D-I Basketball for the University of Arizona in Tucson then married my college sweetheart in a five-minute ceremony in Las Vegas. My husband and I are empty nesters living in Phoenix, Arizona.
I've written two women's fiction novels for Berkley Books and contemporary romances for Harlequin Books and Tule Publishing. To date I've published over 40 books. My women's fiction novel, The Promise of Forgiveness, won First Place in the 2017 Book Buyer's Best contest. My second novel, The Future She Left Behind was featured on Southern Living "Books we can't wait to read this fall" list and "was the Award Winner in the "Fiction: Chick Lit/Women's Lit" category of the 2017 Best Book Awards."
Come hang out with me...
FB https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marin-...
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/marinthomas...
Keep up to date on all my writing news, travels and my obsession with Route 66 sign up for my Newsletter at https://www.marinthomas.com/sign-up-f...
I was born in Janesville, Wisconsin. I played D-I Basketball for the University of Arizona in Tucson then married my college sweetheart in a five-minute ceremony in Las Vegas. My husband and I are empty nesters living in Phoenix, Arizona.
I've written two women's fiction novels for Berkley Books and contemporary romances for Harlequin Books and Tule Publishing. To date I've published over 40 books. My women's fiction novel, The Promise of Forgiveness, won First Place in the 2017 Book Buyer's Best contest. My second novel, The Future She Left Behind was featured on Southern Living "Books we can't wait to read this fall" list and "was the Award Winner in the "Fiction: Chick Lit/Women's Lit" category of the 2017 Best Book Awards."
Come hang out with me...
FB https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marin-...
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/marinthomas...
Keep up to date on all my writing news, travels and my obsession with Route 66 sign up for my Newsletter at https://www.marinthomas.com/sign-up-f...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 31, 2010
I can't help but think that Ms. Thomas had a Harlequin trope shopping list when she set out to plot this book.
-Secret baby? Check.
-Twins? Check.
-City girl falls for country boy? Check.
-Childhood friends become lovers? Check.
-Domineering multi-millionaire father? Check.
-Dry humping on a mechanical bull? Bonus.
Dexter Cody is the good twin always picking up his brother Dusty's slack. When something needs doing, be it on the Cody family's massive ranch or in life in general, Dex makes it happen. Family loyalty is first and foremost for him, so he finds himself in a bit of a pickle when Dusty's old high school sweetheart shows back up in town after living in California for years. Dexter may still harbor a crush for the pretty Josie Charles, but she's got a little surprise for everyone.
Josie, afraid of the powerful J.W. Cody, never told Dusty that their random hookup almost 5 years ago resulted in a little boy named Matt. In town to look after her father when he has a heart attack, she figures it's about time to straighten out the mess she's made by keeping Matt a secret. When Dusty takes off to Canada to think things over, she ends up spending time with her old friend Dex and wondering if maybe she had picked the wrong twin all those years ago.
So, by all rights this book should have been terrible. Since this is part of a 5 or 6 book continuity, the plot is busier than a 1970s sofa with sequel bait, past and future protagonists and family intrigue. Somehow it stays fairly entertaining. Dex is charming with little Matt, taking him fishing and teaching him to ride a horse. The chemistry between Dex and Josie is well, not sizzling, but still palpable. She's no-nonsense and assertive where he's deferential and timid, and he's responsible and self-sacrificing where she's a bit selfish and procrastination-prone. They're like two interlocking puzzle pieces.
Unfortunately, the conflict annoyed the piss out of me. Dex wants Josie something fierce, all but nailing her on the mechanical bull, but won't agree to a relationship with her because he thinks she should marry his brother, who's Matt's father. One, the 1950s were 60 years ago. Two, Josie is a grown woman, not some sort of underling to be moved around at will. When she said she wanted nothing romantic with Dusty, that should've been the end of it. All Dex's refusals did at that point is make him look like a sanctimonious prig who didn't think too highly of women. That's not something I admire in a hero.
So maybe this is a 2.5 rather than a solid 3. I enjoyed it while I was reading it, but it was pretty preposterous.
-Secret baby? Check.
-Twins? Check.
-City girl falls for country boy? Check.
-Childhood friends become lovers? Check.
-Domineering multi-millionaire father? Check.
-Dry humping on a mechanical bull? Bonus.
Dexter Cody is the good twin always picking up his brother Dusty's slack. When something needs doing, be it on the Cody family's massive ranch or in life in general, Dex makes it happen. Family loyalty is first and foremost for him, so he finds himself in a bit of a pickle when Dusty's old high school sweetheart shows back up in town after living in California for years. Dexter may still harbor a crush for the pretty Josie Charles, but she's got a little surprise for everyone.
Josie, afraid of the powerful J.W. Cody, never told Dusty that their random hookup almost 5 years ago resulted in a little boy named Matt. In town to look after her father when he has a heart attack, she figures it's about time to straighten out the mess she's made by keeping Matt a secret. When Dusty takes off to Canada to think things over, she ends up spending time with her old friend Dex and wondering if maybe she had picked the wrong twin all those years ago.
So, by all rights this book should have been terrible. Since this is part of a 5 or 6 book continuity, the plot is busier than a 1970s sofa with sequel bait, past and future protagonists and family intrigue. Somehow it stays fairly entertaining. Dex is charming with little Matt, taking him fishing and teaching him to ride a horse. The chemistry between Dex and Josie is well, not sizzling, but still palpable. She's no-nonsense and assertive where he's deferential and timid, and he's responsible and self-sacrificing where she's a bit selfish and procrastination-prone. They're like two interlocking puzzle pieces.
Unfortunately, the conflict annoyed the piss out of me. Dex wants Josie something fierce, all but nailing her on the mechanical bull, but won't agree to a relationship with her because he thinks she should marry his brother, who's Matt's father. One, the 1950s were 60 years ago. Two, Josie is a grown woman, not some sort of underling to be moved around at will. When she said she wanted nothing romantic with Dusty, that should've been the end of it. All Dex's refusals did at that point is make him look like a sanctimonious prig who didn't think too highly of women. That's not something I admire in a hero.
So maybe this is a 2.5 rather than a solid 3. I enjoyed it while I was reading it, but it was pretty preposterous.
March 29, 2024
I’m usually wary of alternate histories, and retellings of classic literature are, in my opinion, difficult to execute. HOWEVER, in DEXTER: HONORABLE COWBOY, author Marin Thomas boldly attempts to tackle BOTH genres in one 216-page novel. In it, she reimagines Shakespeare’s JULIUS CAESAR (a play based on the real-life events of the titular character) in which Brutus takes the throne of Rome after Caesar’s death.
Instead of the ultimate death of Brutus, Cassius, and the rest of the conspirators, Brutus (noble Brutus) ascends as emperor of Rome. In this altered history (which is actually set against the modern backdrop of Cody, Wyoming), Brutus battles his inner demons, struggling with where his allegiance should lie when his personal loyalties and his professional loyalties clash. For those of you who are thinking, “isn’t this the situation in which Brutus finds himself at the beginning of JULIUS CAESAR?” you are right, but in this situation, Brutus chooses his personal loyalties, revoking his professional loyalties. By doing so, he manages to accomplish two things:
1. Ensure Caesar sees the error of his ways, and
2. Start a new empire under his own leadership.
In this story, the fault, dear Brutus, was neither in the stars NOR in ourselves. Instead, it was in the machinations of a previous generation’s blood feud.
TL;DR: Dexter falls in love with his identical twin brother’s baby-mama. The twin has no intention of marrying her, so Dexter gets the girl. When Dexter and the girl inevitably have children, they will genetically be full-blooded siblings with the first baby because #genetics
Overall rating: 🤠🤠
Instead of the ultimate death of Brutus, Cassius, and the rest of the conspirators, Brutus (noble Brutus) ascends as emperor of Rome. In this altered history (which is actually set against the modern backdrop of Cody, Wyoming), Brutus battles his inner demons, struggling with where his allegiance should lie when his personal loyalties and his professional loyalties clash. For those of you who are thinking, “isn’t this the situation in which Brutus finds himself at the beginning of JULIUS CAESAR?” you are right, but in this situation, Brutus chooses his personal loyalties, revoking his professional loyalties. By doing so, he manages to accomplish two things:
1. Ensure Caesar sees the error of his ways, and
2. Start a new empire under his own leadership.
In this story, the fault, dear Brutus, was neither in the stars NOR in ourselves. Instead, it was in the machinations of a previous generation’s blood feud.
TL;DR: Dexter falls in love with his identical twin brother’s baby-mama. The twin has no intention of marrying her, so Dexter gets the girl. When Dexter and the girl inevitably have children, they will genetically be full-blooded siblings with the first baby because #genetics
Overall rating: 🤠🤠
March 8, 2017
This was a sweet romance with my favorite things Cowboys and Rodeo.
Josie Charles had dated Dusty Cody in High School and had a fling with him when he was in Santa Monica on business. Dusty has a fraternal twin, Dexter. He had been Josie's friend in HS and was not happy she dated his twin. Now they were all together again and Josie had a surprise to tell Dusty.
Her son Matt was also Dusty's son. He was 4 and wanted to know were his father was and why he didn't live with them. Josie had always told Matt his father traveled a lot. Then one night Matt ran away and she found him at the bus stop going to look for his Dad. Now that they are together how is Josie going to explain everything??
Josie Charles had dated Dusty Cody in High School and had a fling with him when he was in Santa Monica on business. Dusty has a fraternal twin, Dexter. He had been Josie's friend in HS and was not happy she dated his twin. Now they were all together again and Josie had a surprise to tell Dusty.
Her son Matt was also Dusty's son. He was 4 and wanted to know were his father was and why he didn't live with them. Josie had always told Matt his father traveled a lot. Then one night Matt ran away and she found him at the bus stop going to look for his Dad. Now that they are together how is Josie going to explain everything??
July 30, 2018
Awesome book!
Great book! I could hardly put it down! I love the characters. Little Matt is adorable. One of the best books in its series.
Great book! I could hardly put it down! I love the characters. Little Matt is adorable. One of the best books in its series.
Read
June 30, 2016"This is the second book in the Cody series and the first of it that I read and it had me hooked.
I loved it. I loved the characters and the touches of rodeo." from a review posted by an eHarlequin.com member, read more here.
I loved it. I loved the characters and the touches of rodeo." from a review posted by an eHarlequin.com member, read more here.
November 9, 2010
Decent read.
Dexter is the twin to Dusty (Dusty: Wild Cowboy)
Becomes involved with the former lover of Dusty.
Part of "The Cody's: First Family of Rodeo" series.
Dexter is the twin to Dusty (Dusty: Wild Cowboy)
Becomes involved with the former lover of Dusty.
Part of "The Cody's: First Family of Rodeo" series.
July 16, 2011
This was GOOD! Kinda SOAPY too LOL!
January 3, 2018
great book by a great author. i read the whole series and loved every one
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews