Colt by Jessica Peterson: My Honest Book Review
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⭐ Quick Verdict
⭐ My Rating: 3.5 ★
💭 Quick Take: A seriously steamy cowboy romance where the enemies-to-lovers chemistry delivers, even if I wanted a little more depth behind all that heat.
👉 Read If You Love:
- Enemies to lovers
- Cowboy romance
- Single dad heroes
- Secret hookups
- Lots of teasing and razzing
- Very steamy romance
- No third-act breakup
🚫 Skip if:
- You want a slow burn before things get physical
- You prefer deeper character development
- You want the ranch and cowboy lifestyle to be a major focus of your cowboy romance
Book Details
Release Date: August 2026
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Tropes: Enemies to Lovers, Opposites Attract, Forced Proximity, Single Dad, Cowboy Romance
Series: Double U Ranch
Steam Level: High
POV: Dual POV
What This Book Is About
Colt Wallace isn’t exactly thrilled when his dad hires Lainey to give their family ranch a complete brand makeover. He doesn’t want change, he doesn’t particularly want this city girl telling him what the ranch needs, and he definitely isn’t interested in making her job easy.
Fortunately, Lainey has no problem giving it right back to him.
Their constant razzing quickly makes it clear that there’s something besides irritation simmering between them. And once that enemies-to-lovers chemistry finally boils over, keeping their hookups a secret may be a whole lot easier than keeping their feelings out of it.
My Review of Colt
Giddyup readers because Jessica Peterson brings the STEAM in this one, and I was here for it! After reading Ryder, I already had a feeling Colt and Lainey were going to bring some impressive chemistry to this book, and boy did they ever.
Be prepared for the spice to start early and stick around for pretty much the entire book. But one of the things Jessica does so well is keep the steamy scenes feeling fresh and unique to each couple, and that definitely worked for Colt and Lainey.
Their hate-to-love vibes were alive and well from the moment Colt discovered his dad had hired Lainey to completely rebrand the Wallace Ranch. Colt wanted nothing to do with change or the city girl coming in to tell them what to do, but Lainey didn’t back down for a second. She gave as good as she got when it came to his snark, and these two seemed to get off on razzing each other.
Of course, all that antagonism was really just fuel for the fire between them, and when things finally turned a corner, they did so with quite a scene.
That’s really what made this book so much fun. Their hate continued to fuel their hookups even as those hookups slowly became a place where they could let their guards down and actually confide in each other.
For Colt, that meant opening up about his former marriage and the pressure he feels as foreman of the ranch. For Lainey, so much of her drive comes from wanting to be self-sufficient and not repeat the life she saw her mother living, where being the “woman” of the house meant doing everything in the kitchen while remaining dependent on her husband.
I appreciated both of their backstories and especially the commentary around those traditional gender roles. But this is also where I wanted a little more from the book.
Neither of their issues ever goes particularly deep, nor did I feel like they were completely worked through. There were moments where I felt like I was being told what Colt and Lainey were struggling with rather than really seeing how those struggles shaped them. I could go with it because I was enjoying their chemistry and the overall story, but readers looking for a deeply developed romance may notice it more.
I actually REALLY enjoyed the moments when Lainey’s branding work finally took center stage. Seeing what she had planned for the Wallace Ranch gave me another side of her character beyond her relationship with Colt, and I found myself wishing we’d gotten more of it.
The same goes for the ranch itself. Since this is the first book in the Double U Ranch series, I would have loved more context around the Wallace family, how the ranch operates, and their work with horses. You do get some of that background in Ryder, so while I don’t think you absolutely have to read that book first, I think you’ll have a better appreciation for Colt and some of the family dynamics if you do.
And then there’s Dean, Colt’s son, who was a total cutie. He occasionally sounded a little wiser than his years, but I still enjoyed what he brought to Colt’s character and the story.
I also have to give Jessica points for skipping the third-act breakup. There was no unnecessary blowup thrown in just to separate Colt and Lainey before the ending, and I found that SO refreshing. Their relationship was allowed to move forward without manufacturing angst just because we were nearing the end of the book.
The setup for Beck’s story also did exactly what it was supposed to do because I’m already ready to grab his book.
What I Loved
- Colt and Lainey’s enemies-to-lovers chemistry
- Their constant razzing and snark
- Jessica Peterson once again bringing seriously good steam
- Lainey’s ranch branding work
- The commentary around gender roles and independence
- Dean as a fun addition to Colt’s story
- No third-act breakup
- The setup for Beck’s romance
Things to Know Before You Read
- Very steamy romance, and the spice starts fairly early
- Colt and Lainey’s antagonism carries over into their physical relationship
- Character backstories are there but don’t go particularly deep
- Some of the emotional development is told rather than shown
- No third-act breakup
- You don’t have to read Ryder first, but it provides additional context for Colt and the Wallace family
Final Thoughts
Colt was a fun, seriously steamy enemies-to-lovers cowboy romance that delivered exactly where I expected it to: Colt and Lainey’s chemistry. I loved how much these two enjoyed pushing each other’s buttons and how that antagonism eventually gave way to moments where they could be honest about what was really going on underneath.
Would I have liked more depth? Absolutely. I wanted more of Lainey’s branding work, more of the ranch and Wallace family, and a little more development around the personal issues both Colt and Lainey were carrying. Those missing pieces are ultimately what kept this from being a four-star read for me.
But if you’re looking for a steamy enemies-to-lovers romance with a hot cowboy, a heroine who gives as good as she gets, and no unnecessary third-act breakup, Colt delivers. And considering the setup Jessica Peterson gave us for Beck, I’ll definitely be continuing the Double U Ranch series.
More Jessica Peterson Books:
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