The Wedding Ranch

The Wedding Ranch by Nancy Naigle

Expected publication:  December 6, 2022 – St. Martin’s Griffin

Review galley courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley

Description:

When Lorri Walker’s husband gifted her with a mastiff puppy on Valentine’s Day, she believed he was recommitting himself to their marriage after going astray. Six months later, he left both her and their dog for someone else. Since her recent move to Dalton Mill to unbraid herself from the past, Lorri’s graphic design business is now flourishing, her growing mastiff, Mister, has plenty of space to romp, and her ex in Raleigh can fade to a distant memory.

Ryder Bolt is haunted by the tragic loss of his wife and young son seven years ago. Thankfully, ranching keeps Ryder busy, and spending time with his niece and nephew—whose venue, The Wedding Ranch, has become a popular tourist destination—keeps him from getting lonely.

When Lorri and Ryder met, love was the last thing they were looking for. When they’re together, smiles come easier and burdens feel lighter, and both are embracing the possibility of something deeper.

But when a long-buried revelation surfaces, the fate that brought them together threatens to tear them apart. (publisher)

My take:

The Wedding Ranch is a story of two people who meet and form a friendship that grows into something more. They’ve lived through life-changing emotional pain and loss but are in a place where they’re ready to move forward in life. Sounds like they’ll get their happily ever after, right?  But there is something that could change everything.There was foreshadowing early on in the novel so I was waiting to see when and how things would play out. I have to say figuring things out so early on kind of took me out of the story. Still, I liked how Naigle brought Lorri and Ryder on their emotional journey of discovery and forgiveness. I also liked the setting and, of course, Mister the dog.


About the author:

USA TODAY Bestselling author, Nancy Naigle, writes love stories from the crossroad of small town and suspense.

With a career spent on the cutting edge of technology in the banking industry, she never let go of her dream to write. Now she works full-time writing stories that are a calming blend of community, family, and the simple things in life. She writes the kind of stories she hopes will provide an escape from the hectic day-to-day in the make believe worlds she creates.

Aside from writing she enjoys hunting for treasures in junk and antique shoppes, and getting crafty no matter what the medium from painting and digitizing embroidery designs, to weaving pine needle baskets. She also enjoys horseback riding on her palomino, Tooter.

A Virginia native, and spending most of her life in the Tidewater area, she now calls North Carolina home.


 

All Is Bright

All Is Bright by RaeAnne Thayne

Published:  September 20, 2022 – HQN

Digital review copy courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley

Description:

Return to Hope’s Crossing this Christmas in New York Times bestselling author RaeAnne Thayne’s latest heartwarming story of matchmaking at the holidays!

Sage McKnight is an ambitious young architect working at her father’s firm who takes on her most challenging client in Mason Tucker. The former pro baseball player is still healing from the physical and emotional scars after a plane crash left him a wheelchair-using single dad, and he’s determined not to let anyone breach his emotional defenses. Sage knows her work on Mason’s new home in Hope’s Crossing is her best work yet, and she won’t let her grumpy client prevent her from showcasing her work personally.

With Sage’s gift for taking broken things and making them better, the matchmaking talent of the quirky locals and a generous sprinkling of Christmas cheer, Mason doesn’t stand a chance against the power of this magical holiday season. (publisher)

My take:

I’ll say right up front All Is Bright is going to be one of my favorite Christmas themed books in the CR genre. The trope of grumpy hero meets optimistic and unstoppable heroine doesn’t alway work for me but in Thayne’s hands it was a win. Sage and Mason have separately faced very difficult emotional and physical challenges but are at the point of moving forward in their lives.

There are sub-plots involving interesting secondary characters, complicated families, and regular daily life. I enjoyed it all and especially appreciated the epilogue that put the bow on this gift of a novel.

If you’re a fan of author RaeAnne Thayne, contemporary romance with a Christmas theme, and a mountain town setting you’ll want to read All Is Bright.


About the author:

RaeAnne Thayne is the #1 Publisher’s Weekly, New York Times, and USA TODAY bestselling author of nearly seventy books. Her books have been described as “poirgnant and sweet,” with “beautiful, honest storytelling that goes straight to the heart.” She finds inspiration from the beautiful northern Utah mountains, where she lives with her family. She loves to hear from readers and can be reach through her webiste at raeannethayne.com.

Author Website: https://www.raeannethayne.com/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorRaeAnneThayne/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/raeannethayne 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/raeannethayne 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/116118.RaeAnne_Thayne


 

Coming Home by Shelley Shepard Gray

Coming Home by Shelley Shepard Gray

Expected publication date:  Nov. 29, 2022 – Berkley

Digital galley courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley

Description:

In Woodland Park, a small town nestled in the foothills of Pikes Peak, Anderson Kelly and Chelsea Davis were once the high school “it” couple—the star quarterback and the valedictorian. They broke up when Anderson joined the army and one poor decision at a fraternity party changed Chelsea’s life. Now, she works long shifts in a senior center to support her nine-year-old son, Jack.

After multiple tours in Afghanistan, Anderson has changed, too—physically scarred but mentally strong—and he decides to move back to Woodland Park. Anderson and Chelsea steer clear of each other to avoid reopening old wounds, until they are forced to reconnect through the senior center. They soon discover that the love they once shared never completely vanished. But it will take a fire, a dangerous collision, and the love of one little boy to help Anderson and Chelsea see that the future they’ve always yearned for is in sight… (publisher)

My take:

Coming Home is a lovely second chance contemporary romance. Anderson and Chelsea were very much in love as high school students but went their separate ways after graduation – his path to the Army and hers to college. Ten years later they are back living in their hometown where their paths cross once again. Anderson now works at the fire department as a paramedic and Chelsea works at the local senior center. Both were profoundly changed by the experiences in their time apart. Will they give themselves the chance to know each other again?

I loved how author Shelley Shepard Gray’s story played out and especially appreciated the subplot involving older characters. It was nice to see them play more of a role than simply background filler. I look forward to seeing where Gray’s series goes in the second book (due out in 2023).


About the author:

Shelley Shepard Gray is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers prestigious Carol Award, and a two-time HOLT Medallion winner. She lives in southern Ohio, where she writes full-time, bakes too much, and can often be found walking her dachshunds on her town’s bike trail.


 

September Reading List

A propulsive new thriller set in London featuring Detective Harbinder Kaur from the author of the No 1 bestselling Dr Ruth Galloway Mysteries. A murderer hides in plain sight – in the police.

DS Cassie Fitzgerald has a secret – but it’s one she’s deleted from her memory.

Continue reading description

 

When an army vet becomes a firefighter in small-town Colorado, the flames of an old love reignite in this sweet romance by bestselling author Shelley Shepard Gray.

 

 

Continue reading description

 

When Lorri Walker’s husband gifted her with a mastiff puppy on Valentine’s Day, she believed he was recommitting himself to their marriage after going astray. Six months later…

 

 

Continue reading description

 

Some Suspense, Women’s Fiction, and Romance. These titles are from my NetGalley list. If I don’t add to it I’ll be caught up for the year but what are the chances??

What’s on your Fall reading list? 


 

Killers of a Certain Age

Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn

Published:  Sept. 6, 2022 – Berkley

Book courtesy of the publisher

Description:

Older women often feel invisible, but sometimes that’s their secret weapon.
 
They’ve spent their lives as the deadliest assassins in a clandestine international organization, but now that they’re sixty years old, four women friends can’t just retire – it’s kill or be killed in this action-packed thriller by New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-nominated author Deanna Raybourn.

Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie have worked for the Museum, an elite network of assassins, for forty years. Now their talents are considered old-school and no one appreciates what they have to offer in an age that relies more on technology than people skills.
 
When the foursome is sent on an all-expenses paid vacation to mark their retirement, they are targeted by one of their own. Only the Board, the top-level members of the Museum, can order the termination of field agents, and the women realize they’ve been marked for death.
 
Now to get out alive they have to turn against their own organization, relying on experience and each other to get the job done, knowing that working together is the secret to their survival. They’re about to teach the Board what it really means to be a woman—and a killer—of a certain age. (publisher)

My take:  I’m a fan of Deanna Raybourn’s Veronica Speedwell historical mystery series so I was very interested in reading her new book Killers of a Certain Age (a contemporary)What an entertaining read! It’s about an organization of assassins originating in the post WWII years for the purpose of hunting Nazis and recovering stolen works of art. While celebrating the start of retirement the team discover they apparently have one more case to deal with before moving on to their next chapter in life. I’m glad I didn’t know much about the plot going in because it was a lot of fun learning about this amazing team of women and how they handled things under extreme pressure. The novel is told in a dual timeline and has a good action movie pace which made it a read-in-a-day page turner for this reader of a certain age. Recommended.


About the author:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling novelist Deanna Raybourn is a 6th-generation native Texan. She graduated with a double major in English and history from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Married to her college sweetheart and the mother of one, Raybourn makes her home in Virginia. Her novels have been nominated for numerous awards including two RT Reviewers’ Choice awards, the Agatha, two Dilys Winns, a Last Laugh, three du Mauriers, and most recently the 2019 Edgar Award for Best Novel. She launched a new Victorian mystery series with the 2015 release of A CURIOUS BEGINNING, featuring intrepid butterfly-hunter and amateur sleuth, Veronica Speedwell. Veronica has returned in several more adventures, most recently AN IMPOSSIBLE IMPOSTOR, book seven, which released in early 2022. Deanna’s first contemporary novel, KILLERS OF A CERTAIN AGE, about four female assassins on the cusp of retirement publishes in September 2022.


Praise for Killers of a Certain Age:

“A thriller featuring four skilled, well-trained women is a treat in a male-dominated genre.”—Library Journal, STARRED review, Pick of the Month

 

“Examines the nuances of the female aging process from a unique angle. The writing is witty and original, and the plot is unpredictable…A unique examination of womanhood as well as a compelling, complex mystery.”—Kirkus Reviews, STARRED Review

 

“Raybourn has outdone herself.”—Publishers Weekly, STARRED review


Kit McBride Gets a Wife

Kit McBride Gets a Wife by Amy Barry

Published:  Aug. 23, 2022 – Berkley

Review galley courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley

Description:

The four McBride brothers have their worlds turned upside down when their precocious younger sister secretly places an advertisement for a mail-order bride.

Kit McBride knows that Buck’s Creek, Montana, is no place to find a wife. Between him and his three brothers—plus little Junebug—they manage all right on their own, thank you very much. But unbeknownst to Kit, his sister is sick to death of cleaning, cooking, and mending for her big brothers, so she places an ad in The Matrimonial News to get them hitched.
 
After Maddy Mooney emigrated from Ireland, she found employment with an eccentric but poor widow. When her mistress decides to answer an ad for a mail-order bride, Madd​y is dragged along for the ride to Montana. But en route to the West, Maddy is suddenly abandoned and left to assume the widow’s name, position, and matrimonial prospects….
 
With no other recourse in the wilderness, Maddy must convince Kit not only is she who she says she is, but she’s the wife he never knew he needed. (publisher)

My take:

First in a new series, Kit McBride Gets a Wife is set in 1880s Montana. Its about a family of brothers – and their sister who is tired of doing everything for them that a mother would do. She decides it is time for her to find her replacement. Light in tone and at times tender this is an entertaining story that will leave many readers and fans of the western historical romance sub-genre smiling. My one quibble was that the dialogue seemed too modern at times. I would prefer it to be more “of the era”.


About the author:

Amy Barry writes sweeping historical stories about love. She’s fascinated with the landscapes of the American West and their complex long history, and she’s even more fascinated with people in all their weird tangled glory. Amy also writes under the names Amy T Matthews and Tess LeSue, and is Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Flinders University in Australia. To learn more, visit: https://amy-barry.com/.