Joanne RockRezensionen

Romance

Only read Body Check

Di sorprese questo libro non ne presenta nessuna in quanto non succede proprio nulla se non quello che già si immagina dopo aver letto la trama.
Del tutto inutile, se ne può fare tranquillante a meno.

Good conclusion to the Fathers and Sons mini-series. Sierra is a journalist who has worked hard from Book One to find the father of an infant boy found abandoned in the hospital parking lot. She believes she has done so but is frustrated at the lack of response to her texts and emails. In desperation, she finally sends one last bluntly worded text, hoping for a response. She never expected him to show up on her doorstep the next day.

Colt was stunned to find out that he was the father of an infant son. He has been in France for the last year, establishing a winery that had been his grandfather's dream. When he finds out the circumstances of Micah's birth and abandonment, he is riddled with guilt. Now he is determined to be the best father possible to little Micah, even if that means trusting a journalist to teach him.

I enjoyed seeing the relationship between Sierra and Colt develop. Over the past few months, Sierra has become attached to the little boy, so she is happy to help Colt while he and Micah get to know each other. This entails moving in with Colt, which wouldn't be a problem if it weren't for the inconvenient attraction she feels for him. Colt is just as attracted to Sierra, but his guilt over Micah's mother makes him reluctant to do anything about it. To reinforce his decision, he tells Sierra he plans to return to France and take Micah with him as soon as possible. This upsets Sierra, who thinks they should remain in Royal. She hopes she can convince him to stay.

I loved seeing Colt bond with little Micah. From the moment he arrived, it was obvious that Colt was all-in as a father. From feeding to teething to bedtime, Colt was sweet in his efforts to do it all. But all those "daddy lessons" meant time spent with Sierra, and the sparks between them continued to grow. Giving into the attraction is inevitable, but things get complicated when Sierra's secrets come to light. One is personal, and one is professional, and either can derail their growing relationship.

I ached for Sierra with her personal secret and its effect on her life and self-worth. It was easy to understand why Micah meant so much to her and why it hurt to think of him and Colt leaving Royal. I loved Colt's reaction when she told him and how much it meant to her. The professional secret wasn't as easily dealt with. While searching for Micah's father, Sierra has also been researching one of Royal's founders for a book. She has been searching for the woman's diary to get the answers she needs and believes it is on Colt's ranch. With his distrust of reporters, she delays telling him of her search until she finds the book. He doesn't take it well. I ached for both of them as their conflict pulled them apart, leaving them miserable. I liked how they faced their issues and found a way forward together.

Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5 Stars)
Title: The Perfect Catch
Author(s): Joanne Rock
Character(s):
― Josie Vance: Brunette, Blue Eyed
― Calvin Ramsey: Brunette, Green Eyed
Setting: Last Stand, Texas
Tag(s): Romance, Contemporary
Content Rating: R
POV: Third Person
Smexy Level: Warm
Favorite Quote(s):
― “Relationships 101―never chase a woman who doesn't want to be caught.”
Overall Opinion:
Returning back home to Last Stand, Texas after being released from his baseball contract, Calvin runs into an unexpected surprise when he find the beautiful caretaker Josie residing in his childhood home. Unbeknownst to the hometown sports hero, Josie moves to Last Stand to have a fresh start when she loses all her savings to a swindler ex-boyfriend and being fired from his job by her mother who threaten to report her to the authorities for violating state law when helping out her apartments tenants. After a one-sided flirtation from Cal's end which proves difficult to resist, he proposes a two week affair until his mother returns from overseas and the guarded brunette employment ends. Though she was reluctant at first due to not wanting to gather attention to her nor her past, it was hard to denied that mutual attraction and they spent an intimate night together. But when the public’s fascination with the baseball-playing Ramsey clan is at an all-time high, would the building relationship tarnish when her past is revealed?

Overall, I was impressed with this laid back and easy read. It wasn't generally what I was expecting when I picked up the book and I anticipated a somewhat of a cowboy romance but it was the complete opposite. The characters were realistic and struggled with real life issues such as dealing with estranged and broken relationships, work struggles, and relationships woes. The relationship between Josie and Calvin was very natural, mature and didn't seem force. They were immediately wary of each other despite the attraction and over time, a mutual understanding and romance was developed. Furthermore, in the span of 2-3 weeks the romance between the leads was formed rather quickly. If you haven't known this about me already, I am not a big fan of instant love and this series could have easily ended with an open-ended final in which the characters could have explored the natural of their romance naturally. When the "L" word dropped, I was like nooooo yet it didn't take away from the premise and was still a very enjoyable read. With "The Perfect Catch" being the first Joanne Rock novel I have read, I surely plan on keeping an eye out for any future series from the author.

Fairly decent. Hey you all know I'm an amnesia junkie. The timeline seemed wonky here. At first you think she's pretty advanced in her pregnancy when she gets off the island but later you think maybe not. The thing that really held this story back though is that the hero get so instantly pissed that the heorine who is recovering from amnesia and is not real certain of him and has legitimate reason to question his commitment to her hides knowledge of their baby from him for 2 days. I mean she thinks he might have had her kidnapped. He was so in love with her and searched for her long and hard but didn't take his phone with him as he searched the world for her. Why wouldn't he keep it with him in case she called? He suspected that she had been kidnapped. That just didn't make any sense. And after a year of her being gone while he searched desparately for her, he decides he doesn't love or trust her anymore because she didn't tell him first thing about the baby. She came to him as soon as she remembered him and held off 2 days while she tried to remember more and decide if she could trust him. I think if she had handed her baby to him first off she would have been an idiot.

Good addition to the series. Valencia owns a horse rescue farm and plans to expand into providing equine therapy for children. For that, she needs extra funds and applies for a grant from the Cortez-Williams family's foundation. She's ready to give her presentation to the elder board member when she discovers that he's turned over vetting applicants to his grandson, Lorenzo the Third. Taken aback by her attraction to him, Valencia struggles to remain professional.

Lorenzo takes his job of vetting organizations very seriously. Burned by his ex-fiancée, who used their relationship for her own gain, Lorenzo doesn't trust easily. He vowed then that he would keep personal and professional relationships separate. His attraction to Valencia makes that problematic.

I enjoyed watching the relationship develop between Lorenzo and Valencia. The sparks between them are evident from the moment they met, yet they manage to get through their meeting with their professionalism intact. That doesn't mean that either forgets about those sparks. Lorenzo invites Valencia to dinner to tell her the results of her application, and the attraction still simmers in the background. When their dinner is cut short by a tornado warning, Lorenzo accompanies her back to her ranch to help prepare, and they end up taking shelter in her storm cellar. Because of a childhood trauma involving a tornado, Valencia is understandably nervous. While the storm rages outside, the flaring attraction between them provides an unexpected distraction. When the storm passes, they can't resist giving in, creating complications.

Baggage from the past, and a secret from the present, keep Lorenzo and Valencia from fully trusting each other. Finding out Lorenzo's secret devastates Valencia and breaks her heart. I ached for Lorenzo, also, because his boneheaded move drove a wedge between them. I loved Lorenzo's realization of his feelings for her and his determination to make things right. His big moment at the end put their pasts to rest and looked to the future together.

The overarching story of Soirée on the Bay continues to heat up. Valencia has a vested interest in its success as one of the proposed charitable beneficiaries. The news of the missing money hits her hard because of its impact on her plans. The blows to the Soirée continue when the tornado damages some of the site days before the projected start, and Asher Edmond is arrested on suspicion of embezzlement. I personally believe that he is innocent and still suspect a different player in the drama. I can't wait to see if I am right.

Another good story from the Runaway Bride series. I enjoy a romance with humor and I found myself laughing in quite a few places in this book. Both are drawn to each other despite them not wanting to be for their own reasons. Mann and Rock write interesting characters with depth and again there are a few sub-plots in this novella which fit together nicely despite the short length of this novella.

I loved this book. There were a few sub-plots, which has the potential to be too much for a novella, but the authors did a good job of tying it all in and not leaving loose ends. This book has everything - sexy, humor, danger - very entertaining. Worth the read along with the other Runaway Bride series.

I really enjoyed this book - co-written by two authors, which you don't see too often in romance. I loved the chemistry between Valerie and Boone. Having read the other Runaway Bride books, I didn't expect Boone (who had been dumped by Annamae Jessup on Valerie's radio call in show in Book 1 - The Wedding Audition) to get his own story. It's perhaps a little too coincidental that Valerie just happened to be of the Dimitri crime family that Annamae's husband had been investigating, but hey, it's fiction.

Couldn't get into this book at all, the first in the Runaway Brides series. Much too short at only 69 pages/6 chapters. The rest of the series is pretty good and I'm glad I didn't let this one turn me off them. Although this is the first in the series, it almost seems like an afterthought or that it should be part of one of the other books and not a standalone story.

I enjoyed this romance. I received this for free and I voluntarily chose to review it. I've given it a 4.5* rating. While it isn't for under 18 readers, there is a lot that is centered around the older teens. This touches on several serious issues so you might need to keep a hanky handy. Sometimes we just need to take the time to mourn our losses.½

I enjoyed this Romance. I purchased this from a library sale and I voluntarily chose to review it. I've given it a 4.5* rating but this is not for the under 18 readers. There were a few twists and turns in this, and it certainly had romance in it. It had a nice feel good ending to it. Only part that I did not like was the bad character wasn't pointed out till the very end.½

Josie Vance is working as a caretaker for a house while it's owner, the mother of the Ramsey clan that this whole series is about, is off in Ecuador. She's on the run having lost all her savings to a con artist and from potential criminal investigation after her mother more or less forced Josie to do unlicensed contract work on the apartment building that her mother owns. Josie's enjoying the solitude and peace when Cal Ramsey, the oldest baseball player son, shows up. He's suspicious of Josie and sure that she's got secrets, but Josie isn't revealing them. But he's not so suspicious that he doesn't try to put the moves on her, but she's reluctant. Fortunately for Cal, he does get to know Josie as they work together on some farm related stuff and he starts to fall for her (and she for him). But when Josie's past becomes public knowledge, will Call forgive her for keeping secrets from him?

On the whole, this was a decent little quick and easy read, but it suffered from being too short. I liked Cal and Josie, especially Josie, and thought they were a cute, fluffy couple. Josie doesn't jump straight into bed with Cal, since she's wary and Cal seems to respect that, but he tries to keep the connection in the hopes that she'll change her mind. But Cal never offers her more than a fling while she's in town...because it's expected that she'll leave and he'll return to his baseball career once he's over his injury. Josie finally agrees, they sleep together, and then her secrets come out. And Cal is pissed. He's pissed that she didn't tell him and that by not telling him he was seen out and about with her, affecting his reputation and possibly putting his career at risk. My issue with that is that he had no business being pissed. It's not like he declared his love and offered her a relationship - you don't have to tell your "fling" every detail of your past. If he'd offered her more, then yeah, I could see his anger. As it was, no. On top of that, what if she had been honest? Would he have just up and decided that he couldn't be with her because she was under criminal investigation (for something that's the moral equivalent of stealing food to feed a starving person)? Would he have refused to be seen with her? I just don't know. And even that wouldn't have bugged me if Josie had put him in his place instead of acting like a doormat and saying she was wrong not to have told him and that she's sorry he was hurt by it. Girl needed to get mad. But she rolls over and luckily he realizes his mistake before she leaves for good. But that was really disappointing how she just took the blame for all that.

I came late to the story I did not know when I requested that this was part of a series and apparently the last one, so I know I am missing alot. So I met Miranda Dupree, in this one and she is a widow and much liked except for her step-children. She ends up getting reacquainted with her ex love whom she has not seen in forever. Kia is now a rich woman but when she had lost in contact with her past she was a hacker./waitress, but now they meet both in very different circumstances, will they reconnect and change their outcome? we shall see.

rcvd an ARC at no cost to author..(netgalley) voluntarily reviewed with my own thoughts and opinions

This was an entertaining & emotional story regarding two childhood sweethearts that broke up & have found each other years later. Nate was drafted by a baseball team & left to start in the path to his career. Keely couldn’t leave Last Stand at that time. She felt she needed to stay & protect her sister until she was in college. Now Nate is on the injured list & is back in Last Stand to recuperate. Keely has established her own business & is taking care of her alcoholic father. They are drawn to each other again & again. Can they get it right this time?

I enjoyed following Nate & Keely down the path they have to follow. There were bumps & detours but they were mature enough to work through them this time instead of running away. One thing they couldn’t do earlier was see the other persons side. Keely comes across as an enabler at the beginning but I really feel she was doing the best she could. I enjoyed getting to know the supporting characters. They’ve added depth & emotion to the story. I can’t wait until Ty & Alexis’s story!

An enchanting historical romance/fantasy between Highlander Magnus Darroch who is cursed by the Sidhe to eternally wander the Highland forest, and American heiress Elizabeth Harrison who thinks she will never find love because she is too tall and awkward and considered a social misfit. An entertaining short read featuring lovable main characters and a charming and magical story.

I received a copy of this book from LibraryThing in exchange for a review.

When Calvin Ramsey returns home to Texas, he expects to see his Mom, not some caretaker pointing a gun at him. Once they get past the whole gun pointing thing, Cal learns that is Mom is on a mission trip and Josie is keeping watch over the house. And his Grandfather has his own health problems. Suddenly Cal realizes just how out of touch with his family he has been.

Josie Vance has no reason to trust the handsome ex-baseball player. All she sees is a 'player' and she’s had enough of those to last her a lifetime. She has no interest in repeating past mistakes. Besides, Josie wants nothing else then to keep her head down and do her job. She is trying to get as much distance between herself and her Mother in Florida, and the problems her Mom might send her way.

Author Joanne Rock is like a skilled seamstress who takes a pile of cloth squares and puts them together to make a quilt. The characters in her books are the bits of fabric, and Joanne slowly pieces them together to create something beautiful, a story that will touch your heart and warm your soul.½

Loved this book! This was my first look at Last Stand Texas and I am hooked! This is the first in the series "Texas Playmakers." In this book Josie Vance has escaped her family drama with her mom and has taken a caretaker Job working for Clavin Ramseys mom on the familys fruit farm in Last Stand,Tx. Calvin was just droped from his major league baseball team has decided to take a much needed break and visit his mom and grandfather. Can you guess the surprise he gets when he walks into his mom's house in the middle of the night and finds Josie. Will they find love?

Thank you to NetGalley and Tule Publishing for allowing me to review The Perfect Catch by Joanne Rock.

A caretaker job in peaceful Last Chance, Texas seems like the perfect escape to Josie Vance who wants to make a new start after being swindled by a con man and taken for granted by her unstable mother. She settles into her new role looking after the gardens and home of one of the wealthy Ramsey family members and finds contentment as she plans how to keep employed after the summer job is over. Life has promise and order until an unwanted house guest shows up - Cal Ramsey, the MLB star son of her employer. Just cut from his team, his career prospects bleak, Cal has more than enough time on his hands to discover what secrets the attractive caretaker is holding so dear. Determined to protect the family he’s neglected for his career from whatever Josie is hiding, Cal is also determined she’s affair-worthy material while he’s stuck in career limbo with nothing to do but watch the attractive caretaker’s every move.

This is the first book I have read by Joanne Rock and I would be happy to read more. Her dialogue is effortless, natural, effective, and keeps the story going. Lovable, believable characters that make the reader wonder what’s coming next. The Perfect Catch is a fun, page-turning flirtation with an eye-opening look into the life of professional baseball players. While the romantic relationship isn’t greatly developed, The Perfect Catch is still delightfully light and airy, good for an afternoon distraction from reality. The scenic details and minute actions of the characters transport the reader to the idyllic town of Last Chance and the Ramsey homestead. Fans of Diane Palmer will enjoy Joanne Rock and the foreshadowing of what’s to come for the Ramsey brothers in the Texas Playmakers series.

OH I LOVED THIS BOOK and Ms. Rock has not let me down with novels so realist that I though that I could feel the hot lights, smelled the horses, and, see the sizzle between Hannah and Bork! Dark family secrets are bound to come to the light, but will it put out the flames like a bucket of water had been tossed over their heads. Will the scandal drive them far a part or will Hannah tell Brock the whole truth?

Needing a change reality show starlet Annamae Jessup hits the road. Ending up in Smalltown USA, she starts to better understand who she is and what she wants. When Annamae crosses paths with Wyatt, sparks fly. However, Wyatt has secrets of his own and with Annamae celebrity status, the attraction may end up costing them both more than they expected. The Wedding Auction proved to be a fun read about appreciating the important things in life. I received a copy of this story for an honest opinion.

There Goes the Bride is a fun, action packed read with a down home small time vibe. Of course every good story has to have a few secret discoveries along the way. This is book 3 in Catherine Mann and Joanne Rock's Runaway Brides series. I have enjoyed each and every one so far and am anxiously awaiting the next. Received an ARC of this story for an honest review.

REVIEW: THERE GOES THE BRIDE BY CATHERINE MANN AND JOANNE ROCK  
 
There Goes the Bride" border Catherine MannMy rating:  4 of 5 stars
There Goes the Bride is a fun, action packed read with a down home small time vibe. Of course every good story has to have a few secret discoveries along the way. This is book 3 in Catherine Mann and Joanne Rock's Runaway Brides series. I have enjoyed each and every one so far and am anxiously awaiting the next. Received an ARC of this story for an honest review.  (www.goodreads.com/review/list/25556913-isha-coleman)
 
Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/There-Goes-Bride-Runaway-Brides-ebook/dp/B00X4OHSR2/
 
Google Play Books:  https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Catherine_Mann_There_Goes_the_Bride?...
 
Kobo:  https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/there-goes-the-bride-9
 

Bride on the Run is a unique ending to a fun series. A cute story that contains mystery, drama, romance and comedy. The combination equals out to an entertaining and fun read. Serena has been in hiding most of her life this has made her a strong woman with trust issues. Boone is used to looking out for himself. They meet under hilarious circumstances that turn serious very quickly. Can Boone be the hero Serena needs? Will she let him?
Disclosure: I received an ARC of Bride on the Run for an honest review.