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After getting through The Proposal, I needed something a little bit more my speed. The day after I finished it was the release of Elsie Silver's fourth and final book in her Gold Rush Ranch series, A False Start. It came out March 18th and I couldn't wait to pick it up as it was one of my most anticipated releases for the first quarter of 2022. I was able to apply it to the Love Has Sprung prompt a favorite author of Shelby's and the Taylor Swift Quarterly Challenge prompt Tim McGraw (set on a farm/ranch).
Griffin is Stefan's best friend. When he finds out the woman he made out with in the local bar's bathroom is not only 14-years younger than him, but his friend's little sister, he attempts to put distance between them. When Nadia comes back from vet tech school after two years and Griffin takes a job with young colts on Gold Rush Ranch, they see each other a lot more. The ultimate grump can't seem to stay away from Nadia, and she doesn't want him too. As they both open up to each other about their own traumas, it seems that their respective "jagged edges" fit together perfectly.
Oh my gosh, Elsie has done it again. Another freaking swoony, dirty talker, grumpy hero. Although I do have to say that Griffin is definitely her grumpiest so far. I loved seeing how closed down he was to everyone, even Stefan. Nadia just seemed to somehow break through all of his barrier without him realizing it and I loved how much he just yearned to be near her. She could rattle on about anything under the sun and Griffin was happy to just sit and listen. I loved the way that Nadia and Griffin evolved and how they really pushed each other to deal with their issues but in a supportive way. It was just so well done.
I do have to say, of the four full length books in the series this might be my least favorite, but that doesn't detract from the rating at all. It just means that the previous books were that much more. One reason while it didn't jump over any of the others was the time jumps. They fit the story and made complete sense, but I did want the last one to happen a little bit earlier so we could see them in their hea a little longer. Even more since this is the last book in the series so I just would've loved to have more time with the family that's been built at Gold Rush Ranch. I do want to mention a little bit about triggers that might be there and the touchier subjects Elsie writes about. As we knew from Stefan's book The Front Runner, their father was abusive but we hear more about it from Nadia's POV. There's also Griffin and that he's suffering from the after effects of a bad concussion that ended his sports career. I think that Elsie handled them superbly (once again).
I can't wait to read what Elsie writes next and am excited for the spin-off series that she's teased. It hasn't been announced officially (that I've seen), but all clues point to it being about Violet's brothers (the heroine from A Photo Finish). I guess the eBook version has a short scene teaser? I read this in paperback though so I didn't get it. I did however, thanks to her newsletter, get a 2nd epilogue for A False Start plus a scene with Billy and Vaughn's wedding (that takes place before).
Have you read A False Start?
Bookishly Yours,
Stasi🍎
STATISTICS: A False Start, Elsie Silver, 5-stars, 4 days, Paperback, 392 pages, published in 2022, indie published
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