TRAIL RIDES AND STARRY EYES

In her sophomore novel, Emmel delivers a dual point-of-view romance set against a lush backdrop.

Cassidy has always known that someday she’ll help run Silver Stallion Ranch, just like generations of Sterlings before her. Wilder Nash is a Hollywood heartthrob who’s trying to break out of commercials and high school prom-coms. Being cast as the lead in a historical Western miniseries might be his big break. The only problem: He can’t ride a horse. But he hopes that a stay at the ranch with Cassidy as his teacher will turn him into a believable rider. Over the course of their lessons, the chemistry between the teens slowly builds. But can they take a chance on romance when they’re from two different worlds and their time together is finite? Emmel transports readers to Wyoming, with its rolling fields, winding streams, and smells of dry earth and warm grass. Cassidy loves her home and her life, but she recognizes how confining not having choices can be. Wilder wants to be serious, but he doesn’t know what to say when there’s no script to fall back on. Cassidy and Wilder, who are cued white, feel like real people who are acting on their internal motivations and insecurities. While the growing romantic tension is engaging, the ending wraps up a bit too quickly. Still, this novel offers an appealing blend of love story and coming-of-age themes.

A swoony romance with a well-developed sense of a place.