Review: Branded by Laura Wright

by Jewels E 7/07/2014 0 comments

Mass Market Paperback, 384 pages

Published June 3rd 2014 by Signet

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Series: The Cavanaugh Brothers, #1
My Rating: ❀❀❀
Genre: Contemporary Romance


In the small town of River Black, Texas, sits the Triple C—a working cattle ranch that sustains the town. But it also holds painful memories and shocking secrets for the Cavanaugh brothers...

When the Cavanaugh brothers return home for their father’s funeral, they discover unexpected evidence of the old man’s surprising double life—a son named Blue, who wants the Triple C Ranch as much as they do. The eldest son, Deacon, a wealthy businessman who couldn’t wait to leave the ranch and move on with his life, is looking to use his powerful connections to stop Blue at any cost. He never expected the ranch’s forewoman, Mackenzie Byrd, to get in his way.

Mac knows Deacon means to destroy the ranch and therefore destroy her livelihood. But as the two battle for control, their attraction builds. Now Deacon is faced with the choice of a lifetime: Take down the Triple C to feed his need for revenge, or embrace the love of the one person who has broken down every barrier to his heart.

This novel was not what I expected to be. That being said, I was excited when the unsolved murder of the hero's sister was introduced, and looking forward a romance that had a bit of  a mystery. However, that's not exactly what I got, though I suspect the series as a whole will focus on Cass's murder. Let me preface my review by saying, I did enjoy the book. That being said, I did have some issues with it. Overall, he writing is easy to read, crisp and clean and I see a lot of potential in upcoming books. Perhaps there is even a greater plot line interwoven into the series as a whole that I'm not seeing at the moment. It will be interesting to see how the series develops, and to discover exactly what happened to Cass and who her killer really is.

The novel is about Deacon Cavanugh, who wants to destroy his late father's ranch. He literally wants to bulldoze everything to the ground. It has been his life's ambition for some time, fueled by a hatred for his dad who allowed some horrible things to happen after the murder of Deacon's little sister, Cass. Mac, Cass's best friend and now foreman at the Triple C, refuses to allow this to happen. She is as hell set on saving the ranch as Deacon is in saving it. Having once had a crush on Deacon, sparks begin to fly and they are pulled into a passionate relationship despite their better judgement.

However, despite the passion I sensed in Deacon, I am still asking myself why. Why these are two characters, who are supremely at odds with one another, suddenly come together so intensely and passionately--I didn't understand the connection or attraction between them. Other than some fond childhood memories, and a shared tragedy, I wasn't sure what anchored these two characters together.

Bottom line? I wanted more from this story. More character development, more plot development. I wanted to really crawl inside Deacon's head and truly understand why he was so angry, so full of hate for his father and what it was about Mac that made him lose his heart so utterly. I wanted to understand what had happened to him after Cass died on a deeper level. I wanted to know more about what happened the day that Cass was abducted, and why her death destroyed her family in the way that it did. I'm hoping the upcoming books will unravel some of these questions for me so that I can better understand the characters and story in this series.