Gail has other things on her mind. Her boyfriend is seeing his estranged wife again, and her future with him is in doubt. Maybe looking into the problems on the Bennett Ranch will take her mind off these personal troubles.

The list of people who might want to harm Glen Bennett, handsome patriarch of the family, seems to grow with every page. There's his wife, the bitchy Joyce; his son, Tim, who at the age of thirty is still drifting along on the ranch; Lisa's vengeful ex-husband, a has-been rodeo star; plus various others with means and motive. Gail's unwilling efforts to sort out the truth bring her close to the perpetrator, whose identity is well-hidden.

I really enjoyed the veterinarian angle, but then, I'm a horse lover from way back. Those without much background in equine care may find some of the technical aspects to be a bit overwhelming. However, as background for Gail's character, it worked just fine.

What didn't work so well was the undertone of marital discord running through the background. Every relationship in the book is acrimonious. Characters are either divorced and miserable, or married and miserable. Gail and her boyfriend Lonny are the happiest couple in the book and even they are strained. After a while, all this unhappiness lost its punch because there was nothing to balance it. Everyone in the state of California can't be trapped in a hateful marriage, but you'd never know it from this story. The novel would have been better balanced had the author lightened up a bit.

Having said that, Roped kept me reading and I'll search out others in the series. Guess you could say it roped me in.

--Cathy Sova