Once in a Lifetime by Jill Shalvis

Once in a Lifetime 

In the 9^th installment of the Lucky Harbor series we meet Ben McDaniel a widow who for the past couple of years has been in war torn countries helping improve local communities. In addition, you also meet Aubrey Wellington, the local girl who everyone calls trouble who is trying to revitalize her Aunts old bookstore.  These two unlikely people are brought together when Aubrey’s aunt hires Ben to help finish renovating the store.  Having talked very little to each other in high school will they be able to tolerate each other enough to finish this store?

All Aubrey wants to do is make her aunts bookstore successful while adding in a little of herself to it. However, things don’t go as planned when she stumbles into an AA meeting where she realizes that she may be able to right the wrongs of her past. Put first she will need to make the people of Lucky Harbor realize that she isn’t the trouble teen she used to be.  Unfortunately she soon figures out it might not be so easy as she thought when the top person on her list to apologize to is Ben who has no idea what she did to him.

Will Aubrey be able to right her wrongs and keep herself from falling for Ben McDaniel’s? Will Ben be able to get through this carpentry job without falling for Aubrey and will he be able to forgive her when she tells him the truth?

My Review:

This is the 9^th book in the Lucky Harbor series that I have read of Jill’s. Once again Jill does not disappoint. She is able to write a great story that incorporates love, friendship and laughter.  Because Jill does a great job of describing the characters I was once again able to really feel like I knew them and the emotions that they were going through.

In addition, Jill does a great job of incorporating previous characters from other books into this book. I think this is great because as a reader you like to read about previous characters to see how their love story has evolved.

Lastly, I really loved the humor in this book. From Lucille the well-known gossip of Lucky Harbor to Aubrey’s cat who she inherited when she took over the bookstore.  Jill does a great job of combining fiction and real life things that happen in her life into a great story.

Jill once again created a spectacular book and I can’t wait to read more books from her. I think that even though this book is a part of a series it can be read individually. There are only a couple spots in the book that they refer to things that happened in previous books.

For All Time by Jude Deveraux

For All Time by Jude Deveraux

For All Time

****I received this book courtesy of Netgalley in return for a honest and non-biased review.

The second book in the Nantucket Bride Trilogy takes place a couple months after Alix and Jared Montogmery’s story ends. This particular story begins at Alix and Jared’s wedding and centers around Toby (Jared and Alix’s good friend) and Graydon (Jared’s cousin).

Graydon is in town for his cousins wedding and plans to just have a relaxing week not thinking about his royal duties back home. However, things change when his other half in the wedding gives him a dirty looks before they walk down the aisle. Wanting to know more about Toby and why she doesn’t like him, Graydon decides to sneak her away from the party and have a candlelight dinner with her.  After talking and enjoying Toby’s company Graydon works out a plan with his twin brother to stay longer than a week so he can find out more about Toby.

The story continues centering mostly on Toby and Graydon’s relationship and struggle. However, Jude also brings Toby’s roommates story in as well as Victora Madsen and her Dr.

Will Toby be able to keep her relationship with Graydon more casual or will she end up falling in love? Will Graydon decide to leave the only life he has every known to be with the woman he loves?  

My Review

This is the fourth book that I have read of Judes and the second one in this series.  I really liked the first one so I was super excited when I got the opportunity to read the second one. I thought Jude did a great job of describing the characters and their emotions. I felt like I really new them and that I was actually in Nantucket.

In addition, I really liked how Jude had the story go back in time through dreams. That was something that I had never seen in a book before. In addition, I like how she incorporated the history of the Kingsley family into this story.

Lastly, I liked that the story had the characters go through struggles. It made the story more realistic and it kept me reading to find out what would happen in the end.

I am very interested in reading the next book in this series and very interested to find out who it will be about.

Great Book. Great Read!

Jagged by Kristen Ashley

Jagged by Kristen Ashley

***I received this book for free from Netgalley for an honest, unbiased review***

This was the first book that I read of Kristen Ashley's so I was not sure what to expect. At first it seemed like it was going to be an interesting book that kept my attention. However, I felt there was too much swearing in it for my liking. It personally distracted me and I found that I couldn't continue reading. I am going to try and read the next book in the series Kaleidoscope to see if I might like it better. I would still recommend readers to try the book as it might be okay for them it just personally didn't interest me.

Wild Iris Ridge by RaeAnne Thayne

Wild Iris Ridge by RaeAnne Thayne

Lucy Drake moved away to Seattle hoping to escape the one thing that she wanted most Brendan Caine. They shared one steamy night together and she was hoping for more but then she never called. Once she finds out that her cousin/best friend Jesse and Brandon are now together she hopes that distance will help her forget what happened.

Fast forward a couple years later and now Lucy Drake is back in the town she never thought she would step foot in again. However, things have changed for her. Now she is jobless and in charge of a mansion that her great aunt left to her. Lucy hopes she will be able to restore the house enough to be able to sell it and get out of town before anyone recognizes she is home. Unfortunately, things don’t go as planned when her fireplace starts and fire and it forces her to  see the one man she thought she would never see again, Brendan Caine. 

Will Brendan and Lucy be able to keep their distance while Lucy is in town fixing up her Aunt Annabelle’s house or will their romance rekindle?

Review

This is the second book of RaeAnne’s that I have read and the second book that I have read in this series. I thought that RaeAnne did a great job of giving enough detail about the characters that allowed you to feel like you really knew who they were.  In addition, I think she did a great job of making this story able to stand on its own as if it wasn’t part of the series. The only reason that I knew that it was part of a series is 1) I read the previous book before this one and 2) it said it was number 7 in the Hope Crossing Series.

In addition, what I really liked about this book is that it was realistic. She had the characters laugh, cry, be mad at each other and make up. I really felt like these were two people that could be real people that I would know. What also was nice about the story was how she incorporated family into the story. She made you really feel like you were a part of the Caine family.

Although they say this may be the last book in the series I would have to disagree. I think that there is so many more great stories that she could get into this series. Can't wait to read what new book that she will come out with next. 

Undetected by Dee Henderson

Undetected by Dee Henderson 

Mark Bishop has always put the Navy first in his life. However, that all changes when Gina Gray shows up on base with a discovery that can help the US Navy but also could put them in harms way if anyone ever finds out.  In an effort to discover if her theory could actually be true she accompanies Mark on to his ship to test the theory. After Gina’s theory is proven true the General of the navy intrusts Mark to keep her protected no matter what it takes.  

Gina Gray has always had the brains and the beauty. But relationships have never gone right for her. So when her last breakup occurs she heads to her brothers base hoping to find a quiet place to be alone and work on her sonar work. However, things change when she discovers new things about Sonar and has a theory that can both help and could potentially hurt her brother’s job.

Will Mark be able to protect Gina and also convince her that he is the right man for her even though their age difference? Will Gina be able to open up her heart to  a man that is not her family?

My Review:

This is not the first book of Dee’s that I have read, however this is the first book that I have read in her new series. As always Dee’s writing is superb. She does a great job of giving you all the details and the past on the characters so that you know who they are and what their life has been like. In addition, I also like how she incorporates religion into the story. She does it without you even knowing that it is a key part of the book. This is nice especially for those readers who may want to read the story but who may not want to read an over abundance on religion.

The only part that I found difficult about the book was all the scientific and Navy terminology in the book. I think there is a need for the information in the book but it felt like it took up half the book. It is reason that it took me a while to get through the book because at times I felt like it overshadowed the story that Dee was trying to tell. About half way through the book I finally felt there was a story and I wanted to find out what happened.

I think that the book was very well written and had a great story. I felt that after reading it I had a better understanding of the Navy and about submarines that I didn’t know before.  I think that Dee wrote a great story that needed to be told and has not been told before. I am very interested in reading more of Dee’s books and can’t wait to see what she has in store for the next one in the series.  

Wild Iris Ridge Release Giveaway

Do you love to read? Is your favorite author RaeAnne Thayne? If you answered yes to either of those questions then you need to check out RaeAnne's new book Wild Iris Ridge! Below is a description of the book if you want to learn more! 

"Lucy Drake and Brendan Caine have only one thing in common… 

And it's likely to tear them apart. Because it was Brendan's late wife, Jessie—and Lucy's best friend—who'd brought them together in the first place. And since Jesse's passing, Brendan's been distracted by his two little ones…and the memory of an explosive kiss with Lucy years before his marriage. Still, he'll steer clear of her. She's always been trouble with a capital T. 

Lucy couldn't wait to shed her small-town roots for the big city. But now that she's back in Hope's Crossing to take care of the Queen Anne home her late aunt has left her, she figures seeing Brendan Caine again is no big deal. After all, she'd managed to resist the handsome fire chief once before, but clearly the embers of their attraction are still smoldering…"

For your chance to win RaeAnne's newest book comment below with what makes a small town the best place to live in rather than a bigger city! All comments will be entered in to a drawing to win RaeAnne's newest book or your choice from one of the earlier books in the  Hope Crossing's series!

Contest ends Sunday at 7pm CST

Blackberry Pie Murder by Joanne Fluke

Blackberry Pie Murder 

Hanna Swensen's life has never been as quiet as it has been the last four months.  So rather than relaxing and sitting still she decides to spend as much as time in her bakery as she can. However, things go downhill when she is driving home one rainy night with her friend and co-owner of the Bakery and they end up hitting a person by accident. From that moment on things go down hill for Hannah and she is forced to get back in crime solving mode to clear her name. Hannah will have to use her detective skills and her families help to find out who the unidentified victim is and why he was in town.

My Review:

I am an avid reader and have read a variety of books so this was not my first mystery novel that I have ever read, however, this was the first book that I have read of Joanne Fluke's. Having not read any of her books prior to this one I was unsure of the story behind the characters and Joanne's writing style. I thought although it would have been nice to know more about the main character Hannah Swensen and her family it was not necessary to read this book.

In regards to her writing style I thought Joanne did a good job of giving you the necessary back story on Hannah and her family in the beginning of the book that allowed you to understood how they would be incorporated into the story. In addition, I liked the love triangle that she had between the dentist, Hannah and the deputy. Their love triangle is something that I would like to see continue to grown and evolve in future books.

As far as the mystery part of the book I think that she did a great job of keeping you as the reader on the edge of your seat. I didn't know until almost the end of the book who the murder was and the reason behind it. Joanne did a great job of having you think you knew what was going to happen and then threw something into the book you didn't see coming. The book had me enthralled from the start of the book to the end wanting to know what happened. It was hard to put the book down and not be able to finish it one sitting.

I am very interested in reading the first book in the series. I would recommend this book to readers who like mystery, crime solving and romance.