Lost and Found

Oh my goodness. All the love for this book. First of all, I had no idea that Lost and Found was by the same author as Crash. I read Crash earlier this year, and I sadly didn't like it very much, so I was surprised to see that it was written by the same person since I absolutely loved it! This book was free on Amazon Kindle when I downloaded it. I hadn't heard of it before, so I didn’t really have any expectations when I started reading. However, I was hooked right away! I stayed up until four in the morning to finish it. Sure, I was pretty much dead the next day but whatever.



In order for Rowen to enroll in her dream art school, she has to prove herself to her mother, who sends her to Willow Springs Ranch. What she was not expecting show more during her stay was her attraction to the hot, skin-tight jean wearing cowboy who works at the farm, and also happens to be the son of the family she’s staying with. Western Cowboy stories usually aren’t my thing but whew, Jesse. I wouldn’t mind having one of him for my own ;)



Both Jesse and especially Rowen are flawed characters. And as they become closer, their demons appear, but they are given the choice to face them together or alone.
Rowen is definitely one complicated person. I loved her character arch and watching her develop with the help of Jesse and his family. Which brings up another thing that I loved, the dynamic of Jesse’s family. I love his mom, Rose so much. She’s the loving mom and helpful mentor that Rowen never had. The two of them definitely bonded and Rose kind of became Rowen’s surrogate mom during her stay. A character that I was very conflicted about was Garth Black. He used to be best friends with Jesse, but now he’s turned into a bad boy player. While I originally disliked Garth, I eventually grew to like him. He’s actually getting his own story which makes me excited!
By the time I finished I had fangirled so many times that I almost exploded with all the feels.



In conclusion, everyone needs read Lost and Found. It was extremely cute yet full of feels and drama. Let’s just say that I’ll be reading the second book very soon.



My Favorite Quote:
“We don't deserve anything, Rowen. We don't deserve punishment, we don't deserve happiness, life owes us nothing. realize that." His voice wasn't gentle anymore; it was as strong as I'd ever heard it. "So we have to take what we want because life sure as shit isn't going to freely hand it over.” show less

Lost and Found is one of those books that when you read it, you want to kick yourself for not reading it sooner because it is so good. I love cowboys, especially hot ones, and Jesse Walker owns cowboy hotness lock, stock, and barrel. Not only does he have it in the looks department, he is one of greatest guys you could ever find. I usually lean towards bad boys, but this time, the good boy is the one who's got it all going on. Rowen Sterling is the total opposite of Jesse Walker. She is snarky, dresses kind of goth-like, has piercings, and is the classic "bad girl," and in this case the saying is true...opposites do attract, whether Rowen wants to admit it or not. Jesse is the first person she has met that isn't phased by her clothes, show more hair, piercings, or smart mouth. He doesn't judge her based on her appearance. In fact, he gives her a run for her money and causes something to awaken in her she thought was long gone. Rowen thought that spending her summer on the ranch was going to be the equivalent of a prison sentence, but she soon finds that it is anything but that. For the first time in her life she experiences unconditional love from a family who accepts her, cares for her, and wants nothing but the best for her, no strings attached.

The more time Rowen and Jesse spend together, the closer they get. That isn't to say they don't have their share of problems and obstacles to overcome, because they definitely do. Because of Rowen's past, she has trust issues, big time, and there are some things and situations which really test that. She has done some really bad things and she doesn't believe she is good enough for Jesse. Contrary to what Rowen originally believed, Jesse has a past....one that is possibly even more devastating than her own. When Rowen's past appears on her doorstep in the present, her fears resurface along with all her insecurities, and Jesse proves himself even more. A potentially life-threatening incident causes Rowen to wake up and decide whether she is going to let go of her past and move forward into her future, if that future includes Jesse, and what she is willing to sacrifice in order to have it.

Again, I loved this book and my attention was captured from beginning to end. The story line was amazing. I loved both Jesse and Rowen's characters and really connected with both of them, rooting for them and their relationship. The secondary characters were also well written and developed, and I loved getting to know them to. Jesse's family was wonderful, and I especially loved his mom, Rose. Then there was Josie, who proved herself to be a good friend. Last, but certainly not least, is Garth. I really disliked him in this story, but he began to redeem himself by the end. Rowen's mom...well I just wanted to slap her. I loved the setting that Nicole Williams created and could easily visualize Willow Spring Ranch in my mind. Then there is the romance, which was sweet and smexy. The ending left me happy, yet wondering what the future holds for these characters. Needless to say, I couldn't wait to read Near and Far, the next book in the series. If you are a contemporary romance fan, then Lost and Found is definitely something I recommend checking out. show less

'My whole life was shifting, like I was experiencing my own personal earthquake. I felt the plates shifting and rearranging below the surface. I felt the fire and heat molding and shaping them. I felt change, whether I wanted it or not. It was happening, and I might as well embrace it.'

Plot

Rowen Stirling has been numbing her pain with boys and alcohol for five long years. Rowen's dream is to go to Art School, but her mum will only pay the bill if Rowen proves that she can work hard and stay out of trouble all summer at Willow Springs Ranch.

When Rowen sets her eyes on ranch hand Jesse Walker, the heart she thought was frozen roars to life. Jesse is nothing like Rowen, and she knows there could never be a happily ever-after for them, so show more she tries to ignore the feelings that she's not sure she's ready to feel.

As she tries to push him away, Jesse gets closer to her, and the secrets that she holds inside push their way to the surface. As her walls come crashing down, Rowen realises that it's not everybody else that she needs to be honest with, but herself.

My thoughts

This book was recommended to me a few days ago via Goodreads, and when I saw that it was only 77p on Amazon I thought; why not? This is my first romance book with cowboys and I have to say, it's time I read some more. I finished this book within a few days and loved every bit of it.

It's not often I give five stars to a book. For me, five star reviews are for the rare books that keep me coming back for more every time I put the book down, and keep me thinking about it when I'm away from it. They also need to have something special about them; something different from the other books I've read. I've read a lot of Romance books lately, but something about this one just stood out for me.

There were a lot of things that were different in this story. Unfortunately I can't go into them in my review, as they would be major spoilers. There was one part of the story that was predictable however. We're introduced to Garth Black early on in the story and it's clear that there's some bad vibes between him and Jesse. It's not entirely clear why until close to the end of the book, but it was certainly hinted at, and I guessed correctly.However, there were so many twists, turns and shocks in this book that I lost count.

Rowen is a lovely character. She's deeply troubled and holds a lot of emotions inside. It's so nice to see her open up during the story. She finally feels wanted and loved at Willow Springs, after many years of feeling unwanted and rejected at home. At first, it's hard for her to understand why the Walkers are so kind to her, and why they even want her around in the first place. But it's not long until she understands that the Walkers are just some of the kindest people she'll ever know. I really felt myself connecting with Rowen, as we all have times when we don't feel wanted, or we hide our true selves from others. Rowen was easy to connect with, as she's just an ordinary girl who's had a really tough time, and she feels the same insecurities that most girls feel at some point in their lives.

I absolutely loved Jesse. He's kind to Rowen from the first day of meeting her and he doesn't judge her as most people do. It's clear that he has his own issues but he doesn't let them affect those around him. He's protective over Rowen, but not possessive which makes a nice change in this type of book. Quite often in romance novels, the male character is incredibly overbearing and possessive, but Jesse is none of these things. Their relationship is lovely to watch, they enjoy each other's company, they make each other laugh, but they also test each other.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone looking for romance with a difference. There's darkness and sadness in this story, but there's also love, happiness and of course, there's Cowboys. show less

Lost & Found
By: Nicole Williams
Published: Smashwords Edition
Released: 7th May 2013
Reviewed: AB
The word: A journey where boundaries are tested and we learn to love, trust and grow
https://birdslovewords.wordpress.com/...

Sexy, dreamy, sweet and bad boy Cowboys... My review here is done. Oh sorry did you need me to say more?

Rowen has always felt like it’s the world vs. her. She learnt from early on to not accept anything positive to happen, so she isn’t surprised that her mother is sending her off to a ranch in the middle of nowhere to “prove herself”. If anything Rowen knows that she can live through her mother’s punishment of working the summer to follow her dreams. So when she is collected by a perfect stranger she wasn’t show more expecting what she got.

Now finally what we’ve all been waiting for ... Jessie (The hotter than hell stranger) strides into her life. A real life cowboy with great ass…ets (eh eh see what I did there??). Same age, wants to get to know her, and be the bearer of all her secrets (swoon). This means that Rowen for the first time in a long time unwillingly lets her walls down with Jessie, and once he’s in that boys seems to have no plans to leave. So the big question is will they work or won’t they? Will Rowen let her history interfere into her present? Are their lives too different to work or do they both have secrets?

Sometimes with books like these I worry if I will ever have a social life ever again.... such fond memories of one I use to have. This book is the kind of cute that is a three year old covered in ice-cream telling you that they love you adorable. It’s by no means as cheesy as you would think and has the perfect amount of drama, self realisation, love and acceptance that every good romance needs. The speed that the plot is revealed is a no-nonsense, straight to the point kind (my new found favourite).

I enjoyed all characters and how they entangle into the plot and play out in this book. KJ and I had very different view on this (we argue about these things all the time). KJ felt that Rowen was portrayed as more of a full on rebel and live up to the hype when she gets to the farm, but I felt that Rowen wasn’t your typical rebel, that she was more emotionally complex than rebel and didn’t need to be bad when she arrived as she wasn’t in a situation to make her want too.

Rowen’s relationship with her Mother is an important and well portrayed connection that helps you to understand a little bit more how and why Rowen has become the hard exterior and complicated interior that she is. It is a complex relationship and not smooth sailing but builds up Rowen as a person.
Rowan and Jessie, sitting in a tree...... or a room... K.I.S.... you get the idea. You can feel, see and hear the tension between these two. Jessie is the cowboy that dreams are made of and at times is a little too good to be true. He really is the gentle in gentleman, but not all cowboys are the same. (Jessie, call me - 04** *** ***)

Rowen builds a great relationship with the Walker family. She finally sees how a functional family works and it makes her face things in herself and her history with her mother that she would rather avoid. Rowen needs to face her demons before she can truly let go and be herself, if only it was as easy as it sounded or could be as perfect as the Walker family.

This story is one of testing boundaries, learning to love, trust and grow. It’s a story that everyone can relate to as some point in their life and connect with. I’m glad that Rowen and Jessie are now a part of my life and that after reading this book twice I still love the plot as much as I did the first time. If you’re a true romantic like me then good luck reading just the one in the series. Now please excuse me I need to Google ‘’Summer ranch help needed” and see if I can get me onto a ranch.

Loves, hugs and kisses
AB. show less

-- Want to know if the whole series is worth reading? Read my overall review of the whole series at seriesousbookreviews.com! Spoiler Free!

Nicole William's book Crash from the Crash Trilogy is what introduced me to the world of New Adult reads, so I think it is safe to say her books will always hold a special place in my heart--and this one is no exception.

Unlike Crash, with Lost and Found we get the outcast girl falling in love with the golden boy. When I first read that in the plot synopsis, I was worried that Lost and Found would just be a retelling of sorts of Crash but with the characters in opposite roles. I'm happy to say that this is not the case, and this book does differ in its plot and characters from the Crash Trilogy show more wholeheartedly.

I really liked Rowan. She is the classic example of someone who appears strong but internally struggles with herself and I enjoyed watching her grow into herself. This book just really had the "feel-good" attitude about it. There were two moments though when I didn't like Rowan as much. One was not cluing into the whole Garth-Jesse problem--I think it was fairly obvious so that was a little disappointing because she seemed a little smarter than that. The second moment also deals with that first one. Throughout the whole novel Rowan complains that people always assume things about her without hearing the whole story and then she goes and does the exact same thing to Jesse. I thought it was a little hypocritical but given her jaded character I could see why she might not follow the "treat others like you want to be treated" motto when it comes to others. It just irked me a bit ;)

Jesse was totally swoon-worthy. There isn't too much to say about him as this novel is really more about Rowan (from what I have read about the synopsis for book 2, I think we will get more about Jesse there) but he is a solid character and I enjoyed his wit an banter with Rowan.

My only real peeve about this book was how fast the "love" happens. I just felt like they didn't really know each other that well to warrant those feelings so soon, but I do feel like after that point, they work on creating a healthy relationship so I feel like it redeems itself in that respect.

OVERALL: I'm excited to see where this series is going to go next. A great "feel-good" novel that fans of New Adult will love. It isn't particularly "steamy" but it is swoon-worthy. Oh, and Jesse is a cowboy if that does anything for you ;)

Check out more spoiler-free book and series reviews on my blog SERIESousBookReviews.com as well as read book series recaps!

Full Review: http://wp.me/p7hLUw-97 show less

I had a hard time connecting with the characters in this one. Rowen drove me nuts. Towards the end I started to understand more but still wasn't completely on board with her. Now Jesse, he was a whole different story. Talk about strapping sweet southern gentleman. Won't give up on the series yet!

I loved it. It was fun, made me laugh-out-loud on multiple occasions, and all in all was just a very enjoyable read. I don't think there's anything I didn't like about this book except those things that were meant to be disliked (there are just those certain nemeses...). This is one of those books I'll probably reread multiple times before I give it a rest for a while.