Jenna's Cowboy

Overall, this book had a lot of potential. I actually mostly enjoyed it. But, one trap I come across again and again with Christian fiction is their need to beat you over the head with "the message." For me, it is much more effective to just show me. Unfortunately this book fell into that trap with a handful of points where the narration beat you over the head with their Christian values.As a Christian, I am not against the values they are promoting. But I find it heavy handed and often times abrupt. It jars me out of the flow of the story. I think the characters' actions spoke loudly enough that the book could have cut those not-so-subtle diatribes and been a wonderful book that perhaps even non-Christians could enjoy.The writing was show more good and I really enjoyed and felt invested in the characters. Despite that, I likely won't read anymore in the series, sadly. show less

This was wonderfully written. It is a touching story of friendship, first loves, and second chances. The author did a magnificent job at capturing me completely. I could truly feel all the things that Jenna felt. And the things that Nate went through! Man, I sure felt everything that Jenna's cowboy did! From being scared of fire to the flashbacks, it was as if I was going through it all.

While I loved that(because that's what makes a book fantastic!), what I loved most was the detail the author put into a veteran's life (flashbacks, jumpiness,nightmares) and the reliance on God for strength. Those were two of the best features of this book. Reading about the flashbacks and the military life of Jenna's Cowboy, Nate, brought me to tears. show more And Jenna's reliance on God to guide her in her struggles with letting the past go and moving forward with Nate was absolutely powerful.

I would love to give this book more than 5 stars, but I can't. What I can do is sing it's praises and highly recommend this moving story to all those people out there who support our military and all those who want a great story that will make you laugh, cry and smile! I can NOT wait for book 2!

**This book was provided for review by Revell,a division of Baker Publishing Group** show less

Jenna's Cowboy is emotionally-gripping and beautifully done romance. I think I ran through all of my feelings in a good way while reading Jenna's Cowboy. The characters of Jenna and Nate have been through so much, Jenna a divorce and Nate service to the country in Iraq and Afghanistan. The romance is set up from the beginning so the book is more about Nate's healing as the romance progresses. There are a few surprises along the way and the plot moves at a wonderful pace. There is never a dull moment and some moments you will feel tears in your eyes and some you will be laughing.

One other thing I really liked was the fact that they were both Christian from the start of the book, they were not perfect, but they both had a strong belief show more in God. So the Christianity was just there through the whole book and the whole book was a testimony to believing in God and trusting Him to know what is best for your life. Don't get me wrong - I enjoy the stories where someone comes to Christ also, but I felt the use of both hero/heroine as Christians from the start was a refreshing change.

The characterization is also stunning, Nate and Jenna who are fleshed out so well I feel like I am friends with the two. Jenna's son Zack adds another interesting dimension to the story - I can just imagine this adorable little toddler and his speaking sounds so much like my boys when they were little ones. I loved getting to know the Callahan family and look forward to getting to know them better in future books. Will and Chance are interesting as Jenna's brothers and Nate's friends and look forward to them finding women of their own. Sue and Dub are also great as the parents to the clan. I like how Dub is tough yet deep down he is a teddy bear. He also makes some mistakes but like Jenna and Nate, he makes good on them.

Jenna's Cowboy should fit with anyone who loves the romance genre - Nate and Jenna are one of those perfect-for-each other couples and I enjoyed getting to know them for the time it took to read the book. The small town of Callahan's Crossing is also wonderful - this is one of those Texas towns where football is king, but the family is still most important and neighbors help neighbors when they need it. This is also a book that will stay with me because of the subject matter it deals with. I knew little to nothing about Post-traumatic stress disorder and how it can affect our soldiers. Now I feel a little more informed and it will make me pray each day for the men and women who are serving our country whether here at home or abroad fighting the war on terror. Thank you to Ms. Gillenwater for highlighting this disorder and the love and support needed to get through it. show less

Oh wow. Where do I start? I've read so many books about cowboys and ranchers, but this book really does sound more realistic than most books out there. Nate is a former serviceman, back in the States after serving in combat overseas. He is home, but his adjustment period is anything but normal. While he appears fine physically, he battles his PTSD on a daily basis--flashbacks, insomnia, and other symptoms crop up throughout this book. (The author did her research very well!) Jenna is a woman with battle scars of her own resulting from a divorce. She has a beautiful two-year-old boy who is light and love of her life. The only joy in the darkest time of her life.

Nate and Jenna have known each other since childhood-. Now adults, both are show more scarred by the events of their life and yet attracted to one another. After so much time apart, they finally confess a long-held torch for one another. You'll find that each one is a pillar of strength for the other. It's a beautiful story. show less

It is plain to see in reading this story that Sharon Gillenwater is good at her research and explains things very well. I know nothing about ranching or farming, but I felt from the explanations and pictures drawn by her imagery were great. I thoroughly enjoyed the romance of the story and the cover is perfect for the character of Nate. While reading this book I was thinking about the different things that I was going to say in the review about how much I enjoyed the characters and the visualizations as well as their witty banter. Easily I could say that I enjoy this author and look forward to reading her books in the future. However, I felt that the last three chapters were such a lurch from the rest of the story. Perhaps I am on my show more own in that opinion, but I felt that it went in rather abruptly and then the story just ended. I know why "it" happened and understand that, but I feel that the "big event" could have had more closure. It felt to me that the story was going along great, and then just amidst the action it ended and did not wrap down. It leaves me feeling like I missed something and I think could have ended better. Overall great writing though and enjoyable. show less

This was a generally enjoyable read. It is a fairly gentle story, it made me think of some of the Mills and Boon books and Lucy Walker titles that I've read in the past - this was almost just a longer version.

The plot follows the return home of Nate, a cowboy who enlisted after 9/11. He hopes to reunite with the girl he loved as a teen but he's coming home with a pretty hefty case of PTSD. This means that the plot is pretty patriotically American which was interesting to read.

One thing I hadn't noticed when I picked the book up was that it's classified as Christian fiction. As a result there are a lot of Christian themes running through it, for example characters frequently pray. This was quite a surprise and did take some getting used to.

This was a generally enjoyable read. It is a fairly gentle story, it made me think of some of the Mills and Boon books and Lucy Walker titles that I've read in the past - this was almost just a longer version.

The plot follows the return home of Nate, a cowboy who enlisted after 9/11. He hopes to reunite with the girl he loved as a teen but he's coming home with a pretty hefty case of PTSD. This means that the plot is pretty patriotically American which was interesting to read.

One thing I hadn't noticed when I picked the book up was that it's classified as Christian fiction. As a result there are a lot of Christian themes running through it, for example characters frequently pray. This was quite a surprise and did take some getting used to.