Flawless by Elsie Silver

The first in Elsie Silver’s new Chestnut Springs series centers around Rhett, a famous “playboy” bull rider, and Summer, Rhett’s agent’s daughter. After a very unfortunate hot mike that tanks one of Rhett’s biggest endorsements, Summer is tasked with babysitting the alleged buckle-bunny crazed two-time rodeo champion. Neither of them is exactly pleased that Summer is stuck for the next couple of months watching over Rhett’s reputation, and especially Rhett finds the notion rather pesty since something about Summer simply irks him. However, it turns out that his initial irritation is really something else, and we get to see how these two go from just barely working together to friendship and more.

Where to start? This book is so much more than just a romance novel. It’s a story about what happens when you peel away the layers of who you think someone is and find out they’re more than you could’ve imagined. Rhett and Summer have so much dimension to their characters, and little by little we see their evolution brought on by the support of each other. There’s an element of genuine caring for one another, and it’s this depth of their feelings that made all their interactions that much more intense. It’s compelling story writing at its finest, and the way Rhett and Summer navigate their new circumstances in regard to what’s already gone on in their lives feels so meaningful. I was sucked right into this book from the start, and I didn’t want it to end.

Right away I loved Summer’s character, because she’s completely likeable and strong but has this sunny spark to her, too. And Rhett? At first, I thought he was going to maybe be brash or whatever, but I was so wrong. Like SO wrong. He’s a tough guy for sure (comes with the territory of being a bull rider and working his whole life on his family’s ranch), but there is so much more to him than his profession and others’ assumptions of him. He’s sweet and caring under his rough exterior, and I loved how perfect he turned out to be for Summer.

Also, this book is incredibly well written. Elsie has very quickly become one of my absolute favorite authors, and I can already say without a doubt that Flawless is going to be one of my top picks for this year. It’s literally just that good. The characters, witty banter, descriptions, flow, and pacing of this book were all spot on, and I cannot think of one thing in this book that I would’ve like to be different. When I say this book is good, I mean it is as close to perfect as I could’ve hoped for it to be. If I could give it more than 5 stars I would.

If you’ve read books by Elsie before, you already know you’re going to enjoy Flawless. If this is the first of her books that’s piqued your interest, then I can promise you that you’re going to want to read it. Sweet, steamy, and witty, Flawless is a phenomenal start to this series, and I am beyond excited to see what else is in store for us with the larger cast of characters.