Cowboy Santa
Book 6 of the Cowboy Academy
Melinda Curtis
Harlequin Pub
Nov 26th, 2024
Cowboy Santa by Melinda Curtis, set in an Oklahoma small town around Christmas, is a good holiday read. The male lead is single dad Chandler Cochran who is basically raising his second-grade son, Sam on his own. It seems Sam is prodded to do certain things by the female lead, Izzy’s daughter, Little Della-Mae. Izzy and Chandler are pulled together to deal with their children’s misadventures. Chandler Cochran is a no-nonsense single father who is the manager at the Done Roamin’ Ranch, and his little boy Sam is a precocious and mischievous. When Chandler meets single mom, Izzy Adams, in the principal’s office at the school, he isn’t surprised that her daughter Mae is in trouble, too, and Chandler blames Mae, because after all, Sam wouldn’t get into trouble without encouragement. Chandler wants everything to stay just as it always has while Izzy wants him to be willing to try new things.
As with all the author’s cowboy books readers will enjoy the journey of Izzy and Chandler on how they realize there is a definite attraction. Of course, they are pushed along by their two children who decide to play cupid. People will enjoy the interactions between the children as well as the input of strong-hearted and loving Mary, Chandler’s mom who is recovering from cancer.
Elise Cooper: The idea for the story?
Melinda Curtis: I wanted to do an enemy to lovers’ book. Then it evolved that the children were in league with each other.
EC: How would you describe the female character, Izzy?
MC: Bubbly, a rule follower, resilient, reliable, courageous, and in somewhat of a shell. This was her coming of age book where she came into her own.
EC: How would you describe Chandler?
MC: Grounded, pragmatic, obstinate, stoic, someone who likes predictability and the word ‘always.’ The past seems to be holding him back and at times he is vulnerable. He was the older brother type to his foster brother cowboys. I enjoyed going into his character in more depth.
EC: What about Chandler’s son Sam?
MC: He is a charmer, a talker, spunky, and can be sassy.
EC: What about Izzy’s daughter Mae?
MC: Delicate, she can be the mastermind in her and Sam’s endeavors. Together they work in cahoots. Both she and Sam come from divorce parents. They get into mischievous at times. Together, they are a force to be reckoned with and are smarter than the average 2nd grader.
EC: What was the role of divorce in the story?
MC: One the divorcees wanted to put their career over raising a child, while the other tried to buy his child’s love and had all his priorities wrong. The original marriages were not the right person for Chandler and Izzy. Neither was helpful in the raising of the children.
EC: What about the relationship between Izzy and Chandler?
MC: They both try to ignore their feelings. They change the conversation when they do not like where it is going. They appear confused and in a funk. She takes him outside his comfort zone. They thought they were fine without romance until they realized that finding the right person is special.
EC: What about getting a dog?
MC: I wanted to have something a little bit playful. As a parent and grandma, I know there are times that the children trap someone into getting them things. I wanted this to be a sweet piece that is true to life. Every child should have a dog.
EC: Mary, the beloved foster mom, has cancer. Please explain
MC: It has been an ongoing thread. Even though I was asked not to write any dreaded diseases, but it is realistic. I understand how grief can get in the way of romance, but it does happen in life and does affect someone’s everyday life. Everyone tends to rally around the person and remember how important life is, something we tend to forget when our noses are in our phones all the time. I wanted to write a healthy powerful way that the characters must deal with the experience.
EC: Next books?
MC: There are six more cowboy books in this series. In spring The Cowboy Wedding Proposal will be published. And another one out in the summer.
There will be another round in the Kentucky Blackwell series.
THANK YOU!!
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