4-STAR REVIEW: TAKE THAT RIDE by Meg Benjamin

Konigsburg, TX: Book 11
Publication Date: August 1, 2023

They’ve only got a week. They need to make it count.

Coy Blackburn is an up-and-coming country singer, but right now he feels more like he’s down-and-going. He’s at the end of a long tour, and his band is dragging. A week-long gig at the Faro tavern in Konigsburg, Texas, may get them back on their feet or it may be a disaster. For Coy, it feels like it could go either way.

Lexi Markham is living life on auto-pilot at the moment. As the main driver at her family’s tour business, she spends her days taking tourists around the Texas wineries and trying to get over her breakup with her lying fiancé. Now her sister has booked her to drive a country band around town, and she’s definitely not feeling it.

When Coy and Lexi meet, sparks fly—and not it a good way. Still, trust the power of music (and a back country cloudburst) to overcome a few bumps in the road. But can they even think about the future when they’ve only got a few days together?

A country singer at the end of his first solo tour lands a week-long gig in Texas, hoping that it will breathe new life into his sputtering band.

Author Meg Benjamin takes readers to Konigsburg, Texas, in Take That Ride. It’s a close-knit community with plenty of interesting characters. When Coy Blackburn comes to town, transportation is provided by Markham’s Tours, with the lovely Lexi Markham in the driver’s seat.

The author has built a successful series with more than 10 books featuring this thriving town. Characters from previous books make cameo appearances throughout this installment, focusing on the unlikely relationship between a burned-out country singer and a woman who has given up on love.

There’s drama from a band member, in addition to a female musician, all of which seek to drive a wedge between the couple. Easily enjoyed as a standalone, the book provides an excellent introduction to a well-crafted world.

Take That Ride generates plenty of spice as two characters give in to their attraction, not realizing forever is on the table.

Meg Benjamin is an award-winning author of romance. Meg’s Konigsburg series is set in the Texas Hill Country and her Salt Box and Brewing Love trilogies are set in the Colorado Rockies (all are available from Entangled Publishing and from Meg’s indie line). Her new cozy mystery series, Luscious Delights from Wild Rose Press, concerns a jam-making sleuth based in the mythical small town of Shavano, Colorado. Along with contemporary romance, Meg is also the author of the paranormal Ramos Family trilogy from Berkley InterMix and the Folk trilogy from Soul Mate. Meg’s books have won numerous awards, including an EPIC Award, a Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, the Holt Medallion from Virginia Romance Writers, the Beanpot Award from the New England  Romance Writers, and the Award of Excellence from Colorado Romance Writers.

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