Hey, Cowgirl, Need a Ride?

June 13, 2005
Ten years after the publication of Hey, Cowboy, Wanna Get Lucky?
Black revisits the wild and woolly world of Lick and Cody, the two rodeo cowboys who got lucky. This time around, Lick is down on his luck in southern Idaho, licking his wounds after a series of rodeo setbacks. His romantic life takes a turn for the better, though, with the calamitous arrival of the beautiful Teddie Arizona Grant ("T.A."), who survives a plane crash after fleeing Las Vegas—and her husband, after stealing some of his cash. Subsequent chapters fill in the blanks: T.A.'s marriage to casino owner F. Rank is strictly one of convenience, while her theft is connected to an effort to stop a lucrative exotic animal hunt organized by Rank and a high-level animal trainer (stage name: Ponce de Crayon). T.A. is hunted down by Rank and his evil henchman; she escapes, and Lick (with an assist from Cody, who arrives mid-book, now 29 and married) attempts rescue. The plot is numbing, but more or less beside the point. What will bring readers back to Lick is Black's loving, sophisticated sendup of western romances, as if Larry McMurtry were writing Blazing Saddles II
. 8-city author tour
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August 15, 2005
Black, America's favorite cowboy poet, is larger than life and twice as funny, on radio and in print. This novel, his 18th and the follow-up to "Hey, Cowboy, Wanna Get Lucky?", continues with the misadventures of former rodeo champion Lick Davis as he tries to help blond party gal Teddie Arizona (T.A. -a none-too-subtle joke there) against her evil pretend-husband, F. Rank Pantaker, and his tiger-taming partner-in-crime, Ponce de Crayon. Black lays it on thick -too thick, sometimes -in this tall tale of cartoon cowboys and ruthless Vegas types. Through a series of captures, escapes, rescues, and more captures, the story moves ahead at breakneck speed and with all the energy of a bucking bronco. After just three chapters, readers are sure to find themselves talkin' like cowboys and feelin''round for their six-shooters. Highly recommended. -Ken St. Andre, Phoenix P.L.

Copyright 2005 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.