About the Book

A sweet, slow-burn, childhood friends-to-lovers, small-town romance!

She’s Texas's toughest bull rider, and he’s determined to win her heart.

Dakota and Wyatt. Storm and sunshine. Growing up, they were as inseparable as a pair of cowboy boots. The best of friends—or so Dakota thought. Every summer, Wyatt would come home to his family’s flower farm in Granite Falls, Texas and they’d stargaze in the fields, pinkies brushing, laughter rumbling with the cicadas until one summer… he never came back.

Dakota Cutler hasn’t heard a peep from Wyatt Patterson in over three years, and a lot has changed. He’s the hockey world’s golden-boy, and she’s developed a reputation for riding bulls and leaving men with broken hearts. After a string of one-night stands, the last thing Dakota needs is a distraction, but when her oldest childhood friend waltzes back into town, begging to move into her barn with the most adorable baby girl on his hip, everything changes.

Wyatt Patterson’s back to get the girl he’s been obsessing over for years, and he’s doing everything to get her to see him as more than a friend—two-stepping at the rodeo, jumping into Cibolo Creek, even rendezvousing in outdoor showers. All Dakota wants is to keep her distance from her ex-friend, but when she learns the truth behind why Wyatt left, it turns out the scorching Texas sun might not be the only thing that burns them this summer.

Review

Homebound reminded me why I avoid friends-to-lovers. Before I air my grievances, I’ll talk about what I liked. I loved that despite Dakota and Wyatt being on rocky terms initially, she was still willing to assist him with Viv. I also enjoyed the moments of Viv and Dakota bonding. Tripp did a great job crafting a believable relationship with Viv and Dakota. That’s one of the most important things when having a single-parent romance story.

Now for what I disliked. The chemistry between Wyatt and Dakota was severely lacking to me. I understood why she had him in the friend zone for so long, and I would have supported her if she decided to not give him a chance. I don’t think Wyatt was the best choice for her. He was in the friend zone for fifteen years, and for me to be sold—there needs to be mutual longing on both parts. I didn’t feel that in Dakota’s POV.

On top of that, I found this book to be boring at times. For the most part, it was Wyatt determined to win over Dakota and waiting for her to realize that she loved him. I appreciated the moments between him and his daughter; however, other than that I didn’t find him to be interesting like Dakota.

Final Thoughts

Homebound unfortunately wasn’t a hit for me. Dakota is advertised as a “grumpy black cat” however, that can be debated. Wyatt has few qualities and the only one that makes him interesting is that he’s a single dad; however, that isn’t enough to carry him. There was no need for him to be a hockey player. In fact, I don’t think we got a clear closing on that chapter. The romance is boring, repetitive, and cheesy. Justice for Dakota. Everything would have worked better if Dakota and Wyatt stayed super best friends and got other love interests.

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