Abundance is an adult, cowboy romance with a serious, contemporary plot, or as author Shanna Swenson says “Romance with a touch of reality.” It’s the first in a series of romances set in a fictional town of Abundance, Texas where each book centers on two different main characters. The premier story tells the story of divorced Natalie Cameron and her daughter Dallas returning home to her parent’s horse ranch in Abundance. Stranded, they are assisted by Jack Kinson who turns out to be the supervisor of the help at the family business. Sparks fly at their first meeting, but not the type readers would expect.
The main point-of-view is Natalie’s and Jack’s but the book occasionally slips into the head of one of the minor characters observing either the Nat-Jack pairing or one of the subplots. One of the ranch hands has an infatuation with Natalie which drives most of the tension in the first part of the novel. Again, not the tension the reader may be anticipating. The latter part of the novel concerns itself with both Natalie’s backstory and her future.
The “reality” part of Swenson’s tagline needs to be taken seriously. If you’re expecting a mostly light cowboy romance with a little steam, you’re going to get “abundantly” more. Don’t worry about having to wait for the romantic scenes, you’ll be rewarded. But be aware some graphic violence exists here and some very real-life consequences co-exist with the meet-cute passages. You’ll get the most out of this book if you happen to be a fan of both cowboy romances and modern suspense novels.
The writing never drags, and both Abundance and Natalie’s parent’s (the Butler’s) ranch, Starlight Valley Stables, conjure up vivid images in readers’ minds. Swenson describes in a few sentences the work required to train horses and brings it to life. Certain age-old cowboy traditions make an appearance here as well.
Natalie and Jack are described like sculpted greek gods—both swoon-worthy—with Jack’s sparkling emerald eyes and Natalie’s full, curly hair. In most other genres, this wouldn’t work but it’s perfectly natural here. Many minor characters also occupy the pages of Abundance with Dallas, or Dallie, being both innocent and precious.
There’s much to admire in Abundance, but while it’s well-crafted, it could have used one more proofreader pass. Also, Jack’s character is a bit too perfect, and might’ve worked better with some form of an Achilles heel. It’s a testimony to the writer that she keeps Jack interesting through the entire novel.
Minor quibbles aside, romance readers will fall in love with Jack and Natalie and root for them. While the novel depicts some very tense scenes, the reader is rewarded at the end for sticking with the main characters. One last point on the darker passages—they were exceptionally well done. If Swenson ever writes a thriller, I’ll add it to my to-read list immediately.
Abundance, while primarily a cowboy romance, works on other levels as well.
This novel is recommended for its depiction of a small Texan town, brief suspense, and sexy writing.
On Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HDRY4DR