The Rodeo Queen is an emotional and powerfully-written romance with interesting characters that takes a well-researched peek into life what life as a bull rider is like, adding depth and dimension to the subject. It sometimes does lean a little too heavily on the contest element instead of the romance, though, which is why it’s not quite a DIK for me.

Sierra Quintanilla is a former rodeo queen who’s trying to move into the entertainment field and be taken seriously as an artist. She’s currently acting as the host of The Closed Circuit, a brand new PBRA approved reality show that follows bullriders  outside of the ring and also features them facing each other down in competitive rides.

Loner Diablo Sosa found a passion for bull riding at sixteen when he was sentenced to help out with a Houston youth program that taught at-risk kids to rope and ride. Now, guided by the love of his beloved Nana, he works as an attorney trying to help kids that used to be like him. He can’t really believe he’s about to step back into the ring to compete on The Closed Circuit, but he’s doing it at the urging of his former mentor, “Old Man” Henry Bowman.

City by city, elimination by elimination, Sierra and Diablo find themselves getting closer and closer to true love. Diablo starts reaching out and making friends among his fellow contestants, and Sierra starts trying to trust him. But can true love bloom amongst so much competition?

What a wonderful book. Somber but romantic, filled with personal growth for the characters and a fun point of view on life in the world of reality television combined with the rodeo universe, it’s quite readable and the leads are incredibly enjoyable. But sometimes the romance leans a little too hard into a character study, which caused me to mark it down slightly.

Diablo has been through a lot, and trusts only a few people in his life. A former social outcast, he can’t believe that Sierra would look twice at a guy like him. He’s so well-rounded, but, to my disappointment, Sierra is a little more vague, but while the story splits a lot of focus between Diablo and his struggles with the past and Sierra and her struggles with her career, the end result is a romance that’s very grown up, if one that could use a little bit more centering in the very fine love story going on.

I liked the supporting characters, and extra impressive is the way the reality show competition and bull riding worlds are presented; for anyone who knows very little about rodeos or the notion of roping and riding a steer, this will definitely make you understand why the characters so love the bright lights and dirt-covered ground.

The Rodeo Queen is a lovely, passionate experience, even though it’s not as perfect as it could be.

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