Book: The Cowboy and the Stray: A Small Town Shifter Cowboy Romance by Lainie Anderson
Reviewed by Your_bookish_fantasy
๐๐ ๐ข๐๐๐๐๐๐ก๐ข
โ๏ธ๐ป๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ง๐๐๐จ ๐ ๐- THE COWBOY AND THE STRAY by Lainie Anderson
๐ ๐๐ฆ ๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ญ ๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ฐ๐๐ซ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฒ๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ซ, NetGalley and Tantor Audio ๐ค๐ข๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ง ๐LC ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ฐ, ๐ข๐ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ค๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ง๐ค ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐จ๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ฌ ๐ข ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ฌ๐ก ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ก๐จ๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐จ๐ค.
โ๏ธโ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ค-
(out of 5 stars)
๐ถ๏ธ ๐ฆ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ MF ๐ถ๏ธ๐ซ / 5
๐ฃ ๐๐ฒ๐บ๐ฎ๐น๐ฒ ๐ก๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐ฟ โญ๏ธโญ๏ธ.5 / 5
๐ฃ ๐ ๐ฎ๐น๐ฒ ๐ก๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐ฟ โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ / 5
๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ โญ๏ธ / 5 DNF at 71%
Which books have I given similar ratings?
(๐ ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ข ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ฆ ๐ ๐ก๐ฆ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐๐ ๐ก๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐ค๐)
5โญ๏ธ Fourth Wing / Bound by Inked Flame / Anathema / The Lies of Lena / Of Silver and Curses
4.75โญ๏ธ Metal Slinger / The Pucking Comeback / Light Wielder / Wielder of Chaos and Carnage
4.5โญ๏ธ Bitten / The Female / Quicksilver / Bride / Lights Out / A Bargain So Bloody
4โญ๏ธ ACOTAR / Spellcaster / One Dark Window / From Blood and Ash / Phantasma / Butcher & Blackbird
3โญ๏ธ We Who Will Die / The Wolf King / Daughter of No Worlds / The Ex Hex
โ๏ธ๐๐๐ช ๐๐๐๐ :
Genre: Paranormal cowboy romance / Small-town shifter romance
๐ง Audiobook: 10h 21m
POV: Dual first-person POV
Narration: Dual narration, Loretta Rawlins and Tristan Josiah
Audiobook release date: 3 November 2026
Plot or character driven? Character, with minimal plot progression
Series: Wolves of Maddox Ranch, Book #1 of 3
Available on KU? โ Yes
Pace: Extremely slow
Memorable? โ
Representation: Foster-care background and domestic-abuse survival
Did I enjoy this book? โ
Will I read the next book? โ
Would I read anything else by this author? โ Unlikely
๐จ๐
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ฒ๏ธ๐
บ๏ธ ๐๏ธ๐
ท๏ธ๐
ด๏ธ ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ!๐จ
Domestic abuse, coercive relationships, trauma, threats, criminal activity, violence, animal danger, bereavement and references to foster care. Later events reportedly include gun violence and deaths. Please check the full content warnings.
โ๏ธ๐โ๐ผโ๐๐ผ๐ ๐โ ๐๐๐โ๐:
๐บ Wolf shifters
๐ง Humans
โ๏ธ๐๐ก๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐๐ฅ๐ค:
๐ฆ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐น๐๐ฑ๐ฒ MF | ๐ถ๏ธ๐ซ / 5
๐ open door
โณ Very slow romantic progression
โค๏ธโ๐ฅ Minimal sexual tension
At 71%, I was still waiting for the chemistry to properly develop. This was far more simmer than sizzle, and I didnโt reach the later intimate scenes.
โ๏ธ๐โ๐โ๐ผ๐
๐บ Cowboy / Alpha shifter MMC
๐โโ๏ธ FMC on the run
๐ก๏ธ Protective MMC
๐ซถ Found family
๐ก Small-town ranch life
โณ Slow-burn romance
๐ Past trauma
๐คซ Hidden identity / Secrets
โค๏ธโ๐ฉน Starting over
๐พ Forced proximity
๐จโ๐ฉโ๐งโ๐ฆ Pack family
โจ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ ?โจ
Readers who prefer gentle, low-stakes cowboy romance, everyday ranch activities and found-family relationships. If youโre looking for substantial wolf-shifter lore, pack politics, suspense or passionate romance, Iโd look elsewhere.
โจ Tแผแดแฐแดี โจ
Safety โข Trust โข Belonging โข Family โข Healing โข Survival โข Independence โข New beginnings
๐Cliff Notes Review-
DNF AT 71%! Cowboys AND wolf shifters sounded like a fantastic combination, but WHERE WERE THE WOLVES?! This started with an intriguing premise before becoming an endless account of everyday ranch life. Almost no pack dynamics, barely any romantic chemistry, minimal danger and very little character development. I kept waiting for the story to actually begin! Some lovely supporting characters and a wonderfully cast male narrator werenโt enough to save this one. Far too slow, repetitive and uneventful for me. โญ๏ธ
โ๏ธ๐บ๐๐๐๐๐
๐๐๐ ๐น๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ ๐๐, ๐ณ๐ฐ๐บ๐ป๐ฌ๐ต ๐๐ ๐๐?โ๏ธ
Neither would be my recommendation, unfortunately. Although the male narration was excellent, I found the female performance distracting, and the underlying story wasnโt engaging enough to compensate.
โ๏ธ๐ธ๐ฆ๐๐๐ ๐น๐ ๐ ๐ โ๐๐ง๐๐๐จ:
Tristan Josiah: โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ
NOW THATโS A COWBOY VOICE! ๐ฅต
His accent reminded me so much of Nicolas Cage! Smooth, masculine and wonderfully suited to Calderโs age, authority and protective personality. He sounded exactly how Iโd imagine a cowboy alpha should sound. A little deeper and heโd have been practically perfect!
Loretta Rawlins: โญ๏ธโญ๏ธ .5
Unfortunately, I really struggled with her delivery.
Her voice itself was pleasant, but the rhythm and intonation were so repetitive that she frequently sounded like AI! Almost every sentence followed the same vocal pattern, particularly simple dialogue tags such as โI saidโ or โhe said.โ
Sometimes her delivery didnโt match the characterโs emotions or intentions. A moment that should have conveyed newfound confidence, for example, sounded more like surprise.
HOWEVER! When Tess was frightened, desperate or emotionally vulnerable, Loretta was considerably better. Her emotions came through beautifully in those scenes, proving she was capable of a much more convincing performance.
I just wish that emotional range had carried through into her everyday dialogue.
๐ฅ ๐๐๐ช ๐๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐ค๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐ค?
WHERE WAS THE PLOT?! By 45%, I was already bored. I pushed through to 71%, but the story had become so complacent that I couldnโt justify continuing. Too much time was spent on ordinary ranch activities while the danger, secrets and romantic development barely progressed.
NOT ENOUGH SHIFTER LORE! Calder is supposedly an alpha, yet I knew almost nothing about his pack, their hierarchy, shifted forms or relationships. Those are some of my favourite elements of paranormal romance, and they were practically absent!
NO ROMANTIC SPARK! I wanted yearning, vulnerability, trust-building and meaningful emotional moments. Instead, the relationship felt more like a developing friendship, with barely enough chemistry to convince me of anything more.
MISSED OPPORTUNITIES! The threatening ex, Tessโs hidden identity and Grandmaโs mysterious intuition all had potential, but none had developed sufficiently by the time I stopped. I kept waiting for something significant to happen!
The repetitive writing and lack of progression finally exhausted my patience. I wasnโt expecting constant action, but I did expect the story to have some direction.
๐ ๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ ๐๐ฆ๐๐๐๐๐๐, ๐จ๐ฃ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐๐:
I enjoyed the welcoming atmosphere of Maddox Ranch and the idea of a pack offering protection to people who had nowhere else to go.
Unfortunately, the author spent far too much time establishing the routines of ranch life rather than exploring the paranormal world or developing the suspense.
The writing was also repetitive, with the same fears and thoughts resurfacing without much meaningful progress. Scenes that could have strengthened the plot often felt like unnecessary filler.
I wanted a story about a woman escaping danger and discovering an extraordinary new world. Instead, I felt like I was waiting for something to happen while everyone got on with their chores!
๐งโโ๏ธ โ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐ค:
Tess: I sympathised with her circumstances, but her constant internal panic and lack of meaningful development became frustrating. I wanted to see her gradually regain confidence, independence and trust rather than repeatedly revisit the same fears.
Calder: A genuinely likeable, protective alpha who cared about his family and the people depending on him. Unfortunately, he was a wet blanket and his personality and responsibilities were far more interesting than the romance itself.
Ash: SHE IS MY FAVOURITE! Funny, welcoming and full of personality. I particularly enjoyed her attempts to teach Tess to swear! ๐
Grandma: ABSOLUTELY LOVED HER! Her mysterious intuition was one of the most intriguing elements of the entire book. I desperately wanted to know more about her abilities and history, but received very little explanation.
โณ ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ ๐ ๐ฃ๐-๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐ ๐ฃ ๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐?
Re-read? โ No
Recommend? โ No
๐ชง๐ฝ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฅ๐ค:
I really wanted to enjoy this! A protective cowboy alpha, a runaway heroine, a mysterious pack and a dangerous past sounded exactly like my sort of paranormal romance.
Unfortunately, the promising premise never developed into the story I was hoping for.
There were some genuinely lovely characters, but by 71%, I was still waiting for the wolves, romance and danger to become important.