Review - - Close to Home

Close to Home

Weston Series - Book One

By Suzanne Ferrell

Digital - Self Published

Release Date:  October 28, 2012

The ladies of Weston, Ohio may think Emma Lewis needs a man in her life but this single mom of twin six year old boys has no desire to walk that road again, especially not with the doctor temporarily taking over his uncle's family practice.  Yes, he's handsome, was her teenage crush and has been the object of many dreams over the years but he not only doesn't remember her, he storms back into her life by accusing her of being a neglectful mother!  Add to that the fact that Emma's scumbag of an ex-husband (a doctor) used her then dumped her the day she told him she was pregnant and is it any wonder Emma doesn't want anything to do with another doctor?  Besides, she already has enough on her hands with two mischievous sons, a mother showing early signs of Alzheimer's, two jobs and a house she's renovating herself.  She doesn't have time for a man!

Burned out from long hours in the ER of a Columbus hospital and the trauma of an abuse case that resulted in a child's death, Clint Preston has come to Weston to take over his uncle's small town medical practice while his aunt and uncle take an extended vacation.  He's looking for peace and quiet but when twin boys charge into his office with matching broken wrists and no parent in sight, Clint's radar goes on high alert.  He fears another abuse case like the one in Columbus that haunts him but soon comes to realize that the two cases are nothing alike.  What he finds instead are two young boys who can't seem to stay out of trouble and their feisty mother who he can't get out of his mind.  Far from the neglectful mother he initially accuses her of being, Emma Lewis is a loving mother who simply has two many balls going to keep them all in the air.

Circumstances - and two boys - keep bringing Clint and Emma together and gradually their initial animosity thaws and a friendship forms. Eventually, that friendship becomes more but just when it looks like a happy ending might be in their future, the past rears its ugly head.  It will take Emma, Clint and a host of family and friends to defeat the threat against Emma and her boys and give them all a chance for a happy ending.

With Close to Home, Ferrell kicks off a new contemporary romance series that focuses on the small town of Weston, Ohio and a rich cast of characters.  Taking time to develop her characters, Ferrell brings us a hero and heroine who I grew to like and care about.  I became invested in them and their relationship.  Emma's twins are realistically drawn and an integral part of the story.  They and their mother are an unit and I liked that Ferrell portrayed them in that way as well as making the boys the catalyst that brings Emma and Clint together.  The suspense element of the story is well written and had me holding my breath, not knowing how it was going to be resolved.  It's not a large enough part of the story to classify the book as romantic suspense but provides an added dimension to the final portion of the book.

If you're looking for a heartwarming small town romance with a touch of suspense, I highly recommend Close to Home.  I enjoyed it immensely and am anticipating a return visit to the town of Weston.  

~PJ

Guest Review -- Sea Glass Winter

Sea Glass Winter

By JoAnn Ross

Publisher: Signet

Release Date: December 31, 2012

Shelter Bay’s newest residents are jewelry designer/glass artist Clair Templeton and her fifteen-year-old son, Matthew.  The two have had a rough year. Clair, still a teenager herself when Matt was born, has always been a single mother, and the death of her mother, who had been her support system through all the years, has left a hole in her heart. Matt too has had a rough time with the loss of the second most important person in his world. When his grades slipped and more serious trouble threatened to mushroom, Clair started looking for a place with a slower pace and fewer temptations than Los Angeles to see Matt through his last three years of high school. Shelter Bay, a place she’s always found restful on visits there, is her choice for their new home.

Matt doesn’t share his mother’s enthusiasm. The top freshman basketball player in California, the previous season, he sees his dreams of an athletic scholarship and NBA stardom vanishing if he’s stuck in Podunk USA playing for a team that hasn’t had a winning season in a a dozen years. He takes an even dimmer view when it turns out that his new coach is more interested in building a team and developing character in his players than he is in winning and inflating the egos of stars.

Dillon Slater’s career as an explosive ordnance disposal specialist blew up less than thirty days before he was scheduled to leave Afghanistan. His new job acquired through Troops to Teachers, a program that places former military personnel in rural classrooms and other places where they meet a special need, was waiting for him. Texas-born Dillon is assigned to the high school in Shelter Bay, Oregon, where for at least three years he’s going to be teaching physical science and physics and coaching basketball. He immediately feels at home in Shelter Bay and has already made some good friends, but he has concerns about the Booster Club members who have big expectations of the 6 foot, 3 inch kid who’s transferring from California.

A winning season may not be Dillon’s primary objective for his team, but he has a definite interest in winning the attention of Clair Templeton. A connection sparked between them on their first meeting, but Clair, who has a history with men who leave, is determined to focus on her son and her art, in that order. She’s not interested in complications, and Dillon Slater is one temperature-raising complication. But even a woman as determined as Clair finds resistance increasingly difficult when her new match-making friends keep throwing them together; Matt, who’s soon convinced Dillon is the best coach ever, decides he’s just the man his mom needs; and her own heart tells her Dillon is unlike any other man she’s ever known.

I cheered when JoAnn Ross returned to writing small-town romances, the kind she was writing long before the current trend, and I’m loving the Shelter Bay series. Sea Glass Winter is the fifth Shelter Bay book, following The Homecoming, One Summer, On Lavender Lane, and Moonshell Beach. Clair and Dillon, like the protagonists of the earlier novels, are interesting, likeable characters who have overcome difficulties, found what they are meant to do with their lives, and are committed to living those lives with passion and integrity. I especially appreciated the look Ross gives readers at Clair’s development as an artist and at Dillon’s teaching practices as well as his coaching.

Ross also does a superb job of creating the teenage Matt who is an important part of this story. She captures the confusion, the moodiness, and the contradictory blend of adolescent self-absorption and familial love that characterize this basically good kid. She also manages to bring us up to date on the lives of characters from the other books in an organic manner that never distracts from Clair and Dillon’s story. Friendships are formed, pets are adopted, babies are born, and marriage is proposed as Ross weaves bits of the lives of Kara and Sax, Charity and Gabriel, Maddy and Lucas, Mary and J. T., and Phoebe and Ethan into the central story.

Sea Glass Winter can be read as a standalone, although I expect most readers will be so hooked by the secondary characters that they’ll want to read the rest of the series. I recommend them all, and I already have Castaway Cove, scheduled for release on July 2, 2013, on my new must-read calendar.

~Janga
http://justjanga.blogspot.com

Today's Special - - Carrie Ann Ryan

It's our pleasure to welcome Carrie Ann Ryan to the blog today.  Carrie Ann is a bestselling paranormal and contemporary romance author. After spending too much time behind a lab bench, she decided to dive into the romance world and find her werewolf mate - even if it’s just in her books. Happy endings are always near - even if you have to get over the challenges of falling in love first.

Her first book, An Alpha's Path, is the first in her Redwood Pack series. She's also an avid reader and lover of romance and fiction novels. She loves meeting new authors and new worlds. Any recommendations you have are appreciated. Carrie Ann lives in New England with her husband and two kittens.  Carrie Ann also loves hearing from readers. You can find her at:

Website | Blog | Heartthrob Haven | Facebook Author Page | Facebook Friend | Goodreads |

Twitter: @CarrieAnnRyan |

Small Town Romance

Why do I love small town romance? Well, because it’s nice just to sit back sometimes and enjoy life without the craziness of a big city. I’ve lived in both, big cities and small towns and I liked both of them. When reading, I don’t have a preference; it really just depends on my mood at the time.

Even when I’m writing, sometimes I like the big cites, the far off mountains, or a small town like Holiday, Montana. I have a new series by that name that is all about the small town with some holiday paranormals to sweeten the pot. You see, Holiday myths aren’t myths at all in Holiday, Montana. No, they’re real, and people are just starting to understand that.

In the first book, Charmed Spirits, Matt Cooper is the youngest of the Cooper brothers and has always known magic exists. After all, the girl who left him had been a witch. Jordan Cross is coming back to Holiday to find out if she can handle the looks, the speculation, and the attitude. Oh, she will, she’s stronger than most, but it’s seeing Matt that may change things.

With living in a small town, there are no secrets. (At least that’s what they think anyway.) Jordan was ostracized as a kid because she was different. At least that’s what she thinks, anyway. In the small town of Holiday, people have a lot to answer for toward Jordan, and some will do it willingly…some…not so much. Even though all of that might not sound nice, that doesn’t mean small towns are horrible. No, people are there for each other, no matter what. And the Cooper brothers are in the center of that. No matter what happens in Holiday’s future, the Coopers are there to stay and to help when needed. That’s why I like small town romance. The people. The romance.

***Giveaway***

Carrie Ann is giving away a Swag Pack and a $5 Amazon Gift Card to a lucky commenter!

Charmed Spirits

Holiday, Montana Book 1

Jordan Cross has returned to Holiday, Montana after eleven long years to clear out her late aunt’s house, put it on the market, and figure out what she wants to do with the rest of her life. Soon, she finds herself facing the town that turned its back on her because she was different. Because being labeled a witch in a small town didn’t earn her many friends...especially when it wasn't a lie.

Matt Cooper has lived in Holiday his whole life. He's perfectly content being a bachelor alongside his four single brothers in a very small town. After all, the only woman he'd ever loved ran out on him without a goodbye. But now Jordan’s back and just as bewitching as ever. Can they rekindle their romance with a town set against them?

Warning: Contains an intelligent, sexy witch with an attitude and drop-dead gorgeous man who likes to work with his hands, holds a secret that might scare someone, and really, really, likes table tops for certain activities. Enough said.

Find it On:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | ARe 

 Find it in Print Here:

eStore | Amazon 

EXCERPT:

“Have you seen the house yet?” Matt asked, his brows furrowed.

She shook her head and took her Coke and gum back with a small smile to Mr. Clancy. “Not yet. I was on my way over there. I just wanted to stop by for a drink.” She squared her shoulders and started toward the exit.

“You might find more than you bargained for if you want to get out quick.”

Jordan stopped and pivoted toward him. “Why? It should only take a few days to clean it out then slap on some paint, right?”

Matt shook his head and put his thumbs in his belt loops—too sexy. “Your grandmother got real sick at the end, and none of us knew.” Sadness washed over his face, and Jordan held back any similar feelings. “It may take more than you anticipated to get it ready.”

She let out a sigh and closed her eyes, counting to ten. “Then I’ll just have to deal with it, won’t I? I’m here for the duration in any case.” After all, she’d quit her PR job, a job that she hated, so she could find herself. God, how pathetic did that sound?

“Well, if you need anything, I’m here. And I bet my brothers would help out in a second.”

Jordan nodded, a smile forming. Damn those helpful, sexy Cooper brothers. “Thanks, if I need anything, I’ll holler. But I hope to do most of it on my own.”

Review - - The Gingerbread House

The Gingerbread House
By Nell Carson
Publisher:  Avalon Romance
Release Date:  April 6, 2012

After escaping an abusive marriage, Greta Kendall returns home to the small Colorado mountain town of Spector where she runs a bridal shop out of her family's lovely Queen Anne Victorian home that she shares with her mother who is in the early stages of Alzheimer's.  She's worked hard to build her business, worked hard to regain her self-confidence but a ruthless developer by the name of Stephanie Harwood is on the verge of taking it all away.  If the town council rules in Stephanie's favor, the beautiful home that has been in her family for generations, that gives her increasingly bewildered mother a sense of security, will be demolished along with her dreams...all for a new shopping mall.

Gray Daniels has known Stephanie Harwood since they were children and is engaged to marry her in a few short weeks.  So why, when he takes his grandmother's priceless gown to Greta Kendall's shop to have it restored (at his fiancee's request), does he experience a sudden, and intense, attraction to the lovely bridal shop owner?  If he's deeply in love with his fiancee, he shouldn't be having these feelings for someone else and with each encounter, his attraction to Greta grows.  As he watches Stephanie maneuver through her legal battle with Greta, he begins to realize that the girl he fell in love with all those years ago has evolved into a woman he doesn't like - or respect - much at all while the woman who is struggling to save her home and her business while lovingly caring for her mother is someone he'd like to know a whole lot better.

Gray is one of the good guys, though it takes Greta a while to see that.  Yes, he treats her and her mother with care and respect, he seems to understand her anguish at the thought of losing her home and there's no denying she's attracted to him (though she'd never act upon that attraction while he's engaged to another woman) but he's still on the "other side" and that makes him her enemy - a role Stephanie has done her best to keep him in, using him in her campaign against Greta until his eyes are finally opened to what's really been going on.

Greta is one of those heroines who is much more than what you see on the surface, as many survivors of domestic abuse are.  There's a whole lot of turmoil and doubt swirling deep inside her heart and taking another chance on love may not be in the cards for her - especially when her past shows up at her door.  It will take a man with endless love, understanding and patience to win her heart.  Luckily, Gray has all three...along with a maternal co-conspirator who, in one of her lucid moments, offers the key to opening that heart for good.

This is a full-length story though it's on the short side (185 pages) which makes it perfect for a summer afternoon's reading pleasure.  It's a heartwarming, sweet (not spicy, though with plenty of sexual tension) small-town story with engaging characters, an easy reading style and a hero and heroine who are perfect for one another.  The author could have wrapped everything up with a nice, tidy bow about 25 pages from the end.  I appreciate the fact that she didn't, opting instead to keep things realistic.  It made the ending that much more satisfying.

I recommend The Gingerbread House by Nell Carson and, if you like this book, suggest you give Ms. Carson's first book, Tell-All a try too.  You can read my review here.

I received a copy of The Gingerbread House from the author for review and am giving it away to one person who leaves a comment on today's review.  So tell me, what do you most enjoy about small town romances?  Do you like them sweet, spicy or a mixture of the two?  

~PJ

Guest Review - - Just Down the Road

 

Just Down the Road

By Jodi Thomas

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: April 3, 2012

Jodi Thomas takes readers back to Harmony, Texas, for the fourth time in Just Down the Road. Life in Harmony continues as the community buries Jeremiah Truman at the end of a long and productive life and welcomes into the world Brandy Lee Smith, the new born daughter of Tyler Wright’s housekeeper. Although the stories of favorite characters from other books (Welcome to Harmony, Somewhere Along the Way, and The Comforts of Home) are advanced, the central story of the fourth book is that of Tinch Turner, a grieving cowboy who doesn’t much care what life does to him, a young boy in a desperate situation, and Dr. Addison Spencer, who runs to Harmony in an attempt to seize control of her life and falls for the cowboy and the boy.

Since his wife Lori Anne died, Tinch Turner has just been going through the motions of living, spending too much time in the Buffalo Bar and Grill and ending too many nights with brawls. But Tinch’s life is about to change. First, Addison Spencer, a woman as uninterested as he in relationships, stitches him up and gains his attention. Then, Sheriff Alexandra Matheson, brings five-year-old Jamie Noble, the son of Lori Anne’s half-sister to Tinch. Dead in suspicious circumstances, the half-sister has left her son to Lori Anne and Tinch. With Lori Anne dead, Tinch is the boy’s only known relative, and the men who murdered his mother may be after him. Tinch agrees to keep Jamie safe, but Jamie, intimidated by his new uncle, agrees to stay only if his “angel,” Dr. Spencer, stays as well. Bonding over their mutual commitment to Jamie, Tinch and Addison soon find themselves irresistibly attracted to one another, but Addison believes her escape from the life her father has planned for her is temporary. Any relationship between her and Tinch must end when she returns to the job and the man her father has chosen for her.

Reagan Truman is heartbroken over the loss of her Uncle Jeremiah, the man who gave her a name, a home, and a family. Brandon Biggs, as always, is there for her when she needs a friend, and rodeo star Noah MacAllen seems to be further and further removed from the generous boy with big dreams with whom she fell in love. But there are some surprising developments in this triangle.

Kate Cummings has one final, dangerous deployment that must be completed before she can settle permanently in Harmony with Tyler Wright. Tyler is eager to marry Kate, but Kate seems reluctant. In their relationship, too, unexpected developments bring significant change. And young Beau Yates is impressing a lot of people with his skills as a singer/songwriter. People are predicting big things for him. Woven among these plot lines are bits of the lives of other Harmony characters, the familiar and the new.

Jodi Thomas is one of the best storytellers in genre fiction, and in the Harmony books she has created a town that fits the small-town trend and yet remains a distinctive place with characters who are refreshingly different. One of the reasons I love this series is that Thomas takes the characters who would be limited to secondary roles in more conventional books and moves them front and center to feature their lives and their romances. Tinch Turner is no more a typical hero than is Harmony’s undertaker Tyler Wright, but Thomas reveals both as men with a wealth of courage, tenderness, and romanticism.

Thomas also avoids the common fault of comparing two loves, usually to the detriment of the early relationship. Tinch and Lori Anne were childhood sweethearts who married young and loved one another devotedly until her death. Three years later Tinch is still devastated by his loss. When he falls in love with Addison, he doesn’t see it as a greater, or lesser, love but as one that is different.

He tried to fall asleep, thinking of Lori Anne and all the gentle nights of loving they’d shared. They’d been best friends, forever friends, she used to say. He could read her thoughts, and she knew him so well sometimes he swore they could go weeks without talking. They breathed together, always knowing how the other would act.

. . . They were two halves of a whole. They always had been. When she died he felt like someone had cut him in half and then left him to stumble around.

[Addison} was totally different. Not only did she not know what he thought, but Tinch had a strong feeling that most of the time she didn’t care. Making love to her would never be calm and comfortable. It would be a battle, half surrender, half conquest.

I’d love the book for that treatment alone.

It’s possible to read Just Down the Road as a standalone, but readers who do so will miss much of the richness of the continuing stories. I’m not certain it will be a five-star read for readers new to the series, although Tinch, Addison, and Jamie’s story is enough to make it a strong book. But for readers who already know Harmony, it is one not to be missed. I highly recommend it.

~Janga
justjanga.blogspot.com

Guest Review - - Sanctuary Cove

 

Sanctuary Cove

By Rochelle Alers

Publisher: Grand Central/Forever

Release Date: January 1, 2012

Deborah Robinson retreats to Cavanaugh Island, off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina, a few weeks after the death of her schoolteacher husband. Louis Robinson was accused of improper behavior with a student and died before his exoneration. Disgusted by condolences from people who were eager to condemn her husband, Deborah plans to sell her house and move with her two teenage children to the house her grandparents left her in Sanctuary Cove, a tiny town on the island. She finds the perfect spot to relocate her bookstore, finding comfort in a combination of people and places beloved from her childhood summers and the promise of a new life.

Dr. Asa Monroe is a snowbird, a tourist paying his first visit to the Carolina low country while he marks time waiting for an assignment from Doctors Without Borders. He gave up a prosperous practice after the deaths of his wife and son in an automobile accident. Asa found himself unable to continue with the life he had known before he lost his family, and he looks forward to work in a developing country giving new purpose to his life.

Deborah and Asa meet on the day she returns to the island to set things in motion for her move. From that first meeting, they are attracted to one another; friendship is added to attraction as they grow to know one another, and eventually they fall in love. But the relationship seems destined to be a temporary one since Deborah has found the place she belongs on Cavanaugh Island and Asa’s calling leads him far away.

Sanctuary Cove launches a new series for Alers, the first African-American author in Grand Central’s Forever line. Perhaps the detailed descriptions and the large cast of characters are a necessary part of the set up of a new series, but I grew weary of them. Since I’m a reader who likes description, I was surprised by my reaction. But when such careful attention is devoted to multiple meals and settings, the pace of a novel slows to a crawl. Given the already thin conflict, the slow pace seemed an even greater problem. I was also distracted by some confusing references and repetitions such as half a dozen forms of “slow” used in the first three or so pages. Since I read an ARC, I hope these flaws will be corrected in the edition released in January.

The community Alers creates is warmly and vividly drawn, and Deborah and Asa are, for the most part, interesting and sympathetic characters. I admit I was bothered by how quickly Deborah moves through her grief. Readers are told that she maintains control for her children’s sakes and sheds her tears in private, but her anger over the injustice her husband suffered seems stronger than her grief. She remembers that at Thanksgiving the family was together and Louis carved the turkey, but by New Year’s her interest in Asa is clear. I know there is no single timeline for recovering from the loss of a loved one, but that seems awfully fast for a woman widowed after eighteen years of marriage to be moving on. The fact that her feelings for Asa are stronger than anything she felt for her husband also bothered me. It’s a common tactic in romance with widowed characters, but it’s one that always bothers me.

The secondary characters are numerous. Some seem to serve little purpose other than to add local color. Others are strong additions to the story. Deborah’s children would have seemed more credible had they been a bit less perfect, but I appreciated the tightly knit family unit. And Deborah’s conversations with her best friends rang true. Since this was my first book by this author, I can’t compare Sanctuary Cove to her other books. I like small-town romances and gentle romances, and I found Cavanaugh Island interesting enough to try the next book in the series. I recommend it to readers who share my tastes with the noted caveats. Readers who prefer more heat and more action in their romances will probably want to skip this one.

~Janga