Shot to the Heart

This work by Ms. Kate Palmer is a delicious novella.

Archery is the center of the skills of the main characters and where their history was built and destroyed. Archery is how the hero plans to woo his fair maiden once more, but Arrowe’s past choices and Robyn’s decided prejudices are against him. Enter a suspense element in the form of a stalker and a hero can truly show his colors and heart.

A quick clean read with a satisfactorily romantic ending. 

Apparently I picked this up through a promo or newsletter thath is not available on Amazon, etc. If you want it go check her author web prescence and see when you might be able to score a copy. 

~Lisa

The Silver Princess

The Silver Princess

I had not had the pleasure of reading one of Ms. Carter’s works before The Silver Princess and was delighted to discover it is the first in a six-part series. Wonderful.

Her writing style is unique and she is adept at creating her own beautiful version of a fairy world full of intrigue, surprises, and romance. I quite like her voice.

The characters were distinct and mysterious, the way fairies should be.

A well-crafted, well built, clean read, with twists that had me guessing until the end. Easy quick read for 10 and up. 

Amazon

Ever wondered what would happen if fairies weren't "stuck" in adolescence? If they didn't spend all their time preparing to paint flowers and spread frost?
Silver Princess introduces the world of Fairydom through the eyes of a relatively young protagonist, fairy Princess Rebecca. Her simple, sheltered life has done little to prepare her for the trials she faces when it is revealed that the rebels trying to quietly force her father to abdicate have big plans for her.

Before It's Love

This is my first read by Michelle Pennington. I'll be back for more.

What a tangled mess the characters of Lauren and Jake get pulled into, with so many love triangles, it'll make your head spin.

There's great depth to Lauren and Jake. They have insecurities, goals, desires, and art. It's obvious Ms. Pennington did her homework when it comes to describing the process of creating visual art. I learned loads but the descriptions invited insight to the characters rather than being tedious to read.

Emotions fly on the page, hidden under characters facades, and manifest in subtext. Wonderful.

It's a tale of falling in love when you haven't even dated. Lovely.

Amazon

"Just Friends" was harder than they thought.

Moving to Arkansas is hard for Lauren, but it’s worth it to be near her boyfriend and pursue her art degree. That is, until she meets Jake, the guy her roommate is in love with. Now she’s stuck on a merry-go-round of love triangles, and someone is going to get hurt.

Jake is focused on juggling his two careers and taking care of his feisty grandma. The last thing he needs is a serious relationship, so when Lauren moves in, it's okay that she's dating someone else. Until being her friend is no longer enough.

Before It's Love is a sweet romance.

Once Upon a Wish

I'm a fan of Ms. Ferguson!

This book is decidedly different in voice, tone, style, and pacing than her other sweet romances. That is not a bad thing. While her previous books have a sassy and spicy swagger to them (which I love) , Once Upon a Wish is a slow simmering burn.

The imagery of the locale, the occasional French word, and the constant consumption of high caliber french hot chocolate, transport you to the lovely setting of La Rochelle in France.

The characters are charming, engaging, and well fleshed out. It seems easy to imagine having a chat with Delphine at the cafe or meeting with Jean Luc to see what magic he can work on your social media prescence. Both characters have their own obstacles to overcome in their personal lives as well as finding a way to walk a path together.

So grab your sadly watered down American version of hot chocolate, a cozy blanket, and get lost in France for awhile.

Amazon

Be careful what you wish for . . .

Delphine Baudry wished to be a best-selling author, but now instead of celebrating and jumping into her next novel, she's frozen with fear. What if she turns out to be a one-hit-wonder? What if all her new fans hate the next book? To top it all off, she can't even discuss the situation with her favorite brainstorming partner, her mother, who is losing her memory to Alzheimer's. Taking a cue from some teens tossing Euros into a fountain, Delphine gives into some whimsy and wishes for her next book plot.

Jean-Paul Chassériau wished to start an online marketing company in La Rochelle. Now the real work begins. Feeling pressure to live up to his father's name in traditional marketing, Jean-Paul has a million ideas but no clients. When he finds a funky old Franc lodged between cobblestones near a fountain, there was only one thing to do. Make a wish.

When their coins collide, Delphine and Jean-Paul's wishes become intertwined, changing the course of their futures, and teaching them that wishes are sometimes fulfilled in unexpected ways.

Swing Vote

Swing Vote by Donna Weaver. I'm excited! She's one of my favorite authors!

An IED blew up more than Marc North's career as a Cobra pilot; it shattered his plans for marriage. After being dumped by his girlfriend and spending more than a year in rehab, all he wants is to fly again. He jumps at the chance to partner with a combat buddy in a helicopter sightseeing business. Now in a boomtown in southern Utah, Marc gets caught up with local politics. And the local election official.

At work, McKenzie Terkildsen struggles to keep control of a dangerously contentious election. At home, she shares the challenge of raising younger half-brothers with her older step-brother. He complicates things by inviting a Marine buddy to stay with them while the two build a business together. As a council member takes liberty with facts and stirs the already caustic election brew, the last thing McKenzie needs is one more guy messing up her life—or her heart.

Amazon: 
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076CFBKYR

Goodreads: 
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36053276-swing-vote-safe-harbors-3

Second Chance Kisses

I love going back to Echo Ridge and watching new characters fall in love. It's so much fun!

All the stories are well told. Some move fast, others have a sprinted ending. Others melt slowly and satisfyingly like chocolate. All are good, though my favorite might be A Perfect Fit, but its really hard to choose.

I love the Homecoming theme. I hope we have more romances to come. Mason needs a love story!

Clean, sweeping you off your feet, inspiring; these women have done it again.


Amazon
Do you remember your first love? Have you ever wondered what would happen if you had a second chance to follow your heart? In this collection of novellas written by award-winning and bestselling authors, come home to Echo Ridge as summer winds down and hearts once broken and lost are given one more chance, a second chance to love.

A Brand New Second Chance by Lucy McConnell
With a broken heart and an unsure future, Abigail Martin moves home to Echo Ridge to capture the parts of her teenage years she missed out on because she’d had a steady boyfriend. Kissing a random guy, flirting with strangers, hanging out at Fay’s after a football game—all of it. Carter Montgomery offers his help, because he’s a helpful kind of guy, and she quickly falls for his quiet humor, kindness, and heated kisses. Fearing that she hasn’t lived enough of life to settle down, Abigail must decide if she’s going to break Carter’s heart or give love a brand new second chance. 

A Perfect Fit by Janette Rallison
Jojo Halifax believes that winning Echo Ridge's float competition is just what her fledgling art career needs. And if that means giving her ex-boyfriend, Anthony, a second chance so she can be a designer on his team, well, she's willing to make the sacrifice. But when a lost bet leads to a blind date with her brother's friend, Wyatt, she begins to have second thoughts about second chances. Wyatt is handsome and charming and just might have been paid to make her forget about Anthony. Is falling for his charm worth the risk or should she take Anthony back again?

Almost Home by Heather Tullis
Damon lived in ten towns while growing up, but Echo Ridge is one of the few that started to feel like home before his parents relocated their family again. Now a widower, moving back to the small ski resort town is irresistible for him—but somewhat less so for his daughter, Maggie. Learning that Haley, the girl who had gotten away, is back in town is an unexpected bonus.

When Haley left a high-powered job in New York City to take care of her grandmother, she never expected to run into the boy she’d been crushing on sixteen years earlier. When they end up working together on the homecoming float, she finds the attraction between them just as compelling as before. But when given a choice, will she give him her heart, or leave love behind to return to her job in the city?

Change of Plans by Cami Checketts
Kaitlyn Johanson comes home to Echo Ridge planning to bring the sparks back with her high school boyfriend, Mason, work at Kenworth's, and enjoy family and the beautiful valley. She never expected her heartthrob, national-acclaimed lacrosse player, Axel Olsen, would visit her hometown. When Axel steals her attention and possibly her heart from the man she was supposed to marry, she has to choose if she'll take a risk on new love or give old love a second chance. 

Coming Home to Love by Rachelle J. Christensen
When Laney Richins left Echo Ridge, New York eight years ago, she vowed she’d never return, but life had other plans. Those plans included her cute little boy and a divorce, so Laney moved back home and started over. Working in the flower shop seems like the perfect plan until Billy Redford, the man she should have married shows up. 
Billy Redford’s heart was broken when his high school sweetheart turned her back on him and fled Echo Ridge for the big city lights. Running into Laney in Echo Ridge now brings up past feelings he thought were long gone. She’s prettier than ever, still seems to read his mind, and despite his protests ends up on the building and decorating committee with him for the Homecoming dance. Billy knows how to build just about anything, but he isn’t sure he knows how to mend a broken heart.