Tag: second chance at love

Review: Long Winter (Wild One’s #1) by Rachel Ember

Rating: 3.25🌈

I heard about this book and thought it sounded interesting so I picked it up. Plus I’m always looking for new authors and I love a western romance.

What I found was a novel that held a lot of promise. The story was interesting and the author’s writing was well done. Her descriptions, especially when it came to certain character.dynamics, was realistic and relatable.

But I feel the author undermines her story and her characters relationship development by the consistent yet uneven flashbacks inserted into the current storyline. Just as a reader starts getting invested in Robbie and Lance’s reunion and developing relationship, we are pulled immediately away from them into a flashback. Could be anytime frame, from when they were in grade school to teenagers, the flashbacks themselves are all over the place.

While it serves to fill in gaps in their background and tumultuous childhoods, basically all it does is disconnect us from the present and everything that’s starting to evolve there.

A simple “ remember when….” would have sufficed and not broken the narrative flow half as much as the herky jerky format the author proceeds with throughout this book.

There’s some very charming moments here. Those with the calf are adorable and realistic. Also the character of Robbie’s ex wife is lovely. Well defined and compassionate.

Had this book stayed in the present most of the time, I believe we would feel better and more importantly more deeply connected to everyone involved.

The other “half “ of this series or two parter for this couple is Signs of Spring. Hopefully the flashbacks are over and we can stay in the present. Then the other stories focus on the other Chase brothers.

I’m curious to see how much the format continues so I’m onto the next.

I do like the story but found the format took me out of the narrative too often to stay connected. The author has still done a lovely job with her characters and descriptions.

Check it out for yourself!

https://www.goodreads.com › showLong Winter (Wild Ones #1) by Rachel Ember – Goodreads

Wild Ones Duet:

✓ Long Winter #1

◦ Signs of Spring #2

◦ Burning Season #3

◦ As the Tallgrass Grows #4

Synopsis:

A complicated history divides them, but when they find themselves in close quarters while the snow falls, the heat between them builds slowly, and burns hot.

It’s been a long, cold winter at Riverside Ranch, where Robbie has lived alone since his brothers moved away. Alone, that is, except for his three devious cats, four saddle horses, and the forty-eight mustangs that roam the ranch.

Robbie is preparing for yet another snowfall when he gets the last call he expected—a plea to pick up Lance Taylor from the county jail.

Lance wasn’t just his little brother’s best friend, he was a part of the family. Then, one night, after Lance asked Robbie for something Robbie couldn’t give, he ran away and never came back.

Lance was sixteen and heartbroken when he left his middle-of-nowhere hometown. Six years later, he’s at rock bottom with nowhere else to go, and no one to turn to but Robbie, the man Lance has been inconveniently in love with for most of his life.

When Robbie offers Lance a place to stay, Lance expects a guest bedroom and awkward silences. Instead, he finds himself sharing Robbie’s one-room hayloft apartment and its single bed, while realizing that the old flame he carries for Robbie might not be so hopeless, after all.

Long Winter is the first book in the Wild Ones series and has a happy-for-now ending. Robbie and Lance’s story continues in Signs of Spring, to be released March 12, 2021.

Review: Pretty Poison (Sinister in Savannah #3) by Aimee Nicole Walker

Rating: 5🌈

I’ll start my review much the same as the author did. With trigger warnings.

Pretty Poison deals with some very traumatic issues. The main character of Rocky continues to suffer from PTSD, the emotional damage he carries deep from the trauma inflicted from a murder-suicide that occurred while he was on a case. That case and all that occurs happens in the Prologue. And while it’s not overly graphic, it’s emotionally disturbing enough to cause distress or harm for those people for whom it’s a trigger and anyone that might feel anxiety. That is something Rocky is also dealing with.

Pretty Poison is full of serious elements that get a extremely thorough examination without it feeling like a scientific lecture. In Mr Perfect, we learned of Rocky’s husband and a mention of Vegas wedding. But now we get to see the events that brought Rocky and his husband together but also devastated their marriage and his career.

It’s the detritus of a broken marriage that’s strewn across chapters as we learn , bit by bit, everything that tore them apart, just as the current case is bringing them back together.

Just a masterful job of characterization and writing.

In between we also have the ongoing heartbreak of knowing that Miss Marla is dying and the community is doing everything they can not to mourn as she’s asked. She’s still the fabulous heart of this series and the one the men turn to for hugs, love, irreverent advice,and an amazing casserole.

The case of Tess Hamilton that the men are investigating is as fascinating and labyrinthine as the others. It’s full of implications for each man’s past, reflections on redemption and forgiveness, and the ability to recover and heal to move forward.

Pretty Poison is an emotional journey and an extraordinary story. It’s an incredibly gratifying way to wrap up the Sinister in Savannah trilogy. Even more so since the author has promised to revisit this universe with stories for characters we met in each of the three novels who also deserve further attention.

I can’t wait. But I’m so happy to leave the men, their partners and Miss Marla here, in Savannah at this point in time.

This is a truly amazing series and shouldn’t be missed. Read them in the order they were written for the character, and series arc development.

I’m highly recommending all three.

Sinister in Savannah series:

✓ Ride the Lightning #1

✓ Mr. Perfect #2

✓ Pretty Poison #3

https://www.goodreads.com › showPretty Poison (Sinister in Savannah, #3) by Aimee Nicole Walker – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Redemption seeker. Chameleon. Damaged heart.

By day, Rocky Jacobs is a private investigator. By night, he produces Sinister in Savannah, a true-crime podcast, with his two best friends. Rocky’s life revolves around three principles: possessing skill is better than having luck, a man’s reputation is everything, and there’s no sacrifice too great for those you love.

Is Tess Hamilton pretty poison or just unlucky in love?

That’s the question the trio of trouble will try to uncover. This investigation strikes a little too close to home for one of them. Tess, a woman accused of killing her three husbands, has been tried and convicted in the media, something Rocky knows all too well. When their investigation turns up nothing but dead ends, Rocky will keep digging. Is it because he believes in her innocence? Or does Rocky hope to find redemption for himself by achieving it for Tess?

A stagnant case turns out to be the least of his problems.

What happens in Vegas never truly stays stay there. For fifteen months, Rocky has been running from a tragedy that shattered his life and countless others. The most painful casualty was the destruction of his marriage to Asher Dunleavy. When the sexy federal marshal turns up in Savannah, Rocky is reminded of his greatest love and deepest regret. Every minute spent in Asher’s presence makes him yearn for the life they lost. Will Rocky drown in the sorrows of what might’ve been or fight for what could be?

Sinister in Savannah series is a fictional podcast exploring the city’s most nefarious crimes with Southern-fried snark. The books explore friendship, love, loss, and the irrepressible human spirit. Pretty Poison is book three of three. While each novel is written about a different couple, the series should be read in order due to continuing storylines. Sinister in Savannah is an LGBT romantic suspense series with mature language and sexual content intended for adults eighteen and older.

Trigger warning: the main character struggles with PTSD resulting from an investigation involving a murder-suicide. While the content is not overly graphic, it could still cause emotional harm to some readers. One of Rocky’s side effects is anxiety, which may trigger similar reactions in those battling the disorder. As with the murder-suicide scene, I avoided being too graphic with his attacks.

Review: Mr. Perfect (Sinister in Savannah #2) by Aimee Nicole Walker

Rating: 5🌈

I wasn’t aware when I started the Sinister in Savannah series that each novel would feature one of the three men and close friends who run the podcast of the same title as this series.

All three books have Savannah as their atmospheric and historic heart. The series also has the formidable and magnificent Miss Marla as its heart, for the men and the community.

After that first book belongs to Jonas St John and his romance with Avery, along with an outstanding murder mystery.

The reverberations from that case carries over into Mr Perfect and Felix Franklin. Felix, an Investigative reporter, is and has been, due to their past history, at fierce odds with news anchor, Jude Arrow.

Another case brings Felix and the Sinister in Savannah team investigating local businesses, including one that brings Felix back into association with Jude.

Walker always points a microscopic lens towards whatever major character is involved in the story, peeling back layers to reveal the heart of the person beneath the facade or walls they’ve established. For Felix , it’s getting to see the damage done growing up extremely destitute with an unstable mother dealing with issues of addiction. A target for bullying, it left him , with no friends or idea of a home life. How he grew into the man he became is told over as their shared history is remembered.

The complicated mysteries, yes more than one, Felix and Jude’s emotionally fraught reunion, … it’s all folded into a tapestry of warm community stories, the main one being Miss Marla.

We are always aware that the clock is ticking down for that glorious person and every time Miss Marla is with us on the page is something to be savored.

That’s how real everyone feels here.

Aimee Nicole Walker doesn’t paint her narratives in black and white but in tones of greys and washes of color throughout the spectrum of the rainbow. It takes into account both life’s fragility and strengths, where people fail and where they struggle to pick themselves back up again.

There’s another connecting series to this so once finished here I’m onto that one.

But I’m not done here yet and neither is the author.

What a wonderful thing.

I’m highly recommending Mr. Perfect and Sinister in Savannah.

Read them in the order they are written.

Sinister in Savannah series:

✓ Ride the Lightning #1

✓ Mr. Perfect #2

◦ Pretty Poison #3

https://www.goodreads.com › showMr. Perfect (Sinister in Savannah, #2) by Aimee Nicole Walker – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Word-slinger. Purveyor of truth. Jaded heart.

By day, Felix Franklin is an investigative journalist. By night, he produces Sinister in Savannah, an investigative podcast, with his two best friends. Felix’s life revolves around three principles: fortune favors the bold, honesty is everything, and love is for schmucks.

The podcast is back to investigate allegations that a local businessman is dabbling in money laundering. On the surface, everything about Cameron Spencer, aka The Auto King, appears to be perfect. The trio of trouble quickly learns all that glitters is not gold. Seeking the truth will challenge Felix’s convictions and put his life in grave danger. The biggest threat to his well-being isn’t an unknown villain; it’s the reappearance of his first and only love.

Jude Arrow had it all: great looks, charming personality, and a lucrative career as Atlanta’s hottest news anchor. So, why had he recently relocated to Savannah? When the two reporters are forced to work together, Felix will get a chance to ask him. The answer will stun Felix until he remembers not to believe anything that comes out of the heartbreaker’s pretty mouth.

Love and hate are two sides of the same coin and just as conflicting as the battle of wills that ensues. Will the chip on Felix’s shoulder save him from trusting Mr. Wrong or ruin his chances with Mr. Perfect?

Sinister in Savannah series is a fictional podcast exploring the city’s most nefarious crimes with Southern-fried snark. The books explore friendship, love, loss, and the irrepressible human spirit. Mr. Perfect is book two of three. While each book is written about a different couple, the series should be read in order due to continuing storylines. Sinister in Savannah is an LGBT romantic suspense series with mature language and sexual content intended for adults eighteen and older.

Review: Gideon (Chosen Champions #2) by Macy Blake

Rating: 4.5

Gideon was a better tale, probably because so much of the exposition had been dealt with in Logan’s book that we’re familiar with most of the characters here.

We get the relationships happening and the new dynamics at play around the Warehouse, the headquarters for Logan’s team and new pack.

With a foundation set, a mystery arc laid out for us (again in Logan’s story), Gideon is ready for his next step forward.

For that, it’s also a trip back … towards his past with Taj, the incubus who broke his heart. We met Taj during the big investigation and now we learn the circumstances behind his conditions on this side of the Seal.

Sometimes it’s a tough thing getting a couples chemistry right, especially if it’s needed to be combustible immediately. That’s certainly not a issue here. Taj and Gideon are that romantic incendiary pair that also manages to be tragic and trapped in their past. They make this story.

Taj comes with a human best friend , Erich, who’s ignorant of the supernaturals around him, including Taj. A pair, like adopted brothers, Erich is a character we see a lot of.

The arc mystery started in the first story continues here, building its elements and characters through most investigations and cases. It’s the one aspect that’s adding on the danger and suspense in each book without giving any answers so far.

What is happening is that Logan’s family and pack is growing. Both supernatural and human beings by story and mate.

This was a terrific story and romance. I love seeing everyone and the steps forward they had taken. Including therapy for Bailey, and that his recovery is a process. Great job.

Next up is Aleron. Unfortunately, that’s not til March 22, 2022. I’ll be waiting.

I may check out some of the other connected series.

I’m definitely recommending the Chosen Champions, both stories. Read them in the order they were written.

Chosen Champions series:

✓ Logan #1

✓ Gideon #2

◦ Aleron #3 – coming March 22, 2022

https://www.goodreads.com › showGideon (Chosen Champions #2) by Macy Blake | Goodreads

Synopsis:

Gideon is a centuries-old vampire warrior with a broken heart…

Which is why he’s vowed never to risk it again. Instead, he’s channeled his passion and his legendary self-control into becoming a skilled protector — one who’s promised to wield his sword alongside a young wolf shifter leader on a mission from the mysterious Oracle to protect the human realm against the broken magic that threatens its very existence. He’s doing just fine without love, thank you very much… at least until his incubus ex reappears in his life.

Taj is an incubus without a home…

And that is every bit as unpleasant as it sounds. Banished to the human realm, Taj is learning the hard way that survival is for the fittest and, um… he’s not as fit as he thought he was. Not when his past keeps coming back to haunt him. Still, it’s only when another incubus is involved in a series of brutal attacks and Taj’s ex, Gideon, rides to the rescue that Taj learns just how dangerous this human realm might be to his life… and to his heart.

But although the fire between Gideon and Taj burns hotter than ever, they’ll need to break through the wall of secrets that divides them if they want a chance to set things right…

A second chance for the human realm.

A second chance at finding a home in the welcoming arms of their new pack.

And a second chance at building a future… together.

Review: Never Stay Gone (Big Bend Texas Rangers #1) by Tal Bauer

Rating: 4.5 🌈

I’ve been so busy with fantasy and contemporary romances that I’ve neglected one really great action suspense author. Tal Bauer.

Tal Bauer writes just amazing stories. Ones that might include such elements as government agencies and military spies, secret missions, and any number of inside sub terrorist organizations to deal with. Along with folding in a wonderful romance to boot.

Never Stay Gone is the author’s first story in his new Big Bend Texas Rangers series and it’s great. Jam-packed with so many of my favorite tropes, it’s a fast paced murder mystery and a second chance at a revived passionate relationship as two men race to find a killer. All throughout the unforgettable location of Big Bend Texas.

It’s starts with a terrifying find of a body dump by Deputy Shane Carson out in the desert wilds of Big Bend country Texas. It’s our initial introduction to the murder victims and one of the main characters.

Shane Carson is a small town’s native son who’s never lived up to its and his family’s huge expectations for him. He carries the years of his “failures” heavily. But Bauer’s created a more damaged man then evidenced on the outside.

Only by flashes of his past and glimpses into bits of his relationships with those outside of work does the reader realize Shane’s floundering there too.

It’s a realistic, painful portrait of a man deeply in trouble.

The reason why appears in the form of Texas Ranger Dakota Jennings, who’s been pulled by the Governor herself to handle the investigation into the multiple murders.

One reason? His history with the region and people. Second? One of the bodies worked for the Governor.

Dakota Jennings is as complex a man, albeit in a completely different way then Shane. Each man was damaged by their past with each other. Neither has ever moved forward.

How Shane and Dakota handle their reunion amidst murder, multiple investigations, heartbreak, forgiveness and redemption is a remarkable story.

It’s so compelling from just the personal elements alone as each man grapples with the past and the trauma it’s done to them. Add to that the police work as they track the killer and trace the identities of each victim. So gritty and tough.

This has first/only love, coming out, lovers reunited, second chance at love, hurt/comfort…all set in the dry open spaces of Big Bend country in Texas as a murderer tries to escape justice. It’s thrilling, heartbreaking, and an amazing suspenseful read!

I can’t wait to see where the series takes us!

If you’re not familiar with Tal Bauer, this is a wonderful place to start. I’m highly recommending this!

Big Bend Texas Rangers series:

Never Stay Gone #1

https://www.goodreads.com › showNever Stay Gone (Big Bend Texas Rangers #1) by Tal Bauer – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Six bodies in a single grave… in the same West Texas country where Dakota left everything behind.

Every beat of my heart belongs to you.

Thirteen years ago, Dakota Jennings thought he’d found his forever when he fell in love with Shane Carson. But one afternoon shattered their love story, and both Dakota and Shane left Rustler, Texas, with broken hearts. Even now, Dakota is still feeling the agony of losing Shane. Sure, he’s a Texas Ranger, but that’s not how he wanted to live his life. All he ever wanted was to love Shane.

Loving you is the only time I feel alive.

Shane’s life was supposed to be different than this. There’d been a plan, ever since he was knee-high to his father. But falling for Dakota spun Shane’s world upside down, and for years, Shane has had nothing but the memories of all that he lost: Dakota’s gentle touch, and the sweetness of his lips, and the star-strewn nights they spent wrapped in each other’s arms.

West of the Pecos, there is no law.

When the Rangers get the call about six bodies being pulled out of a mass grave in West Texas, the governor sends Dakota to run the investigation. Dakota heads back to his hometown and comes face-to-face with the last man he ever expected to see again: only now, he’s Deputy Shane Carson… Dakota’s local partner assigned to the case.

There’s nothing Dakota wants more than a second chance with Shane, but so much is stacked against them: six corpses, a murderer on the loose, and history that refuses to stay buried. And the bodies keep piling up as Dakota and Shane try to run the killer down across the West Texas plains.

In a moment, everything changes: the hunters become the hunted, the past fractures, and all Dakota thought he knew comes tumbling down. Secrets break wide open as Dakota remembers–

This is West Texas, and out here, nothing is as it seems.


Big Bend County is a place of beauty and desolation, of secrets and small towns. Where the past and the present collide, and where nothing stays hidden forever.

This MM romantic suspense is the first in the new Big Bend Texas Rangers series. Come along for the West Texas sunsets, the heart-pounding thrills, and the hard-won Happy Ever Afters.

Review: The Christmas Tenor (Laurel Holidays #3) by V. L. Locey

Rating: 4.5 🌈⛄️

My holiday reading continues with V.L. Locey’s The Christmas Tenor, the 3rd novel in her Laurel Holidays series, each a standalone story.

The Christmas Tenor is a very sweet, sexy holiday romance between a older, withdrawn widower and a young confident singer,. The older man is Cabriolet Vermat who withdrew from everyone and everything following the death of his famous actor husband from cancer . The exceptions being his twin brother and his incredibly successful business, Cabriolet Chauffeur Services and the people who help him run it.

Cabriolet and his twin brother, Pierre, are incredible characters. Indeed, it’s actually hard to separate them I. My mind. Not because of their personalities, because those are quite distinct! But because the author has done such a fabulous job of creating such a tight emotionally deep close bond between these brothers that , even for them, to be separated feels wrong.

From the ages old banter that flows between them to the ability to hurt as well, this brotherly dynamic (and Pierre’s flare with his wardrobe) was as popular with me as was the main romance. Adore these brothers…and now Pierre needs a true love FYI!

Those two are dealing with so many compelling issues. There’s Cabriolet’s inability to move past his husband’s death. Pierre’s inability to accept their mother’s rejection of their gayness and essential abandonment. Age has nothing to do with loss and pain and love.

This is handled so beautifully.

Julian Baez is also a fascinating, well defined character. Younger, decisive about his goals for himself and his needs, especially what they consist in a relationship, Jules is a dynamic, sexy personality. Who likes older black men. He’s extremely clear on why that is, his expectations, and the need for someone like that in his life. While making it less like a PowerPoint presentation and more a reasonable life choice.

I loved Jules too. Maybe not with the adoration I have for Cabriolet and Pierre but it’s definitely there. They are a great match. Locey makes us see the chemistry and get how it works for them both.

The only reason it’s a smidge under 5 🌈 is I felt that ending was a bit rushed. It went from Cab slowly making one decision, to one change, then another, then another. That may be how it works in the mucin world but I didn’t think how It showed Jules handled it was in keeping with the character “who was a take charge “ of his future sort.

So I thought there was a bit of fumbling there at the end to get them where the author needed them to go.

However, that’s a slight issue. The epilogue is wonderful and the journey to get there overwhelmingly heartwarming and sweet.

I really enjoyed this. I think you will too. Add it to your TBR holiday list. I’m highly recommending this!

Laurel Holidays series:

https://www.goodreads.com › seriesLaurel Holidays Series by V.L. Locey – Goodreads

A trip that he thought would bring him only pain is about to present him with the greatest gift of all.

For three years now, Cabriolet Vermat has put off, wiggled out of, and outright lied to get out of making this dreaded trip east. The owner of Cabriolet Chauffeur Services in Los Angeles has avoided the yearly invitation to the small town of White Bridge, New York, to speak at their alumni winter gathering but this year they’ve outfoxed him. They’re throwing a dinner to honor his late partner’s dedication to his alma mater and have asked Cab to speak. This time he has to go no matter how much pain it will stir up. Arriving in the picturesque small town beside one of the Finger Lakes, Cab is treated to a special performance of holiday songs and there he sees Julian Gabriel Baez for the first time.
The young singer captivates him immediately, and he finds himself seeking out the much younger man after the performance. The pull he feels toward Jules is unlike anything he’s felt since he met his partner years ago. Confusion and desire war within him, but the outgoing young tenor wins him over with his engaging smile and kind heart. A two-day trip soon turns into an extended holiday vacation. Cab worries that the magic of Christmas will quickly fizzle out and he’ll be alone once more. Or will this festive season bestow a blessing of the heart upon a man who thought he would never love again?

The Christmas Tenor is a standalone small-town gay Christmas romance with a beautiful May-December relationship, a lonely widower, a rising opera star, loving families, and plenty of holiday joy.

Review: Sundae’s Best (Briar County #2) by Riley Hart

Rating: 5🌈

In Riley Hart’s Introduction, the author talks about the desire to create something different with this series. Instead of serial stories linked together, Hart wanted a narrative playground. One where standalone stories could have roots and flourish amidst a familiar foundation, a wide universe.

So Hart started creating Briar County, North Carolina. With its small towns like Harmony and Everett, and it’s wonderful town stores, restaurants, and community gathering places and events like the Covington Farm Goatalapoloozas Briar County quickly becomes a group of places that feels like home.

Populated by people we invest in and connect to. They flow in and out and around these stories just as you would see people in your own community.

What a rich tapestry Hart has created for this series and us.

Sundae’s Best is such a remarkable story. It starts from a place of grief, pain, loss, and an emptiness, and growing need for two men connected by death of two beloved people. One is looking for connection and a home. The other? He’s not sure. But he’s feeling empty even though he’s surrounded by community and family who love him.

Sundae’s Best, the name of Deacon’s ice cream store, is a gentle, heartwarming, incredibly well written and moving love story. Its so sweet and low key, realistic, fumbling even, as Grady and Deke find their way to friendship through their mutual love, grief over their loss of Nathan and Birdy. Then it’s so sweet as it gradually turns into something more, deeper, turning into love.

We watch as Deke has to wrestle with his new feelings ( never confused that he does love Grady but over all those terms) and everyone trying to define him when he hasn’t figured out things other that he needs Grady. That’s so understandable and believable too.

All the small town dynamics at place, the positive and negative, are on display.

There’s also an amazing aspect of this book that deals with Grady’s past and his family’s reaction to his sexuality. Again, Hart’s characters are so well defined and layered that so you feel their emotions and understand their actions.

There isn’t one part of this book that doesn’t hold up to intense scrutiny. It’s just that good.

My complaint? I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to stay there…. Eating Sticky Bourbon ice cream,playing with the goats… and wanting to know what happens next in their lives.

In short. Briar County has me hooked. It has made a friend. Made me want to stay.

I think you’ll feel the same. Start here. Go for the first. Doesn’t matter. Just head on over and make your acquaintance. I’m highly recommending you do!

Briar County series:

Firefly Lane #1

Sundae’s Best #2

Synopsis:

Grady Dalton is in a rut. He’s thirty-eight, without a boyfriend, and has yet to find the place that feels like home. The closest he ever got was his best friend, Nathan. But it’s been seven years since he passed, and life isn’t getting easier. That’s how he ends up in Briar County, hoping to grow roots in the place Nathan had loved.

Deacon Sharpe spends his days serving homemade ice cream at Sundae’s Best and his nights alone, pretending he’s getting by after his wife’s death better than he is. His world is rocked when a man shows up who claims to have been his brother-in-law’s best friend and seems to miss Nathan as much as Deacon misses Patty.

Their losses connect them, but soon, the weight of their loneliness eases with laughter, making ice cream, and Grady reminding Deacon of what it feels like to be held again. Deacon tells himself it’s platonic. How can it be more when he’s forty and has never been with a man, never even been attracted to one? But then, he’d never felt those things about anyone other than Patty either. And when Grady touches him…kisses him…nothing else matters, and the rest of the world melts away.

Together they can deal with family drama, small-town gossip, and Deacon’s newly discovered feelings. But as it often does, life has one more curveball to throw their way…

Sundae’s Best is a small-town, bi/demisexual awakening romance, with characters who like to be held, swoony moments, a dog named Moose, and lots of ice cream. Sundae’s Best can be read as a standalone.

https://www.goodreads.com › showSundae’s Best (Briar County, #2) by Riley Hart – Goodreads

Review: Snowed (Boston Rebels #3) by R.J. Scott and V.L. Locey

Rating: 4.5 🌈

Kyle Lourenco, goalie for the Boston Rebels, has been a quietly interesting character in this series . Mentioned in quite a few books, he’s been a somewhat enigmatic peripheral character. Someone we didn’t know as well as we had the others but a person still likable and within our “hockey family “ fold.

This story abruptly changes that. And it sees Kyle returning home to family and a man he left physically behind but never emotionally.

The location is northbound Manitoba, and members of Kyle’s family as well as others in the small town of Eagles Ridge are Indigenous peoples. It allows the authors to include elements of that culture into this story for an additional richness of location and character. I really appreciated this aspect of the story.

The location also adds to the authenticity of the brutality of winter and freezing conditions the story is founded upon. Snowed indeed.

The character of Kyle is a haunted one, his personality tormented by a childhood amnesia and constant nightmares that no one has been able to determine the cause of. Add to that the fact that he’s left or abandoned (depending upon perspective) his family, friends, and love for the NHL. And you have a deeply complicated tormented man in need of help.

Christian Gauthier is the man and love Kyle left behind. A love he still carries while working in his store or running search and rescue missions.

When the men reconnect during a blizzard, it sets off all sorts of unexpected events. To go further would spoil the fun and indeed, some of the shockers too,

This is a emotional ride of all sorts. There’s a scary mystery, lovers reunited, second chance at love, family homecoming….all sorts of goodness here.

I thoroughly enjoyed this. And the ending seemed just right for this couple.

I wonder what book 4 will bring.

I’m definitely recommending this story. It’s a winner!

Boston Rebels series:

Lost in Boston #0.5

Top Shelf #1

Back Check #2

Snowed #3

Synopsis:

A second chance at love is all Kyle wants for Christmas, but a dark menace from his past wants him dead, and love is second to staying alive.

Kyle Lourenco has carved out a comfortable life and career for himself in Boston. With the holidays quickly approaching, he’s heading home for the first time in several years. Home to his loving parents and the small Canadian town where he was raised. And home to Christian, his best friend and the first man to steal his heart.

Just as a winter storm begins to blow in, it forces Kyle off the road only miles from home and a dark and sinister force from his past creeps ever closer. His only hope is getting to Christian’s cabin before the evil that has haunted him for years finally catches up to him.

Best friends since they were three, Christian Gauthier grew up next door to Kyle, in a remote mountain town with one stoplight and a forty-mile round trip to the nearest school. When Kyle left town for a shot at a professional hockey career, he took Christian’s heart with him. Even though he knew Kyle was always destined for bigger things, it hadn’t stopped Christian from falling for him as soon as he knew what love was.

With Christmas coming soon and a major snowstorm heading their way, Christian shuts the doors to the family store and heads to his cabin, where he will be on standby as an official volunteer for Search and Rescue. He has never regretted staying in Eagle Ridge, but a near miss on a simple rescue leads him to reevaluate everything, and when Kyle ends up at his door, he knows that guarding his heart might not be the best solution after all.

https://www.goodreads.com › showSnowed by R.J. Scott – Goodreads

Review: Keeping Promises by Jodi Payne and B.A. Tortuga

Rating: 4🌈

Cowboys n Kids rides again in a new release from authors Jodi Payne and B.A.Tortuga. This time is a pair of divorced dads, one’s a rodeo cowboy, who get their second chance at HEA. With a very cute couple of kids very much a part of the mixture.

This works well primarily because of a sense of established relationship between Jeremy M. Dunn and his ex rodeo cowboy West Belen.

You do get the sense that, however much time has passed, feelings were never the issue. So as a death and injury drives one home and the other to reach out for help, it feels real instead of rushed.

What’s nice is the slower pace here towards a permanent situation. It needs communication, something they weren’t very good at when younger.

The story has many sweet and delightful elements. The kids are great, each taking the reappearance and talks of permanence in their own ways. There’s also a pair of younger adorable rodeo cowboys who end up at Jeremy and West’s home like a couple of lost Golden Retrievers.

I would love to see them again.

Overall, a terrific heartwarming romance of lovers reunited and happy second chances of HEA.

And holidays!

It’s a treat to read. And it’s one I’m recommending.

Keeping Promises by Jodi Payne – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Jeremy M. Dunn III has the single dad thing down, so the last thing he wants to do is call his ex-husband to ask for help with their two kids. They didn’t part on good terms, and they’ve barely spoken since the divorce. But with a cast on his arm that goes up past his elbow, Jeremy has no choice. He needs a few days to figure out how to bathe their daughter, make school lunches and parent their son one-armed, and there isn’t anyone else he can ask for help.

Former rodeo cowboy West Belen was already on his way back to his kids, and to Trey (“the third”, his nickname for Jeremy). He made a promise to try again, and he means to keep it, so when he sees his chance to move back into his family’s life, he grabs it like the brass ring he knows it is. He’s determined to be more than an “every other weekend” dad to his children, and he doesn’t want to keep on living with regret about how he and Trey ended.

Jeremy still desires West, but he isn’t sure he can trust West to be responsible and available. West still thinks Trey is the hottest thing he’s ever seen, but he has no idea how to convince the man he’s ready to settle down. The two of them have never had trouble butting heads, but now they need to learn to work together to make a home for themselves and their kids where they both belong

Review: Bigger Than Us by B.A. Tortuga and Jodi Payne

Rating: 4 🌈⛄️

Artist Daniel McCaverty and businessman Mitchell Brown were both close friends of Adam who has just died of cancer. His Will has irrecoverably changed both mens lives forever, leaving them intertwined with those of two young children, one a baby. Two men, two children, and one house . That’s equals a family…

Bigger Than Us is among the latest of what authors Jodi Payne and B.A. Tortuga are calling their “shoe stories “ and I call their cowboys n kids books.

They have cowboys, a city boy, kids, a second chance at love, and a major drama/trauma that pulls the two men together to form a family.

Here , as it’s been in several stories, it’s been a death by cancer of a guardian or parent, that lets the men step in and take charge.

I liked both characters of Dan and Mitch, both very different from each other. Dan for me was more fascinating and his background and history raised a lot of questions that were never satisfactorily answered. I think if I had gotten more of Dan’s past, it would have raised the rating higher. Because I felt we were going to get his background then the authors never came back to it. Too bad. He’s a compelling personality.

Dan and Mitch’s love story also comes about quickly. But they acknowledge the fast pace, communicate their doubts and questions about their situation, the kids, their relationship, everything that’s been fast tracked… just as adults should. And that element, the ability for the men to voice their own issues with everything that happened so fast actually makes the reader happier and ok with the love and warmth occurring on the pages in front of us.

The kids? Priceless. Act and talk like kids. Especially Vicki who’s hurting and acting up because she’s scared and mad and little. And wants her Dad back. Your heart will ache for her.

This story runs through Thanksgiving and ends at Christmas so for me it’s a holiday story. Sweet, sad, heartwarming, and loving.

I enjoyed it, especially the ending even if it stopped a bit abruptly. Still happy.

Side note. What is going on in Burlington, Vermont? Did I miss the heart eyes text for Burlington where it’s now the romance destination ?

Anyway, add this to your holiday TBR pile. You will absolutely enjoy it.

Bigger Than Us

Synopsis:

When Daniel McCaverty gets the call that his best friend and mentor up in Vermont has cancer, he expects to have plenty of time to go help. He never expects that Adam will be gone before he gets there, or that he will suddenly be in charge of Adam’s two small children. He’s a loner, an artist, and a wanderer. What’s he supposed to do now?

Mitchell Brown is a white-collar kind of guy. Organized. Careful. He has a plan in place for Adam’s kids long before Daniel arrives, and is shocked when Daniel is given custody. But for Vicky and Emory, he’s willing to put his hurt and confusion aside to help Daniel figure things out, to make the whole situation work.

Daniel and Mitch have to deal with a tidal wave of grief while getting one kid started in school, and keeping up with their work. But they’re going to have to figure out their unexpected attraction to each other if they’re going to build something together that’s bigger than either one of them alone