Unfortunately I struggled with this book and ended up not finishing it - I stopped at around 25% in as I found the writing style extremely difficult to get through. This was down to my own preferences as I couldn’t get on with such short sentences and the amount of rhetorical questions. It’s a shame as I loved the premise of the book and the plot but I just couldn’t keep going with it.

The story begins in 1868 as 25 year old Caroline Bluebonnet Hutchings is nearing the ranch she inherited from her father near Carson City, NV. Her companion since leaving Texas is Martha who takes on a lot of the domestic duties of the pair. Nearing their destination they stumble upon Isabel who has been robbed and left on the roadside. When recovered, Isa is a skilled horse trainer and ranch worker. She has posed as a man at times working on ranches. Setting in at the ranch Blue finds the community welcoming. One neighbor is the exception and he wants her land and will do anything to run her off.

Blue cobbles together a ragtag crew of women to help run her horse ranch. They each have their reasons for being there. Some of this is stereotypical western but the story is engaging. I always roll my eyes a bit when people are able to shoot hats off or warning shots next to people. Blue is driven to make the ranch a success and the tone of the book is about practicalities and getting the work done. Emotions are secondary. Blue is drawn to Isa which is new to her and they take their time before acting on their feelings. I enjoyed the story and characters. It shows the harshness of the western life but also the occasional coming together and joy of community. Contains injuries and deaths from shootings and also deaths of animals. It could have taken place anywhere but I like that I have been to the location near Lake Tahoe in my travels. It helped me envision the ranch and way of life.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for the ARC and I am leaving a voluntary review.

The plot points in Western Blue can occasionally feel predictable for this type of story, but the novel hangs onto the storyline longer than most.

After the death of her father, Blue’s brother gets everything. Well, everything but the ranch in Nevada he doesn’t know about. Blue and her friend Martha make the journey from Texas to start anew. Along the way they meet Isabel who Blue very quickly falls in love with. But as three women starting over is not so easy there’s men trying to stop you.

I really appreciated how the community on the surrounding farms and the city came together to support Blue. Some were actively rooting for Blue but others were just fed up with Andersons behavior. The strength of the community was also represented in the found family that they were able to create with the women who worked on the ranch. The novel does a great job of showing why women should not be underestimated. I did find it a bit challenging to keep track of the women’s names because they were introduced in pretty quick succession.

While Blue and Isabel develop feelings quickly, the romance itself is pretty slow. It’s almost as if they keep getting cockblocked by the conflict of the story.

This was a good read. Two women meet on the trail, both getting away from circumstances not of their own making. Blue is on her way to take over a ranch in Nevada with her friend Martha and Isa is heading to her uncle in California. Isa is injured when they meet and Blue takes her to her ranch. The ranch is in need of repair and Blue can’t get help from any of the men because an unscrupulous landowner, Anderson, doesn’t want her around. She advertises for women instead. The story continues with Blue, Isa, Martha and the women they hire. They have various harrowing events to overcome, many of them because of Anderson. Blue is conflicted about what she should (and wants to) do and Isa wants to keep her from killing anyone unnecessarily (i.e. without proper cause or proof of wrongdoing).
I would definitely recommend this book.

Blue Hutching has left her home in Texas to claim a homestead of her uncles. As she nears she finds a rider hurt. That rider she thought was a man turns out to be a woman named Isabel. She’s coming with them.
A local bully rancher has his sites set on getting Blue’s property and will stop at nothing to get it.
He’s gone so far as to forbid any men from working for Blue, Blue’s answer, she’ll hire women to work the ranch.
As her team starts to come together road blocks keep pushing her back and she knows who’s causing them.
As they work closely together Blue and Isa realize they have feeling for one another but how dangerous is that for them.
This is a must read, unputdownable story. The characters are so well written and fun especially 11 year old Gertie whose mother ran off with a “damned banjo-playin’ sonofabitch.”
I highly recommend this .

Thank you #NetGalley #BoldStrokesBooks #WesternBlue for this ARC

Western Blue was a post civil war western that takes place predominantly in Nevada on a small ranch just outside of Carson City. The book is fast paced and a testament to the power of a group of women lead by Caroline Bluebonnet (Blue) Hutchings; Isabel (Isa) Segura; Martha the cook, mother figure, seamstress, and nurse; and several ranch hand hires. The story’s action is mainly derived from a feud between nearby resident Anderson who wants Blue’s property for the silver mine and a tributary stream off of the Truckee River. He and his band of hired hands make life difficult and dangerous for Blue and her ranch. Throw in a slow burn romance between Blue and Isa and this book comes alive in a time when women are usually left to kitchen and child duties. 4 stars

I received an ARC from Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Western Blue is a twist on classic westerns like Lonesome Dove — only queer and women centered!

✔️Dual POV
✔️Set in the American West
✔️ Post-Civil War period
✔️ Slooooowww burn

This is way more Larry McMurtry’s cowboys than Elsie Silver’s kind. Blue meets Isa as she’s traveling from Texas to Nevada to take over her deceased uncle’s ranch. They are immediately attracted to each other, in the most subtle of ways. The romance is almost a subplot to the central conflict with a neighbor who is stealing the ranch’s natural resources. Nearly every time the pair explore their feelings, it’s cut short by trouble. 

Blue hires five, scrappy women to help with her small herd of horses. Each new hire is given a short backstory, but only a couple characters are well developed and feel like an integral part of the ranch.

The point of view in this story puts some distance between the narrators and the readers. Both Blue and Isa are restrained and practical-minded heroines, which can work to make their POVs almost indistinguishable from each other. 

This was a pleasant world to inhabit for a while. I probably would have been happier with the women driving the conflict, rather than the bad neighbor leading the plot's major pushes.

Content warnings: Death of animals.
 
Rating: 3 stars 
 
ARC provided by @netgalley and Bold Strokes Books in exchange for an honest review