Dust Storm, Maggie Gates (Review by Sara D’Onofrio)

Rating: 4.0/5

Okay, I ended up going with a 4 out of 5, but it took me a little to decide! There were elements of this book that I loved so much, and then there were parts that I cringed at. I loved the dynamic between Christian and his daughters. If you want readers to swoon over a male main character, show them a single dad who will do anything for his kids, including growing out his own hair so he can learn how to style it. Throw in a little protectiveness, a dabble of sweet words, and the perfect blend of discipline and snuggles… readers are in love! AND that’s before you even get to the sexy stuff. He knows how to handle the female main character, Cass, and he’s got a delicious, confident, and sexy power about him. One thing I couldn’t stand was the constant mention of his belly. Look, I am all for the realistic bodies in a book. It’s obviously not realistic to have every character be chiseled from stone and perfect, but holy moly, it was mentioned so many times. The reader understood from the first meeting that he had a “dad bod”, but every time they touched, I swear it was mentioned. Even when they were intimate, it was described how his belly hung down on to her stomach, and I feel like it just takes you out of the moment a little. I enjoyed how strong Cass was and especially how she defended the girls, but I actually felt like she was so over the top rude in the beginning, that I didn’t connect with her until closer to the end, but even then, it wasn’t like I loved her as a character. I think we could have been given more glimpses of her softer side that showed us more about who she was underneath her hard exterior. I also feel like every cowboy trope in the history of ever uses the nickname “princess”. Okay, with all those things aside, I really did feel like it was just a quick, easy read, and the single dad trope will always boost my ratings!