Category: Women’s Fiction

House Trained by Jackie Bouchard

Posted October 20, 2015 by Marsha in Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: House Trained
Series:
Author: Jackie Bouchard
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Published: October 20, 2015
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
My Rating: 4 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

Alex Halstad, a childless-by-choice interior designer and dog mom, is a true perfectionist. But her orderly life turns chaotic when the teenage daughter her husband, Barry, never knew he had shows up on their doorstep…with a baby girl of her own in tow. While Alex’s dog enthusiastically welcomes the new arrivals, Alex struggles with the loss of her steady routine. She desperately needs peace and quiet to get her business back on track before Barry finds out she’s spent most of their savings.

Meanwhile, the arrival of the girls stirs up old insecurities, and Alex can’t help but worry that Barry’s ex will make an entrance too. With her tidy life a distant memory, will Alex be able to learn from her dog the true meaning of love and acceptance?

Read on for my thoughts on House Trained. No true spoilers, promise.

Promises To Keep by Patricia Sands

Posted October 17, 2015 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Promises To Keep
Series: Love In Provence #2
Author: Patricia Sands
Genre: Women’s Fiction, Romance
Published: October 13, 2015
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
My Rating: 4 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

Falling in love with the south of France was no surprise to Katherine. Choosing to walk away from her past and start over was completely unexpected. A new country, a new lover, and the promise of a bright future beginning in mid-life … who knew?

Now there were the exciting dreams of restoring the property on the Cap, of beginning a new career, of experiencing the traditions of Christmas in Provence, of falling even more deeply in love with the man who inspired these hopes.

It was all so perfect, until it wasn’t.

She had embraced new possibilities in life and given her heart only to discover something was being kept from her. Something terrible from her lover’s past. Something that could destroy everything.

What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, had become her mantra. Would it be enough?

Read on for my thoughts on Promises To Keep. No true spoilers, promise.

The Promise of Provence by Patricia Sands

Posted October 6, 2015 by Marsha in Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Promise of Provence
Series: Love in Provence #1
Author: Patricia Sands
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Published: October 6, 2015 (first pub. March 2013)
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
My Rating: 5 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

On the evening of her twenty-second wedding anniversary, Katherine Price can’t wait to celebrate. But instead of receiving an anniversary card from her husband, she finds a note asking for a divorce.

Fifty-five and suddenly alone, Katherine begins the daunting task of starting over. She has her friends, her aging mother, and her career to occupy her, but the future seems to hold little promise—until, after a winter of heartbreak, Katherine is persuaded to try a home exchange holiday in the South of France.

In Provence, bright fields of flowers bloom below medieval hilltop villages with winding cobblestone streets. Charmed by the picturesque countryside, the breathtaking Côte d’Azur, and the enchantment-filled boulevards of Paris, Katherine feels life opening up once again. Lavender perfumes the air, and chance encounters hint at romance and passion. But memories of heartbreak and betrayal linger—and her former life waits for her back home. Can she find the courage to begin again?

Read on for my thoughts on The Promise of Provence. No true spoilers, promise.

Christmas Chocolat by Kate Defrise

Posted September 26, 2015 by Marsha in Christmas Romance, Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Christmas Chocolat
Series:
Author: Kate Defrise
Genre: Christmas, Women’s Fiction
Published: September 29, 2015
Publisher: Kensington Books
My Rating: 4 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

In this warm, engaging debut novel, four siblings make their way home, where their father, the memory of their mother, and long-held family secrets all collide just in time for Christmas.

For Maggie Arnaud and her siblings, childhood Christmases meant lavish feasts and beloved rituals. The day began with hot chocolate and cougnolle de Noel —the sweet, rich bread traditional in their parents’ native Belgium. Those special holidays ended with their mother’s death, and their father has grown more distant each year. But now, he has summoned his grown children once again. And none of them is eager to expose their imperfect lives to his scrutiny…

Jacqueline is an opera singer living in Brussels—outwardly successful but yearning for a deeper fulfillment. Near Philadelphia, cookbook writer Maggie’s career and marriage are in turmoil. Colette, an aspiring clothing designer in California, lost her boyfriend and her savings in one blow. And roving younger brother Art is still searching for something—or someone. Armed with their insecurities, rivalries—and their mother’s most delicious recipes—the Arnauds gather in Pennsylvania. But a good meal does more than feed the body—it awakens memories, nurtures bonds, and might even bring a family back together.

Includes classic Belgian recipes.

Read on for my thoughts on Christmas Chocolat. No true spoilers, promise.

Love Somebody Like You by Susan Fox

Posted September 26, 2015 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series, Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Love Somebody Like You
Series: Caribou Crossing #5
Author: Susan Fox
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Published: September 29, 2015
Publisher: Kensington Books, Zebra
My Rating: 5 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

Since the death of her husband three years ago, young widow Sally Ryland has kept to herself and focused on her struggling business, Ryland Riding. Folks assume she’s still grieving, because Sally has never shared the truth about her abusive marriage, or the trust issues that remain. But when a sexy rodeo rider from her past turns up for a visit, he’s a reminder of the feisty woman she once was—and maybe still could be…

Ben Traynor was always attracted to Sally, but he didn’t move fast enough. Now what Sally needs is patience and gentleness. With an injury keeping him from his next rodeo, Ben has the perfect excuse to stick around and help with her chores—and her healing. And as Sally finds the courage to face her demons and open her heart again, she’ll have to decide if what she has with Ben is more than safety, gratitude, and short-term passion, but a forever love.

Read on for my thoughts on Love Somebody Like You. No true spoilers, promise.

You Think You Know Me by Clare Chase

Posted September 7, 2015 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Mystery, Series, Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: You Think You Know Me
Series: London & Cambridge Mysteries #1
Author: Clare Chase
Genre: Women’s Fiction, Mystery
Published: September 7, 2015
Publisher: Choc Lit
My Rating: 4 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

Sometimes, it’s not easy to tell the good guys from the bad …

Freelance journalist, Anna Morris, is struggling to make a name for herself, so she’s delighted to attend a launch event for a hip, young artist at her friend Seb’s gallery.

But an exclusive interview isn’t all Anna comes away with. After an encounter with the enigmatic Darrick Farron, she is flung into the shady underground of the art scene – a world of underhand dealings, missing paintings and mysterious deaths …

Seb is intent on convincing Anna that Darrick is up to no good but, try as she might, she can’t seem to keep away from him. And as she becomes further embroiled, Anna begins to wonder – is Seb’s behaviour the well-intentioned concern of an old friend, or does he have something to hide?

Read on for my thoughts on You Think You Know Me. No true spoilers, promise.

The Christmas Joy Ride by Melody Carlson

Posted September 5, 2015 by Marsha in Christmas Romance, Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Christmas Joy Ride
Series:
Author: Melody Carlson
Genre: Women’s Fiction, Christmas Stories
Published: September 1, 2015
Publisher:
My Rating: 4 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

Miranda did not put adventure on her Christmas list, but thanks to her eighty-five-year-old neighbor Joy, that’s exactly what she’s getting this year. When Joy tells Miranda that she plans to drive an old RV decked out in Christmas decorations from their Chicago neighborhood to her new retirement digs in Phoenix–in the dead of winter, no less–the much younger Miranda insists that Joy cannot make such a trip by herself.

Besides, a crazy trip with Joy would be more interesting than another Christmas home alone. Unemployed and facing foreclosure, Miranda feels she has nothing to lose by packing a bag and heading off to Route 66. But Joy has a hidden agenda for their Christmas joyride–and a hidden problem that could derail the whole venture.

Read on for my thoughts on The Christmas Joy Ride. No true spoilers, promise.

Rescue Me, Maybe by Jackie Bouchard

Posted August 25, 2015 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Women's Fiction / 3 Comments

Title: Rescue Me, Maybe
Series:
Author: Jackie Bouchard
Genre: Women’s Fiction, Romance
Published: August 25, 2015
Publisher:
My Rating: 5 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

If you lost both your spouse and your dog to cancer within weeks of each other, but you were sadder about the dog, would you tell anyone? Maybe your closest friends. Unfortunately, Jane Bailey’s closest friends are on the other side of the country. That’s where Jane plans to go now that she’s free to leave Philadelphia, the too cold, beachless, street taco-deficient city her husband dragged her to six years ago. But with no job prospects in her hometown of San Diego, Jane is roped into helping out temporarily at her uncle’s southwestern small-town B&B.

En route to her new role as innkeeper and breakfast chef, she finds a stray at a rest stop. With her heart in pieces from the loss of her dog, she’s determined not to let this mutt worm its way into her affections. She’s also determined to have next-to-no interaction with the B&B’s irritating guests, and the even more annoying handyman who lives next door. Can Jane keep her sanity—and her secret that she’s not really a grieving widow—while trying to achieve her dream of getting back to the place she thinks is home?

Read on for my thoughts on Rescue Me, Maybe. No true spoilers, promise.

Review: Pleasure Island by Anna-Lou Weatherley

Posted July 30, 2015 by Marsha in Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Pleasure Island
Series:
Author: Anna-Lou Weatherley
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Published: July 31, 2015
Publisher: Bookouture
My Rating: 5 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

Secrets. Scandal. Betrayal. In Paradise, pleasure comes at a dangerously high price…

Three couples each receive an exclusive invitation to the fantasy holiday destination of a lifetime…

The host: Martin McKenzie, global billionaire and media mogul. Charismatic, powerful and always gets what he wants.

The location: A breathtakingly beautiful undiscovered island, nestled in the Aegean Sea. Private, secluded and not quite as it seems.

The details: Seven days of pure hedonism, five-star luxury tailored to every desire, also includes… secrets, lies, and infidelity.

As the guests begin to enjoy everything the luxury island has to offer, cracks begin to surface between the three couples. But that is not all. Someone is watching them. When they discover the truth – it will be explosive in more ways than they can ever imagine.

Read on for my thoughts on Pleasure Island. No true spoilers, promise.

Review: La Fleur de Blanc by Lexi Maxxwell

Posted July 16, 2015 by Marsha in Women's Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: la Fleur de Blanc
Series:
Author: Lexi Maxxwell
Genre: Romance, Women’s Fiction
Published: February 14, 2015
Publisher:
My Rating: 4 stars
Source: NetGalley
Cover Description:

A young woman with a little girl’s dream. Two handsome suitors. And an adversary determined to crush her before she stands a chance.

Lily Whistler has a dream, birthed from the most fanciful Parisian memories of her late mother: to open a floral shop called La Fleur de Blanc, selling only white flowers. Back home in Kansas, such a fairy tale notion could never survive … but in the fashionable seaside town of Cielo del Mar, California, Lily has gambled her inheritance that it will.

At first, the upscale shopping center of the Palms Couture seems fertile soil for Lily’s dream. The weather is beautiful; the vistas of the ocean are breathtaking; the customers are elegant and wealthy. There are even two men who’d suit Lily’s fancy if she had time for such things: charming Len, who operates a fine food cart, and dark and brooding Matthew Vitale, who runs Bella by the Sea — an elite restaurant that hosts only a few couples per night at an exorbitant price — with his father Marcello.

But the one thing Lily didn’t anticipate standing in her way was a nemesis: Kerry Barrett Kirby, who owns nouveau house across the courtyard. Kerry seems determined to crush Lily into the dirt for a reason Lily can’t imagine … and wields a power and seniority at the Palms that Lily (new, naive, and out of her element) can’t hope to fight.

Lily only has one chance to make her shop work — a tall feat, considering the prior shops Kerry has driven out of business, and the way the Palms always bows to Kerry’s will. But Lily’s charm has bought her a handful of unlikely allies … and as Kerry will find out, quiet little Lily Whistler has more than a few country girl tricks up her sleeve.

La Fleur de Blanc is women’s fiction with an edge: part coming of age story, part underdog tale, part romantic comedy, plenty hilarious, and stuffed to the brim with empowerment.

Read on for my thoughts on la Fleur de Blanc. No true spoilers, promise.

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