A COWBOY TO REMEMBER by Rebekah Weatherspoon (Book News)
I was thrilled to read recently that A Cowboy to Remember is in development! Valerie Woods, a co-executive producer on Queen Sugar and Sweet Magnolias has acquired the rights to Rebekah Weatherspoon’s entire Cowboys of California trilogy and is adapting it for television!
If you’ve been sleeping on this series, now might be the perfect time to get to know these sexy, luxury ranch owning brothers and the engaging, powerful women in their lives.
A loose, contemporary riff on Sleeping Beauty, A Cowboy to Remember manages to dodge melodrama and sail over the typical pitfalls of an amnesia plot to offer a truly satisfying take on the trope. Zach is a sweetheart with swagger who winkingly subverts cowboy stereotypes, but is happy to play up the aw shucks image when it’s to his advantage. While his rejection of Evie in their teens led to a decade long estrangement, when her injury brings him back into her life, he’s upfront about their history and careful not to take advantage of her memory loss.
In Weatherspoon’s hands, Evie’s amnesia is a quiet journey of rediscovery both of self and family, featuring heavy doses of self-examination and self-care. It’s fascinating to see the way Evie’s character shifts with the weight of past trauma lifted but also the confidence of past accomplishment lost. With a circle of supportive friends and family around her, Evie leans into reinvention, slowly gaining assurance and beginning to build a life that doesn’t rely on regaining her memories. Despite a set up poised to be angst-ridden and over the top, it’s a surprisingly soft, warm hug of a story.
I’m completely delighted by The Cowboys of California as a choice for adaptation. Much like Beverly Jenkins’ books, it has a strong sense of place and a wide cast of characters drawn with care and cultural specificity. The many secondary characters are ripe for side plots, already existing on the page as distinct, interesting, individuals with intriguing backstories, while Big Rock Ranch feels like somewhere I’ve been visiting for years. I can’t wait to meet an onscreen version of Zach’s wildly lovable, not to be crossed, Hollywood icon grandmother, Leona, or see the ranch and the rich history of its residents brought to life. Happily, waiting for the TV version of Charming and its inhabitants will be made easier knowing the final book in the trilogy, Zach’s story, releases in the fall!
