Love Me At Sunset by Lucinda Whitney

Synopsis:

Catarina Romano has lost everything: her husband, her house, her lifestyle. She flees to her cousin’s empty manor in the heart of Portugal, trying to find peace and to hide from the scandal spun by the media, only to discover she is pregnant.

 Afonso Cortez is done with all the lies. Fresh out of prison for trusting the wrong person, he’s ready to leave the past behind and look ahead to new opportunities. The remote Sunset Manor, in need of a groundskeeper, is the perfect solution, promising to provide Afonso with the solitude he craves while he restores the grounds to their former glory.

 Catarina avoids Afonso at first, not wanting to further complicate her life. But Afonso is intriguing, and she feels drawn to him. If only she didn’t feel guilty for all the secrets she’s keeping from him.

 When suspicious accidents start occurring at the property, Afonso believes his past is catching up with him. Will he be able to protect Catarina or will he lose the woman who might restore his belief in love?

Review:

A little suspense mixed with great chemistry between Catarina and Afonso made for an exciting read. Afonso was able to get a job being the groundskeeper at Sunset Manor and was hoping to put his life back together and move on but sometimes there is a different plan for you. Catarina's cousin and owner of the mansion found her and offered for her stay at the mansion. She was hoping to hideout until she could figure out what was next for her and her soon to be child. Afonso and Catarina meet and build a friendship. I was sad that Catarina hid so much from Afonso yet I understand why but I loved how caring he was towards her and let her have her space but was there for her when she needed him. I loved this clean romantic read. This book can be a stand alone but I love how it is part of two other series... Destined For Love: Mansions and the Romano Family series. This was a great book about taking a chance because you never know where you might find love.

Stars: 4.5

A Home for the Horseman by Liz Isaacson

Synopsis:

Former rodeo star, Emmett Graves, has retired to Brush Creek Horse Ranch to train barrel racing horses. He loves to make jokes and is completely content with his life—sans women, thank you very much. His momma left when he was twelve, and he's learned that the female portion of the human species can't be trusted.

 Barrel racing champion, Molly Brady shows up at Brush Creek ready to forget about her ex and the restraining order she had to get against him. She's over all things cowboy, and she wants nothing to do with Emmett, who ruined her favorite shirt the first time they met.

 As Emmett teaches Molly how to train a horse before it starts winning rodeo events, the spark between them is hot and instant. Can Emmett figure out how to trust women? And even if he does, will Molly allow a cowboy to rope her heart again? They'll have to rely on their faith and their friendships to make sense of the future.

Review: 

Emmett has been a horse trainer at Brush Creek Horse Ranch for awhile and is content with his life. Molly was recently hired at Brush Creek and she knows a thing or two about horses. They met dancing but it wasn't a pleasant meeting and it made them even more set in their ways of Molly not wanting to ever date a cowboy and Emmett not getting involved with any girl. They both have situations in their life that have caused these feelings and they are both pretty firm with it. If it's what God has planned for you he will find a way. Through some hard situations they learn to lean on each other. They have a great connection and the sparks start flyin'. It's another sweet contemporary romance in this series and I very much enjoyed it. I always want to read more details in these books but they're short books and for that reason they are well written.

Stars: 4.5

Roping His Heart by Jaclyn Hardy

Synopsis:

The old mansion down the road from Rachel's ranch has always been her escape. No one has lived there for years, and she dreams of owning it herself someday. So when she finds a handsome city guy walking around inside who claims to own the home, her world turns upside down.

 Patrick's career is just taking off in the city, and he couldn't be happier. The news of his father's passing brings a silver lining when he finds that he's left with a large mansion in a small ranching town—the perfect place to expand his business.

 But when Patrick meets the beautiful and fiery Rachel at the mansion, he begins to wonder if he made the right choice. Now he must decide if his business is worth going home to, or if he's willing to leave his city life for the woman who has roped his heart.

Review:

Rachel's dream was to buy and fix up the old mansion down the street but when Patrick shows up everything changes. Patrick inherited the mansion after his father passed away and he had big plans for the mansion. I thought these characters were great and very likable. Rachel is a talented, cute and strong willed girl who has goals and Patrick is a hard worker and is a very nice guy. I loved how Patrick was such a gentleman. The characters, setting, and plot had great detail and was very well written. I loved the storyline of small town girl meets city guy. The dreams that come true make for a great ending. I definitely enjoyed this cute read!

Stars: 4.5

Kiss Me In the Rain by Lindzee Armstrong

Synopsis:

Cypress Grove has always been a treasured constant in Layla's perfect life. Now the mansion will be sold to the highest bidder if she doesn’t date an investor's son. The problem? The man she really wants just rolled into town.

 Tyler is done being responsible and never going after what he wants. Layla's finally given him the courage to quit grad school and use his student loans to flip houses. And he's decided to move near Cypress Grove to do it.

 When Layla happens upon suspicious ledgers at the mansion, her family's financial woes take a sinister turn. As Tyler and Layla work together to find the culprit, the attraction between them threatens to burst into flames. But admitting their feelings could spell disaster for Cypress Grove.

Review:

I am excited for this new Destined For Love series centered around Mansions because I LOVED the Europe series. This book was a sweet and spicy clean romance with an intriguing story line that kept me turning the pages. I really enjoyed this book... It would be best if you read Kiss Me in the Moonlight which is Lindzee's book in the Europe series. It will introduce you to Layla and Tyler and how they know each other. I love that Tyler moved for Layla but still had a plan of his own. You feel for Layla and all that she goes through in this book that you just hope she gets her happily ever after. I love when things happen in books that I am not expecting and this book was like that for me. It was very well written I just wish there was a little more details about the family situation in the end. I look forward to reading the other books in this new series and more of Lindzee's books.

Stars: 4.5

Blue Moon Kisses by Cindy Roland Anderson

Synopsis:

At age twelve, Ashlee Nichols fell in love with her brother’s best friend, Beau Jacobsen. Everyone thought she was cute and that her crush was simply that…a crush. But her young heart had known he was the one, and she had planned on marrying him as soon as she was old enough. Unfortunately, when she confessed her feelings to Beau, he’d laughed, patted her on the head and told her he was flattered. Sure, Beau had been twenty-two at the time, but she knew she wouldn't always be a little girl. Just when she turned eighteen and was finally old enough to date him, Beau joined the Army and was deployed to Afghanistan. Now, six years later, Beau is back in Mitchel Creek, Georgia for a few weeks. He’s hotter than ever…and still ten years older, something he can’t seem to get past. He still sees Ashlee as a glorified little sister…or does he?

Review:

Oh my goodness... So many heart eyes for this adorable book! Where do I begin?! How about with the cover...oooo la la! I LOVE the cover. It is so cute and sassy and is the perfect representation of Ashlee. She is one sweet, sassy and spontaneous girl. You meet her in the first book of the series as Chase's little sister and now she has grown up and is a beautiful young woman that looks like a fairy tale princesses and just happens to be that for her job. Her twin sister Taylin gets married at the beginning of the book and after many years Ashlee sees Beau... the love of her life. She has had a crush on Chase's best friend forever and everyone knows it. Sparks begin to fly from the first moment they see each other again.

Beau can't believe what he was feeling when he saw Ashlee and how grown up and beautiful she is. Nothing can happen though because it's Chase's little sister. The connection these two have and the story line made for one swoon worthy book and it did not disappoint. I love the way Cindy writes and I was hooked from the first page all the way to the end. It is a clean romance with some steamy kisses and I enjoyed this book very much!

Stars: 5

A Family for the Farmer by Liz Isaacson

Synopsis:

Blake Gibbons knows farming like the back of his hand. He knows when to plant, what to do if an early frost comes, and how to deal with pests. He also knows how to fix old buildings into something new, and he does several odd jobs around the town of Brush Creek. When his construction work takes him to the bakery, he meets Erin Shields, the niece of the bakery owner. She's beautiful, she's hard-working, and she has three children under the age of eight.

Erin has recently moved to Brush Creek to help her aunt and uncle with the pie-making side of the bakery. It's been a good, if difficult, change for her and her kids. Divorced a year ago, Erin's been living with her parents until she moves to Brush Creek, and she's determined to find a way to support herself and her kids. The bakery is the ticket and she works hard to figure out how much flour to put in pie crust to make it oh-so-flaky.

But now Blake's caught her eye, and as they start a relationship, Erin's worries increase. How will her children handle Blake in their lives? Is she ready for another husband? Where will they all live?

In the end, both Blake and Erin will have to search their souls -- and rely on God -- to find their path through farming and pie filling to a happily-ever-after.

Review:

From the first electrifying sparks that happen when Blake runs into Erin you know it's going to be another good book. Blake is a farmer at Brush Creek and quite the handyman and Erin is new to the area and working at her aunts bakery. The bakery needs some fixing and Blake was hired to do it, giving him a chance to get to know Erin. As they begin getting to know each other he learns of Erin's three kids and it starts some ups and downs in this budding relationship. This book has real life situations that many could relate to. I like this series and the way the characters appear in different books. They are all different but have great story lines. Read this clean, sweet novella and find out if Blake decided to take a chance on love.

Stars: 4.5

The Mafia's Secret by Kimberley Montpetit

Synopsis:

Anna Hamilton drops out of grad school to go back home to small-town Hartland Cove because she’s dead broke and her widowed father has received a devastating diagnosis. Working as a tour guide for the whale ship, Jewel of the Ocean, is the perfect job for a girl with a degree in marine biology, but at this rate, she’ll never get back to finishing her PhD.

 Meanwhile, socialite Elise Kensington, Anna's best friend from college, begs Anna to find her a job where she can hide off the grid. Turns out Elise’s fiancé is an heir to the Mafia but wants no part of the family “business”. The plan is to run-away and elope, before they find themselves the victims of an “accidental” death.

Anna’s hometown is filled with sightings of gorgeous Hollywood scouts, Mafia heirs on the run, and strangers with amnesia. Unwittingly, Anna finds herself attracted to the bachelors—including Chad Garrett, the boy next door, who has suddenly gone from skinny teen to model gorgeous.

Review:

This was an intriguing, suspenseful and swoon worthy book. Like the other books in this series once again I love the setting of this book and found myself intrigued again with the small town and wanting to visit. I love the beach, ocean and cute coastal towns! I also liked the uniqueness of the characters. At the very beginning Anna runs into Micheal and you find yourself hoping that a connection will form between Anna and this handsome man. You meet Anna's best friend Elise who is quite eccentric and wonder how they are so close. I also loved the friendship Anna had with her neighbor Chad. All these people are important in this book and what happens towards the end of the book is quite surprising and not what I thought would happen.
This book and storyline are packed with a bit of everything and definitely kept you guessing throughout the book and all the way to the end. It has quite the ending and I am glad to say I am happy with how it ended. It was another good one by Kimberley.

Stars: 4