Rattlesnake

By: Kim Fielding

Narrated by: K.C. Kelly

Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

A drifter since his teens, Jimmy Dorsett has no home and no hope. What he does have is a duffel bag, a lot of stories, and a junker car. Then one cold desert night, he picks up a hitchhiker and ends up with something more: a letter from a dying man to the son he hasn't seen in years.

On a quest to deliver the letter, Jimmy travels to Rattlesnake, a small town nestled in the foothills of the California Sierras. The centerpiece of the town is the Rattlesnake Inn, where the bartender is handsome former cowboy Shane Little. Sparks fly, and when Jimmy's car gives up the ghost, Shane gets him a job as handyman at the inn.

Both within the community of Rattlesnake and in Shane's arms, Jimmy finds an unaccustomed peace. But it can't be a lasting thing. The open road continues to call, and surely Shane - a strong, proud man with a painful past and a difficult present - deserves better than a lying vagabond who can't stay put for long.

©2015 Kim Fielding (P)2015 Dreamspinner Press

Engaging and insightful - romantic and sexy!

Any additional comments?

This is yet another fantastic book by Kim Fielding, engaging and insightful. It's also another great reading job by K.C. Kelly. He really brings this story to life.

Rattlesnake shows so much depth and understanding of human nature. There is a lot of wisdom woven throughout it in a very natural way. This is a story about home and belonging as well as the courage to love and be loved. Jimmy and Shane are great characters, both scarred and resilient. And their romance is bittersweet and sexy. I love how certain aspects of their stories are revealed subtly over time.

This book has a realistic and down-to-earth quality that makes it very engaging. As I've noticed in some other books by Kim Fielding, her characters aren't supermodel types. It's refreshing and endearing. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for a realistic love story with depth.

*I received a free copy of this audiobook from Inked Rainbow Reads in exchange for an honest review.*

Heart warming and Sweet

This story warms you like a cup of hot chocolate on a cold winter's day. The way they have such poor self images but love the other is so sweet. You fall in love with these two gents and love the fact that they love so much,

Tender and Warm

Loved this story! It felt cozy and sweet but still had deep & complex emotions to carry it and make it meaningful. Stories like this often carry so much angst and drama they leave me feeling sick and anxious, but the author did a wonderful job creating balance. I loved Jimmy’s character and the way his and Shane’s love for one another developed. The narrator did a great job, will definitely check out more books he’s narrated!

A Deadman Riding Shotgun

D@mn how I loved this low key romance.

Just a d@mn good story of a wanderer in need of a home he didn't realize he needed and man in need of his own forgiveness. How romance should be created!

wordy

Any additional comments?

This is a hard one for me to grade/review.

Overall I thought it was enjoyable, however, I did hit that 30 second fast forward button during the ‘courtship’ period while Shane and Jimmy were at the Inn, finding each other and themselves.

Jimmy, a broken man winds up in Rattlesnake on a mission to deliverer a letter from a dead man. But things go astray and he soon discovers that one more day is all he wants.

Shane, is also dealing with his own demons from a tragedy tens years ago. But luckily for him he’s got this amazing family that keeps him going.

These two are a pair, but holding secrets, and telling lies. By omission and right out. None horrendous but still they lay in between these two and this relationship through out the whole story. What I enjoyed most was that we got to see Jimmy heal and grow. Even at forty three, because he’s been on the street since he was fourteen he’s only known one life. And little by little Shane and his family was able to help with that. On the flip side of that, that’s also the part that dragged on a little and that I kept hitting the FF button.

One of things that threw me was how, passive Jimmy was, how young he acted. You always here how growing up on the streets makes a person grow up fast, hardens them. So to have a character not meet the mold that I’ve been given. Makes me want to know why? And, I just didn’t feel like the information we were given about Jimmy changed that. He had to sell his body at age fourteen onward, family rejected him over and over. Never finished school, no foster family to give the love and support. Arrested, nothing bad. But all leads to ‘harden, jaded, older then his true years’. In my opinion

The ending was perfect, Shane giving Jimmy all the information and letting him come to the decision he needed to.

And the epilogue with the HEA, including the stagecoach.

I thought the narrator did a great job, nailed all the voices, children, women and men.

I was given a copy in exchange for an honest review by Crystals Many reviewers

God I love to listen to KC Kelly!

Jimmy is drifiting through life until the day he sees a man on the side of the road in need of a ride. He gives Jimmy a letter that ends up changing Jimmy’s life forever.

Shane is a small town guy with a head injury that forces him to keep life simple. When he meets Jimmy his protective urges kick in and he wants to do what he can to help and keep Jimmy around.

Though the plot is simple – two guys learning about each other and learning to love one another in the end – the emotions involved are deep, rich and complex. They both harbor self image issues and a history that makes their futures less than concrete. Their journey toward each other ends up healing them both.

**

I’m a huge Kim Fielding fan. She has a gift with characters and specifically for multi-faceted characters who don’t always do what you expect. I like that her “heroes” are unconventional to say the least.

In this novel she uses Jimmy’s “stories” as a wonderful vehicle for showing us the true nature of Jimmy’s heart. It’s creative, insightful and a delight to read. With Shane we get (on the surface) a more straight-forward story, but just when you expect things to be one way – blam! – there’s a bit more to him than meets the eye.

The gentleness of this story moves these guys forward in a way that is illuminating but not necessarily shocking. Day by day they grow closer until their future seems inevitable.

If I have any small complaints it would be these: First, I thought that the story lagged in the middle with a few too many of Jimmy’s stories (though themselves interesting – I’m not sure they moved the romance forward enough to justify their inclusion in such detail) and second, that the subtlety of the romance was almost too subtle. Though we absolutely get a very solid and forever HEA, my preference would have been for a bit more at the reunion scene to cement in the major shift that had occurred. It’s tough though – I suppose being true to the characters might dictate toward the subtle – but the romantic in me wanted a bit more, regardless.

In any case, this is a truly remarkable story with a lovely thread that starts with a dead man…

Audio

KC Kelly is the BEST choice for this narration. The “old west” flavor of the story is well suited by his drawl and his sense of timing is perfection! I think listening to this story (which is chock full of so many stories told by Jimmy) is a MUST. It absolutely adds to the overall enjoyment of the book and truly brings it to life!

6 of 5 stars

Even better and the book was already really good… 👏👏👏‼️

Pretty amazing when the audiobook 🎧 was even better and the book was already really good👏👏👏‼️
The book was SO enjoyable, the characters SO well written and their story SO compelling and the twists were COMPLETELY unexpected (at least to me) and ENTIRELY enjoyable.
I’d head back to Rattlesnake in a heartbeat… 💓💓💓‼️

Wonderful story and performance

Ah Kim Fielding, just when I think I've got you pigeonholed you break out something like this. I have primarily pegged this author as a "fantasy" writer and I love her for it. Then she writes this and all bet are off; she is just a great writer and storyteller. There is not a drop of paranormal or fairy dust in this story, although there is lots of other dust as it takes place in a desert town. This is a story of a man finding himself in a most unique and unlikely way, through a dead man. And another man proving to himself and his family that he is a fully functioning human being despite his disability. Jimmy is a great character and the emotional depth the author gives him is wonderful. It is a slow drag to learn about Jimmy's life and struggles, but so worth the effort. Shane has had a very different life; surrounded by love and support. His demons are different but no less harrowing. This is the type of story that makes you smile through tears. K.C. Kelly's slow drawl is the perfect voice for these men. He gives a wonderful performance and really conveys the depth of emotion the story demands.

4.5 stars for this gem!

Any additional comments?

This is beautifully written and even more beautifully narrated. I cannot think of another narrator I would have preferred to listen to this by other than K.C. Kelly. Kelly takes this tale of a drifter finding a home he didn't even know he was looking for and gives it a depth that elevates the story. The characters are beautifully molded and described and in the end it's a heart-wrenching story about the hope and the chances we keep or give away.

The story itself is not about flash and speed, it more moseys than rockets, and K.C.'s perfect drawl draws the listener along. I loved the narration for the story.

I'll admit if it hadn't been for the whole not-telling-about-the-real-reason-he-came-to-town storyline this would have been a five star read for me. Other than that though, I thought it was really wonderfully done and can easily recommend it.

Recommended!

Heartwarming

This book takes the time for the listener to get to know the two main characters and to root for their HEA. It is extremely well written, the performance is good and the story is plausible. It is a reminder that too many people lead lives of despair and hopelessness. It is a book of hope.