Present Danger (Rocky Mountain Courage, Book 1)

 

ELIZABETH GODDARD

Stats for my copy: Trade paperback, Revell, April 2021.

How acquired: Revell Reads Blogger Program

First line: Chance Carter should have known this last delivery wouldn’t go down without a hitch.

(For Goodreads synopsis, scroll down.)

My thoughts: Elizabeth Goddard has quickly become a favorite author for me, after having read her Uncommon Justice series, and I’ve since acquired several books from her back list. So I was thrilled to get this first book in her new Rocky Mountain Courage series, set in the same area of Wyoming as the Uncommon Justice series. In fact, in one scene a couple of characters from that series make a brief and welcome appearance.

The plot hits the ground running as the story opens with a small plane losing power and the pilot desperately trying to safely land, only to crash, leaving him injured and fearful of what will happen if he’s unable to complete delivery of a package. From there we’re off and running. We’re then introduced first to Grayback County Sheriff’s Detective Jack Tanner, and then US Forest Service Special Agent Terra Connors (along with other characters sporting long awkward titles!).

I’ve never been to Wyoming, but Ms. Goddard’s descriptions of the landscape make me wish I could travel there some day. Terra has vast knowledge of the mountains, which makes her an asset in Jack’s investigation of the murder of a local insurance salesman whose body is found at the bottom of a cliff.

As much as I loved the book, I will admit that the plot seemed a little more convoluted than the author’s other books, as I sometimes had to reflect back on previous happenings to understand what was going on, or felt a little confused. But that may have been an issue with my own concentration, especially since work has kept me so busy lately that I often could only read two or three chapters at a time (with sixty-five chapters most of them are fairly short). But that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the story. Along with the evocative descriptions, Ms. Goddard does a wonderful job with characterization. I love a good character study, and prefer character driven stories over plot driven, but Ms. Goddard’s books fall into both camps.

PRESENT DANGER is a well written and suspense filled story with a second chance romance. I can’t wait for the next book!

Goodreads synopsis: Former FBI Special Agent Jack Tanner is working as a detective in Montana when he comes across a body in the national forest during a search and rescue mission. He's committed to finding the killer, even if it means working alongside his old flame, US Forest Service Special Agent Terra Connors.

When Terra discovers that the murder victim had ties to a powerful and dangerous trafficker of archaeological artifacts, the investigation takes a deadly turn--one that hits too close to home. As Terra fears she lacks the courage to face what comes next, Jack is more determined than ever to protect her. But he's failed her before. And if he fails this time, it will cost them far more than just their hearts.

Join bestselling and award-winning author Elizabeth Goddard as she plunges you into a web of deceit made of hidden crimes, open threats, and long-buried family secrets in this gripping first book of an explosive new series.

A Good Day for Chardonnay (Sunshine Vicram, Book Two)

 

DARYNDA JONES

Stats for my copy: Kindle edition, St. Martin’s Press, expected publication 7/27/21.

How acquired: From NetGalley for review.

(For Goodreads synopsis, scroll down.)

My thoughts: I enjoyed the first book in this series, so when I got an email from NetGalley that this second book was available I snapped it up. I think I liked this one even more than the first book.

All the familiar, quirky characters from the first book are still around. There’s a lot going on, what with Levi getting in the middle of a fight that puts his friend in the hospital, a rascally raccoon wreaking havoc, Sunshine and her best friend Quincy exploring each other with hilarious results, and Sunshine’s daughter secretly investigating a long time resident as a possible serial killer. The action never lets up. There’s plenty of humor as well, with lots of bantering conversations.

While Sunshine is investigating that fight that appears to be more than just a bar fight, she’s contacted by Wynn Ravinder, who is incarcerated, and who claims he has information about Sunshine’s abduction seventeen years ago. Sunshine has very little memory of that incident, or the weeks leading up to it, and she is eager for answers. I loved her interactions with Wynn, and finding out a little more about her past, despite Wynn not being completely trustworthy.

Meanwhile, she is still pining for Levi Ravinder, who is determined to hunt down the three strangers who were involved in that fight. Even after being hit by their truck, he refuses to go to the hospital, and Sunshine spends much of her time trying to track down Levi and force him to get medical care. I was really glad that Levi was very involved in the story and we got to spend quite a bit of time with him.

And then there’s Auri, Sun’s daughter. After seeing some old newspaper clippings about a string of missing persons cases many, many years ago, she is convinced that Mrs. Fairborn, who used to run a boardinghouse out of her home, was a serial killer, which leads to Auri – and her friends Cruz and Sybil – getting into all kinds of trouble. And here I thought my daughter was a handful!

The writing is breezy and flows along nicely, and while most of the characters are a bit quirky and out there, they are all still well written and believable, not to mention relatable. I especially liked Levi (of course!), but am also very found of Quincy and Cruz, along with Auri and Sunshine’s parents. The mayor, not so much. The subplot about the mayor and a rumored secret society called the Dangerous Daughters was a little too out there, and I wouldn’t have minded if it were cut out completely. And the book ended a little abruptly. Not exactly on a cliff hanger, but without a full resolution. Other than those two issues, I have no complaints. This was a fun read, and I look forward to a third book. I certainly hope there will be a third book!

Goodreads synopsis: Running a small-town police force in the mountains of New Mexico should be a smooth, carefree kind of job. Sadly, full-time Sheriff--and even fuller-time coffee guzzler--Sunshine Vicram, didn't get that memo.

All Sunshine really wants is one easy-going day. You know, the kind that starts with coffee and a donut (or three) and ends with take-out pizza and a glass of chardonnay (or seven). Turns out, that's about as easy as switching to decaf. (What kind of people do that? And who hurt them?)

Before she can say iced mocha latte, Sunny's got a bar fight gone bad, a teenage daughter hunting a serial killer and, oh yes, the still unresolved mystery of her own abduction years prior. All evidence points to a local distiller, a dangerous bad boy named Levi Ravinder, but Sun knows he's not the villain of her story. Still, perhaps beneath it all, he possesses the keys to her disappearance. At the very least, beneath it all, he possesses a serious set of abs. She's seen it. Once. Accidentally.

Between policing a town her hunky chief deputy calls four cents short of a nickel, that pesky crush she has on Levi which seems to grow exponentially every day, and an irascible raccoon that just doesn't know when to quit, Sunny's life is about to rocket to a whole new level of crazy.

Yep, definitely a good day for chardonnay.

The Amish Newcomer

 

PATRICE LEWIS

Stats for my copy: Mass market paperback, Love Inspired, 8/29/20.

How acquired: Fresh Fiction Box Not to Miss subscription

First line: Leah Porte clutched her suitcase and climbed out of the dusty Subaru in front of a white farmhouse several miles outside the tiny hamlet of Pikeville, Ohio.

(For Goodreads synopsis, scroll down.)

My thoughts: I’ve only read a handful of Amish themed romances, all Love Inspired I believe, and I find that I don’t really remember any of them particularly well. I don’t think the subject has ever especially appealed to me, but I do enjoy the Love Inspired line so when one would fall into my hands I didn’t mind reading it. That being said, I went into this book not really knowing what to expect, other than a fish out of water story, which does appeal to me. The heroine is placed into witness protection after witnessing a murder, and finds herself moving into the home of an Amish family.

Well, it was much more than I expected, and I feel I have a deeper understanding of the Amish after reading this.

“...One of the problems we experience is outsiders tend to romanticize our way of life. We’re seen as throwbacks to a happier time when people lived in harmony with each other, with Gott, with the earth...”

I can’t imagine not having electricity, a washing machine, TV. For Leah, it’s not easy in the beginning. She was a high profile television journalist, and suddenly she’s learning how to make homemade laundry detergent and cheese, how to garden, to cook, to skim milk. The work and the chores are never ending. But her hosts have a completely different attitude about the constant busyness.

It is a romance book, and there is a handsome man who is taken with Leah. She’s quite surprised when one of her hosts tells her he is courting her, when she’s only known him a very short time and of course, she isn’t Amish so the only way they could be together would be for her to convert or him to leave the Amish community. I won’t tell you which one happens, though I suspect you already know.

I picked this book up because I wanted something light to counter my recent reads, a steamy series about former military men and their women. I got much more than I bargained for. A character study about a woman rediscovering faith while confronting an uncertain future and the possibility of never being able to return to her former life. I still would not want to live an Amish life, but I have a greater respect for the Amish people.

Goodreads synopsis: Television journalist Leah Porte never imagined her career would end with her witnessing a murder. Now she’s temporarily living among the Amish in witness protection. Instead of feeling alone and adrift, Leah is warmly welcomed by the close-knit community—and Amish bachelor Isaac Sommer. But caught between two very different worlds, choosing love would mean leaving her Englisch life behind forever…