Review of Merry Christmas, Baby by Jill Shalvis

Merry Christmas, Baby by Jill Shalvis

Chloe Thompson has everything a girl could ask for a great husband, amazing sisters and a great job. However, things shake up in her life when she finds out that she is pregnant. This is a surprise because neither Chloe or her husband Sawyer ever thought they would be parents because of their difficult childhoods. To bring in more money for his growing family Sawyer starts working additional jobs which takes him away from his wife and growing child. This puts strain on their marriage as Chloe worries that her husband won't come home and that she will have to raise her child alone. Will Sawyer and Chloe be able to make their marriage work? Will Chloe be able to relax and enjoy this holiday season?

In this short novella Jill brings you humor, tears, family and friends.

My Review:

I am a huge fan of Jill Shalvis and her Lucky Harbor series so when I heard that she was ending it I was sad but also understood why she was doing so. However, I am very grateful that she gave us another Christmas book, "Merry Christmas, Baby" and that she had my favorite two characters Sawyer and Chloe being the main storyline. Out of all the books that I have read in the Lucky Harbor series theirs was the story that I connected with the most so when I found out that Jill was having them have a baby I was ecstatic!

Again Jill did a great job of setting the scene of the book and her writing as always was excellent. I think that she does a great job of mixing romance, emotion and laughter all into her books and really has you caring for her characters.

Great job Jill. I can't wait to read more of your books and hope that you come out with another great series like Lucky Harbor!

Review of A Matter of Heart by Tracie Peterson

A Matter of Heart by Tracie Peterson

Book Three in the Lone Star Bride series begins a couple months after Alice and Robert have wed and have welcomed a child. This story centers around Jessica Atherton who we first met in the second book and Austin Todd who is a cattle inspector.

Jessica is on a journey to find out who she is and what God has in store for her after, Robert the boy she was groomed to marry, marries someone else. Well on her journey and after dealing with countless suitors she meets two men Harrison Gable and Austin Todd. Two very different men both after the same thing, Jessica's heart.

Austin Todd, a former agent moves to Texas to be a cattle inspector has no plans to make friends or meet women. However, things change when he meets the Barnett's and Jessica Atherton. Not only does he make friends in the Barnett's but also helps them resolve a mystery that has been plaguing Jake and Marty since moving back to Texas from Denver.

My Review:

This is the second book that I have read in this series by Tracie Peterson and I love it. I was a little apprehensive of her choosing Jessica as the one of the main characters as I was not a fan of her in the first book. Tracie surprised me though and really had her grow throughout the whole book. I actually ended up really liking her and rooting for her and Austin to end up together.

What I think Tracie did very well and what in my opinion a very smart move on her part was having a certain story line cross over into all three books. I really liked this because I love to keep up to date on characters from the other books and see how they grow. I am interested to see if she will be adding anymore to the series or if this will be the last one as I really like these set of characters.

Lastly, I think that Tracie did a great job of setting the scene and developing the characters really week. You really felt like you were back in time on the ranch raising cattle with the Barnetts and
Athertons.

This is definitely a book that I recommend to both christian fiction and fiction readers.

Review of Christmas Ranch by RaeAnne Thayne

Christmas Ranch 

Hope Nichols has always been on the move from the day she graduated college. Traveling and teaching English in foreign countries. That is until years later when she feels like the only place she is meant to be is at Christmas Ranch. However, when Hope returns she finds that ranch is in dispare and that her family needs her more than ever. In need of immediate extra help Hope agrees to hire Rafe Santiago a retired navy seal and his nephew. Little does she know that Rafe has a secret that could turn her and her family upside down?

Rafe Santiago comes to Pine Gulch with one thing on his mind and that is to be there for his nephew in his time of need. However, things shake up in his life when his nephew throws a rock at Hope's window shattering it and leaving a debt to be repaid. In exchange for paying off his nephews debt and in hopes of earning extra money well awaiting his sisters trial Rafe offers to help Hope and her family get their christmas ranch up and running. Will Rafe be able to keep his secret buried about his connection to Hope and her family? Can Rafe and Hope deny their connection and just remain co-workers?


My Review:

I received an ARC copy of The Christmas Ranch from the author in exchange for an honest unbiased review. This was the first story of RaeAnne's that I have read that is not part of a series. The reason I bring this up is that some authors that I have read can not do stand alone novels well and do better sas series. For RaeAnne this was not a problem. I thought she did a great job with this novel giving you enough backstory on the characters that I felt comfortable with this just being one book if she meant it to be. In addition, I really love in all RaeAnne's books that she does a great job of knowing what she is writing. What I mean by that is that you could tell that she did research because she went more in depth on certain situations that some other writers might refrain from.

I can't say there was any negatives in this book for me. I felt again that it was well written and that the characters were very well developed. If I had to say one negative it would be that if this isn't a series it should be because I would love to know more about Hope's sisters as I feel there is a lot more to know about them.

I would recommend this book to romance, fiction and holiday readers as I think all would enjoy it.