The West is already a romantic time and palace. The great outdoors and untamed wilderness. The small, intimate communities that you’ll find out there. The lone cowboy archetype, good with their hands, and plenty else besides.
Is it so surprising that there is an entire subgenre of romance dedicated to this setting?
In this list, we’re going to show you some of the best Western Romance stories that we’ve come across the over the last few years.
There are plenty more out there for you to find in your own time. But if you’re looking to get started in this kind of love story, or are looking for the best of the best, you can’t go wrong with these picks!
1. No Quarter Asked, By Janet Dailey
We’re starting off this list with one of our favorite story beats and lines for a good romance novel.
Stacy Adam seems to have her life together. But the sudden death and loss of her father send her spiraling and re-evaluating her life choices.
Secluding herself away in a cabin in rural Texas, Stacy hopes that she can get a little peace and quiet, so she can reflect on what she wants to do with her life.
But her loud and brash rancher neighbor, Cord Harris, is not giving her that. It’s clear that he wanted Stacy out of ‘where she doesn’t belong’ in his eyes.
But when that indignation only makes Stacy commit that much harder to staying. And as they find each other at each other’s necks more and more, the only thing that doesn’t budge is the feelings they’re catching from one another.
Enemies-to-lovers is always a solid pick for us when it comes to romantic tension, and it’s on full display here.
… Okay, maybe not full enemies-to-lovers. But the chemistry between our two stars does lead to some pretty spicy and passionate romance!
2. Prince Charming, By Judie Garwood
Moving away from a modern western tale to something a little more old-fashioned, we have a classic story here that some of you might have already heard of!
When Taylor Stapleton’s fiancé elopes with her cousin, she is left high and dry, and seemingly at the mercy of her unscrupulous uncle.
That is, until her dying grandmother, Lady Esther, plans to get her granddaughter away from the clutches of her uncle’s influences.
And maybe, if she’s lucky, find love along the way!
There’s a pretty big globetrotting element to this tale too, moving from old London to Boston, then to the wilds of Montana as our protagonist goes across oceans and mountains to set herself free and find the man of her dreams.
I mean, how can you not get behind that?
3. Redeeming The Prodigal, By Jodi Basye
Of course, the West, even in the realms of fiction, isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Sometimes, you end up chasing a dream or idea that you can never catch. And in the process, lose everything you might have otherwise had.
This is the dire straits that our man of the hour, Gideon Cross, finds himself in., After leaving home to search for his father, expecting his love, Jo Bradford, to be there waiting for him to return.
But starvation and the threat of prostitution force her to also leave home, leaving Gideon heartbroken on both accounts when he returns.
After two lifetimes apart from each other, Gideon is slowly putting himself back together and hopes to raise a family with a woman that he loves. Even if it isn’t his sweet Jo.
But a chance encounter brings her back into his life, and now they must make a choice: Try and rekindle the love that felt like a lifetime ago. Or let the fragments of the past stay where they are?
Now that’s a gripping tale! If you’re a fan of mutual pining, and star-crossed lovers being reunited after years apart, this is the book for you to sink your teeth into!
4. Powerless, By Elsie Silver
As we’ve hopefully shown with our last entry, we’re big fans of childhood sweethearts blossoming into full love stories years later.
However, Sloane, our point-of-view character for Powerless, knows that that’s all her feelings for Jasper Gervais, celebrity TV athlete, can be. It’s why she’s marrying someone else.
But when her marriage falls apart, who else would come in to save her, but Jasper himself?
It is worth noting that this is the third book in this series, so you may find that some plot points, events, and characters go unexplained or seemingly under-described. If you’re okay with that, then you’ll be whisked away like Sloane was in this story.
(Alternatively, there is a tasty two books of content that you can go through if you want to fully enjoy the pay-off of emotions and suspense in this book. While most of the juiciest twists and turns happen here, the first two are great in their own right, and only make the ensign land that much better here!)
5. Desert Sunrise, By Raine Cantrell
Faith Beckett seems to have a pretty good lot in life, all things considered. Yes, it’s the Old West, a time when it feels like tragedy and a bad harvest one year spells disaster, but Faith has friends, family, and a wonderful fiancé that she is soon to marry.
Well, the death of her–be-wed certainly changes that!
With her husband dead, Faith and her family are forced to go on the run to a patch of Arizona land that they own a state away. A trek that could just as easily spell their death as it might their freedom.
When Faith finds herself in mortal danger on this journey, it falls to the tough and dependable shoulders of Delaney Carmichael to pluck her from the jaws of death.
One part Old West journey, and one part simmering romance, this book is a whole-part enthralling to read from beginning to end, and is an easy book to recommend for fans of this genre!
6. Mail Order Mix-Up, By Sylvia Wolf
Gabe Talbot is not only a man of very conventional tastes in women but has also seemingly sworn off finding love again after his last fiancé left him to become a nun.
But when Gabe answers a request to help a mother and her daughter move homes, he finds himself questioning everything that he could’ve thought he knew about himself.
After, this young, fiercely independent daughter, who hunts like a seasoned trapper, swears like a sailor, wears shirts and pants, and not a dress or skirt in sight, feels like someone that Gabe would have no interest in.
So why can’t he help but look over at her for just a little too long? And more importantly, why does she keep looking over at him too?
Obviously, as readers, we know why they keep looking at each other. It’s the big L-word. But watching how this unlikely pairing unfolds is part of the charm here. You get to learn more about Josie, what molded her into the young woman she has become, as well as Gabe’s plight and woes.
What more could you want from a good romance?
7. How To Rope A Wild Cowboy, By Anya Summers
Now, if you love your romance stories with a helping heap of heavy lusting on your preferred pages, this is going to be the book for you!
Emmett Benson is a bachelor who has everything he could want in his life – Good friends, plenty of horses to wrangle, and prefers his own company and animals to talk to most folk.
However, an accident with a particularly rebellious steed finds him in the office and surgery of one Dr. Grace O’Neill, the new doctor in town.
Now, Emmett isn’t exactly the kind of man that likes to be kept from his passions, least of all horse wrangling. So he’s hoping to get something that will keep him as the perfect patient for Dr. O’Neill.
His suggestion? Staying in bed and rested, with the promise of one kiss
We were just as surprised as Emmett that Dr. O’Neill does more than Agree!
8. What Happens When You Break, By G. L. Strong
Okay, so this isn’t exactly the chipper title to a romance tale. But trust us, this is both a tense and passion-filled tale for you to enjoy!
Maya Turner has eyes for only her childhood sweetheart, Colton Grant, the best friend of her brother. It’s also why she moved across the country.
But a chance trip back to her hometown 12 years later not only revealed that the apple of her eye has turned sour, but that he also spends most of his days now watching and waiting on her family’s ranch.
What could he be waiting for?
Final Thoughts
So, as you can see, there are plenty of western tales to tantalize your taste for tough and tense romances with. From contemporary love to historical Old West stories, there’s something for everyone in this collection!
So, which will you pick up first?
