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A Breath of Fresh Air–very tangled family relationships
A Breath of Fresh Air
by Jessica Redland
I have really enjoyed Redland’s books; they are clean romances. I had many interruptions as I was reading this one, but I was always eager to pick up where I left off. My one warning is that A Breath of Fresh Air ends with a very large and surprising hook—big enough that I will be revising my reading queue to move on quickly to the third book in the series. At the end, I turned the page to learn who the mysterious “C.” is only to discover that this person’s identity is still hidden. Several of the main characters have been working for a number of months to bring this person’s name to light, but as the book closes it is still a mystery to the reader.
A Breath of Fresh Air is the story of Rosie who manages the stable on a large, but run down, property. She cares for the horses and gives riding lessons to groups and individuals with the help of her mother. Mam is emotionally crippled by a very serious accident and can not make herself leave the estate grounds. Mam has raised Rosie on her own and has never disclosed to Rosie, or anyone, who Rosie’s father is.
There is a lot of heavy baggage that the characters have to carry. Rosie was badly bullied in school, but the most painful break was with her long time friend, Ollie. What in his background would cause him to join with the “Populars” in making fun of her?
There are a lot of themes that the author explores including dysfunctional families composed of tortured people. Bullying is a huge issue as well as secrets that hurt but are supposed to protect. Paternity issues and the treatment of unwed mothers play a major role in this book. The novel includes second chance romances and recovery from PTSD. In the midst of all of these negatives are folks of good character, a supportive friend, and people who dream and work to make their dreams a reality.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Romance, Women’s Fiction
Notes: #2 in the Escape to the Lakes series, but could be read as a stand alone.
Publication: January 10, 2024—Boldwood Books
Memorable Lines:
Confidence could be such a funny thing. If I was at the stables, I could happily chat to anyone—any age or walk of life, but being surrounded by horses was my comfort zone, my domain, my safe space. This couldn’t be further from that.
“Your capacity to forgive is astonishing, you love your friends and family with a ferocity that’s so touching, and you inspire me every day to want to be a better person.”
Things happened—unexpected, horrendous, life-changing things—but what was important was how we picked ourselves up after them, made our peace and moved on.
The Guest House by the Sea–difficult situations
The Guest House by the Sea
by Faith Hogan
Esme, with the help of Marta, an energetic Basque woman, operates the Willows, a 200 year old guest house, following the tradition of the women in her family. The Guest House by the Sea focuses on several weeks during “the season” and the guests who abide there.
Esme is in a high state of frustration because she broke her leg and is mostly blind. So she spends her days in a dome chair welcoming guests and sharing wisdom with those who stop to chat with her. Some of the wisdom comes from the guest register that starts each page with a handwritten quote. When Esme has a guest read a quote, it always seems to apply to that person even though they were written in the book prior to the season’s start.
The cast of characters is diverse and each will tug at your heartstrings as they arrive at Ballycove hoping for space and peace in which to get a grip on their problems. Joel is a lonely engineer staying for weeks to help on expensive repairs to the church’s roof. Cora is a homemaker and teaching assistant with a husband set in routines. After thirty years together, she wonders if she has only staleness left in her future. Phyllis is watching her husband slip away in the same dementia that stole his father. Their son Rob, a widower, and his son Josh join them. As the result of a pregnancy test, Niamh comes to the Willows by herself with a pill to “take care of it” in the words of Jeremy. She is his long-time mistress and co-worker, but she learns a lot about Jeremy, herself, and their relationship through this process.
All of these guests are people you would want to know; they will pull you into their stories. Not all of them will have happily ever afters, but they are all seeking fulfilling lives and you will want that for them. Nothing in this book says that life is easy, but it doesn’t moan and whine while the characters deal with their problems either. Ballycove and the Willows are a great backdrop for their stories and their growth.
Faith Hogan is an Irish writer with lots of books to her credit. I plan on reading more by this author.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Fiction, Romance, Women’s Fiction
Publication: June 8, 2023—Aria
Memorable Lines:
Her heart had missed a beat, in the way it does when you’re young and it feels as if the simple things are absolutely momentous.
She was blessed to have a husband like him. Michael was a true blue. He’d be sleeping in that same bed until the day he died, if he had a choice. So why did she feel this heavy weight of emptiness instead, as if her marriage was some black hole and she was in danger of falling in and suffocating while life went on without her? Perhaps being out here in Ballycove would do her good, give her some perspective on things.
“Maybe, but I think you’ve attracted good people to you because you’re kind and you have a generous spirit. You have probably helped more people than you know over the years, with your wise words.”
This Time Around–second chance romances
This Time Around
by Denise Hunter, Melissa Ferguson, and Kathleen Fuller
This Time Around is a collation of three second chance romances by three popular romance authors. I am posting my notes on each one. If you are interested in novella length romances to mix up your reading from some other genre, this would be the perfect book for you.
Denise Hunter has written a sweet second chance romance entitled A Summer Detour. Allie is free spirited and in her late twenties. She is painfully aware that her parents view her as irresponsible. Sadly, her boyfriend Luke ditched her right before the senior prom in her high school days, and the two have not connected since. When Allie makes a commitment to drive her grandparents’ 50th anniversary gift, a refurbished classic car to their party, she encounters a major hurdle and doesn’t know anyone to call on except Luke. It looks like a reconciliation could be in their future when a totally unpredicted hurdle throws everything off course. This is a short, enjoyable read with all the loose ends tied up nicely.
Told in the third person, Pining for You by Melissa Ferguson varies its focus from chapter to chapter between the two main characters, childhood friends Theo and Skye. When Theo went off to college, it was hard to maintain their blossoming romance. Fourteen years and a few misunderstandings later, can the successful financial advisor and established artist find their way back to each other?
In Kathleen Fuller’s He Loves Me; He Loves Me Not, Sophie Morgan at age 35 finally has her floral business well established and is ready to start dating. There are only two bachelors in Maple Falls. What are the chances they would both show up on her doorstep on the same afternoon inviting her on a date? Landon is a good looking lawyer, but seems a little slick. She has known Joe since Kindergarten, but has never really noticed those football coach biceps. Is it too late for Sophie to find love?
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Romance
Notes: Includes discussion questions
Publication: July 13, 2021—Thomas Nelson
Memorable Lines:
Who would choose to cocoon themselves into sleeping bags like saucy enchiladas for every Lyme-disease bearing tick, leg-amputating brown recluse, rattlesnake, mountain lion, bear, or serial killing maniac to discover? Someone needed to write that condition in the book of psychological disorders.
“I once left you unattended in Dad’s toolshed and came back to find you’d reorganized the whole thing alphabetically.” “So? I like organization. Everybody like organization.” “Yeah, well, we were six,” Skye replied.
The man deathly afraid of snakes had stepped into striking distance to save her. Was willing to put himself in front of his greatest fear in order to help her escape. It was touching. Absolutely crazy and ridiculous and paranoid, but also…touching.
Edgewater Road–second chance for ex-cons
Edgewater Road
by Shelley Shepard Gray
Jennifer inherits her grandmother Ginny’s old farmhouse with acreage in Ohio and soon discovers that her neighbor is John Lincoln Bennett, an ex-con who has a business managing properties. He also helps other ex-cons reintegrate into society when they are released. Jennifer works in her home as a medical transcriber but wants to reach outside the shield she has established to avoid trusting others. Lincoln is immediately drawn to her and feels very protective of her.
Edgewater Road contains romance, but the real focus is on the characters as their backgrounds are revealed and relationships are developed. There is also some gripping action and danger along with moments of humor as the characters interact in some awkward situations. Lincoln is a natural leader who instills respect, and Jennifer is almost too nice and trusting for her own good. Both are characters that you want to be successful individually and together. The ex-cons in general turn out to be helpful and respectful, especially Bo, Lincoln’s right hand man and Seth, formerly Amish and very polite and trustworthy. Wayne, a young Amish boy, needs to earn money, and his role in the story adds interest as does that of Chad, a semi-feral cat that Wayne finds in Jennifer’s barn.
Author Shelley Shepard Gray excels with plot action. The book is a page turner for me with Gray alternating telling the story from Jennifer’s perspective and from Lincoln’s. Without sugar coating a life of crime, Gray presents the difficulties that might lead one down a bad path, what prison is like, and the reactions of people to ex-cons. They are often viewed with suspicion and distrust and many end up back in prison for various reasons.
I highly recommend Edgewater Road and look forward to the next book in this series.
I would like to extend my thanks to NetGalley and to Blackstone Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5
Category: General Fiction (Adult), Romance
Notes: 1. #1 in a new series, The Rumors in Ross County.
2. Although the books deals with some rough ex-cons, there is nothing graphic or offensive in the book, and it is clean in all aspects.
Publication: March 1, 2022—Blackstone Publishing
Memorable Lines:
There was a part of him that was drawn to her like a prisoner to a decent meal.
“That woman’s got more work that needs to be done than an old lady at the plastic surgeon.”
Back when he’d started this, his goals had been almost noble. He’d wanted to give men like him, men who’d made mistakes but were still decent, a second chance… Now, nearly eight years later, his aspirations weren’t quite so lofty. Oh, his heart still searched for the good in people, and he often shared some of the teachings he’d learned from the Bible. However, he’d also learned that not everyone could be rehabilitated.
Caught by the Cowboy Dad–is marriage a negotiation?
Caught by the Cowboy Dad
by Melinda Curtis
Dr. Bernadette Carlisle has her life together. She has a successful OB/GYN practice in Ketchum which she is trying to sell to become Second Chance’s doctor. She has one very small, teeny problem/blessing. She is pregnant by an ex-boyfriend who has ghosted her. Said ex is the oldest cousin in the Monroe clan and a financial wizard who has, unfortunately, lost his corporate position because his grandfather’s will stipulated the severing of business relationships of all of his children with their children. He has also lost his investment funds in a cousin’s risky project, and he has a teenage son from a first marriage with ambitions that include MIT premed as a seventeen year old.
For Bernadette, marriage must include love. For Wyatt, marriage is a negotiable business contract. As they embark on a road trip with Wyatt’s very studious, likable, nerdy son, they encounter one disaster after another and don’t get far down the road. They do have a chance to re-evaluate their priorities and meet some interesting people. Join Bernadette, Wyatt, and his son Devin in Melinda Curtis’ Caught by the Cowboy Dad as they make the trip of a lifetime in Idaho and end up following their dreams back home.
I would like to extend my thanks to Melinda Curtis for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Romance
Notes: I particularly liked this novel in The Mountain Monroes Series because, although the Monroe family situation provides a backdrop, most of the action occurs away from the town of Second Chance and the Monroe clan. That means fewer characters to keep up with and decide if they are going to be incidental or major. It allows for deeper character development and the introduction of some new, interesting characters. Caught by the Cowboy Dad, although #8 in the series, makes an excellent standalone.
Publication: June 1, 2021—Harlequin Heartwarming
Memorable Lines:
“Where I come from, life is about more than making money. It’s about passing on something important to folks and leaving something special to family….You don’t understand life….It’s about purpose. It’s about joy.”
“So instead of telling him how you felt, you hoped he’d guess.” Bernadette shook her head at Devin. “You’re more like your father than you think.”
“Love is giving. and being in love… Well, it makes you a better person, not in that you-complete-me kind of way, but as if you can make a risky reach for the stars because if you fail, you’ll still have that person at your side.”
Lassoed by the Would-Be Rancher–capturing a cowgirl’s heart
Lassoed by the Would-Be Rancher
by Melinda Curtis
Shane Monroe wants so badly to save the little town of Second Chance for both selfish and unselfish personal reasons. He wants to put his expertise in business to work with creative ideas to attract tourists to the area. Shane encounters local resistance; and while he works to smooth things over, he meets Franny, a widow with three children who owns the Bucking Bull Ranch. Franny and Shane share an attraction and admire each other’s skill sets, but are sure that a relationship would have no future.
This romance is packed with danger in the form of massive, feral bulls. It has likable characters who struggle with parent/adult child relationship issues. There is somewhat of a mystery too as Shane tries to establish a basis for historical significance for the town. Is the tale of Merciless Mike Moody a myth? Is there really gold buried in the mountain?
Franny’s children are typical video-game loving boys, but they have learned early, from living on a ranch, that country living requires taking on a lot of responsibility from an early age. We meet several more of the diverse group of Monroe cousins in Lassoed by the Would-Be Rancher.
I had a great time reading this book and learned a lot about bulls and rodeo. The ending is very sweet but don’t skip ahead or it won’t make sense. “Good things come to those who wait.” That is good advice for me as I anticipate the next book in the Mountain Monroes Series.
I would like to extend my thanks to Melinda Curtis for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Romance (Clean)
Notes: #4 in the Mountain Monroes Series but works as a standalone. There is a chart showing the family relations and the author provides any background from previous books that is needed.
Publication: January 1, 2020—Harlequin Heartwarming
Memorable Lines:
Her eyes…They were a soft gray. The gray of baby rabbits, chubby ponies and funeral melancholy.
On Grandpa Harlan’s road trips, they’d stopped to help more strangers than Shane could count. Flat tires. Engine trouble. People caught short, asking for gas money to get to the next town. Grandpa Harlan didn’t discriminate or judge. He treated everyone as if they were trusted equals.
The wind rattled the windowpanes. His gaze rattled her.
Rescued by the Perfect Cowboy–cowboy appeal
Rescued by the Perfect Cowboy
by Melinda Curtis
Whatever the natural appeal of kids, double it when you encounter twins. That is certainly true of Alex and Andy, the “adorable little heathens” whom their mother Sophie Monroe describes as “rambunctious, but lovable.” Sophie has relocated to Second Chance with her four year olds after her divorce and losing her job as curator of the Monroe art collection. If you have journeyed this far in the Mountain Monroes Harlequin Heartwarming series, you can easily predict that romance is in the wind, but that predictability does not take away the fun of watching the romance progress with more than a few hitches along the way.
The plot is filled out with local history, the antics of the twins, quirky local characters, and highfalutin Monroes. The central characters are Sophie and Zeke, a cowboy recuperating from a truck accident, who has a big secret to hide. In the background is the continuing search for a way forward for Second Chance and its residents. We meet new characters, both locals and more of the Monroe clan. The two groups provide quite a contrast: hard working versus the privileged. Can they manage to work together for everyone’s benefit?
I would like to extend my thanks to Melinda Curtis for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Romance (Clean)
Notes: #3 in the Mountain Monroes Series but works as a standalone. There is a chart showing the family relations and the author provides any background from previous books that is needed.
Publication: October 1, 2019—Harlequin Heartwarming
Memorable Lines:
Snow cradled Zeke’s fall in its chilly arms. It wrapped its icy fingers around his neck and over his ears. It packed him tighter than a crystal vase being shipped by a fancy department store at Christmas.
“I’m your cowboy nanny, unless you still want to fire me.” How could she fire him? He was the Wild West version of Mary Poppins, fixing problems she didn’t think could be fixed.
“If it’s art you love, that’s what you’ll study. And if you decide to change course, who’s to judge? Look at me. I’ve reinvented myself a half dozen times. Trust your feelings.”
Snowed in with the Single Dad–twins and more twins
Snowed in with the Single Dad
by Melinda Curtis
Laurel, who frequently acts as a double for her famous actress twin Ashley, takes her role too far on a date with handsome actor Wyatt with some lasting consequences. She escapes to Second Chance where she meets Mitch, a lawyer who is managing the inn and his just turned teenage daughter Gabby who has perfected eye rolls. Laurel is a creative dress designer, but she always puts the needs of others, especially her sister Ashley, ahead of her own. Among the locals, the quirky but artistically talented sisters Odette and Flip are mainstays in Second Chance and are instrumental, along with Mitch, in helping Laurel find her own dream as Second Chance lives up to its name in this sweet romance.
I would like to extend my thanks to Melinda Curtis for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Romance (Clean)
Notes: #2 in the Mountain Monroes Series but works as a standalone. There is a chart showing the family relations and the author provides any background from previous books that is needed.
Publication: June 1, 2019—Harlequin Heartwarming
Memorable Lines:
She’d seen Mitch smile before. Kind smiles. Polite smiles. Rueful smiles. But never a smile like this. A smile of pure, unapologetic joy. That smile. It reached into her chest like a heart-to-heart hug. It said everything was going to be all right.
He laid his cell hone faceup on the table, the sure sign of a man who considered whatever might happen in the world more important than the person they were dining with.
Her mother was a master manipulator. She recognized the dead end they’d come to and took on a new attack as smoothly as a shark circled back for the kill.
The Mountain Monroes–series summary
The Mountain Monroes
A Heartwarming Harlequin Series by Melinda Curtis
Series Summary:
Grandpa Harlan left the Monroe grandchildren out in the cold by stipulating in his will that their parents, in order to inherit, must fire the grandchildren from their current jobs.In addition, the cousins must all agree on the disposition of Second Chance, the mountain town they inherited. Meanwhile, the residents of the remote town, who hold leases for one dollar per year, are held to non-disclosure agreements for one year after Harlan’s death. A shrewd multi-millionaire, he has managed to remain in control even after his death.
I recently had the opportunity to read books 2-4 in the series and couldn’t have been more delighted.
The first book in the series is Kissed by the Country Doc and my review can be read here.
Reviews on books 2-4 will be posted sequentially in individual reviews. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I did. They are, indeed, “heartwarming” and clean in terms of language, violence, and sex.
The Year of Starting Over: A Feel-Good Novel about Second Chances and Finding Yourself.
The Year of Starting Over
by Karen King
I don’t know any honest person who won’t admit, at least to themselves, that there is something that they wish they had done differently. Since there are no “do-overs” in life, I am grateful for second chances and that is what The Year of Starting Over is all about. Its subtitle is A Feel-Good Novel about Second Chances and Finding Yourself.
In Karen King’s novel, Holly is confronted with both the need and opportunity to hit the reset button on her life when it becomes apparent her relationship with boyfriend Scott will never lead to the type of loving marriage her Nanna and Pops enjoyed. Her job as a care assistant for the elderly is not the path to fulfillment for Holly as an artist. Holly is left money by her Pops giving her a chance to change those circumstances and begin living for herself.
Holly has to sort through relationships as she reinvents herself in this gentle romance. She travels from England to Spain to help her friends, Fiona and Pedro, establish an artists’ retreat. With an adventure in another country, the interesting characters, and a female lead who steps out of her comfort zone, you may well be pleasantly reminded of Under the Tuscan Sun. The plots play out differently, but the feel-good aura is present in both.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Romance, Women’s Fiction
Publication: February 7, 2019—Bookouture
Memorable Lines:
Although her family had always praised her designs, Scott had dismissed it as her “hobby” and had never taken much interest.
Holly felt frustrated as she listened to them, wishing she knew the language better. She’d improved since she’d started taking lessons with Felipe, but not enough to understand conversations, especially when they spoke so quickly.
Her family had been pretty poor, he knew that from what she’d told him, but they’d been happy. His family were rich by comparison, but there was no closeness between them.
education pathways 