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Queen of the Rodeo

Review

Queen of the Rodeo



Yee-hah! QUEEN OF THE RODEO takes us on a leisurely romp through
the world of the Reno Rodeo with a little side trip to Lampasas,
Texas, so saddle up your horse, be prepared to eat a lot of chicken
fried steak, and watch out for horned toads along the
way. 

We meet Reno Rodeo Queen Donna Cooper just as she is lamenting her
engagement to Darryl King. It seems Darryl would rather spend time
with the toys in his hardware store than play with Donna.
Encouraged by her country-music-singing-and-songwriting friend,
Teri, Donna comes to realize that she just cannot commit to
spending the rest of her life playing second fiddle to a
chainsaw.

During the last week of her reign as Rodeo Queen, Donna meets a
cowboy with biceps to die for. Sparks soon fly between the Rodeo
Queen and the Steer Wrestler, and before she knows it, Donna is
visiting the Ponderosa with Tyler Griffin, where they decide to get
married.

   

But the ride to the altar will not be an easy one. Donna has not
been able to tell Darryl of her new romance with Tyler, so Darryl
learns the horrible truth from his best friend, Shorty. When Darryl
finds out that Donna is actually going to marry her cowboy, he
literally sees red and begins watching The Texas Chainsaw
Massacre
video for pointers. Tyler's ex-girlfriend Sammy Loue
also will not let things rest. She is being spurned on to jealousy
by her mother, and soon the Rodeo Queen runner-up and beauty school
graduate is making a horned toad list for seducing Tyler away from
Donna.

   

Donna and Tyler have to face the wrath of Darryl and Red Thunder,
his trusty chainsaw, before their vows can be exchanged. Then,
Donna and Sammy Loue have an exchange of their own before Tyler and
Donna can ride off into the sunset. On top of all that, Donna
begins to worry that Tyler's plans for starting a family are going
to tarnish her crown.

  

The narrator gives the story a comfortable, ambling gait and a dry
humor that comes across with charm, and the foreshadowing does not
take away from the thrill of the story.

   

From big-haired Rodeo Queens and the beauty parlors that make them
that way, to noisy diners that serve chicken fried steak with
biscuits and gravy the way they're supposed to be prepared, to
horned toads stalking an ant hill, QUEEN OF THE RODEO has all the
sights, sounds, and smells of being in Texas. Complete with the
lyrics to Teri's songs and a recipe for chicken fried steak, the
author has done a great job of creating a vivid world with
entertaining characters.

   

Don't be afraid of getting lassoed by this book, the prequel and
sequel will only make it better.









Reviewed by Michelle Calabro Hubbard on January 23, 2011

Queen of the Rodeo
by Michael Little

  • Publication Date: June 1, 2001
  • Genres: Fiction
  • Paperback: 300 pages
  • Publisher: TripleTree Publishing
  • ISBN-10: 096662727X
  • ISBN-13: 9780966627275