Review: Wildest Dreams by Robyn Carr + Giveaway

Posted on September 2, 2015September 1, 2015 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews> Giveaways

Format read: ebook provided by the publisher via NetGalley
Formats available: hardcover, paperback, ebook, audiobook
Genre: contemporary romance
Series: Thunder Point #9
Length: 384 pages
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Date Released: August 25, 2015
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Book Depository

Blake Smiley searched the country for just the right place to call home. The professional triathlete has traveled the world, but Thunder Point has what he needs to put down the roots he’s never had. In the quiet coastal town he can focus on his training without distractions. Until he meets his new neighbors and everything changes.

Lin Su Simmons and her teenage son, Charlie, are fixtures at Winnie Banks’ house as Lin Su nurses Winnie through the realities of ALS. A single mother, Lin Su is proud of taking charge and never showing weakness. But she has her hands full coping with a job, debt and Charlie’s health issues. And Charlie is asking questions about his family history—questions she doesn’t want to answer.

When Charlie enlists Blake’s help to escape his overprotective mother, Lin Su resents the interference in her life. But Blake is certain he can break through her barriers and be the man she and Charlie need. When faced with a terrible situation, Blake comes to the rescue, and Lin Su realizes he just might be the man of her dreams. Together, they recognize that family is who you choose it to be.

My Review:

I’ve read the entire Thunder Point series, starting with The Wanderer (reviewed here) over two years ago. This is a town where people like each other and really pull together. It’s the sort of place that most of us would like to live.

Over the course of the series, we’ve gotten to know the people, so whenever there is a new book, it is great to find out how everyone is doing. Updates on everyone we already know are interspersed with each book’s particular love story.

It’s also usually pretty obvious by the end of each book who at least one of the protagonists will be in the next story. However, in Wildest Dreams there are no clues. This feels like the last book in the series, and that we’re saying goodbye to this town and these people.

If it is goodbye, it’s a pretty good one.

There are two stories competing for attention in Wildest Dreams. One underlying thread in the last three books of the series, starting with One Wish (reviewed here) is the story of Grace Dillon Headly’s mother and former coach, Winnie Banks. After a tempestuous relationship that was both mother/daughter and coach/Olympic figure skater, Winnie and Grace have finally made peace. Winnie has been diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) and wants to have a good relationship with her daughter before it’s too late. Grace brings Winnie to Thunder Point, and the whole town befriends the newer, more approachable, Winnie.

But ALS is a degenerative disease, and one of the threads of the story in Wildest Dreams is the way that Winnie, her daughter, her entourage and the whole town help Winnie cope with the inevitable.

Part of that coping is Winnie’s nurse, Lin Su Simmons and her 14 year old son Charlie. Lin Su is a single mother and an excellent nurse. Those skills have served her well, as Charlie is asthmatic and required a lot of care earlier in his life. But he’s 14 now and ready to grow up and escape his mother’s extremely tight apron-strings. He just needs to learn to manage his condition for himself, instead of by his mother’s constant nagging and worrying.

And into that particular breach steps Blake Smiley, world-class triathlete and Winnie’s new next-door neighbor. Blake is willing to coach Charlie so that he can become stronger, and inculcate the self-discipline to manage his condition and himself. It’s time for Charlie to learn, if not to fly, at least to bike and swim and run like other boys.

But in the process of befriending Charlie, Blake runs right into his beautiful and fierce dragon of a mother, who is too scared to let Charlie manage his own care, and too proud to accept help from anyone. Especially a man who might betray her just the way that Charlie’s father did.

Escape Rating B-: So in this story we have Winnie and her management of her condition, as well as how everyone around her is coping with it. We see the way that Winnie has found happiness by finally letting people into her life, while at the same time she mourns the loss of her independence. There is a lot of bitter mixed in with the sweet. And the other way around.

So many of the women in the previous stories are not just pregnant, but very pregnant as this book continues. Including Grace. They are all hoping that their children will be born together, and will become friends for life. Maybe there is a Thunder Point Next Generation somewhere down the road.

But the interlocking pregnancies give readers a chance to catch up with the other couples. One always wishes them happy.

The other main thread of the story is Charlie, Lin Su and Blake. Charlie is growing up. Lin Su isn’t anywhere near ready to cope. He was very, very sick as a baby and little boy, and she is used to being the authority on all things. But 14 is when we start breaking away from our parents if we haven’t already, and it’s time.

Lin Su has had a rough life. It’s not just that she is a single mother, but the way that it happened, and also the way that she has coped with it. She has concealed her origins from Charlie as much as possible, and refuses to discuss his father, her family or any part of the past that has made her so closed off and bitter.

At 14, Charlie is not merely old enough to challenge those assertions, but he is more than internet savvy enough to look for his own answers.

Then there’s Blake Smiley. If Charlie had been shopping for a role model, Blake would be it. But Blake’s views on what Charlie wants to do run absolutely opposite of the way that Lin Su needs to keep control. The problem is that Blake is right, and Lin Su is angry about it. Angry enough to keep pushing him away, not just his desire to help Charlie, but also his desire for her. And hers for him.

Blake is awesome. He’s a really great guy. And when Lin Su continually rejects him and rejects his help for Charlie, she shows just how angry and bitter and closed off she is. While the reasons for her behavior make sense from her perspective, I cringed every time she held Charlie back. Even with his childhood asthma, she was crippling him from being everything he could. She thought she was holding him closer, but what she was really doing was pushing him away.

Having finished the story, I’m not sure the romance was necessary for this one. And I’ll admit I didn’t feel it. While it was easy to see how Lin Su turned out the way she did, it did not make her an easy character to like. Blake’s training and mentoring of Charlie made for enough of an emotional connection that the emphasis on that part of the equation worked much better than the romance.

However, the non-romantic part of the HEA that the author gave Lin Su and Charlie packed an incredible punch.

GIVEAWAY

I’m giving away a paperback copy of Wildest Dreams to one lucky U.S. commenter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: A New Hope by Robyn Carr + Giveaway

Posted on June 30, 2015July 16, 2015 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews> Giveaways

Format read: ebook provided by the publisher via NetGalley
Formats available: paperback, ebook, audiobook
Genre: contemporary romance
Series: Thunder Point #8
Length: 336 pages
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Date Released: June 30, 2015
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Book Depository

After losing her child, Ginger Dysart was lost in grief. But since moving to Thunder Point, a small town on the Oregon coast, and with the help of her cousin Ray Anne, Ginger is finally moving forward. Her job at the flower shop is peaceful and fulfilling, and she’s excited to start her first big assignment, assisting with the Lacoumette wedding.

In spite of her lasting heartache, Ginger finds herself swept up in the pleasure of the occasion. But the beauty of the Lacoumette farm and the joy of the gregarious family are ruined by an unfortunate encounter with the bride’s brother, Matt. Struggling with painful memories of his own recent divorce, Matt makes a drunken spectacle of himself and Ginger when he tries to make a pass at her, forcing Ginger to flee the scene in embarrassment.

But when Matt shows up at the flower shop determined to make amends, what started out as a humiliating first meeting blossoms into something much deeper than either of them expected. Discovering they have a lot in common, they form a solid friendship, though everyone around them worries that Ginger will end up with a broken heart yet again. But if Ginger has the courage to embrace the future, and if Matt can finally learn to let go of the past, there may still be hope for a happy ending.

My Review:

Welcome back to Thunder Point Oregon, where everyone gets a second chance at love, and at finding their own happily ever after. It’s a place where you make your family out of your friends as well as whoever you were born to, and where if you don’t have enough strength on your own to see you through there is always someone willing to pay someone else in town forwards by helping you out.

This is a place that I would love to visit.

A New Hope is kind of a continuation of One Wish (reviewed here). In One Wish, Grace Dillon and Troy Headly find that they are perfect for each other, even if they couldn’t possibly come from different starting places. But at the end of the story, while Grace and Troy are ready to get married, Grace is also dealing with the news that her domineering mother has ALS. And Grace is pregnant.

So a big chunk of the story in A New Hope is the finishing up of that story. Much of the action revolves around Grace and Troy’s wedding, and their need to get a house ready for Grace’s increasingly infirm mother. Everyone in town pitches in to finish the house, get Winnie settled, and get everyone in town for a beach wedding before Grace is too pregnant to fit into her wedding dress.

But the very beginning is at Peyton’s wedding to Scott, after their story in The Promise (reviewed here). It’s a big wedding on Peyton’s family’s farm, and the Lacoumettes invited everyone in their vast extended family, and everyone in Thunder Point, to the celebration.

Two people aren’t really celebrating. Matt Lacoumette, Peyton’s brother, is drunk and belligerent. His failed marriage started in a wedding just like Peyton’s, less than two years ago. He’s divorced and bitter and not sure where to go with his life. He’s angry with his ex, and doesn’t want to fail again.

Ginger Dysart is finally recovering from the end of her own marriage and the death of her infant son to SIDS. It’s been a long road back from gripping depression for Ginger, and she’s only at the wedding to help her boss Grace with the flowers.

Grieving Ginger and Mad Matt collide. Matt is drunk and grabby, and Ginger clocks him one. He hits the deck, and from that very inauspicious beginning, the start of a beautiful friendship is surprisingly born.

They find that they can share anything with each other, because they’ve both been wounded in the same way. Someone they thought they loved failed them, and they failed themselves.

Out of that healing, they find love. But where Ginger has been able to let her selfish ex go, Matt seems to be unable to forgive himself for things that are too painful to reveal. He can’t let himself grieve and move on, because he can’t let himself confess that he has something to grieve for.

Matt and Ginger are more alike than they ever knew. But they can’t build a future together if Matt keeps dragging the past behind them both.

Escape Rating B+: As much as I love this series, I think we’ve reached the point where player needs to meet scorecard. This is a series about a small, tight-knit community, and everyone is involved in everyone else’s business. A lot of the action that isn’t directly part of Matt and Ginger’s romance takes place at Cooper’s beach bar and grill. Cooper’s story started the whole series off in The Wanderer (reviewed here) and that is going back a ways.

Also, the characters in this entry, and the rest of the series, are usually introduced a book (or two, or three) before they get their romance. We get to know them first, and why they deserve to get that second chance at happiness. Everyone is related to everyone else, and everyone helps everyone else out. It makes Thunder Point feel like a wonderful town. But the relationships are getting beautifully dense for those of us who have followed the series from the beginning.

It’s impossible not to like Ginger. Although her ability to forgive her ex seems like it’s a bit too good to be true, once we see the whole picture, it does make sense. And she was in such a deep well of depression when she showed up at Ray Anne’s doorstep in One Wish. She’s had her heartbreak, and with her aunt’s help and a lot of her own pluck she has emerged older, sadder and wiser. Wise enough to let herself fall in love again without letting herself get stuck in her old pattern of waiting on tenterhooks for scraps of affection.

At first, Matt seems like an irredeemable jerk. He gets better. He has also learned from his mistakes, he just hasn’t grieved them yet and gotten them out of his system, so he occasionally gets mad at Ginger for stuff that has nothing to do with her and everything to do with the reasons his first marriage failed. She calls him on his crap and makes him clean it up before she’s willing to make things permanent.

This time, it looks like Ginger and Matt are finally going to marry the right people. They just have to work for it a bit first.

As is usual for this series, while we are enjoying Matt and Ginger’s romance, we are also introduced to the people who will be featured in the next book, Wildest Dreams. I can’t wait to see how this one is going to turn out!

GIVEAWAY

I’m giving away a copy of A New Hope to one lucky U.S. winner!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: One Wish by Robyn Carr + Giveaway

Posted on February 24, 2015February 23, 2015 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews> Giveaways

Format read: ebook provided by the publisher via NetGalley
Formats available: paperback, ebook, hardcover
Genre: contemporary romance
Series: Thunder Point #7
Length: 384 pages
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Date Released: February 24, 2015
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Book Depository

Grace Dillon was a champion figure skater until she moved to Thunder Point to escape the ruthless world of fame and competition. And though she’s proud of the quiet, self-sufficient life she’s created running a successful flower shop, she knows something is missing. Her life could use a little excitement.

In a community where there are few eligible singles, high school teacher Troy Headly appoints himself Grace’s fun coach. When he suggests a little companionship with no strings attached, Grace is eager to take him up on his offer, and the two enjoy…getting to know each other.

But things get complicated when Grace’s past catches up with her, and she knows that’s not what Troy signed up for. Faced with losing her, Troy realizes Grace is more than just a friend with benefits. He’s determined to help her fight for the life she always wished for but never believed she could have—and maybe they can find real love along the way.

My Review:

One of the features of Robyn Carr’s Thunder Point series is the way that she introduces new characters to the town for future romantic possibilities. The hero and heroine in this book have been in town for a while now. Troy Headley is a history teacher at Thunder Point High School. He came to Thunder Point for the extreme sports that are available nearby. Troy is an adrenaline junkee, but he is also a damn good teacher.

His failed romance with Iris McKinley formed some of the backdrop for The Homecoming (reviewed here). Where Troy failed, Seth Sileski returned from Iris’ past for a second chance at love. This leaves Troy at loose ends, there aren’t a lot of single women in the 20-40 age range in tiny Thunder Point. But in the wake of his breakup with Iris, Troy finally discovers Grace Dillon.

Grace has been there all along. She bought her flower shop from Iris after Iris’ mother died. But even though Grace and Iris have become best friends, Grace has mostly kept herself to herself. Because Grace has a big (but not bad) secret. Grace used to be Izzy (Grace Dillon) Banks, a world champion gold medal figure skater, who disappeared after she won everything at the Olympics.

Grace is hiding from her high-pressure past, and her even higher-pressure mother. She doesn’t want anyone to recognize Izzy Banks in Grace Dillon, because she’s happy and completely self-sufficient as Grace, while Izzy flamed out emotionally.

But Troy, in need of a playmate, sees Grace’s “ all work and no play” life as a challenge. He appoints himself her “fun coach” and gets her to take a bit of time off from her “nose to the grindstone” life for a few simple pleasures, like picnicking and watching movies.

They start out as friends, and eventually end up as friends with some very nice benefits. But even as they get more involved, as their relationship shifts from friendship to more – Grace keeps her very big secret to her very scared self.

It all crashes down when her domineering mother reappears in Grace Dillon’s life, through a couple of underhanded tricks designed to force Grace back into Izzy, or at least back to mother. When all is finally revealed, Grace discovers that she has a chance to make one of her very own wishes come true – she has a chance at a real relationship with her mother.

The only problem is that it is her last chance. And that once Troy discovers who Grace really is, he can’t figure out what place he can fill in her overwhelming rich, “old money” lifestyle. His case of testosterone-poisoned inferiority complex almost costs both of them everything they have found.

Escape Rating B+: I think my own personal “one wish” for the Thunder Point series would be that it go on forever. The only problem I can see is that if the town continues adding new people, it will eventually stop being a small town. But it would take a lot of books before that would happen.

I love Thunder Point. As each story unfolds, it becomes more and more a place I would actually want to live, if only to be able to have coffee and gossip with the marvelous people who live there. One of the terrific things about this series is the way that the author weaves in characters from previous books, so that we all know how everyone is doing.

As might have been obvious from my recent posting of a review a week in this series, I got behind and took this opportunity to catch up before One Wish came out. I’ve enjoyed the series a lot, it’s definitely become a comfort read between some of the creepier and spookier books I’ve had recently.

Back to Thunder Point. I will say that the plot of One Wish reminded me a LOT of an earlier book in the series, The Chance (reviewed here). Not just because Troy almost makes the same mistake that Eric did, but particularly because Grace’s relationship with her mother, and the ways that it goes wrong as well as the crisis forcing a final resolution is very, very similar to Laine’s relationship with her father. The dilemmas, and their attendant heartbreak, are all too similar.

Which does mean that I didn’t enjoy the story, because I did. The problems facing both women and their aging parents are all too real, as is the reality that it is usually women who end up dealing with the work and the fallout.

Troy and Grace are a terrific couple, and their friends-into-lovers romance burns slow but bright. I also liked the way that Carr introduced the next heroine, while giving us an update on a previous couple in the series. Ray Ann’s niece Ginger has come to town so that her aunt can help her get back on her feet after a tragedy. I wonder who will come to town to help Ginger reach her own happy ending.

I can’t wait to find out, hopefully in A New Hope, coming in July.

GIVEAWAY

Robyn is giving away a paperback copy of One Wish to one lucky U.S. winner.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: The Homecoming by Robyn Carr

Posted on February 16, 2015February 15, 2015 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | A Reviews> book reviews

Format read: ebook provided by the publisher via NetGalley
Formats available: paperback, ebook, audiobook, large print
Genre: contemporary romance
Series: Thunder Point #6
Length: 352 pages
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Date Released: August 26, 2014
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Book Depository

At the age of nineteen, Seth Sileski had everything. A superb athlete and scholar, handsome and popular, he was the pride of Thunder Point. Destined for greatness, he lost it all in a terrible accident that put an end to his professional football career when it had barely begun. The people in his hometown have never forgotten what might have been.

Seth has come to terms with the turns his life has taken. But now he’s been presented with an opportunity to return home and show his father—and the people of Thunder Point—he’s become a better, humbler version of his former self.

Winning over his father isn’t the only challenge. Seth must also find a way to convince his childhood neighbor and best friend, Iris McKinley, to forgive him for breaking her heart. With his homecoming, will Seth be able to convince the town, his family and especially Iris that he’s finally ready to be the man who will make them all proud?

My Review:

I ended up reading this very late one night last week. I had just finished the book for Friday’s review at The Book Pushers and I really wanted something that would be lighter and have a happy ending. (That particular book was compelling but exceedingly dark, grim and twisted, and turned out to be not my cuppa). So I wanted to read about mostly good people who fix something in their world and find their happiness.

Robyn Carr’s Thunder Point series has always delivered, and The Homecoming was no exception – thank goodness!

I have reviewed the entire Thunder Point series so far, and next week I’ll finally be caught up to One Wish. But first, we have The Homecoming.

The one word titles for this series (so far) have always encompassed a facet of the main character and/or the plot. In this case, it is Seth’s Sileski’s homecoming. In high school, Seth was a star football player, and everyone expected him to have a stellar career in the pros. He was even drafted while still in college, and signed with the Seattle Seahawks. Then tragedy struck, in the form of testosterone poisoning and a career- ending car accident. Seth was going 80 in a 50 zone in his new Ferrari and t-boned a middle-aged man who ran a stop sign, driving while asleep from working overtime on a second-shift.

Seth’s career was over. The damage from the accident left him with a shattered leg. Although many surgeries and extensive rehab later, he was able to walk again, football was out of the question. Still, Seth was lucky. Oscar, the driver he hit, was left a quadriplegic, with a wife and children still to support, and no hope of ever working again.

Unbeknownst to everyone, Seth gave the remainder of his signing bonus to Oscar and his family, even though Seth won the civil suit. He was young and in comparatively better shape. He still had options. Oscar didn’t.

Seth took those options and finished his education in law enforcement. Then he had to apply, and apply, and apply for a job in the Sheriff’s Department. While he passed the physical every time, his limp made the Department nervous about his ability to chase down criminals. Eventually, they gave into his persistence, and signed him on as a Deputy. They were never sorry, and Seth found his calling.

A calling which has finally brought him back home to Thunder Point. Sheriff “Mac” McClain has been promoted to Lieutenant and transferred to the central office in Coquille. (Mac and Gina’s story is told in The Newcomer, reviewed here). Thunder Point needs a new Deputy Sheriff to run the substation, and Seth wants to come home. He wants to try to make peace with his father before its too late. And he wants to re-connect with the girl who got away. He just doesn’t know that he threw her away, and she still hasn’t forgiven him.

Iris and Seth were best friends from the age of 4 to the age of 17. There was only one thing wrong with that friendship – Iris fell in love with Seth, and Seth took her for granted and used her as a sounding board whenever he had problems with a girlfriend. Iris thought friendship was all she could get, until one night she dragged an extremely drunk Seth out of a party, and he cried on her shoulder because his girlfriend had cheated on him and they had broken up. In his drunken state, Seth never remembered that he invited Iris to the prom, and that they had taken each other’s mutual virginity.

Iris had had enough. For one weekend, she was over the moon with happiness – then Seth crushed her without a second thought. He blacked out most of the events of that night. Iris never forgot.

This reader is grateful that the author did not go the “secret baby” route. There were no physical consequences to that night, only emotional ones.

Now that Seth is back in town for good, he wants to figure out where his relationship with Iris went so horribly wrong, so that he can get things back on track. But he doesn’t want to be just best friends anymore. Iris is the one woman he has never been able to forget, and this time, he wants a chance at forever.

He just doesn’t know how much crow he’s going to have to eat first.

Escape Rating A-: I just plain loved this one. I recognize that some of that was “right book at right time”, but I still had so much fun that I was up until 3:30 am because I wanted to finish it.

Thunder Point is a place where everyone seems to get a second chance at love. Sometimes its a second chance with a first love, and sometimes its just a second chance they think they don’t deserve (sometimes both), but the good folks all get a chance to find their happily every after, even if they seriously blew it the first time in one way or another.

Iris is a terrific character. She’s a high school guidance counselor because she wants to help kids, and because the guidance counselor when she went to Thunder Point High was a useless waste of space. Iris was not the most popular or beautiful girl in high school (most of us aren’t) and she wants to watch out for the kids and give them the kind of help and advice she didn’t get.

The subplot in this story is about a girl who is being abused, but won’t admit it. Iris is tenacious at figuring out who the abuser is, and handling it properly even though she knows it is going to make a big stink and possibly cause her trouble. I also liked that all the officials involved did the right thing, regardless of the possible consequences to themselves. This is a town where everyone steps up when needed.

There’s also a minor subplot, or at least a thread that keeps floating around, that being at the pinnacle of success in high school is not necessarily a recipe for adult success or happiness. Seth recognizes that while the accident was definitely a blow, he may have come out of it a better person. Iris is certainly better adjusted and more successful than the girl she envied so much in high school.

I liked the way that Iris and Seth finally got together. Seth didn’t remember what had happened, and Iris hadn’t told him. While he needed to eat several helpings of “humble pie”, Iris needed to admit that she was holding him responsible for something that she had an equal share in. They were both 17 and dumb. It happens. She was also afraid to trust him again because he did take her for granted back then. He had to show that he had changed, that he wasn’t still that same boy.

The other heartwarming part of the story involves Seth’s relationship with his dad. Their lack of communication had led to all sorts of assumptions that needed to be straightened out. The scenes where the light finally dawns were warm, sweet and grumpy all at the same marvelous time.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: The Promise by Robyn Carr

Posted on February 9, 2015February 8, 2015 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | B Reviews> book reviews

Format read: ebook provided by the publisher via NetGalley
Formats available: paperback, ebook, audiobook, large print
Genre: contemporary romance
Series: Thunder Point #5
Length: 363 pages
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Date Released: June 24, 2014
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Book Depository

Scott Grant has a bustling family practice in the small Oregon community of Thunder Point. The town and its people have embraced the widowed doctor and father of two, his children are thriving, and Scott knows it’s time to move on from his loss. But as the town’s only doctor, the dating scene is awkward. That is, until a stunning physician’s assistant applies for a job at his clinic.

Peyton Lacoumette considers herself entirely out of the dating scene. She’s already been burned by a man with kids, and she’s come to Thunder Point determined not to repeat past mistakes. When Scott offers her a job, at a much lower salary than she’s used to, Peyton is surprisingly eager to accept…at least for now. She’s willing to stay for a three-month trial period while she explores other options.

Scott and Peyton know the arrangement is temporary—it isn’t enough time to build a real relationship, never mind anything with lasting commitment. But love can blossom faster than you think when the timing is right, and this short visit just might hold the promise of forever.

My Review:

The Promise in the title of this book is a promise that Peyton Lacoumette makes to Thunder Point’s only doctor, Scott Grant, that she will stay in Thunder Point as his physician’s assistant for three months.

Scott’s growing practice needs Peyton’s skills as a PA very badly, but the small town general practice can’t afford to pay the kind of salary that a top-notch PA with a stellar reputation like Peyton can command in either Portland or Seattle. Or anywhere else that Peyton might want to go.

But Peyton’s large and boisterous family owns a farm not-too-far from Thunder Point, and Peyton has come back to rural Oregon to recover from a relationship that strayed from the professional to the personal, and went horribly wrong.

When your lover is also your boss, when you break up with the former, it’s impossible to stay around the latter. Particularly after you discover that he’s been playing around with one of his nurses while he’s left you to attempt to deal with his spoiled, over-indulged, and even criminal teen-aged children, as well as managing his practice.

Peyton is broken-hearted half as much as she feels deceived, not just by her ex but by her own willingness to ignore all her reservations and sacrifice some of her self-esteem to keep trying to save a relationship that was never what she thought it was.

Peyton let herself be taken advantage of for three years, and she’s mad at herself. Also seriously questioning her own judgment about men, and possibly even about jobs.

Scott’s small-town practice seems like a perfect place to do good work, recover herself a bit and then see where she wants to go and what she wants to do.

What she doesn’t want to do is get involved with her new boss, or find herself taking care of his two young children. So on her first day on the job, Peyton is stuck babysitting little Will and Jenny while Scott rushes to the scene of a church-bus accident.

She expects to feel put-upon, and stuck in the same position she was with her ex, but the situations are nothing alike. Not just because Scott Grant is a widower and doesn’t even have a divorced ex to take care of the children, but because Scott has paid attention to his kids and given them both love and boundaries. Where Ted’s kids were deliberately terrifying, Scott’s kids are well-behaved and openly loving.

Peyton finds herself settling in to the warmth, charm and open-hearted friendliness of Thunder Point, while Scott can’t help but fall head over heels for his intelligent, beautiful and caring assistant. It doesn’t help his slide that his kids adore Peyton to pieces.

But Peyton faces doubts on every side. Or nearly every side. Scott’s kids really are adorable, well-behaved, and they definitely love her. While it may be easier for them to be more adorable at ages 4 and 5 then they will inevitably be as teenagers, Will and Jenny have a much better grounding, and a much better chance of turning out to be decent people, than Ted’s nightmare children.

It may help that Will and Jenny can’t hope for a reconciliation with their parents. With their mother dead, the best that they can hope for is a new mommy to make their dad and them happy.

Peyton also doubts whether the small-town life and small-town pace (along with the small-town salary) is really for her. Although she grew up on a family farm, she has loved her life in the big city. At the same time, Scott offers her the chance to be a real partner in his practice, doing good medicine, and she can’t help but be tempted.

And sweet and loving Scott, along with the welcoming town of Thunder Point, steal her heart.

Escape Rating B+: Unlike some of the earlier entries in the Thunder Point series, the romance in this one is front and center. Peyton and Scott both try to resist their attraction, but as the days turn into weeks, they slowly, inevitably, succumb.

In this love story, the reasons that they might resist are all issues that they can overcome, if they just open their hearts and minds.

Mostly that opening is on Peyton’s part. Scott’s only reservation is that Peyton keeps saying that her stay in Thunder Point is temporary. It’s up to him to convince her that life in this marvelous little town will satisfy her personal and professional goals.

Peyton is rightly gun-shy. When her ex barges onto the scene to demand that she come back, she completely rejects him. He’s a selfish bastard, and she finally sees that in all its glory. But she can’t help but be drawn back in when one of his daughters reaches out to her in an hour of desperate need.

Scott finds himself afraid that Peyton will return to Ted’s cushy practice and high-living lifestyle. He compares his small-town practice and low-key life and feels like he comes up short. He pushes Peyton away just at the point where she’s sure of her priorities.

The push-pull of their relationship feels real. They’ve both been independent for quite a while. They are both afraid to need and to trust. It takes a return to their roots for both of them to figure out that their future is together.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: The Chance by Robyn Carr

Posted on January 27, 2015January 26, 2015 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | B Reviews> book reviews

Format read: ebook provided by the publisher via NetGalley
Formats available: paperback, ebook, hardcover, audiobook
Genre: contemporary romance
Series: Thunder Point #4
Length: 368 pages
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Date Released: February 25, 2014
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Book Depository

With its breathtaking vistas and down-to-earth people, Thunder Point is the perfect place for FBI agent Laine Carrington to recuperate from a gunshot wound and contemplate her future. The locals embraced Laine as one of their own after she risked her life to save a young girl from a dangerous cult. Knowing her wounds go beyond the physical, Laine hopes she’ll fit in for a while and find her true self in a town that feels safe. She may even learn to open her heart to others, something an undercover agent has little time to indulge.

Eric Gentry is also new to Thunder Point. Although he’s a man with a dark past, he’s determined to put down roots and get to know the daughter he only recently discovered. When Laine and Eric meet, their attraction is obvious to everyone. But while the law enforcement agent and the reformed criminal want to make things work, their differences may run too deep…unless they take a chance on each other and find that deep and mysterious bond that belongs to those who choose love over fear.

My Review:

Now that I’m on my fourth book in Robyn Carr’s Thunder Point series, I have come to a couple of conclusions.

Thunder Point is a really terrific small town, one that I might like to live in. Possibly live in more than visit – it seems like it is not unconscionably far from Portland, or even Seattle, but still has the small-town feel that turns newcomers into friends very easily.

Thunder Point also seems to be the place where second chances finally make it all the way to the finish line, no matter how much has gone wrong in between. Sometimes its a second chance at a first love, and sometimes its a second chance in life. Most of us need one of those sometime in our lives, so that idea has a lot of resonance.

(Bliss County Wyoming, in Linda Lael Miller’s Brides of Bliss County series, seems to be another place of the same lovely type. More on that Thursday)

Back in Thunder Point, Eric and Laine are both people who have come to Thunder Point for a second chance at something. Eric is there for a second chance with the daughter he never knew he had. (The mother of said daughter married the sheriff back in The Newcomer (reviewed here))

Laine was the undercover FBI agent who rescued Devon and her daughter Mercy, and helped shut down the cult in The Hero (reviewed here). Laine is taking some leave from the FBI to recuperate from her gunshot wound and to do some reassessment about what she wants from her life. She’s also on the west coast to get as far away as possible from her father on the east coast. Dad has always disapproved of Laine’s career in the FBI, but on her last visit, he said that she wasn’t saving lives or doing anything important by being an agent, and that he wasn’t interested in watching her get a medal for wasting her life.

If you think there is something wrong with that scenario, you are not alone. Because the other chance that Laine needs is a chance to have a real relationship with her father, before it is too late.

Eric and Laine gravitate towards each other instantly, even though neither of them is looking for a relationship. Eric is working all hours starting a new business in town, and Laine is only planning to be in the area for six months at the most. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, neither of them is the type of person for casual sex. They are both in their 30s, and casual hookups have lost their appeal.

They are the last two people who should ever get together. Laine is an FBI agent, and part of Eric’s past where he never checked up on the possibility that he left his girlfriend pregnant all those years ago included 5 years in prison for a crime committed by his friends. But they had involved parents, and he was wild and on his own. But those 5 years made him examine his life and turn it around before it was too late.

So Eric and Laine walk into this relationship trying not to think about the expiration date until they are both in much too deep to think of walking away. And then a kind of backwards miracle happens.

Laine’s father shows up on her doorstep, with no luggage but an intense desire to straighten out their relationship while he still can. Her father is a doctor, and has been self-medicating for Alzheimer’s for several years. His time to make amends is running out. But as his symptoms increase, Senior not only needs Laine more than ever, but he has finally come to appreciate her.

Laine finally has the relationship with her father that she always wanted, but at a terrible price. He is slipping away, but in order to give him the best care she can, Laine has to go back east and make arrangements that take forever.

Nearly letting her relationship with Eric slip away in her exhaustion and frustration. The rest of her family has to stage an intervention to get her to go back home to see if the man she loves is still waiting for her.

Escape Rating B+: Having read four of the books in this series, it’s starting to feel like one single long and lovely story. Each book flows right into the next, almost seamlessly. And while I think you could pick up the series at almost any point, I can’t imagine why anyone would. Thunder Point is a terrific place and its a joy to spend time there.

That being said, each book does have a defined beginning, middle and end, and the major threads of the single story are pretty much resolved by the end of the book. (The exception to this is the first two books, The Wanderer and The Newcomer. That really is one story.)

In this fourth book, we do get glimpses of people we’ve met in the previous books, especially the ones who helped rescue Liane and Devon’s daughter Mercy at the end of The Hero. They are all important people in Laine’s life, and she feels a lot of gratitude, as well as the experience of shared danger that never goes away.

Because the big problem in this stoy is about Laine’s relationship with her dad, rather than a direct crisis in her relationship with Eric, we see a lot more of Laine than we do Eric, or we spend more time inside her head. She wants her father’s approval, and she feels she has never had it. It’s a gaping wound in her life that she can’t move past. Most of us have difficulty moving past issues with our parents.

Laine didn’t do what was expected, the way that her brother did. So it seemed as if her father gave Pax his conditional approval and benefit of the doubt, where Laine always got an argument. Most parents would be proud of Laine’s job. Most parents would also be scared to death. But with our parents, our logic and theirs tends to go out the window. Dad wanted her safe, and he acted as if the only way to achieve that was to suppress who she was. The way that their relationship gets patched up in the middle of a dreadful crisis was sadly wonderful.

Laine’s dilemma was realistically portrayed. Her father really does need her, and he clings to her. She has the relationship with him that she has always wanted. She is also caught in the mental and emotional trap that the only way to take care of him properly is to do it all herself. Which is unrealistic and exhausting and emotionally draining, but Laine past the point where she couldn’t find a solution through her exhaustion.

This was a bittersweet happy ending that felt emotionally right.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Review: The Hero by Robyn Carr

Posted on August 26, 2013August 25, 2013 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | B Reviews> book reviews

Format read: ebook provided by NetGalley
Formats available: ebook, large print hardcover, mass market paperback, audiobook
Genre: Contemporary romance
Series: Thunder Point, #3
Length: 384 pages
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Date Released: August 27, 2013
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Book Depository

In a moment of desperation, Devon McAllister takes her daughter and flees a place where they should have been safe and secure. She has no idea what is around the next bend, but she is pretty certain it can’t be worse than what they’ve left behind. Her plan is to escape to somewhere she can be invisible. Instead, an unexpected offer of assistance leads her to Thunder Point, a tiny Oregon town with a willingness to help someone in need.

As the widowed father of a vulnerable young boy, Spencer Lawson knows something about needing friendship. But he’s not looking for anything else. Instead, he’s thrown his energy into his new role as Thunder Point’s high school football coach. Tough and demanding to his team, off the field he’s gentle and kind…just the kind of man who could heal Devon’s wounded heart.

Devon thought she wanted to hide from the world. But in Thunder Point, you find bravery where you least expect it…and sometimes, you find a hero.

My Review:

The titular hero of this third entry in Robyn Carr’s Thunder Point series and the romantic hero are not the same person. Surprise! But a very excellent surprise and also totally in keeping with the way that this small-town romance series has been developing.

I think I’ve fallen in love with Thunder Point, Oregon. The more of this small, beachfront town that we explore, the easier it is to understand what makes this place so special.

The important relationship in The Hero isn’t the romance, it’s the adopted father/daughter relationship between the withdrawn Vietnam vet Rawley Goode and Devon McAllister, the woman he picks up on the road escaping from a psychopathic cult leader.

Rawley remembers all too well what it’s like to be on the run, down and out and feel like the weight of the world is on his shoulders and it’s all his fault. People helped him when he had nothing but the clothes on his back; he sees Devon as a way to pay those people back, to “pay it forward”, although he doesn’t call it that.

And Devon has a child with her, a little girl. Her daughter Mercy. Seeing how frightened Devon is makes Rawley question everything he’s ever seen about the religious commune known simply as “The Fellowship”.

He gives Devon and Mercy a home. Safety. And a chance for Devon to take back the life she gave up when she was young and scared and naive. She reaches for that opportunity with her arms flung wide.

She gives Rawley the family he might have had if he hadn’t come back scarred from his war. A daughter. A granddaughter. A reason to reach out to the community that took him in. Not just peace, but fellowship and friendship. Belonging.

Devon remakes her life. She gets a job. An apartment. Makes a home. Develops new friendships with women in the community. And even though it scares her and she’s none too sure that her judgment is sound, starts a relationship with the new high school football coach, Spencer Lawson, who is every bit as uncertain about his own readiness to start a relationship, although for entirely different reasons.

But just when she’s starting to feel secure, Devon’s life goes to smash. The cult kidnaps her daughter. And that’s when everyone in Thunder Point finds out exactly what kind of hero Rawley Goode has always been. Because Devon needs a hero to rescue her daughter from the crazed drug dealer who fathered her.

Escape Rating: B+: The utterly marvelous thing about the Thunder Point series is how each book just flows right into the next one. Although there is a story with a beginning, middle and end, there is a whole lot of catching up with the people you’ve already met. And this series is still early enough that it’s easy to catch up. Also very much worth it.

While there is a romance, that wasn’t center stage in this story. The creation of the made-up family between Rawley, Devon and Mercy was a much more compelling story than the romance between Devon and Spencer. Also, we’re more invested in Rawley getting, if not an HEA, at least becoming more integrated into the town; he’s been odd man out for quite a while. He’s got quite the snarky sense of humor once he finally starts talking!

Devon’s escape from The Fellowship and her blossoming into independence was a terrific character arc. I loved that she never wimped out, which was what made the romance the less important story. Devon needed to get herself back together, and that story was too important not to take a huge amount of time. It would have felt less empowering if a romance had saved her, she needed to save herself first.

But the threat of the Fellowship coming back to haunt her hung over her like the theme music from Jaws. The action at the end was edge-of-the-seat compelling. Wow! What a wild ride!

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money or borrowed from a public library and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

Guest Post: Excerpt from The Newcomer by Robyn Carr + Giveaway

Posted on July 11, 2013July 9, 2013 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | blog tours> Book Giveaway> Guest Posts

Today I’d like to welcome Robyn Carr back to Reading Reality! Robyn is the author of one of my new favorite series, Thunder Point (located just down the coast in Oregon)! The first book in the Thunder Point series is The Wanderer (review here) and the brand new book is The Newcomer (review here). Here is an excerpt from that book:

Gina filled the scrub bucket and pulled on her rubber gloves. It was her curse that when she had a lot on her mind, she cleaned. She was just about to get on her hands and knees behind the counter to give the floor a good scouring when the door to the diner opened. She looked up to see a woman come in. In fact, the woman nearly took her breath away, she was so stunning. She had thick raven hair that fell to her shoulders in those soft Hollywood curls, shining blue eyes, ivory skin, pink cheeks and luscious lips. She looked familiar and Gina wondered if she’d seen her in a movie. She wore very expensive clothes as only a woman like herself, who bought discount whenever possible, would know. Designer slacks, shiny pumps with very high heels, a leather blazer with a designer logo on the breast pocket. And her purse was worth at least a week of Gina’s tips—a Dooney & Bourke.

Gina pulled off her gloves and smiled. “Hi,” she said.

“Hi,” the woman said, smiling with straight, white teeth. “I wonder if you know—will the Sheriff’s office across the street be closed all day, since it’s Saturday?”

“No, but since they usually have only one of the deputies in on the weekends, he’s in and out. Do you need the police?”

“No,” she said with a laugh. “I just wanted to see Deputy McCain. I wonder if he’s going to be around today?”

“Well, you might just have stumbled into the right place.” Gina looked at her watch. “He’s working today and in about an hour, he’ll probably be stopping by for his morning coffee. Unless he’s tied up somewhere.”

“That’s good. If you don’t mind, I’ll stick around. See if he comes in.”

“I can call him for you, if you’d like.”

“You know him?”

Gina laughed. “Everyone knows everyone here. Plus, their office being across the street from the diner means we see each other almost every day. I’ll check and make sure he’s coming by this morning.”

“Thanks,” she said, digging into her expensive purse for her cell phone. “I should return a couple of calls while I wait.”

“Perfect. Can I get you a cup of coffee? Anything?”

“Coffee would be great. And how about a slice of that pie?”

“Coming up. I’ll get that for you before I call him.” While the woman went to a booth in the rear of the diner, presumably so that Gina wouldn’t overhear her talking to her good friend George Clooney, Gina served up a cup of coffee and slice of pie. She took it back to the incognito movie star. Since she wasn’t talking on the phone yet, Gina asked, “Can I tell him who’s waiting for him?”

“Well, I wanted to surprise him, but go ahead. Tell him it’s his wife. I’m Cee Jay McCain.” And she flashed that glorious smile.

Gina was frozen. Stunned. The coffee and pie were suspended in midair. “Wife?” she asked weakly. “I thought Mac was divorced.”

“Right. Ex-wife,” she amended. “We’ve been out of touch and I’m looking forward to seeing him.”

Gina put down the pie and coffee. “Let me make that call,” she said, scooting back behind the counter.

Gina’s hands actually trembled as she fished her phone out of her pocket. She had a lot of bizarre and random thoughts as she punched in Mac’s number. I should get my teeth whitened, she thought. Underwire, I need more underwire….

Glancing over, she could see that Cee Jay was chatting and laughing into her phone. Gina turned away so that her back was facing Cee Jay.

“McCain,” he answered.

“Mac, I think you’d better come to the diner if you can. There’s someone here to see you.”

“Gina? You all right?”

She cleared her throat. “Mmm. Yeah, fine. Are you coming?”

“Who’s there?”

“Mac, you’re not driving, are you?”

“Why?”

“I don’t want you to drive up a pole….”

“I’m pulled over. What’s going on?”

“It’s Cee Jay, Mac. She’s here. To see you.”

Dead silence answered her. And it stretched out.

“Mac?” she asked.

“Good thing I was pulled over. Listen, try to keep this quiet. I have to know what she wants and I don’t want the whole town to know before I have a chance to talk to my kids. And to Lou.”

“Not a problem,” Gina said.

“I’m there in five.”

“Sure. Fine. Drive carefully.”

Gina disconnected. She looked down at herself. Cheap black pants that were no longer as black as they had once been, checkered blouse, name tag… Why did she always wear that stupid name tag? There had been about four people she didn’t know in the diner in the last month. God, the woman was so beautiful. And no wonder she seemed familiar—Eve was a younger version of her mother.

Gina felt a devastation come over her. Grief. After four years of devoted friendship she and Mac had finally become lovers. They tried to be discreet since their sixteen-year-old daughters were best friends, but at long last they could hold hands, embrace, even a chaste kiss was appropriate. Privately, there was more, so much more. Passion so rich, her whole life had been changed by it. They loved each other, they’d said so.

But now? What would he do after seeing Cee Jay? Would everything change? Even if Cee Jay hadn’t come back to reclaim her ex-husband, would Mac take one look at her and fall in love all over again? How could he not?

Gina poured herself a cup of coffee. She wasn’t much of a drinker but she sure wished she had a shot of something to jack up that coffee. Her hands trembled as she lifted the cup to her lips. And while Cee Jay laughed and chatted into the phone, taking petite bites of her apple pie, she appeared so carefree. So animated. How do you leave your three children, not see them for ten years, then stroll back into their lives all happy-go-lucky? How do you do that?

Gina had the sense that the world she knew was changing, and she had no idea what the outcome might be, but she was suddenly afraid.

About Robyn CarrRobyn is a New York Times best-selling author. She has written over forty books, including ones in her Virgin River, Grace Valley, and Thunder Point series. Robyn won the RITA Award for her novel By Right of Arms. Robyn and her husband enjoy traveling, often taking research trips together. Their son and daughter are grown. Robyn says that, in addition to reading her novels and making snide remarks about how she’s used family scenarios to her advantage, they have made her a happy grandmother.

To learn more about Robyn, visit her website or connect with her on Twitter and Facebook.

GIVEAWAY

Robyn is giving away two print copies of The Newcomer! To enter, use the Rafflecopter below:

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Review: The Newcomer by Robyn Carr

Posted on July 11, 2013July 8, 2013 by Marlene Harris | Author : Marlene Harris | B Reviews> blog tours> book reviews

Format read: ebook provided by NetGalley
Formats available: ebook, hardcover, paperback, audiobook
Genre: Contemporary romance
Series: Thunder Point, #2
Length: 364 pages
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Date Released: June 25, 2013
Purchasing Info: Author’s Website, Publisher’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Book Depository

Single dad and Thunder Point’s deputy sheriff “Mac” McCain has worked hard to keep his town safe and his daughter happy. Now he’s found his own happines with Gina James. The longtime friends have always shared the challenges and rewards of raising their adolescent daughters. With an unexpected romance growing between them, they’re feeling like teenagers themselves-suddenly they can’t get enough of one another.

And just when things are really taking off, their lives are suddenly thrown into chaos. When Mac’s long-lost ex-wife shows up in town, drama takes on a whole new meaning. Mac and Gina know they’re meant to be together, but can their newfound love withstand the pressure?

My Review:

In the first Thunder Point book, the “wanderer” of the title (see review) was definitely Hank Cooper. I’m not quite sure exactly who the titular “newcomer” is in this second book of the series, and I really don’t care; I was glad of the chance to visit Thunder Point again.

This is looking like one of those series where you fall in love with the town. Fine by me.

The story of The Newcomer is a direct continuation of The Wanderer, following the same two adult couples, Hank Cooper and Sarah Dupre, who both came to Thunder Point from someplace very else, and Gina James and Mac McCain, who have been in Thunder Point for years, and only came from nearby Coquille.

Their stories are so intertwined, it’s a little hard to tell where one leaves off and the other begins. But, for me it worked like this; in the first book, both couples figure out that they belong together, even though they reach that point from entirely different routes, and face completely different challenges.

In this second story, both couples are tested by outside forces, and have to figure out whether what they have found can withstand some pretty tough circumstances. In both cases, part of that test has to do with major life incidents rising out of the past and jumping up to bite, but there is an element of learning to compromise and communicate in there as well.

There is definitely an added element to the story that all the adults are single parents, and how much they factor their children’s adjustments and happiness into the equation.

Every one of the adults in this story doesn’t just have someone in their past, but they have someone with whom they have unfinished business. It all comes out at the same time, making this story more of a family drama than the regularly expected romance.

This is one family (maybe that’s a whole bunch of families) where you root for everyone to figure out the mess and reach for their happy ending, no matter how crazy things get along the way.

Escape Rating B+: The Thunder Point series is one where is just so much fun to see how everyone is doing and where things are going next. I loved going back to this town.

The Newcomer reads like a direct sequel to The Wanderer; the story doesn’t make sense without reading the first book, but that’s okay. The first book was good, too. The Newcomer is reads like the second crisis in both couple’s stories so that they earn their HEA.

Along with more than a bit of teenage angst concerning Mac and Gina’s daughters, both of whom have crises in their love lives in the middle of the parental drama. This isn’t just angsty but adds to the drama AND definitely makes for a big character arc for two of the teens. I don’t normally like teen angst but this time it enhanced the story quite a bit.

All the point-of-view characters in this story are likeable, you want to find out what’s going on with them, and you want them to get their HEA.

One of the most fun characters in the series so far is Mac’s Aunt Lou. She’s snarky and doesn’t suffer fools. She’s someone you want to sit down with for coffee…or a whole bottle of wine.

Now that Sarah and Hank and Mac and Gina have finally resolved their issues, the next book moves on to someone who was introduced from Hank’s past. I’m looking forward to more happiness in Thunder Point.

***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.

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