Title:  Black Hills Baby
Series:  Black Hills Rendezvous #1
Author:  Debra Salonen
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Published:  January 29, 2016
Publisher:  Loner Llama Press
My Rating:  4.5 stars
Source:  Owned, Kindle Edition
Cover Description:

When Hollywood heart-throb Cooper Lindstrom needs money to get his late mother’s homicidal bookie off his back, he jumps at the lifeline Black Hills postmaster Libby McGannon tosses his way. In Cooper’s mind, their arrangement is simple: his sperm in trade for a share in her family’s gold mine. But the real pay off is her story–the one he plans to turn into a hit sitcom that will push him back on top.

The hit show Coop saw coming.   Love?   Completely blindsided him.

And the baby? Who could have guessed Cooper wanted to be a father? Too bad Libby–the woman he’s fallen hard for–might never forgive him for turning her life into a joke for worldwide consumption. Not to mention the changes he’s brought to the small Black Hills community of Sentinel Pass, where happily-ever-after isn’t left to chance.

Read on for m y thoughts on Black Hills Baby.  No true spoilers, promise.

What’s that old saying?  When life gives you lemons make lemonade.  Yeah, okay.  But if you’re plum outta sugar it’s gonna be pretty bitter lemonade!  And that’s sort of where both Libby and Cooper are at the beginning of their adventure.

Libby is the postmaster of a very tiny, off the beaten track town in the Black Hills called Sentinel Pass  Events in and around her life have brought her to the point where she wants a baby, but knows there is no relationship to make that dream come true the old fashioned way.  So… she places an interesting ad for a sperm donor in exchange for a small percentage of a gold mine.  The fact that the mine hasn’t produced gold in a very long time is beside the point to Libby – she figures a guy would love the bragging rights vs the actual profits.  She has everything thought out –  except the reality of the whole plan, and maybe falling for the guy.

Cooper’s world has sort of imploded on him.  His reality show is most likely in its last season since it’s tanking in the ratings.  He’s worked his entire life since he was in diapers at something in the entertainment industry, actor, model, TV host.  He knew his mother liked to gamble.  And since she directed every aspect of his career, she also had control of the finances.  She was his mother, why wouldn’t he trust her?  Maybe because she’s a gambler, an addicted to gambling gambler.  And now she was dead.  As he might soon be if he can’t pay off her debts to a bookie who isn’t willing to wait for his  money.  Coop’s gone from having his life pretty much together – to see it spiraling out of control.  In an odd set of circumstances, he came across Libby’s ad.  First thought – gold mine.  Money.  Second thought – why not?  It wasn’t as if he needed the sperm.  And that final either brilliant or the dumbest thing ever thought – wouldn’t this whole thing make a great sit-com.  He could be back on his feet with a hit, and get the bookie and his ex-wives off his back.   No need for Libby to know his plans, and shouldn’t the townsfolk be excited to have the tourists flocking to their tiny, unknown town?   *sigh* Oh, Cooper.

Not surprisingly, things did not go according to either Libby’s or Cooper’s plans.  And that is where the fun begins.

I completely enjoyed this kick off the series story of Cooper and Libby’s romance.  Now to be honest, Cooper could have been an annoying character.  The fact that he isn’t comes through the crafting and writing of Ms Salonen.  We are completely aware that Coop does not understand the world outside of the “magic universe” of the entertainment industry.  His entire profitability has depended upon his looks and talent.  His mother was the worst of the stage mothers around, and she kept him firmly under her thumb by convincing him that he was the bumbling village idiot.  And sadly, in some ways he was – but now, he’s going to get a taste of real life, consequences of his actions and caring about someone else’s future more than his own.

Black Hills Baby gives us a charming setting, a wide variety of interesting and eccentric secondary characters who will be around throughout the series – and a chance to watch this train wreck change into something amazing.  That’s worth following a series for, in my opinion.  I loved it and would definitely recommend this story and series to any Romance reader who loves complicated characters, detailed story lines and simply a heck of a good time falling into a story.

Available for the Kindle