Zeke De Los Santos Talks About His Feelings

This later-in-life romcom was just the sweetest! I loved seeing Zeke and Megan gently (even reluctantly-on his part) fall for each other. Zeke is just the sweetest, most steady man that you cannot help but root for.

His meddling teenage daughter, some light suspense, crazy family antics, and Megan's celebrity status make this an altogether unique and fun read. I cannot wait for more from this family!

And as always, all the Easter eggs to Remi's other books are just an added delight!

TW: Stalking/Minor Threatening Mishaps, Widowed MMC

Reader's Notes:

*Series or Connected Books?* 1st book of a series, but all can be read as stand-alones; Surviving Christmas is a prequel story (Zeke's oldest daughter's story) to this series & can also be read as a stand-alone

*Point Of View:* Megan & Zeke

*Any Cursing Or Possibly Offensive Language?* it is mentioned about 1 or 2 times that a character cursed, but no actual words used on the page

*Romance?* Yes! Just kisses

*Things To Know:*

-there is an age gap of about 10+ years between Megan & Zeke

-Zeke's wife had passed about 9.5 years prior

-it is mentioned that side characters are divorced/going through divorce or abandonment from their spouse

-it is mentioned that a briefly met character had reached underneath a girl's dress (she hit him because of it)

-it is mentioned that a character's ex cheated & currently entertains multiple women at once & touches women in the workplace a lot (some in inappropriate places - though it is only stated in this way, not 'shown')

-it's mentioned that a character's parents passed in an accident & their loving guardian has since passed as well (past events)

-there is a gun shot & some injuries (no death, but critical injury for one)

Review:

I LOVED this book! Once I opened it, it was done by the end of the day!

I don't generally read suspense books (except in fantasy), but I enjoyed the lightness of the suspense in this book! (In case anyone's wondering: It was a bunch of weird occurrences around filming/movie events that was resolved by the end of the book.)

And the romance between Megan & Zeke was phenomenal! I loved seeing them grow closer with each other and Zeke's youngest daughter. It was so sweet to see Megan pulled into family like moments big and small. I also loved that Zeke was so devoted to his first wife, and that Megan not only understood it but let him take his own pace when it came to their relationship. I really enjoyed the cameos from Remi's other books as well and am highly anticipating when Colt gets his own book! I've been loving the bits of his character I've seen.

I also can't wait to find out how things go for Cora & Reuben in the next book! It looks like it's going to be great!

Summary:

Megan is a well known actress for her many roles in various romcoms. She can anticipate fans, but attacks from escaped peacocks? Not so much. Luckily, the escaped peacock leads Megan to everything she's been missing since her family passed: family, love, and security. And though a handsome cowboy isn't someone she thought she'd be interested in, Megan finds that she is interested in Zeke De Los Santos. Also known as the father of the teen girl who saved her from the issues the peacock brought. As well as the man who makes her feel protected when things start getting suspicious on set. But is her feelings for him one sided? Megan certainly doesn't know because Zeke isn't one for talking about his feelings…

Zeke never thought he could love another woman after his wife passed. And when a runaway actress barrels into his life, he has no interest in anything but friendship. Especially since Megan brings his daughter to life with things like girl talk and a listening ear in ways that Zeke hasn't seen since his other daughter moved out. But that's all it is, appreciation for supporting his daughter. Right?

During the Christmas holidays, I read a cute Christmas Novella by Remi Carrington called "Surviving Christmas". It introduces us to the De Los Santos family and the Rocking Double Heart Ranch. The head of that family and ranch is Zeke De Los Santos.

Zeke is not a man of many words. But trust me you know what he's thinking even when he's not speaking. And so now we get to book one of Carrington's latest series.. Brothers of Rocking Double Heart Ranch.
And oh how this series starts off! Five star read!!!

Seriously, I could not love this book more. It has it� a broody protective man, a teenage matchmaker, an upbeat woman, small community, age gap, forced proximity� it really doesn't get much better.

There are funny moments, bits of romance, and some intriguing and mystery mixed in.
But what I really loved was watching Megan's relationship with Zeke's daughter and also watching Megan come into her own. She's been working and being who everyone else wants her to be for so long that she's really lost herself.

But she's not the only one who's lost. Zeke is too. He would argue that he's not but he is. He lost his wife years ago and he's been raising his two daughters alone and running the ranch. And he's doing just fine except he really isn't living. He's just doing. Megan awaken something in him. He thought it was long dead. I loved watching him work through his feelings.

Remi Carrington has set the bar high for this series with this first book. I can't wait to see where we go from here.

Such a great read. Enough drama to keep the interest. Enough feel good to keep you turning the pages. I just could not put it down.
Can't wait for the next book! Fabulous!!!

This was a sweet later in life suspense romcom. The romance is a super slow burn, but as the suspense ramps up throughout the book, so do the sparks. I really enjoyed having all the side-characters from previous books pop up, and I can see how this one is setting the stage for the new series with the De Los Santos brothers. I was hoping for a bit more from our MMC, but he really does have a hard time talking (and thinking) about his feelings. If you love a found family, hero/bodyguard, suuuuper slow burn, with some mishaps, you'll enjoy this book.

CW: Stalking/ threats and mishaps, gunshot and wounds (not major), Widowed MMC.

- Later in life characters
- Cowboy romance
- Celebrity romance
- Mild suspense

I fell so hard for closed off cowboy Zeke. He lost his wife nearly 10 years ago and has decided romance will not be in his future. He is only concerned about his family.

After a rogue peacock chases movie star Megan, Zeke's daughter comes to her rescue. And all of their lives will be forever changed.

Zeke is the epitome of swoony cowboys. He doesn't want to let anyone down, but finally realizes he deserves happiness too.

Such a great start to a new series!!

Megan is chased by a peacock, falls down an incline and tries to find a road. When she does, Bree stops and picks her up so excited to see her favorite actress in person. Zeke walks into his closet and sees Megan there. He is not exactly thrilled she is there and taking over his bedroom. Loved how protective Zeke became when Megan was threatened.Loved this, just I have loved all of Remi Carrington's books. Can't wait for Cora and Reuben's story.

Another fantastic story from Remi Carrington! I loved how we get a more in depth look at Zeke and his brothers! Excited for this new series!

I received an ARC from the author and all opinions are my own.

Move over, there is a new favorite cowboy and his is bringing his family along. This is the first book in a new series, and it does an excellent job setting the stage by introducing the De Los Santos family. There is a short holiday prequel novella that isn't necessary to read, but I do think it enhances this story with small references.

This book delivers a mature, protective MMC, banter, laughter, heart, family, suspense, and healing. From an adorable meet-cute to a growing sense of danger that pushes the MMC into full protective mode, there was so much to love. The suspense adds just enough tension and kept me guessing, but deep down, this is a slow-burn journey of opening up to love (again).

Zeke is everything I look for, caring, occasionally broody, fiercely protective, and secretly a total softie. Megan is down-to-earth, witty, and never backs down. I loved watching their relationship unfold. For Zeke, he already found and lost the love of his life. Megan is a celebrity facing a series of events that brought her to his ranch. From their meet-cute on their chemistry was undeniable, even when Zeke did everything he could to deny it. Zeke is a single dad. Megan's relationship with his teenage daughter was another standout for me. Honestly, I adored all the characters. The introduction of Zeke's brothers perfectly sets up the rest of the series, with a few fun cameos from another series sprinkled in.

This is a sweet romance with kissing and a touch of suspense. If this is how rom-com suspense is done, I absolutely want more.

BROTHERS OF ROCKING DOUBLE HEART RANCH Series:

ZEKE DE LOS SANTOS TALKS ABOUT HIS FEELINGS, #1 - YAY! A new Ranch series with ties to the other series set in Texas. Ms. Carrington has delivered another sweet, funny, loving story filled with a bit of intrigue, good people, and interesting story lines. No silliness or stupidity from this author. Source: The Author and Phrey Press. 5*

STARGAZER SPRINGS RANCH series:
WRANGLED BY LILITH, #1 - I love this sweet, funny story, even when the last page came too soon. Everyone was good people whom I met before with the Stargazer Cowboy series. The dialog between Beau and Lily had me hurting from all the belly laughs. Ava added her share to the mix. Good story lines. Texans will especially enjoy this book, location and dialog. 5*

ENCHANTED BY JOJI, #2 - I love the books Remi writes. Well-written, romantic, funny, and nice characters you wish were real. Actually, you'll find people like them all over Texas. This second chance romance for a couple of 40-somethings is another fun read in this series. It is without the typical drama found in other books where she's a nut job and he has no backbone. Both work through their pasts to reach their future without the stupid formula problems, drama and actions. A feel good story. 5*

HELPED BY AVA, #3 - Ava is so strong in all the other books, yet, here was a bit of a headcase with her lack of self-confidence. But all worked out in this sweet, funny marriage-to-dating romance. That lil youngin Mason shared some good advice. The Mrs. Kravitz church member met her Samantha, mean ole biddy. 4*

INSPIRED BY MINDY, #4 - You're never too old to change. Sweet. Romantic. They are both headcases, they get better once the ball gets rolling and they're working towards the same goal. The route they take is old fashioned and I love it. It is one of the best ways to learn about the other. Sir had his act together. 4*

CAPTIVATED BY STEPH - It is always fun reading a book from the Stargrazer Spring Ranch family. This one is full of laughs, love, friendship and family. Oh, the ladder makes a repeat performance. Poor thing when it runs out of couples. Good characters that keep ya chompin at the bit for more of their lives. Good story lines that have the power to hold you captive and wanting more. Ms. Carrington, and Mrs. Humphreys, is a talented author in more than just the romance genre. Another favorite book to add to a growing list of good reads written by this lady. 5*
STARGAZER SPRINGS RANCH series end.

This book starts a new series, although there is a prequel novella (Surviving Christmas). That book introduced readers to this family and does set up this story at the end. It is not necessary to have read it, but it would provide a little background. It is a kisses only contemporary romcom with a light suspense element to it.

It also has cameos by characters from some of this author's previous series. It isn't necessary to have read them, but it's a nice Easter Egg if you have.

This book started off similar to what I remembered from the prequel. It took me quite awhile to get into this story as it's own instead of comparing it to the prequel. So maybe, you'd be better just jumping in to this one. I don't know.

All that to say, once I got past my hangups and stopped comparing this book with others, I really liked it more. I am a big fan of some of the other series by this author and loved seeing those characters show up here.

I am also a fan of older main characters, so that aspect of the story was also appealing to me.

There look to be many characters that were on the sidelines of this book that look to get their own books in this new series. I'll look forward to returning to the ranch again soon.

I was given the opportunity to read an advanced digital copy of this book. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Oh my stars, you need this book!! From the very beginning Zeke and Megan had this chemistry that promised a fabulous story and boy oh boy it didn't disappoint!
I absolutely loved this book!! It's clean with heart and humor and a side dash of real life twist and turns.

Oh my goodness, I loved this book so much! We met Zeke and his
family in an earlier book, but this time we got to know the whole family
much better. This book definitely had some suspense in it, but it also had
lots of funny moments and lots of swoony moments. I absolutely loved
Megan and Zeke together, and Zeke's daughter Bree is the perfect addition
to the story. The book kept my attention the whole time, and I never
wanted to put it down!

I feel like I always start my thoughts for Remi's books the same way�JUST GO READ IT! Start from the beginning and read them all! I am obsessed with them and I'm so glad that this world she created will continue to exist in this new series! As for this book specifically, so so good. There's heart, suspense, family, found family, healing, just so so good! And I love all the old and new characters. Clean but with so much heart! Go read it!

In my opinion, Remi Carrington is the queen of humorous meet-cutes and this book once again proved my point. I loved the introduction of Megan, a famous actress, as she fled from an irate peacock and Megan's young rescuer, Bree, a delightful high school student, who took Megan home and rendered aid. Zeke, Bree's widower dad, suspected that Megan's peacock attack may have been orchestrated rather than accidental and his protective nature stepped up to give her shelter and make her feel safe and cared for. My favorite part of this book was the way the De Los Santos home was such a haven for people in need of it. Bree and Zeke genuinely welcomed struggling family (including Zeke's brothers) and strangers with all of their hearts, not just out of duty. It was so inspirational! The characters in this book were people I could see myself being friends with and I can't wait to see the stories that the author has planned for future books in the series. I received an ARC from the author. All opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.

Oh, how I loved this book! It made me laugh a lot. Even though they lived in close proximity for a large portion of the book, I liked how the author had Megan and Zeke's relationship start out slowly. There was definitely chemistry, and although it took them a while, they eventually got to the place where they made a point to talk and gradually get to know each other. I felt that it was important to go slowly given Zeke's past and the situation with Megan's work. Zeke's daughter was such a wonderful part of this story, as well, and was a delight to get to know. The book was well written and had a good flow to it. I am looking forward to the other books in this series!!

Zeke and Megan are such heartwarming characters, Zeke being someone we all hoped would find love again after Jack and Sofie's book, and Megan this amazing and down to earth actress who's not only being told she's "aging" but also has someone out to get her.
I love how Megan was rescued by Bree, who i still want to see end up with Colt, but Megan finds a burly, quiet protector in Bree's dad Zeke. She becomes a part of the family without even trying. This book had me laughing so hard and in tears because you feel like you're right there witnessing this beautiful connection that Zeke tries to run from until he finally realizes its ok to love again. I cannot wait for the rest of this series, I was so excited the rest of the brothers were fully introduced and think Cora and Ruben will be a hilarious read like Helped by Ava.