REVIEW: Second Chance at Rancho Lindo by Sabrina Sol

Second Chance at Rancho Lindo by Sabrina Sol finds Gabe Ortega back home on the family ranch after an injury ended his military career. He doesn’t intend to stay there permanently, just until he gets back on his feet and figures out what he wants to do with his future. He never felt he had a true place on the ranch, unlike his brothers, and always felt like his father didn’t approve of him. Nora Torres, a horticulturist at Rancho Lindo, may have him rethinking his plans.

Nora and the Ortega family go way back; Gabe and Nora even used to play together when they were children. The Ortega family has done so much for her and her family, she doesn’t understand Gabe’s reluctance to be at the ranch. But the more she sees Gabe with his family, the more she understands that he feels like an outsider. She becomes determined to show Gabe that he’s a valuable member of the family and the ranch, with the hopes that he will stick around.

While I liked Gabe and Nora, I felt that their romance was lacking something. I’m not sure what exactly it was, but their romance was just so-so. It probably could have been developed a bit more; instead, their romance became overshadowed by the all the family drama going on with the Ortega’s.

Honestly, I didn’t really care for most of Gabe’s family, especially his father and his older brother. They treated him poorly throughout the book, and I could understand why Gabe couldn’t wait to get out of there when he was eighteen. They both insisted he needed to be a part of the ranch, but then they never approved of or respected any of his ideas. Basically, they wanted him there, but never gave him a real chance to contribute, which was all that he wanted. His older brother suddenly decides to act like he cares about Gabe, but it comes close to the end of the book, which was too little, too late to redeem him in my eyes. It also felt like nothing was truly resolved with his father.

This is the beginning of a new series, and I’m on the fence as to if I would want to continue with it. It wasn’t a bad read, but most of the family didn’t exactly leave me with a good impression and they certainly didn’t leave me feeling like I couldn’t wait to read their stories. This book would be for readers who enjoy ranching/cowboy stories, and for those who enjoy stories about characters struggling to find their place amongst their family.

Book Info:

Publication: November 29, 2022 | Forever |

As the new horticulturist at Rancho Lindo, Nora Torres is determined to make the garden a success and prove to the Ortega family that they made the right decision in hiring her. Plants take patience and care, and that should be Nora’s focus, not Gabe Ortega, who is back home on his family’s ranch after an injury abruptly ended his military career. A long time ago, Nora made the mistake of believing a promise from Gabe, and she’s determined not to make that mistake twice.

His family hopes he’s home for good, but Gabe has always wanted something else—something more—than working at Rancho Lindo. So he can’t allow himself to be sidetracked by his feelings for Nora when he knows he’ll be leaving again. But soon, rather than keeping his distance from the garden and the talented horticulturist, Gabe finds what he really wants is to change Nora’s mind about him.