Interview
by Elise Cooper
The Cowboy series by Caitlin
Crews brings to life the ruggedness of the Everett
brothers. A running theme throughout the book is
how the brothers dealt with the ghost of their father.
The man was pure evil, and as they grew to adulthood,
each Everett had to overcome the feeling of not
wanting to turn into their father. Below is a synopsis
of each of the books with the most recent last.
A True Cowboy Christmas highlights the
oldest brother Gray Everett who strives to keep
the cowboy ranch in the family and out of the hands
of real estate investors. He wanted to avoid the
darkness and suffering and learn to love, something
his father never did.
The heroine, Abby Douglas, who thought of herself
as plain and was resigned to be a spinster. For
all purposes, she is practical, easy-going, and
would quietly fight for what she believed in. The
reason she agreed to the marriage of convenience
is her life-long crush on Gray.
Cold Heart, Warm Cowboy, had the middle
brother, Ty Everett, believing he was just like
the grim reaper, Amos. His father called him a drunk
and someone who had no brains and screwed up everything
in his life, including his marriage. As a rodeo
rider, he married the Rodeo Queen, Hannah Lee Monroe.
After falling off a bull, he can't remember anything,
including taking the vows and that she had told
him she was pregnant. Hannah is not one to shy away
from anything, and her drive brought her back to
Ty. The rest of the story has each deciding if the
marriage can work for themselves and their son.
The
Last Real Cowboy has the youngest, Brady Everett.
He was always laughed at by his father for graduating
from college. He never felt respected and always
felt his opinion did not matter to his brothers.
Amanda Kittridge is now twenty-two and wants to
lead an independent life, out from under the wings
of her four older brothers who are way to protective
and smothering. She has had a crush on Brady and
wants him to help her become a woman. Being best
friends with her brother, Riley, he has always looked
on her as just the kid sister until he sees her
working in a bar with a tight T-shirt. The banter
between the two adds completely to the story. Crews
has outdone herself with this installment.
Elise Cooper: The father, Amos, plays
a significant role in all the stories?
Caitlin Crews: I wanted
to write a series where a parent shaped the sons.
In writing strong men, the father figure, or in
this case, the lack of a father figure becomes important.
Amos always got into the son's heads, and was a
dominant force, but not in a good way. He approached
each son differently, showing his meanness in different
ways.
Elise:
How would you compare and contrast each brother?
Caitlin: Gray was responsible for the ranch.
He was very old school, with everything being an
uphill battle. He is steadfast and embodies the
stereotype of a cowboy.
Ty is the middle child and tries to get everyone
to get along. He is the mediator, easy-going, a
charmer, and a showman.
Brady is the youngest, the smart one who is very
apprehensive and is used to always being dismissed,
something he hates.
These brothers are typical of family dynamics where
they get on each other's case, but when push comes
to shove, they will defend each other to the death.
I like to compare them to the setting of the Rocky
Mountains in Colorado, tough and rooted.
Elise:
How would you compare and contrast the heroines?
Caitlin: Abby is such a wonderful person.
She thinks of herself as plain and homely, who considered
herself an ugly duckling. She is not a screamer
or fighter, but will quietly get her point across.
She is not an 'in your face kind of person.'
Hannah is a typical Rodeo Queen who are like real-life
Disney Princesses. I put in this book quote, “They
are like prom queens but all the time.” Always
pretty, always smiling, always looking perfect.
She can be stubborn, righteous, and driven. She
speaks her mind and is very outspoken.
Amanda comes from an overbearing family. She is
naïve and wants to be seen as a grown-up. She
is spunky and very protective of Brady. I think
she has the heart of a lion.
All the heroines are not fearful of the heroes.
They are women who know their cowboys and open their
hearts to feeling stuff. They were the first to
realize love.
Elise:
At the heart of these cowboy books are siblings-do
you have any?
Caitlin: I have an older brother and younger
sister. I am responsible for the Zoom call every
week and gathering everyone together.
Elise:
There is a great quote in the book?
Caitlin: You must refer to this one; the
future happens only if there is no surrender to
the past. It can mean what people want it to mean.
In any relationship and life, people need to move
forward. There will not be a future if someone is
constantly relitigating the past. In my opinion,
that would not be a way to live. For the brothers,
the past was their father, Amos, who was bitter
and awful. They had to let him go, bury him so that
he does not haunt them.
Elise:
Next book?
Caitlin: The first trilogy involved the
Everett brothers, while the second trilogy, a spin-off,
will be about the Kittridge brothers. It will delve
into the relationship of Riley and Rae that were
mentioned in the first three books. They had a marriage
that went wrong. The youngest brother, Connor, will
be featured in a novella.
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