Second to None by Nancy Herkness

Posted September 22, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series / 0 Comments

Billionaire chemist Max Varela is selling his company and leaving New York for good when Emily Wade bursts into his office, desperate for his help in funding her program for disadvantaged kids and shelter dogs. Seven years ago, he fell in love with her when she was married to another man. To fight the unbidden attraction, he cut off all contact—but he’s never forgotten her.

Ever since her husband died, Emily has poured her heart and soul into the after-school care center. Seeing Max reawakens the pain of her loss, but it also brings unexpected hope for the future. As emotions thought long gone resurface, the two begin a passionate affair that seems destined for a fairy-tale ending.

That is, until Max reveals that he’s moving to Chicago in a matter of weeks and wants Emily to uproot her daughter and her life to come with him. If a second chance at love is possible, someone’s got to give.

Titles in the Second Glance series include:  Second To None –

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Branded with a Kiss by Paula Altenburg

Posted September 22, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series / 2 Comments

Patterson Campbell has a “love ’em and leave ’em” philosophy when it comes to women. He’s never given anyone a reason to believe he’s after more than a good time. That is, until he sees Alayna Brand across the room. 

A bold, outgoing cowboy is exactly what shy, introverted Alayna needs to bring her out of her shell. But after an unforgettable night ends up being memorable for all the wrong reasons, Patterson has to prove that he’s much more than just a good time if he wants to capture her heart.

When Alayna and Patterson find themselves working together, Alayna realizes that moving on from that night might not be as easy as she thought. And Patterson? He discovers reputations are sometimes hard to live down.

Titles in The Sweetheart Brand series include:  His Sweetheart Brand (previously titled “Her Secret Love”) – Branded With A Kiss –

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Sweet Dreams, Baby by CJ Carmichael

Posted September 19, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series / 0 Comments

Three weeks ago, Portia Bishop mailed a letter to the father of her baby, Saddle Bronc rider Austin Bradshaw. It’s a letter she should have written a long time ago—like when she first found out she was pregnant, shortly after she ended things with Austin, dropped out of college, and went running to her family in Marietta, Montana.

Austin has loved Portia since he first laid his eyes on her in college. A year ago, he convinced her to do something impulsive and very romantic. Now, as he opens her letter, Austin has two reasons to return to Marietta–win back the heart of the woman he still loves and convince her he’s a good bet for a forever man and father.

Titles in the Love At The Chocolate Shop series include:  Melt My Heart, Cowboy – A Thankful Heart – Montana Secret Santa – The Chocolate Cure – The Valentine Quest – Charmed by Chocolate – The Chocolate Comeback – The Chocolate Touch – Sweet Home Cowboy – Sweet Summer’s Kiss – Captured by Chocolate – Sweet Dreams Baby

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Lie to Me by Melinda Di Lorenzo

Posted September 19, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series / 0 Comments

Undercover journalist Audrey Albertson has one job–get the scoop on Seattle’s most eligible ex-con. She’s already completed step one–convincing Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome that she’s a fully functioning image consultant, who can provide him with a much needed man-makeover. Now, she just has to get to step two–get him to reveal his secrets. Of course, it would help if she could do it without falling straight into his arms.

Recently released felon Derek Stone needs a little help being perceived as something other than what he is, a man who stole a million dollars. His plan is simple: hire an image consultant. Have her make him into someone the world won’t hate. Reap the rewards without revealing the truth behind his crime. Letting the prim, sassy little blonde into his heart isn’t on the agenda.

As Audrey gets closer to Derek, she becomes positive that there is more to him than just his alleged criminal past. His walls might be high, but so is her motivation. Can she figure out his secrets before he figures out hers? Will the truth build a bridge between their hearts, or will it just tear them apart?

Titles in the Between The Sheets series include:  Training The Temp – Lie To Me –

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This Old Cafe by Marci Boudreaux

Posted September 19, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series / 4 Comments

Jenna Reid purchased the Stonehill Café to prove to herself that her ex-husband was wrong…that she could make her dreams come true. Three years later, all she has is a crumbling building, no social life, and her bruised pride.

Pride is something Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Maguire lost long ago and isn’t likely to find living in the alley behind the café. He just needs a little time to get on his feet. In the interim, keeping an eye on the overworked café owner gives him a sense of purpose. He has no intentions of making his presence known until he hears the woman screaming late one night.

He rushes into the café, but instead of finding her in dire straits, he finds a broken pipe and Jenna—soaking wet and holding a wrench. With her last bit of hope fading, Jenna accepts Daniel’s help to fix up her building, but it doesn’t take long for them to start trying to fix each other.

Titles in the Stonehill series include:  The Road Leads Back – Friends Without Benefits – The Forgotten Path – Jessica’s Wish – This Old Cafe

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The Cowboy Rides Away by Jeannie Watt

Posted September 18, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series / 0 Comments

Never draw a line in the sand that you don’t want crossed…

The last person Jason Mann ever expects to cross a line is sweet Meg Marvell, the woman he’d fallen for–and left–two years ago. An accidental meeting has Meg asking for answers, which he’ll give if she travels hundreds of miles to her cousin’s ranch where he works. Maybe making her go out of her way will help Meg understand that he’s not a good guy. His rough past makes it impossible to fit into her world.

Middle-child Meg Marvell has spent her life brokering peace and bending to avoid conflict. She lives cautiously, rarely takes risks, steps back when confronted. And she is damned tired of it. It’s time to tackle life on her own terms. Break free. And what better way than to answer Jason Mann’s challenge? He doesn’t believe she’ll travel to her cousin’s ranch to discuss why he disappeared from her life, so she does him one better and hires on. She didn’t want him back—she wants to prove that she can rise to a challenge. Unfortunately, the attraction they once shared has not withered and died as she’d once thought…if anything it’s stronger than ever

Titles in the Marvells of Montana series include:  The Montana Bride – The Christmas Secret – The Cowboy Rides Away

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Gage by Katherine Garbera

Posted September 18, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series / 0 Comments

Gage Powell might have made his debut on the professional tour a little late, but that hasn’t stopped the 24-year-old from taking the circuit by storm. He rides with a rough style that’s reminiscent of his brother, famed bull rider Marty Powell, who was killed just a few months before Gage’s 18th birthday. When Gage rides, it’s as if he’s riding for more than himself. 

Sierra Montez has grown up around the rodeo and is used to the swagger of the bull riders. She thinks she’s immune to their charms until she comes face-to-face with Gage in a business meeting. She tries to keep their meeting professional, but Gage wants Sierra and he isn’t a man who ever backs down from what he wants. While Sierra finds him exciting and hard-to-resist, she wants more for herself than following a gold buckle winner around the country. 

Can Gage convince her that he’s more than his reputation and that she’s the only prize he’s really after?

Titles in the American Extreme Bull Riders Tour series include:  Tanner by Sarah Mayberry – Chase by Barbara Dunlop –  Casey by Kelly Hunter – Cody by Megan Crane – Troy by Amy Andrews – Kane by Sinclair Jayne – Austin by Jeannie Watt – Gage by Katherine Garbera

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The Cowboy’s Runaway Bride by Laurie LeClair

Posted September 17, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Series / 0 Comments

When Dallas society bride Elizabeth Eve Barrington discovers her intended’s financial ulterior motives for marriage, she hightails it out of the church in her wedding gown and hops in the back of a parked and beat-up pickup truck. 

Happy to leave the big city, sexy cowboy Connor McCall jumps in his truck, revs up his engine, and then heads home to Honor, Texas with the goal of saving his family’s failing ranch. Hours later and miles down country roads, Connor discovers the stowaway bride, and he’s pretty sure she’s feigning amnesia. 

What’s a cowboy to do? Cowboy up, of course. He takes Eve home, determined to solve her mystery. What he discovers is a lot of smoke–and where there’s smoke, there’s fire, with the heat generating between them hot enough to burn. Will Connor be damned if he falls for the beautiful runaway bride or will he be damned if he doesn’t? 

Titles in The McCall Brothers series include:  The Cowboy’s Rebellious Bride – The Cowboy’s Renegade Bride – The Cowboy’s Runaway Bride – The Cowboy’s Christmas Bride

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A Love to Remember by Bronwen Evans

Posted September 17, 2017 by Marsha in Historical Romance, Series / 0 Comments

For Rose Deverill, one husband was enough. As the wealthy widow of the Duke of Roxborough, she has cultivated an unsavory reputation meant to discourage wife hunters. Thanks to a string of steamy affairs, Rose is perfectly content to be known by polite society as the “Wicked Widow”—until she’s reunited with the man she fell in love with at age fifteen. Their bedroom encounters are scorching, but it breaks Rose’s heart to wonder whether her reckless behavior ruined her for Philip Flagstaff.

The second son of the Earl of Cumberland, Philip never wanted the title. But after Philip’s older brother, Robert, follows him into the Battle of Waterloo, his worst fears come to pass. Now Robert lies in a soldier’s grave, and Philip is determined never to pass on the inheritance to children of his own. Then Rose appears, soothing the pain with her delightful curves and passionate kisses. The notorious Duchess seems to want nothing from him—and yet Philip has never ached to give a woman more.

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Big Skye Littleton by Elisa Lorello

Posted September 17, 2017 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance / 0 Comments

Skye Littleton said goodbye to her job, her best friend, and her home in Rhode Island to start over in Billings, Montana, with Vance Sandler, a gorgeous guy she met online. On her cross-country flight, Skye shares her happy story with her seatmate, Harvey Wright, a Billings resident who knows Vance—and his reputation for heartbreak. Harvey’s infuriating advice to Skye? Go home.

When Skye arrives, she discovers that Vance has changed his mind and wants nothing to do with her. Despite the setback, Skye is determined to rebuild her life and begin a new chapter in Montana’s largest city, which sometimes feels like a small town. With Harvey’s help, Skye finds a job—and a passion for organizing closets and clearing out clutter. But as she grows closer to Harvey, she finds herself homesick for her former life. Could Harvey be her future, or is she his chance at revenge? Can Skye finally trust her own heart enough to let it show her the way home? 

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Recovering From A Visit From Hell

Posted September 17, 2017 by Marsha in Discussion Post / 0 Comments

I hate chronic pain.  It is unrelenting.  Unimaginable unless you’ve experienced it.  It steals time, memories and moments that will never be around again.  It steals life in an increasingly rise in pain levels that simply never stops.

I’d lived with chronic pain for 25 years until I had a full knee replacement.  Then a blissful two years of being normal again.  Now due to a back injury and the need for a second knee replacement I’m revisiting that state once again.

The past three weeks have been hell on earth.  Unfocused.  Unproductive.  Cocooned in sleep and pain meds, existence only.  Once I could escape through a good book, distract myself for a while.  Not so this time around.  And that, perhaps most of all these things, makes me so angry.  To be denied my one guaranteed escape is heartbreaking.

You’d think that all those old coping methods would return quickly to my defense.  Bu no, they’re in hiding somewhere in my memories that want to be forgotten.  So I’m re-learning new coping exercises.  Today is the first day that I fell somewhat human.  Somewhat.

I’ve a lot of work to catch up on.  I’m not going to beat myself up about that.  It happened, I didn’t plan it but it did.  Now all I can do is get to work and back on track.

Scheduled posts only help until they run out.  And unfortunately I’ve reached that point of “do ahead” reviews.  Fortunately for me, I’m a note taker so I’ll be fine to get caught up fast between the notes on books read but no review written up yet, and a marathon of reading ahead of me.

So with apologies to authors and publishing houses for delays – I’m off to get back to doing what I love, read and talk about books.  And learn the lesson on getting some scheduled posts ready again for the next crisis… which I’m sure is just around the corner, unfortunately.

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