"Lone Star Ranger" by Renae Brumbaugh Green -- Book Review, Blog Tour, and Giveaway

About the Book

Book: Lone Star Ranger

Author: Renae Brumbaugh Green

Genre: Christian Historical Fiction

Release Date: January 21, 2020

Elizabeth Covington will get her man.

And she has just a week to prove her brother isn’t the murderer Texas Ranger Rett Smith accuses him of being. She’ll show the good-looking lawman he’s wrong, even if it means setting out on a risky race across Texas to catch the real killer.

Rett doesn’t want to convict an innocent man. But he can’t let the Boston beauty sway his senses to set a guilty man free. When Elizabeth follows him on a dangerous trek, the Ranger vows to keep her safe. But who will protect him from the woman whose conviction and courage leave him doubting everything—even his heart?

My Thoughts

"Lone Star Ranger" is the first book in the Texas Rangers series. I liked Rett and his desire that justice would win and that he was willing to admit when he was wrong. Elizabeth is feisty and independent but comes to realize she can get help when needed. It took some getting used to switching points of view in the middle of a passage. Sometimes it was difficult to know who we were following at first. There were a few things that I wondered if they would have had knowledge about. For instance, Elizabeth acknowledges that there was "chemistry" between herself and Rett, but that it was now more like the "fizzled-out remains left behind in the beaker". Would she have done experiments to have used that as a metaphor? It seemed out of time. I really liked the biblical faith thread throughout the book. It is a quick read so the romance moves quickly, but even knowing that, the ending seemed very abrupt and sudden. I look forward to reading Evan and Amelia's story.

About the Author

Renae Brumbaugh Green is a city-girl-turned-country-diva. She’s married to a handsome country boy named Rick, and she’s mom to four nearly-perfect, nearly-grown children, two rowdy dogs, and some ducks. They live in rural Texas where Renae wears overalls, western boots, and bubblegum pink nail polish. She’s a bestselling author of over 30 books, an award-winning humor columnist, and an online English teacher. In her free time, she can be found leaping tall buildings and rescuing kittens from trees. Or, she’d like to do those things, if she had free time.

More from Renae

I’ve been a fan of historical romance from the moment I graduated from The Babysitter’s Club. A friend of mind introduced me to the Love Comes Softly series by Janette Oke, and I was hooked. In college, between exams and extracurricular stuff, I read those books like they were M&Ms. That’s why, when I started writing grown-up fiction, I knew historical was my genre.

But there’s another reason—perhaps a more compelling reason—why I had to write The Texas Rangers series. See, my granddaddy was a Texas Ranger. Not the baseball player kind. The gun-toting, cowboy-hat-and-badge-wearing kind. As far as I know, he was not a master of any kinds of martial arts, so if you’re a fan of Walker, Texas Ranger, I’m sorry to disappoint.

And he was not alive during the late 1800s, as are the characters are in this series. Grandaddy died in 1980 when I was 12 years old. He was a good man, known for rescuing puppies and bringing small gifts and toys to children in stressful situations—i.e. when their parents were arrested. My favorite memory of him is sitting on his lap, falling asleep to the sound of his big, round pocket watch ticking. I have a picture of myself, age three, sitting on his knee while he typed up his reports. I love that typewriter picture, and find it significant since I’m now a writer.

Grandaddy was Robert Everett Smith, and Grandmother (yes, I called her that—she was very formal, but also very sweet) was Ellie Marie (Edgar) Smith. The two lead characters in Lone Star Ranger are named Rett (Everett) and Elizabeth, in their honor.

Like Grandmother, Elizabeth is refined and formal, yet strong headed, with her own lady-like brand of spunk. She hails from Boston, and is a little overwhelmed at the grit and gravel of Texas lawmen. But she’s not intimidated—not even by handsome Texas Ranger Rett Smith.

Thanks so much for sharing in my cherished family memories. I hope you enjoy the story as much as I enjoyed writing it!

—Renae Brumbaugh Green

Blog Stops

Among the Reads, January 21

Pause for Tales, January 21

Reading Is My SuperPower, January 22

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 22

Inklings and notions, January 23

For Him and My Family, January 24

deb’s Book Review, January 24

Texas Book-aholic, January 25

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, January 26

Becka Jimenez, January 26

For the Love of Literature, January 27

Connie’s History Classroom, January 28

Through the Fire Blogs, January 29

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, January 29

Betti Mace, January 30

Wishful Endings, January 30

Maureen’s Musings, January 31

Older & Smarter?, January 31

The Christian Fiction Girl, February 1

Spoken from the Heart, February 1

Blossoms and Blessings, February 2

Stephanie’s Life of Determination, February 2

Locks, Hooks and Books, February 3

Hallie Reads, February 3

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Renae is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/f4a3/lone-star-ranger-celebration-tour-giveaway

"Lone Star Ranger" is available in paperback:

• Series: Heartsong Presents (Book 1130)
• Mass Market Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Love Inspired Heartsong Presents; Original edition (February 3, 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373487681
• ISBN-13: 978-0373487684
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.5 x 6.6 inches

and in Kindle edition:

• File Size: 5398 KB
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Wild Heart Books; 1 edition (January 21, 2020)
• Publication Date: January 21, 2020
• Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
• Language: English
• ASIN: B07ZCBZ7XS

I got a free copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own and given voluntarily. No compensation was received for my review.