Everyone dreams of a second chance at the one that got away. Gavin Clark and Ally Beaumont were high school sweethearts who broke up when Abby believed the jealous lies of a third party, Jenny Gaston. Abby has never forgotten Gavin and still regrets their break-up. She has tried to move on and was even engaged. Still, she admits to herself that she wasn't brokenhearted when Lars left her at the altar in favor of his yoga instructor. She is, however, vindictive enough to sell Lars' ring to get enough money to purchase Gavin when she learns about the bachelor auction. At first, Abby sees Gavin as a someone from her past that she can trust to stick it to Lars when she is forced to attend a wedding where Lars is one of the groomsmen and she is the wedding planner. However, old feeling soon re-emerge. Gavin has always seen Abby has his ideal woman. When he went off to college, he saw his future laid out before him. Gavin would marry Abby as soon as she graduated, the two of them would attend college together and then settle down and have kids. Abby walking away from him that first year of college tore out his heart and he has never met a woman who could compare to her. When she buys him at the auction he doesn't know what to think. What if she runs again? What if she doesn't? WEEKEND WITH HER BACHELOR: THE BACHELOR AUCTION RETURNS is part of a quartet of books in which four different authors each follow one of the four bachelors who are auctioned off that night at Grey's on their path to true love. The idea is a great way for a writing group to collaboratively produce a body of work. Yet the small details don't mesh across the series. Gavin is sold for $25,000 and in the other works the bid on Code for $10 is mentioned as the highest bid. The guys have differing conversations depending on which novel you read. Since this is supposed to be the same characters over the same time period, their characterization and conversations should be the same even if that ends up repetitive. With that caveat in mind, the novel provides a well fleshed out characterization of both Gavin and Abby. Gavin's distrust of Abby is not without cause nor does it appear out of left field. Taken as a stand alone novel, this is well written and provides a lovely story of reunited sweethearts. - See more at: http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooksreview.php?bookid=21961#sthash.WlzHdVUH.dpuf
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Celebrity is the new royalty. Mia Troy has been a famous actress since childhood. She has come to the Victorian Rose Bed and Breakfast in North Salem for a month-long vacation before filming her new movie in Boston. Mia wants some time to be herself and not a famous actress. Sean O'Brien runs the bed and breakfast with his mother Maureen. He has spent his life taking care of his family. Still, Sean has not completely given up his own dreams and he has just completed his Master's from MIT in Physics. Both Sean and Mia are searching for something more. Mia feels instantly drawn to Sean. She asks him to the town's block party and is impressed by the way he protects her from the town drunk. As Sean and Mia get to know one another, Mia falls in love. Sean is unsure of his feeling. He feels tied to North Salem by the B&B. To complicate things further, his father, who walked out during his senior year of high school and left Sean to support the family alone, has reappeared. Mia helps Sean work through things with his father and half-sister. His mother ends up getting engaged and setting up the B&B so that a manager can run things. This leaves Sean able to live his own life for the first time in years. Will he be able to find love with Mia or will stubbornness spoil his happily ever after? This is yet another Cinderella story, though the prince is a princess. Ms. Tetreault uses gender inversion to try to breathe new life into an old tale. In some ways she is successful. Her characters are on an equal footing at the beginning of the novel. Sean is highly educated, though not living up to his potential, and Mia is famous and unhappy. Mia inspires Sean to get a job in his field and Sean makes Mia happy. Yet Mia stops acting and appears to become a housewife at the end. The story ends up raising Sean and lowering Mia so they can be together. Mia becomes the little woman. This does not seem to be the author's intent. Ms. Tetreault appears to unconsciously reflect masculine authority into her writing. Surely there is a way for Sean and Mia to come together that does not cause Mia to lose? This is a stereotypical contemporary romance and as long as its message is taken with a grain of salt, it is a good read. - See more at: http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooksreview.php?bookid=14141#sthash.xfuK9MD3.dpuf A modern Cinderella story, LORD BACHELOR examines our fascination with reality TV. Abby Forester is a down on her luck business major struggling to keep her dead father's record store afloat. This is particularly difficult as her father's common law spouse uses the fact that she owns half the business as an excuse to empty the till. Abby first meets Lord Edmund Rushwood while she fills in as a waitress at the bar her friend Tommy works at. He rescues her from some drunks and ends up following her home. Edmund, because of his father's will, must marry someone from a noble bloodline before his birthday. His friend Will is a reality TV show host and convinces him to star in Lord Bachelor to find his bride. Abby comes in because she has recently created a genealogy of Portland's finest families as a school project. Abby ends up on the show by accident when she goes to the studio to return Edmund's phone and is mistaken for a late contestant. Edmund struggles with his feelings for Abby as he knows he will lose everything if he marries her. Abby struggles with the way Edmund blows hot and cold. When Abby learns about Edmund's situation, will love conquer all? Ms. Bailey takes time crafting her main characters. The reader is allowed into their thoughts and follows their struggles. The more minor characters such as the contestants of the show tend to blur together a bit. It would help if they had more to identify them. Yet Bailey does give them ID markers. One is interested in charity work, another in fashion, etc. The reality show becomes background as Abby and Edmund mainly escape it to pursue each other. It would be nice to see more commentary on the shallowness and fakery of so-called reality TV, but what the author does insert is subtle and pointed. Love happens off camera. While Cinderella is a common fairy tale in romance, this version is well done and a good addition to the twisted fairy tale oeuvre. - See more at: http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooksreview.php?bookid=21500#sthash.9YF2kFIW.dpuf retelling of Arthurian myth, MY ONCE AND FUTURE LOVE resurrects the knights of the round table. Morgan ab Myrddin is the son of Merlin and a half-breed immortal. He sees it as his sacred mission to free his father Merlin. Merlin has been trapped by Nimue in a cave. After being wounded, Morgan seeks shelter and meets Annora of Amberton. She is the rightful mistress of Amberton, but has been displaced by her devious uncle, Sir Roger. As they journey together, both Morgan and Annora must learn to look beyond the preconceptions of society. Only with open minds can they find love. Sir Roger has disposed Annora by convincing all but her most loyal retainers that she is mad. Morgan offers to escort her to the king and gain a physician's writ proving her sanity. They are joined on this journey by Morgan's friend Ninian, another immortal. Morgan struggles against his growing feeling for Annora as he feels her strong Christian upbringing will lead her to dismiss his magical life. Can Morgan find a way to free his father, save Annora from Sir Roger, and build a life with his love? Ms. Kaufman's novel is an engaging and fast paced read. However, at times the characters come across as melodramatic. Morgan's explanation of his powers to Annora is very poorly thought out. He gives no proof, but expects her to take a new worldview on faith. This seems silly, as Morgan can control the weather, and can easily offer Annora the proof she desires. Instead, he drags her to Ninian and plays out an overly dramatic death scene. Once Annora has seen this, there is no real reason for her to reject it. She either trusts her senses or she doesn't. The author is trying to show how difficult it is to accept a new worldview, but it comes across as forced. Morgan's immortality seems like a greater barrier to the couple's happiness. Many authors create ways to transform soulmates into immortals, fey, vampires, etc. Morgan, on the other hand, accepts that he will never meet his true mate. The reader is left wondering where this places Annora. Surely there is nothing to stop her from being Morgan's mate? While the plot has a few loopholes, MY ONCE AND FUTURE LOVE is a good addition to the Arthurian romance genre and well worth a look. It is a quick, simple read for a rainy day. - See more at: http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooksreview.php?bookid=21727#sthash.GCt8ULOC.dpuf A quick, light read. Hayley Dawn O'Malley left her hometown, of Marietta, Montana, for the bright lights of Los Angeles and never looked back. Since leaving town, she has become a major star with several motion pictures to her credit. She is back in Marietta in the wake of her Grandma Marie's death to pack up her Grandma's house. Cody (Code) Matthews left town soon after Hayley to join the army. After two successful tours, he got out and opened a private security firm with an army buddy in Texas. Code is back home on his Uncle Brand's farm, after a tough case went south. He just wants to forget. The arrival of his old friend and high school crush Hayley makes forgetting impossible because she needs his help. After a previous stalker scare, Hayley is afraid that she has another. Code refuses to help her and sends her to the police. The bachelor auction gives Hayley a second chance to get the help she wants. Charlene Sands writes in an engaging voice that catches the reader from the first sentence and does not let them go until the final page. Her plot hangs together well, as she neatly ties up all the loose ends. It is a novella and could benefit from the depth that a novel would allow. As it stands, the length keeps it a quick paced and superficial read. This is not bad in a Romance story. If you're looking for something fun to read, I recommend BACHELOR FOR HIRE. I just would like to see the character development that a longer form would allow. The stalker's perspective, and motivation would be a nice touch as well, though honestly, nothing is lost by leaving that part of the story out. - See more at: http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooksreview.php?bookid=21589#sthash.MRGLe7lo.dpuf A refreshing take on grief and living with mental illness, IT ISN'T CHEATING IF HE'S DEAD deals with one woman's struggle to come to terms with her fiancé's death. Jemima Stone's fiancé Gerald has been missing for four years. Before his disappearance, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and went off his meds. The novel opens with Detective Finn Wight telling Jem that Gerald has been found murdered in a Montreal dumpster. Jem is a defense lawyer in Calgary, and before he got sick Gerald was researching a cure for cancer. Jem is now left alone to try to piece together why Gerald left and how life goes on without him. She takes his leaving as abandonment and a sign that he didn't love her. Jem struggles with feelings of worthlessness because of Gerald's loss. As the novel progresses, Finn helps Jem learn about Gerald's life, medical history, and the missing four years before his death. By the novel's end, Jem is able to rediscover her sense of self-worth and lay Gerald to rest. IT ISN'T CHEATING IF HE'S DEAD tells the story of Jem's grief over her fiancé Gerald's death and her search for answers. Julie Frayn's novel is a compelling study of mental illness. It asks some hard questions about how we treat the mentally ill. Althea's (Gerald's mother) denial of mental illness destroyed her husband and her son. Yet Jem's acceptance and support weren't enough to hold Gerald. Ms. Frayn rightly points out that we still have no good way to treat illnesses of the mind. She has Gerald tell Jem that the meds are killing him slowly and the disease is killing him quickly and ask how can he live with either? Still, Ms. Frayn does not create a suicidal character. Gerald leaves to continue the fight on his own. This leaves the reader with a sense of hope for the future in spite of Gerald's fate. The use of a third person limited narrator causes the reader's viewpoint to be filtered through Jem's thoughts and feelings. It is an interesting choice to write a book about mental illness from the point of view of those left behind. The only problem is that this is not a romance novel; it is general fiction. While Jem does end up with Finn, that is not the real story being told in this novel. It is instead a brilliant and insightful exploration of grief, loss and living with the mentally ill. - See more at: http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooksreview.php?bookid=21781#sthash.ZuFzUuGK.dpuf A true Cinderella story, Alanna Lucas' WISH UPON A WALTZ reunites curate's daughter Anastasia and Dante, the Earl of Huntingdon. Anastasia has spent the last eight years as Isabel Albryght's companion. Yet, it is now time for Isabel to have a season and Anna can no longer hide from the society that shunned her so cruelly for her error eight years ago. As Anna learns more about what happened between her and Mr. St. Clair eight years ago, she rediscovers her faith in love and hope for the future.
Jenna's Christmas Wish is a dose of Christmas cheer. Jenna has just lost her mother to cancer and is now alone in the world. As a romance writer, she is invited to an author's retreat where she meets Niccolo. Niccolo is an actor and cover model. Jenna has had a bad experience with handsome men in the past and is wary when Nic seems interested in her. Her friend Chyna tells her Nic is way out of her league and while he might want her for sex, as soon as something better comes along he'll be gone. Jenna decides to trust her heart instead of her head or her friend. JENNA'S CHRISTMAS WISH begins with Jenna wishing to spend Christmas with someone who wants her. Soon after this Nic enters her life and turns it upside down. She ends up New Jersey spending Christmas with Nic and his family. Jenna must decide if Nic is serious about her or if she is just a diversion. Her decision is not helped by the mysterious woman following Nic around and sending him flowers. The story is told almost entirely from Jenna's perspective. The few paragraphs that give Nic's perspective are confusing as they suggest that he is only looking for a fling with Jenna. This view would be fine if the reader were given more of Nic's viewpoint and saw his view of Jenna change as he fell in love with her. However, we are only given this one, brief glimpse into Nic's mind and it appears to confirm all of Jenna's fears about him. Given that Jenna is supposedly so scarred by her relationship with her high school boyfriend that she has never approached a man again, the speed at which her relationship with Nic progresses seems unrealistic. It seems especially odd how easily she shakes off Chyna's negative views of her relationship with Nic even after Nic stands her up for their first "date." If Jenna had less holding her back, her reactions to Nic would make more sense. Still, JENNA'S CHRISTMAS WISH delivers a quick, light read and gives some interesting insight into the world of writing romance novels. If you are looking for some holiday magic this spring, check this out. - See more at: http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooksreview.php?bookid=21374#sthash.d4YtL0TE.dpuf
An epic fantasy adventure. Timothy Brennan is a bullied loner who lives with his abusive uncle in New Hampshire. He is bullied at school because he has what has been diagnosed as Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) though it sounds more like Tourette’s syndrome. Instead of an inability to sit still the disease causes him to twitch uncontrollably. After a terrible day at school Timothy goes home and begs Uncle Jim for medication. Jim’s cruel refusal sparks another attack which somehow breaks a glass and moves Timothy’s desk. All this plus the previous loss of his mother and the rejection of the girl he idolizes drives Timothy to the edge and he throws himself into the river.
Aenya saves Timothy from the river and nurses him back to health. She is a fairy or Sidhe who has lived alone in the wilderness since the death of her father in the American Civil War. After seeing Timothy heal a bird, she has been watching him, even going so far as to enroll in his school. While Aenya is explaining Timothy’s elven heritage, and trying to talk him into return to school, they are attacked and forced to flee. The story follows Timothy’s journey to Sidhlin. There he learns that he is the first seventh son of a seventh son born since Arthur, as well as a direct descendant of Aylwen. The Elves believe this lineage makes it his destiny to re-found Alfheim. His main opposition is Cadwaladr who wants to re-forge Alfheim in his own image and then go conquer the humans. As Timothy fights Cadwaladr’s forces, who include his uncle, and learns the extent of his own powers he becomes a leader. Gary Nilsen’s Alfheim is reminiscent of genre greats like Tamora Peirce’s Circle of Magic series. Nilsen’s novel hooks the reader on the first line and doesn’t let go. He leaves you waiting in breathless suspense for his next book. Timothy reminds this reader of Merlin from the Young Merlin series. Nilsen blends Arthurian myth with his own world building to create a unique view of the fey. This is an author to expect great things from. Excellent read! Lord Gabriel ab Aedden of Rhyddon is the prince of the Tylwyth Teg. As the novel opens, he has been enchanted for four years by Princess Aneira of the Daoine Sidhe. Aneira has enchanted Gabriel so that he no longer feels except when he is with her. She has done this on the order of her mother, Moire, to strike back at Gabriel's father, King Aedden, for marrying Gabriel's mother, Gwyneth of Pembroke, for love. Love is the only thing that can break the enchantment of the Daoine Sidhe. The advice of Cerdinen, the wise tree of the grove, causes Gabriel to marry. Taryn Hamilton lives at Hamilhawk and has been punished all her life for her mother's sin of leaving her father. Her father, Drayton Hamilton, rains constant abuse on her for her so-called seductive behaviour which can include anything from meeting someone's eyes to receiving unwanted advances. Drayton figures he can kill birds with one stone by marrying her to Gabriel. The alliance will make Rhyddon form a defense pact with Hamilhawk, and he will never have to see Taryn again. Taryn is terrified to be sold to a man whom rumor paints as a demon. She wants only to find the man who visits her in her dreams and rescue him as he asks. Taryn is shocked to discover that they are one and the same. Worse is that he seems to have no memory of the dreams and rides off to war before they are even wed. They are wed by proxy and Gabriel comes to know his bride once he returns. He finds that she is the only one who can bring emotion back into his colourless world. Will it be enough to break Aneira's spell and allow him to go free? The story is told from, not only the perspective of Gabriel and Taryn, but also Gabriel's two brothers, Rhys and Elusen. The reader is given insight into the motives of Aneira and her mother as their views are shared as well. It is difficult to juggle diverse narrators and neither alienate your reader nor lose the thread of your plot. Genevra Thorne pulls it off. She paints a richly detailed world that places the reader right there beside the characters. Best of all, she creates a heroine who grows as an individual because of love, rather than yet another damsel in distress. It is rare to see strong women in a romance novel without a "taming" narrative. The idea that a loving relationship can help a woman find her strength is one whose time has come. - See more at: http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooksreview.php?bookid=21303#sthash.EfShoPTd.dpuf
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AuthorElizabeth Ramsay is English tutor and ESL Teacher. Archives
February 2018
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