Reviewed by Alexander
TITLE: Eastern Cowboy
AUTHOR: Andrew Grey
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 7 hours, 8 minutes
NARRATOR: Narrated by Derrick McClain
BLURB:
Brighton McKenzie inherited one of the last pieces of farmland in suburban Baltimore. It has been in his family since Maryland was a colony, though it has lain fallow for years. Selling it for development would be easy, but Brighton wants to honor his grandfather’s wishes and work it again. Unfortunately, an accident left him relying on a cane, so he’ll need help. Tanner Houghton used to work on a ranch in Montana until a vengeful ex got him fired because of his sexuality. He comes to Maryland at the invitation of his cousin and is thrilled to have a chance to get back to the kind of work he loves.
Brighton is instantly drawn to the intensely handsome and huge Tanner—he’s everything Brighton likes in a man, though he holds back because Tanner is an employee, and because he can’t understand why a man as virile as Tanner would be interested in him. But that isn’t the worst of their problems. They have to face the machinations of Brighton’s aunt, Tanner’s ex suddenly wanting him back, and the need to find a way to make the farm financially viable before they lose Brighton’s family legacy.
REVIEW:
I have come to call Andrew Grey’s book “comfort food” for their simple plots and likeable characters, and Eastern Cowboy is no exception.
Brighton and his sister had a good relationship that felt believable, and the banter between them was totally what I would expect from close siblings. The family dynamic between Brighton and his aunt also felt authentic, mostly because of something my mom always told me: Money that comes from the death of a family member will invariably bring out the worst in people.
Having a 50 acre farm on the outskirts of Baltimore may have seemed like an improbability a few months ago, but since I made a trip to Maryland a few weeks back, I now know that it does not take long in that area to go from bustling city to rural tranquility. The concept of progress, and the difference in what one person sees as right, compared to the views of another was well addressed as far as I am concerned. I also felt that Grey set the scenario up well so that we would feel the need to agree with the path Brighton chose, simply because we could not help but like Brighton, and rooting for him would give us the “warm fuzzies”. I must also admit to living in a village of 125 people, so the battle waged by Brighton was one I could easily support.
McClain did a decent job narrating the story, with a reasonably neutral narrative voice as well as two slightly distinctive voices for Tanner and Brighton. McClain also handled the secondary characters, like Tanner’s uncle and Brighton’s sister effectively, in fact he did a good job with the all of the women’s voices throughout the story, giving a level of femininity, without making the characters sound contrived. I also liked McClain’s treatment of Tanner’s stutter which sounded authentic and how he may not have differentiated Brighton and Tanner’s voices to a great degree, but he did maintain a good level of consistency throughout the story. I have already scoped out other stories narrated by McClain based on listening to his performance in Eastern Cowboy.
STORY RATING: 
( more like 4.25)
AUDIO RATING: 
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