Off to the Races: A Small Town Enemies to Lovers Romance (Gold Rush Ranch Book 1)

Elsie Silver has quickly become one of my favorites. I honestly can’t believe this is her debut novel because her wonderful storytelling and talent are already there.The Gold Rush Ranch needs a new horse trainer for when their suspension is over and they can go back to the races. Enter Billie Black. Yes, it’s a girl. Yes, she knows what she wants. And yes, she’s also a loudmouth who speaks her mind. Essentially, everything Vaughn is not.From the start, It’s. The. Banter. It all stems from undeniable chemistry they’re both trying to ignore because they’re all wrong for each other and there’s no way they can ever be friends. Or even friendlier.Until they finally have a moment. After that, it’s game on.Do they try to avoid it, and each other? Does he end up letting her know so much more about him than he intended, making her let her guard down? And was I wanting to freaking push them together already because they were driving me bonkers? Check, check, and double check.She doesn’t let herself go that easily, and she has so many objections to what’s going on between them. But he wins her over, not just with words, but with actions. Until he makes the wrong choice, and it breaks her.I’m not always a fan of the third-act conflict, but it was worth it. Vaughn is annoyingly clueless to so many things and driven by a misguided sense of responsibility, so much so that he doesn't see that Billie is worth everything.The man who had no one meets the woman who never knew what it was like to be chosen because she’s more than enough. Until she shows him he has her, and he shows her he will always put her first.What a race this was!

After reading (and loving) Elsie's Chestnut Springs series, I decided I wanted to go back and read the rest of her books. This is her debut book and the first book in the Gold Rush Ranch series. I really enjoyed this one!!Vaughn is one of the owners of Gold Rush Ranch and hires Billie Black to be his new horse trainer. He assumes Billie is a man and makes quite a fool of himself when he initially meets her. He agrees to give Billie a shot and Billie is determined to prove herself. She has secrets of her own and swears to herself to stay away from men like Vaughn.The tension and banter these two is off the charts!! Billie and Vaughn wanted to hate each other but couldn't deny their attraction. Billie is a wild card and Vaughn seems to be the only one who can handle her. I loved them together and thought this was such a fun read! Highly recommend!

From the moment the author compared Billie and DD to Danarys and her dragon I was hooked. I mean what's not to like about a story with a bada$$ heroine who has something to prove? But unlike the tragic, disappointing ending of the Queen of Dragons, the Queen of Horses gets her happily ever after.Unfortunately Vaughn was not as endearing. In my humble opinion he had way too many temper tantrums for a grown man. It took him until almost the 90% mark to finally pull his head out of his bum.I also wanted more of the background story of how Hank became Billie's father figure.Overall it was a good story. I just wanted a little less filler and a little more substance. I'm hoping to get it from the next book in the series.

📖 𝕆𝕗𝕗 𝕋𝕠 𝕋𝕙𝕖 ℝ𝕒𝕔𝕖𝕤 𝕓𝕪 𝔼𝕝𝕤𝕚𝕖 𝕊𝕚𝕝𝕧𝕖𝕣⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5🌶🌶.5"𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐧 𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬. 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥.”Let me start this by saying, small town romance is not really my thing. They always feel kind of cookie cutter and don't hold my interest/have minimal darkness. WELLLLLL Elsie Silver just went and proved me really wrong. I was enamored immediately, mostly thanks to Billie Black. Not only were the characters absolutely spectacular, the story was interesting and the way she develops the relationships with the horses *chefs kiss*𝐍𝐚𝐡, 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐧𝐮𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐥𝐝.It's been a hot minute since I've had a girl crush on a character the way I do with Billie Black. Everything out of her mouth was pure GOLD. Her sassy take-no-shit attitude didn't discriminate against anyone or anything. She was passionate and fiercly protective. From her intentionally needling Vaughn to her interactions with Violet, Cole & Hank, I loved every second she was on the page. Vaughn was delicious as the billionaire turned cowboy but Billie really stole the show for me.“𝐄𝐲𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧, 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞,” 𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐞𝐳𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧. “𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐦𝐞 𝐟*𝐜𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮.”The tension between these two was 🔥 It was a slow/medium burn overall but what was there was so good!!As you can probably tell I'm TOTALLY hooked on Gold Rush Ranch now... ive already finished book 2 so expect that review soon and dare I say it was even better than this one 😱Read if you like:-Small Town Romance-Enemies to Lovers-Boss/Employee-FMC with quick wit and a smart mouth-🐴🐴🐴

I originally read Elsie's books about Violet's brothers, and was obsessed with their stories. I started this series because I saw it portrayed Violet's story, but then was second guessing at first...until I got further into the book and realized she was the groom turned jockey! I loved reading about Vaughn and Miss Black's relationship (Both professionally and romantically) unfold. I had a feeling she would help guide the feared by everyone black horse to win big races, but Vaughn giving her him to earn her trust was icing on the cake!

This was such a freakin good and cute story. It’s got a little of a bunch and it works so well all together. The dynamic between Vaughn and Billie had me coming back for more even when I shouldn’t paused for the day or for some food.Instantly obsessed with Elsie’s writing now and I’m gonna just go and read the rest of the series

This book has been on my TBR forever and I’m so glad I’ve got around to reading about Billie and Vaughn. This is an enemies to friends to lovers small town romance. Both Billie and Vaughn have pasts which they would rather be forgotten and are trying to move forward.When Billie takes a head trainer role at Vaughn’s late grandfathers ranch for his prized racehorses these 2 instantly but heads and I just loved Billie’s sas and comebacks to Vaughn she takes no prisoners. Billie forged an amazing bond with the crazy wildcard horse Double Diablo (DeeDee) who becomes the star.There is plenty of drama, where there are plenty of references to the welfare of horses and horse racing you don’t need the knowledge as Elsie describes everything beautifully.Of course our loveable Vaughn messes up and has some grovelling to do but he does it perfectly and I would definitely struggle not to forgive him.Can’t wait to read the rest of the series, congratulations Elsie on an amazing debut novel!

Vaughn and his older brother inherits his Grandpa's ranch after his death. Their reputation has been left in tatters after a big scandal surrounding horse racing. Vaughn is trying to get their reputation back. So he is hiring a new horse trainer. Billie has a past of her own and a scandal in her families past so she worked hard to get out from all the stigma surrounding her and finally lands an interview on Gold Rush Ranch. She lands the job on the condition that she wins the races.I loved Billie she is a great FMC.. She has a take no crap attitude, she was fiery, sassy, quick witted and head strong. She knew where her morals lie and she wasn't going to change line. Their meet cute was funny and I just knew at that moment they had me hooked. I laughed out loud through the book, smiled and it had its emotional parts at the end. My favourite part was that whipping scene!!The connection Billie and Vaughn have is amazing and it transpires through every page, their wit and banter ughhh I just adored it!! The setting of the book is idyllic I was transported in to their world and craved to live along side them. The side characters were fabulous, the love Billie has for Hank someone who has been a father figure to her is beautiful. I have already read Flawless and Heartless so I am eager to read Violets story next. Elsie's writing is impeccable and I'm slapping myself for not reading this sooner!This book has so many good tropes-Small Town-Grumpy/Sunshine-Billionaire Alpha Hero-Sports Romance (horse racing)-Boss/EmployeeYou will be happy you read this!!

Vaughan is trying to save his families reputation and Billie is the new horse trainer to can hopefully help restore it. As soon as they meet sparks fly. Billie is used to being underestimated as a woman in a mans world. Vaughan is used to women falling all over him for his money. Billie is a confident, beautiful breath of fresh air in Vaughan’s stuffy world. Vaughan is hot, intelligent and used to getting his own way. They spend more and more time together and the sparks ignite. Billie has had a tumultuous past and needs someone who will choose her no matter what. Vaughan is stuck on trying to clear his family name and loses sight on what’s really important. I enjoyed how strong, but guarded Billie was and how Vaughan brought her out of her shell and how Billie showed Vaughan what he had been missing. This story was hot and kept me engrossed from start to finish (one evening). This was my first book from the author and I can’t wait to start book 2 in this series.

Off to the Races contains the perfect blend of feisty romance and gripping plot. Billie Black is possibly the sassiest heroine I’ve come across this year, and Vaughn is simply lickable. I was addicted from the first chapter; the chemistry between Billie and Vaughn is palpable, although my heart was completely stolen by DD!Can’t wait for the next in series!

Omg! I absolutely loved this!Billie is full of sass and Vaughan is just delicious!I was absolutely addicted from the very first page! Fabulous characters, romantic and full of steam! Everything I love!Already looking forward to the rest of the books in this series!