Even After This

 When you're ready to live again, love often has a way of finding you.

Four years after tragedy, Meredith Harper is tired of hiding in her corner of Texas and living life like a game of dodgeball. She packs up her grief, awkward social graces, and sizable life insurance in search of a vacation and investment property in Colorado Springs. A botched dinner reservation throws her into the path of a bona fide movie star, and Meredith pushes through her comical celebrity neurosis to discover he is charming but a terrible dancer.

A viral video of a daring rescue makes Harlan Holcombe's celebrity star stronger, with millions of his fans deeming him a real-life Hercules. But a minute of heroism doesn't absolve his past mistakes.

As Harlan and Meredith spend more time together, he helps her believe there might be more for her not just in life but in love. And she might be part of the solution to restore the legacy he fears is tarnished. But what happens when the path to redeem his mistakes collides with the path to redeem her loss?

Review: 

“Is it possible that there’s still something left for me in this life?” 

Meredith Harper has endured a tragic accident that no mother or wife should ever have to experience. After four years of grieving, she decides to take a giant step of faith get out from under the dark cloud that has been a part of her life and go to Colorado to see about purchasing property. Ms. Clack did a remarkable job of showing the process of going through grief and finding a new beginning. 

Harlan Holcombe should be a man to avoid since he is a movie star and Meredith becomes an awkward, babbling mess. But Harlan can see past all of that and recognize a woman who could really use a friend. He doesn’t tiptoe around Meredith’s grief, but instead helps her through it. He is there to defend her, to comfort her, and push her to do things she wouldn’t do otherwise. 


Things to love:

humor

Famous People Probation

dancing

he falls first

Skee-Ball tournament

childhood friends

mom stickers

Thanksgiving

Abba ringtones

skiing

overcoming fear

I highly recommend reading this book. You are sure to love the humor that is threaded throughout the story along with seeing love in action. This is the first book in the Shelter and Sky series, and I am looking forward to reading the rest of the books. 

Thank you to Haven Fiction and UpLit Reads for a gifted copy. I was under no obligation to write a positive review. 

Marrying the Matchmaker

 

As the middle child of the Shanahan family, Zaira does her best to keep the peace. She doesn't share her dream of becoming a published author with her family to spare herself their disapproval. When she's caught in a scandal involving the local matchmaker, Bellamy McKenna, she must put her storytelling ability to good use and feign a match with him to avoid wagging tongues and her parents' anger.

Feeling the growing pressure to marry as a well-known, yet single matchmaker to St. Louis's Irish community, Bellamy reluctantly agrees to a temporary match with Zaira. But even though the matchmakers in his family might be able to find love for others, they have a history of disastrous relationships for themselves. When secrets and danger force Zaira and Bellamy to work together, is it finally the matchmaker's turn to be lucky in love?

Hedlund delivers another captivating romance with sizzling chemistry in this romantic conclusion to her beloved matchmaking series.

Review: 

Bold and impetuous Zaira Shanahan finds herself in a difficult situation with the up-and-coming matchmaker Bellamy McKenna. Her laser focus of wanting first-hand experience for a romance scene that she is writing had me shaking my head and thinking, “This is going to get messy!”. Bellamy is a complex man; while he has an uncanny ability to find matches for people, he is reticent to further his attraction and relationship with Zaira. This is mostly due to his fears as he states, “The matchmakers have advice on relationships for everyone else, but they can never make the advice work for themselves.”

Things to love:
humor
secret careers
fake engagement
close family
orphans
Irish superstitions
claddagh ring
art gallery

I was so happy to see Bellamy get his own HEA. He has been my favorite character throughout the series, and I have been eagerly awaiting his story. It was even better than had imagined with great character development and the message of truthfulness, and trust over fear.

Sadly, this is the fourth and final book in the series, A Shanahan Match Book. I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the Shanahans and the matches that Bellamy made for this tight knit family.

Thank you for my gifted copy from Bethany House Fiction and Great Reads Book Promotion. I was not required to write a positive review.

An Appearance of Impropriety

As the youngest female judge in LA, Mahalia Jackson has her career goals carefully aligned. But when her mentor tells her she needs to break her shell of professionalism and show a little heart by volunteering for the Junior Jurors program, her plans begin to falter.

Attorney JD Cash heads up the Junior Jurors program, a project born out of his own troubled past. He leverages his position as an attorney to fulfill God's calling on his life, supporting the orphans and widows of society who have lost beloved husbands and fathers to TransNation's eighteen-wheeled time bombs roaming America's freeways.

Mahalia's rule—never date a lawyer—is a straitjacket that tightens when she presides over the case where JD serves as a young widow's attorney. But when an earthquake leaves JD and Mahalia in a vulnerable position, her resolve begins to waver and she finds herself opening up to the sad-eyed lawyer. But online, anonymous colleagues and adversaries attempt to destroy Mahalia’s reputation and career.

A legal drama threaded with romance, An Appearance of Impropriety will show readers that real love is worth the risk.

My Review: 

I haven’t read many courtroom dramas, but I enjoyed the cases that were presented. Not only is there the lawyer, James Dean Cash, but there is also a rising in ranks judge, Mahalia Jackson. First impressions and appearances are challenged as Mahalia sees an advertising billboard of Mr. Cash before meeting him and categorizes him as an ambulance-chasing lawyer. Nothing could be further from the truth. As Mahalia is “voluntold” to assist with Cash’s Junior Jurors program, she sees that he is a compassionate man who feels called to help widows and orphans, and at-risk teens.  

Mahalia knows that she has to prove herself to be capable and competent in order to advance in her career. She has built up walls and finds it difficult to let others in. I loved seeing James stand with her in difficult times. He let her be vulnerable with no judgement. He shared his past with her so she could be comfortable and realize that he had come through awful things but did well with God’s help. 

Things to enjoy: 

elevator incident

Mahalia’s clothes

junior jurors

military vet

faith thread

I received a copy of the book through Let’s Launch. I was no obligated to leave a positive review. All opinions are my own.

Smoke and Ash

 If you saw Cody Buckner on a horse, you’d understand my obsession with him.

I’ve spent most of my life pretending I don’t have a thing for the rancher next door.
He’s my brother’s best friend.
My best friend’s brother.
And now—because fate clearly hates me—he’s the firefighter I have to work alongside as Waterford’s newest fire inspector.

Cody Buckner is steady where I’m stubborn, calm where I’m chaos, and way too good at showing up when I’m trying to keep my distance. Especially now, with my family ranch hanging by a thread.

Around here, everyone's got a front-row seat to everyone else’s business, and gossip travels faster than a brush fire. One look, one slip, and the whole town would know exactly how I feel about Cody.

But every time those brown eyes find mine, my whole list of reasons why we can’t be together just ... goes up in smoke.

Review: 

Carli and Cody have known each other all of their lives. When their feelings towards each other begin to change, their life relationship gets complicated, and so do their lives. Smoke and Ash has all the things I love about Hallmark Movies: small town, involved extended families, good friends, and of course, romance. Ms. Scott has written a story that you are sure to love with things such as:

childhood friends

rancher neighbors

nicknames

barn kiss

forbidden romance

horse rides

secret meetings

barn dance

day-long dates

ranch wedding

This is the third book in the Firemen of Waterford TN series, but it can be read as a standalone. There are other characters from previous books, but they do not interfere with the plot. This is a kisses-only romcom. 

I received a copy of the book, but I was not obligated to write a positive review.

Lilacs for Lucy

Lucy Hargrave spent years being rejected by medical schools, her dream of becoming a doctor denied at every turn. Returning home in 1856 as a trained midwife, she expects a place where her skill will finally be valued—and a chance to leave the past behind.

But William Ashford, a newly minted doctor and the childhood friend who once laughed at her ambition, has returned too.

When Farmer Jones’ pregnant daughter falls ill, treatment becomes a competition. The whole town watches to see who will handle the case best.

For Lucy, it’s a chance to prove her skill and secure her place. For William, it’s an opportunity to make amends—and perhaps win back the woman he never stopped thinking of.

Old wounds, anonymous letters, and one perilous birth force them to choose: will rivalry keep them apart, or can forgiveness take root—like lilacs after a hard winter?

Review:

William and Lucy were the best of friends while they were growing up, but one foolish comment and a misunderstanding at a ball puts William in Lucy’s despised category. While William knew he had blundered, I don’t think he realized how badly he had hurt Lucy until he returns home years later with the intent of wooing her. He has quite a bit to make up for, but William is determined to be humble and ask for forgiveness. I thoroughly enjoyed this story with its characters and message to not give up on your dreams. 

Things to love: 

second chances

Granny! 

midwifery

letters

symbolism

Be sure to read the author’s notes at the end.She shares some things that happened to influence the writing of this story. Additionally, she includes some historical information that was used throughout the novella. 

This is part of the Victorian Valentine’s series, but it can be read as a standalone. I highly recommend this clean, faith-filled romance for readers young and mature alike.

I received a copy of the book but was not obligated to write a positive review.

When I'm With You

 

She had her life mapped out perfectly—until love rewrote every plan.

Elizabeth Dorsey doesn't do detours. Fresh from MIT with honors and her sights set on Wharton's MBA program, she's got her next twenty years planned down to the minute. A quick summer stint at the family furniture business in sleepy Hearts Bend, Tennessee? Just a pit stop before conquering the Fortune 100.

But some destinations are worth changing course for.

Enter Ryder Donovan—the wildlife officer who once filled her teenage summers with friendship and innocent longing. Now he's all grown up, devastatingly handsome, and stirring feelings that threaten to derail everything Elizabeth thought she wanted. When a mysterious fire brings them together and false accusations tear them apart, Elizabeth must choose between the future she's always planned and the love she never saw coming.

In Hearts Bend, Tennessee, some fires burn hotter than others...

As Elizabeth uncovers fraud that could destroy Ryder's career, their chemistry ignites into something neither can ignore. But with her acceptance to Wharton finally in hand and Ryder facing a job offer in Colorado, can two people heading in opposite directions find their way to the same future?

Sometimes the biggest risk isn't following your dreams—it's having the courage to change them.

Review: 

Elizabeth is a driven young lady who wants to prove that she is capable of doing whatever she sets her mind to doing. After being sick for two years, she sees Hearts Bend where her extended family lives as a slight detour to her plans to attend grad school. But, what if the plan that she has isn’t what God had planned for her? Trusting that He has something even better takes a whole lot of faith when you can’t see your next step.

Things to enjoy:

childhood friends

small town

4th of July activities

mystery

family

pizza not-a-date

fire watch tower

MMC hero

All of us can relate to Beth when change occurs. Moving forward into the unknown can be scary, but when WMA Officer Ryder Donovan steps back into Beth’s life, she has a sounding board and friend to help her with her next steps. I love the friends to more trope, and this was well written with just the pacing. 

I recommend reading this book for its clean romance, a wonderful family, and its faith message. This is the first book in the Home to Hearts Bend series. 

I received a copy of the book through JustRead Tours, but  I was not obligated to write a positive review.

Forged in Shadows

 He had a dark secret. He took it to his grave…

With the help of her K9 partner, Koda, widowed airport security officer Demi De Luca is committed to keeping her passengers safe as they fly. But when she overhears a mysterious phone call, she soon finds out that the real threat might be closer than she ever expected.

As founder of his family’s private security company, Gabriel Forge knows his mission in take the lead, hold the line, and never let anything–or anyone–get in the way. Not his faith. Not the beautiful girl from his childhood he thought he’d never see again. And certainly not an unruly German Shepherd puppy determined to eat his freshly polished shoes.

As dangerous forces begin to collide, Gabe and Demi must figure out the truth together, or watch from the ground as everything goes up in smoke.

Serve. Protect. Redeem.

Forge Brothers Security is a clean and Christian romantic suspense series. Each book is a standalone and can be read in any order. Tropes for Forged in Shadows include infertility rep, type A hero, adorable dogs, and a thrilling race against the clock.

My Review: 

There is a high-stakes event that is going to take place at the North Star International Airport and widowed TSA agent Demi De Luca and her K9 partner, Koda, are assigned to find out the plan and stop it before it happens. Childhood friend, Gabe Forge, quickly becomes involved when Demi discovers a fleeing intruder in her home and turns to him for help. Since he is head of his own security company it should be easy to keep Demi safe, shouldn’t it?

Hold onto your seat because you are going on a wild ride as the past collides with the present that will affect the future. I love how storylines intertwine and keep you turning the pages.

Things to love:
the dogs
Forge family
mystery
suspense
danger
faith thread
clean romance

This is part of the Forge Brothers Security series, and I have read every one of them. It can be read as a standalone, but I love seeing the brothers make an appearance. This book ends with a cliffhanger, so I can’t wait to read what is going to happen next.