A Country Kind of Love (Huckleberry Ridge, Book One)

 

K.T. RAINE

Stats for my copy: Kindle edition, 2022.

How acquired: From the author via BookSirens.

First line: “Take the next left,” Cody commanded, pointing for emphasis, his tone making it clear just how much the ten year old relished calling the shots.

(Goodreads synopsis below.)

My thoughts: I loved the previous book I read by this author (HOLDING OUT FOR SPECIAL), so I was excited to see this one available on BookSirens. I requested it immediately, and then I forced myself to finish the books I was already reading before starting this one. It was worth the wait.

The story opens with CeCe and her ten year old son, Cody, arriving in Huckleberry Ridge, where they are moving into a rented duplex. We quickly learn that CeCe is running from something, but we don’t know who or what. Cody is not thrilled about the move, but CeCe is hopeful that they can have a good life in this small town. She’s a little nonplussed when she meets her landlord, Shane, and realizes that he is a cop, and that he lives in the other half of the duplex. At least he’s nice to look at!

Shane has his own baggage. He’s a widow, still missing his wife and gently wallowing in guilt over her death. He’s attracted to CeCe, but as far as a relationship, he’s a bit in stasis. Meanwhile, his son, Dillon, and Cody become best buds right away.

When I reviewed HOLDING OUT FOR SPECIAL, I wrote “This is a breezy, fun and heartwarming story, with well written characters…”. I hate to repeat myself, but that description also fits this book perfectly. I loved CeCe, and I really loved Shane. A law enforcement hero is one of my catnips. While fear has driven CeCe to move 400 miles across the state, she is still strong and resourceful, determined to protect her son and create a good life for him, for both of them. Looking out his window shortly after CeCe arrives, Shane sees her look at her phone and can tell from her body language that she’s upset or afraid. He doesn’t know if she’s in danger, or if she’s on the run, but his protective instincts come out. When her car has a flat tire, he wants to hurry over and help her change it, but he forces himself to stand on his porch with his coffee, strike up some conversation, and wait for her to ask for his help.

Did she know how to change a tire? Based on the majority of stranded female motorists he stopped to help, the odds were about 80/20 against her. It was actually one of the most rewarding parts of his job, the look of relief on a woman’s face when he pulled up in the Tahoe, something about the uniform eliciting trust. It was a lot more satisfying than busting bad guys.

I mean, who wouldn’t love Shane?! I enjoyed watching them get to know each other, and how happy Cody seemed as he hung out with Dillon instead of staying inside with video games, and how Shane’s family, who all live right there in the same little area, welcomed CeCe and Cody into their community. Oh, and CeCe sitting on her back porch talking over the fence to Shane’s sheep!

A sweet, sometimes emotional, story that kept me enthralled from beginning to end. I hope there will be many more books in the Huckleberry Ridge series.

*I received a free copy of this book from the author via BookSirens and have voluntarily reviewed it*

Synopsis from Goodreads: After single mom and reporter, CeCe Bixby, has her name leaked in connection with a dangerously controversial story, she and her young son flee 400 miles from Boise to small town Huckleberry Ridge, Idaho for a fresh start.

But life’s never simple, and CeCe is dismayed to find her troubles have followed her. Help may come in the form of her handsome, state-trooper landlord, Shane Wickham, and his surprisingly supportive family. But does she dare share the truth with him?

Caught in the Middle (Amhearst Mystery, Book 1; (Love Inspired Suspense)

 

WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS INFORMATION THAT MAY BE CONSIDERED SPOILERS.

GAYLE ROPER

Stats for my copy: Mass market paperback, Love Inspired Suspense, 2007.

How acquired: Bought.

First line: “It was a dark and sleety night,” I muttered as I slid behind the wheel and slammed the car door, grateful to have reached protection without drowning.

(Goodreads synopsis below.)

My thoughts: I was thrown off just a little as soon as I started this book because it’s written in first person POV, which I don’t think I’ve come across before in a Love Inspired. Not that I’m complaining. Merry is very likable and self-deprecating. Something else I’m not used to seeing in a Love Inspired. There was quite a bit of humor. Not laugh out loud, or even chuckle humor, but witty, bantering humor.

Merry is a journalist for the local paper, writing up mundane stories about Board of Education meetings and the like. After finding a dead body in the trunk of her car, Merry finds herself at the center of a murder investigation, and the killer seems to have turned his focus to her. Giving her the opportunity to write the biggest story of her life.

When her boss sends her to interview a local artist, she chafes at the thought. “A personality puff piece was the last thing I wanted to do now.” However, that interview introduces her to Curt, “a man in his early thirties who exuded energy, whose mass of curly dark hair was a far cry from the sparse gray I had anticipated.” Now, at this point you’re probably thinking Curt is the hero of the story and at the end he and Merry will have an HEA. It is a category romance after all. But no. Don’t get me wrong, he is the hero, as far as I’m concerned anyway, but by book’s end, while they’re squabbling like an old married couple, there is nary a kiss in sight, and certainly no declarations of love. Apparently their relationship will play out over the course of the series. Another thing I’m not used to in a Love Inspired!

The mystery was intriguing, with a couple of red herrings, and an on-the-edge-of-your seat chase through a steel factory. My only issue with the story was that when Merry realizes who is trying to kill her, it was quite obvious to me also, even though she doesn’t say his name. Then when he shows up immediately after, she only refers to him as the gunman, and doesn’t reveal his identity until the police close in on him. Which I understand as a narrative choice to keep the reader guessing, but I can’t imagine any reader not having already figured it out at the same she did.

But the fact remains, this is a delightful, amusing, suspenseful and engaging read, and I can’t wait join Merry in her next adventure.

Synopsis from Goodreads: Amhearst, Pennsylvania was just the kind of place for new beginnings for brokenhearted reporter Merry Kramer. But she soon discovered that danger lurked behind the lilac tree when a dead body turned up in her car!

The trouble didn’t end there—gunshots, attacks, and a handsome new friend who might not be what he seemed. Surrounded by suspects, Merry would have to use all her investigative skills to keep from becoming front-page news—as the killer’s next victim.

Tropic Storm (Island Escape, Book 1)

STELLA QUINN

Stats for my copy: .pdf review copy, Jellyfish Press, 2020.

How acquired: Hidden Gems Books  

First line: Charlotte Jones paused amid the crowded departure lounge of Los Angeles International Airport. 

(For Goodreads synopsis, scroll down.)

My thoughts: One misunderstanding after another after another. Charlotte and Jack parted ways ten years ago when Jack's father called on him to return home from London. Charlotte, young and idealistic, accused Jack of being a sell out, and frustrated Jack couldn't understand why she would not give him a chance to explain. Ten years later, after a chance meeting on a plane to Hawaii, they are still angry and hurt and each blaming the other for the breakup. 

The story is set at a resort on Oahu, which unbeknownst to Charlotte is owned by Jack's family, and the author does a wonderful job with the descriptions of the resort and it's surroundings, especially the lava caves and a storm. There is a lot of internal monologuing from both characters, and as the reader, being privy to both sides of the story, there were times when I wanted to shake one or both of them and tell them to talk it out. Or shut up and let the other one talk. Even when it seems that everything has been resolved and the HEA is on it's way, there is one more misunderstanding to drive Charlotte and Jack apart, which made the final resolution that much sweeter. 

Along the way there is also a short subplot about Jack and a detective investigating an employee for possible identity theft, which was resolved almost immediately and which I would've liked to have had more of, and Jack agonizing over his nineteen-year-old sister and her inappropriately older boyfriend. Meanwhile Charlotte has her own issues, having come to Hawaii for some rest and relaxation and attempting to overcome panic attacks she has recently been plagued with. 

The characterization is nicely done, and I liked both Charlotte and Jack, though I think I connected with Jack a little more than with Charlotte. Although that could be because I do often tend to be more drawn to the hero than the heroine! I also really liked Jack's mother, and having raised two daughters I felt his sister was an accurate representation of an exasperating nineteen year old who is still a teen but thinks she's all grown up.

I read most of the book in one sitting, as the further I got into it the more I was drawn in, impatiently waiting for Jack and Charlotte to get past their issues and finally come together, and the wait was worth it in the end! 

Goodreads synopsis: Celebrity blogger Charlotte Jones is having a bad year. She's been trampled in a riot, her therapist has told her to take a break from work, and she's developed a crushing case of anxiety. If she can just make it to her holiday hotel in Oahu, everything will be okay … or not! When she boards her plane, she finds herself strapped into a seat next to the man who sold her out nine years ago.

Hotel executive Jack Diamond is having a bad year. He's used to pressure: running the global family business, supporting his widowed mother, and trying (and failing) to make his little sister understand why her grungy boyfriend is bad news, are problems he can cope with. But the police just called to tell him his general manager might be a crook, his mother's had a stroke, and his latest business deal is going bad. If he can just make it back to the family hotel in Oahu, everything will be okay … or not! He boards his plane and finds himself strapped into a seat next to the woman who ripped a hole in his heart nine years ago.

Jack and Charlotte are in for some turbulence as old hurts and rekindled passion gate-crash their plans. And just when it seems they may finally overcome their past, a tropic storm threatens to wipe out their chance of a future.

Don't Keep Silent (Uncommon Justice, Book 3)

ELIZABETH GODDARD

Stats for my copy: Trade paperback, Revell, pub. 2020

How acquired: Revell Reads Blogger Program

(For the Goodreads synopsis, scroll to the bottom of this post.)

My thoughts:  And now we have the third McKade brother's story. I loved the first two books in this series, and this third story lives up to them. Liam McKade is a former DEA agent who has come home to Wyoming after having his cover blown and getting shot during his last assignment. He's mulling over his future, and whether to stay at the ranch and help his brother run things, or accept a job as head of security at a local ski resort. Rae is an investigative reporter. Her sister-in-law has disappeared, and her brother asks her to use her investigative skills to help find Zoey. Rae finds herself going to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to find and question Zoey's mother. The last place she wants to be. Because that's where Liam is. But Liam saved her life once, and if anyone can help her find Zoey, it would be Liam.

Liam wants nothing to do with Rae, but is reluctantly drawn into her investigation. As the story progresses we're given little glimpses and tidbits of their shared history. Both Liam and Rae are wonderfully written characters, as all of Ms. Goddard's characters are. The plot moves along briskly, with plenty of twists into unexpected directions. I feel like my reviews of her books are just repeating the same things, but they are all truly engrossing. Her descriptions of the surroundings, in this case snow covered mountains with a chase on skis, are so evocative you feel you are there with the characters.

I'm sad there are no more McKade brothers, but I'm looking forward to her new series, “Rocky Mountain Courage”, and I really need to hunt down some of her earlier books.

Goodreads synopsis: Investigative reporter Rae Burke will do anything to find her missing sister-in-law, even if it means facing Liam McKade, a man who almost lost his life saving hers. A former DEA agent, Liam thought he could find peace at his Wyoming ranch, but he doesn't feel at home anywhere anymore. When the reporter who blew his cover on an important investigation inserts herself back into his life, he's less than thrilled. But Rae's keen investigative skills have led her down the right path--and directly into the dragon's mouth--leaving Liam no choice but to protect her.
As the danger increases, the past they both tried to flee catches up to them, along with the feelings they once had for each other . . .

Deadly Deceit (Harbored Secrets, Book Two)

NATALIE WALTERS

Stats for my copy: Trade paperback, Revell, 2019.

How acquired: Revell Reads Blogger Program

(For the Goodreads synopsis, scroll to the bottom of this post.)

First line: In the face of small-town news, all creativity left Vivian DeMarco.

My thoughts: I loved the first book in this series so much, I was very excited to get this second book, and I think I may love it even more. Though if I went back and read the first book again, I might love it more. Maybe. I love both of them! And such beautiful covers!

We met Vivian, a hard hitting investigative journalist, in the first book. I don't remember her being the most likable person in that book, but at the end she showed she was a decent person by killing a story that could have hurt Lane, the heroine. Now we learn that that decision cost Vivian her job, and she is back in Walton, working for the local paper. She's not thrilled to be there, but it's just a stepping stone to a job at a larger paper down the road. We also met Deputy Ryan Frost in the first book. A computer hacker genius, he's being headhunted by practically every agency out there – FBI, CIA, along with private security firms. But he's finding it hard to make a decision when it means leaving Walton – and his mother and sister, who he's taken care of ever since his father abandoned their family.

The mystery was very interesting and quite different than I've come across before, involving cyber crimes, blackmail, and murder. Vivian's boss, Harold, who had become a friend and mentor, dies in the first chapter, seemingly from an allergic reaction but later determined to be murder. With his last words he tells Vivian to find Lauren, and that becomes her mission. She doesn't know who Lauren is or what Harold's interest in Lauren is, but she is determined to track her down, and to figure out who killed Harold, as are Ryan and the rest of the police force, and of course they bump heads.

Vivian and Ryan are both wonderfully written characters, both of whom come with a lot of baggage. There's a lot of internalizing, which I love. Ryan is being pulled in different directions, and feels that if he takes a job somewhere else he will be abandoning his mom and sister, just like his dad did. Vivian has her own father/abandonment issues, and feels unworthy of, well, anything that can bring happiness. She's resisted putting down roots, resisted the friendships offered her in Walton, and resists the idea of falling in love with Ryan. It was quite heart warming to watch them each grow as their values change (or at least Vivian's do), and even though the story takes place over a relatively short period of time there was nothing rushed about their relationship and the way it progressed.

I love Ms. Walter's writing, and as with the first book I was completely drawn in from the first few pages and very invested in the outcome. This book can be read as a standalone but I would urge readers to not skip the first book. And I will be eagerly awaiting the next book!

Goodreads synopsis: Independent and tenacious journalist Vivian DeMarco is back in Walton, Georgia, for one reason -- to do her job and get out. When her boss suddenly dies under suspicious circumstances, Vivian's only hope for finding the truth -- and the next big story -- is small-town law enforcement's lanky poster boy, Deputy Ryan Frost. But the deeper they dig, the more twisted the truth becomes. False leads, incriminating emails, and someone called the Watcher force Vivian to fight for answers -- and her life.