33. When I say yee, you say haw

Put on your cowboy hats, we're going out west.

Howdy friends! I’ve been wanting to write about this one for awhile - it has a lot to do with my article on small towns.

I’ve noticed more cowboy centered romances in the last few years. Particularly small town western romances. The girl walks into town knowing nobody, and she stumbles into the attractive and single cowboy who just so happens to either run or be the son of the owners of the biggest ranch in town. They moved to escape the business of cities, run from family problems, and/or leave behind the 9 to 5 corporate world.

As Generation Z gets older, the more discourse there is about the corporate world. My generation wants to travel and be free. We want to work to live, not live to work. I think this has much to do with the recent spike in western cowboy romances.

It romanticizes escaping the busy cities. Lays out with gold and sparkles a slower life. Finding yourself somewhere you didn’t expect to.

I mean, that sounds amazing, right? I’ve been out west, and it’s simply gorgeous. I’d love to spend more time out there, actually. But life has its troubles, and they often follow you no matter where you live. Running a ranch is hard, especially with global warming and increased prices of just about everything.

And I have to say, as a girl who grew up riding horses, I can easily tell who hasn’t done their research properly.

But.

They’re fun, and they do cover important topics. They’re helping to bring attention to those ranches and small towns in real life, resulting in increased tourism and business. A lot of the ones I’ve read discuss real issues many people face in their lives. Living outside at a ranch, putting in work that actually helps people, seeing it with your own eyes and feeling it with your own fingers, that’s pretty special.

There’s nothing wrong with putting on a cowboy hat and escaping to a small western town in a book for a few hours. But I do think a problem comes in when we over romanticize things - not just cowboys or small western towns. What do you think?

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You know the drill! Let’s dive in. (affiliate links!)

1. A Murderer Among Us by Heather Graham (Mystery): July 23, 2024

2. A Certain Kind of Starlight by Heather Webber (Women, Magical Realism): July 23, 2024

3. A Photo Finish by Elsie Silver (Romance): July 23, 2024

4. Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell (Romance): July 23, 2024

5. The Faculty Lounge by Jennifer Mathieu (Fiction): July 23, 2024

6. The Book of Bill by Alex Hirsch (Action): July 23, 2024

7. What We’ll Burn Last by Heather Chavez (Thriller): July 23, 2024

8. Glory Days by Simon Rich (Short Stories, Humor): July 23, 2024

Books I’ve compiled from mainly the NYT Bestsellers List, but also the B&N Top 100 and Amazon Bestsellers in no particular order. I’ve decided to simply add the books I haven’t before, since I’ve caught up to the new additions. If you’re curious, last week’s post can be found here.

1. A Death in Cornwall by Daniel Silva (Thriller)

2. The Summer Pact by Emily Giffin (Romance)

3. The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst (Romance) **indie!**

4. The Briar Club by Kate Quinn (Historical Fiction)

Honestly, I wanted to write about Elsie Silver this week, but I’m at the beach. So I will officially be doing her feature next week and enjoying my time here! I want to give her the effort she deserves and you guys the quality I expect from myself. Plus, I’m learning my boundaries! Love you all.

Just a reminder to submit any books you think others will love on the R&R page or to my email: thesundayreads@gmail.com!

1. Chestnut Springs by Elsie Silver

   1. A cowboy romance series. I had to.

That’s all for today. Much love

Izzy