Series: Larkville Legacy (Book 7)
Larkville hero comes home!
Returning
Special Forces soldier Nate Calhoun is struggling to adjust to
small-town life. It's a relief to get back to the bunkhouse with only
his memories and a bottle of bourbon for company.
Only Sarah
Anderson can see straight through Nate's surly exterior to his pain. As
childhood sweethearts they were inseparable—until he left, shattering
her heart.
But hanging out like they used to—racing horses and
shooting the breeze on the ranch—they begin to see that there really
might be that spark still between them….
Very good book. Nate has come home, but is hiding out from his friends and family. He is trying to deal with the memories of what happened and not doing a very good job of it. He won't let anyone get close - until Sarah doesn't take no for an answer. Even though he broke her heart, she still knows him and can see how much he's hurting. I really liked the way that Sarah kept telling Nate that she was there for him. She was willing to risk her heart again to help him. She was also strong enough to stand up to him when he tried to chase her away. Her biggest problem was having the courage to share her secret with him and trust that he will stand by her. Nate is dealing with horrific memories and guilt that just won't go away. It gives him nightmares and he is angry all the time. At first he doesn't want to share anything with Sarah, since he also feels guilty about the way he left her and angry about her marriage to someone else. But he soon appreciates her persistence and is able to open up to her. He also admits to himself that his love for her had never gone away. I liked the way that he took the time to tell her his plans at the end and reinforce to her that he would be back. I hope that the last book gives updates on how these later couples are doing.
Series: Larkville Legacy (Book 5)
The small-town girl with big dreams has finally
reached Hollywood! For years, costume designer Megan Calhoun has longed
to be seen for who she is, not who she isn't. But under the gaze of
A-list heartthrob Adam Noble, this Cinderella begins to step out of the
shadows….
Adam hides from his painful past behind every role he plays. But
something in Megan is threatening to smash apart this carefully
constructed facade. Will he finally take his biggest risk…throw away the
script and open his heart?
Very good book. For most of her life, Megan felt out of place in her own family with her dreams of being a Hollywood costume designer. Now that she has graduated from college she has gotten a job as an intern in Hollywood. She is determined to do well but feels somewhat overwhelmed. During her first week she meets Adam who she initially thinks is a pretty obnoxious guy. I really liked her focus on folowing her dreams. I was pretty disgusted with her family, that not one of them could be bothered to show up for her graduation. I don't blame her for wanting to get away from them. I liked the way that she stayed true to herself and didn't play the stupid Hollywood games. She did a good job trying to follow her boss's rules and just being a friend with Adam in spite of the strong attraction between them. I also liked the way that her friends and her boss came through for her when Adam was being a jerk. I mostly liked Adam, but there were a couple times when Megan should have really made him work to get back in her good graces. He was basically a nice guy, though very good at playing the Hollywood game. He used his image to help him keep his emotions safe. There was something about Megan that he really liked and he found himself wanting to help her learn the ropes. He also liked the fact that she didn't suck up to him but treated him as a normal guy. Unfortunately he made two real boneheaded mistakes in the way he treated her, mostly because he was afraid of the way she made him feel. After the second time she called him on it and pretty much told him to go away until he grew up. It had a good ending. I would really like to see what happens when she brings him back to Larkville with her, and what everyone's reactions are after the way she was treated.
Series: Larkville Legacy (Book 4)
It's well-known in Larkville that "no" is pretty
much the sum total of cowboy Holt Calhoun's vocabulary ever since his
marriage ended.
Single mom-to-be Kathryn Ellis won't take no for an answer. She needs
Holt's influence, as head of the town's most powerful family, to save
the local clinic before her baby is born!
But an early arrival with Kathryn's sparkling eyes and heart-melting
smile makes it impossible for Holt to turn on his spurred heel and walk
away.…
Very good book. I liked both Holt and Kathryn. Kathryn was back home after the end of her marriage as she tries to get her life back on track. One thing she wants to do is get a new medical clinic built in Larksville. This needs community involvement and she needs some help with that. The best person is Holt, but he is being hard to get, ignoring her calls. She finally goes to the ranch and confronts him in person. Kathryn convinces him to help, but he wants to do it his own way. Kathryn needs this project to go well so that she can use it to get a job and support her baby. She had had a crush on Holt when in school and finds that the feelings are still there. She sees that he gives the appearance of not caring, but she can see that there is a caring man beneath the surface bitterness. I liked the growth she shows in learning to stand up for herself and go after what she needs. Holt had had a lot of losses in his life and developed his attitude as a form of protection. No matter what he did, Kathryn didn't give up on getting his help, and he soon found that he wanted to be involved. Kathryn and her baby had worked their way into his heart but he still felt that he had nothing to offer. I liked the way that even though he swore he wasn't interested in doing anything but work his ranch, he was the one the townspeople went to when they needed help. This showed me that he was a lot more caring than he let on. I liked the way that he choked up at the end when Kathryn gave him her gift.
Series: Larkville Legacy (Book 6)
One night in Rome...
Tired of being in the
shadow of her prettier, more popular sisters, Charlotte Patterson
decides to leave Manhattan behind and discover just what Italy's la
dolce vita has to offer-good food, fine wine...delicious men?
But
even Charlotte's Roman holiday can't help her escape a devastating
family secret back in Larkville, Texas, and she finds herself seeking
solace in the arms of mysterious widower Lucio Constello. Unable to
deny their attraction, they share one intensely passionate night
together-a night that will affect them more than they could possibly
imagine....
Very good book. Charlotte has run away to Italy and is enjoying the traveling and learning more about Italy. One night in Rome she meets Lucio and has an incredible night with him. In the morning he is gone and she goes on with her travels. A couple months later she tracks him down and lets him know that he is going to be a father. I really liked both Lucio and Charlotte. His fiancee had died in a tragic accident shortly before they were married. He had loved her very much and felt guilty over her death. He made the decision that he would stay in control of his emotions and avoid love. By keeping himself apart he could avoid hurt. When he met Charlotte there was something that drew him to her. He liked her attitude and her complexity of personality. The intensity of their passion spooked him and he left while she was sleeping. He was stunned when she gave him her news, but then asked her to come and stay with him while they decided what to do. He was impressed with the way she interacted with his fellow businessmen and really enjoyed getting to know her. He was incredibly protective, but still tried to keep his distance. He nearly lost everything before he realized the depth of his feelings. Charlotte was trying to cope with the revelations about her family. She was also feeling very much an outsider to them as she was the last to know about it. She met Lucio when she was feeling vulnerable and he seemed to know how she felt. When she went to him with her pregnancy she wasn't expecting to be made part of his life. She quickly felt more at home there than she did with her own family. She also found herself falling hard and fast for Lucio the more she got to know him. She also got the feeling most of the time that he didn't feel as strongly about her, but she was willing to be patient. She would occasionally catch a glimpse of something that would give her hope, but she didn't get the words she needed. I really liked the ending and the way that Lucio chose to show the depth of his love. I also loved the tour of Italy I got while reading this book.
Series: Larkville Legacy (Book 3)
Alexandra Patterson swaps city chic for the dusty
outback when she arrives at Werrara Stud Ranch. As the new vet, she may
be more used to pampered puppies than prized stallions, but Alex is
determined to show that she can cut it.…
Brooding rancher Jack Connor is in for a shock -- the women in his life
have only ever caused him pain and anguish…and Alexandra was supposed to
be Alexander. Instead, the person before him is a petite blonde with a
pink suitcase and is distractingly, infuriatingly attractive!
Good book. Alex had left New York for this job in Australia. She wants to work with horses and no one at home will give her a chance because she's small, blond and female. She gets a rude awakening when she arrives, as the ranch is a mess and the owner thought she was a man. He doesn't want a female there, but when an emergency comes up he has to admit she knows what she's doing. Jack is a loner. He keeps himself emotionally closed off as caring has only brought him pain and he's done with that. But Alex can't let that go on. There's a family nearby that's in distress and Alex forces him to take action. The young boy idolizes Jack, even though Jack refuses to pay him any attention because that's just one more step toward caring. Alex just keeps chipping away at Jack's isolation. They have intense attraction to each other and Alex tells Jack that they can enjoy it for the rest of her time there, no strings. That intent starts to disappear pretty quickly on her part, and she finds herself dreaming of what might be. Jack still refuses to let himself care, and things start to fall apart. A near tragedy finally shows Jack that he already cares and that he can't let his fears of what might happen stop him from living. Alex is the sister of Ellie (from Book 2 Slow Dance with the Sheriff) and we learn a little more of the back story of this series.
Series: Larkville Legacy (Book 1)
Home...
Single mom Jess Calhoun had learned
the hard way not to trust a man in a Stetson; her young son's dad was
long gone. But that doesn't stop Jess from noticing good-lookin',
sweet-talkin' cowboy Johnny Jameson swagger into town. He's as wild and
untamed as the stallions he trains.
...is where the girl who's stolen his heart is
The
attraction between them is as fiery as a Texan summer and Johnny finds
himself questioning whether he could finally put down roots-in
Larkville, a place where two very special people have taken hold of his
heart.
Good book. Jess Calhoun is raising her son by herself. She'd fallen in love with a cowboy who didn't stick around when he found out she was pregnant, and now she is very cautious about trusting any man. Johnny has come to the ranch to train a stallion belonging to her late father. Johnny has always been a rolling stone, going where he wanted to and not settling down anywhere. But he has found that being around Jess and Brady makes him want things he has never wanted before. His attraction to Jess is strong and he finds thoughts of forever keep sneaking into his mind. And though he has never been comfortable around children before, Brady makes him think about being part of a family. But he is afraid that he can't be what they need and keeps telling Jess that he won't stay, that moving on is what he does. I really loved Johnny and how good he was with Brady. You can tell a lot about a man by the way he behaves with kids, and Brady knew he could trust Johnny. I loved the part at the rodeo when Johnny came back. The epilogue did a good job of setting up the next book.
Series: Larkville Legacy (Book 2)
When New York came to Texas...
Ex-ballerina Eleanor Patterson is the darling of Manhattan's
society-until she discovers her pedigree background is a lie. So she
heads to sleepy Larkville for answers....
Sheriff Jed Jackson never expected to rescue a stunning woman from a
herd of cattle, or to be so fascinated by the vulnerability beneath
Ellie's tough city veneer. Yet watching her unwind is irresistible, and
as he helps her learn to dance again he wants to give both Ellie and
himself a new beginning....
Good book. I liked both Ellie and Jed. Ellie came to Larkville to connect with the family she just found out about. No one was at home just then, so she ended up renting a room from the sheriff. Ellie was very skittish and had terrible self esteem. As a dancer she had developed an eating disorder and she is still recovering from the toll it took on her body. I liked seeing her as she started to recover. She also got involved in some things in town and made some friends. Jed came to Larkville as sheriff, escaping his own memories of a slain partner and lover. I really liked seeing the two of them together. Jed could see how fragile Ellie was, and was very patient and gentle with her whenever they were together. He was attracted to her, but afraid of commitment, so refused to give in to his developing feelings. He kept thinking it could be just a fling since she was just visiting and he doesn't date locals. When he found out she was actually family to a local he got angry and said some terrible things to her, and she did too. Just as she was getting ready to leave town her family came back and she went to see them. She and Jed also saw each other again and were able to work things out.
