Sue Fineman, The Mitchell Money

Title: The Mitchell Money

Author: Sue Fineman

Rating: Four Siren Stones

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Keywords: Last Rose Of Summer Rose, Sensual, Martinson Ranch Series

Page Count: 272

ISBN E-Book: 1-60154-895-8

Price: $6.50

ISBN for Print: Price: $13.99

Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Buy-Link: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=175_140&products_id=4477

Reviewer: Nikki

Blurb/Summary:

Martinson Ranch Series

Where had her husband hidden their money? If he wasn’t dead, Rachel would leave him this time for sure. Without the money, she’ll lose her only asset, the half-built house on the hill outside Maystown, Arizona. The only man who can help her is the surly ex-cop who owns the ranch next door.

Gary is reluctant to get involved with the woman who backed into his truck, but she desperately needs his help. He strikes a deal – his investigative skills in exchange for Rachel’s cooking. He intends to find the money quickly and get the rude woman out of his life, but things get complicated. Gary discovers Rachel’s husband hid more than his money. His entire life was a lie.

Rachel’s vulnerability tugs at Gary’s heart. He’s been lonesome since his wife died, and he wants to keep Rachel at the ranch, but the truth about the past could tear them apart. After her husband’s treachery, she’ll never trust another man. Even him.

Review:

Some people have many secrets. Some of those secrets happen to come out when the person is dead, leaving behind a mind of chaos and wonder to those who knew the deceased, but didn't know their secrets.

Rachel was married to Mitch for over 20 years. He wasn't the best husband, but they made it work. Though after his death, Rachel struggled both financially and emotionally. Her late husband drained the savings accounts and left Rachel stranded.

She's hired to work as a cook for some neighbors. In return, Gary, a retired police officer, will help her find the missing money. Though their first impression of the other started off rocky, the two warmed up to each other after many circumstances kept them close.

This is a story featuring an older hero and heroine, and though they are very far off from my age, I was very drawn into this story. The situations were so real, and the characters were so full of life and emotion, readers won't be able to help but be immersed with this book.

If you enjoy contemporary romances, a bit of mystery, and an older hero and heroine, then pick up a copy of The Mitchell Money.

Anne Ashby, Time to Bury the Past

Title: Time to Bury the Past

Author: Anne Ashby

Rating: Siren's Best Book Stone

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Keywords: Last Rose Of Summer Rose, Later Life, Sweet

Word Count: 90,000

ISBN E-Book: 1-60154-896-6

Price: $7.00

ISBN for Print: 978-1601548962

Price: $14.99

Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Buy-Link: http://thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=175_140&products_id=4458

Reviewer: Cia

Blurb/Summary:

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder forces American Naval Officer Zane Erickson to re-evaluate his life. A posting to untroubled New Zealand, after years in Afghanistan, should allow him to bond with his motherless teenage son. Unfortunately Cody doesn’t share his father's enthusiasm for this new living arrangement.

Kelsey Hewitt is a single mother wrestling with her son’s drinking problem. She struggles to keep the truth about his abusive father from him and is determined to exclude men from her life.

As Kelsey and Zane are drawn together by the boys’ friendship, they each have compelling reasons to avoid any possible intimacy. Through dealing with their sons’ dilemmas, their attraction for each other deepens.

Can Kelsey risk allowing another control freak into her life?

Review:

Time to Bury the Past by Anne Ashby led me into the lives of Kelsey and Zane. I first want to touch on the emotional toll of this fantastic read. The pacing of this romance reeled me in and didn’t let me go. I remained hooked literally wondering what else the world would throw at these two single parents who needed a helping hand in completely different ways.

Kelsey’s past and how it shaped her gave incredible insight to why she refused to allow love in her life. I had to really think about the essence of her and what I found was at the tender age she left home she didn’t love herself much less know how to let anyone love her or to have been taught the way a man is supposed to love and respect his woman.

Zane sweet lord this man had an uphill battle with so much baggage I knew the only reason he kept going was out of love even if misguided. He hadn’t learned that his way of communication and the civilian way were to totally different animals and kept comparing himself to his father and coming to terms with what his career cost him.

What no one understood was the costs that he sacrificed to protect his son, his family and the country. The horrors he saw, the secret part of him never shared but weighed heavily on his shoulders. Add to that a government who wouldn’t let him go and he had his own quandary, how to be a good father and honor the commitment he signed up.

Add in two teens in need of a good friend, a cast of secondary characters who make the perfect external family and this story makes for a fantastic read, the only thing missing is wondering what happens and how they’re story ends. This is one book I’d love reading again just to see if there’s a layer or two I missed the first time around.

Karen Bostrom, Dangerous Sands

Title: Dangerous Sands

Author: Karen Bostrom

Rating: Three And A Half Siren Stones

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Keywords: Last Rose Of Summer Rose, Sensual, Later Life

Page Count: 340

ISBN E-Book: 1-60154-864-8

Price: $7.00

ISBN for Print: 978-1601548641

Price: $14.99

Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Buy-Link: http://thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=175_140&products_id=4390

Reviewer: Nikki

Blurb/Summary:

Massage therapist Rita Madison is divorced and retreating to the sanctuary of her upscale Jersey Shoe hometown. At 39, she’s tired, broke, and has little trust in men. Her plan is to build her own business, spend time with her beloved aunt and walk on the beach – far from men, lies, and deception. But the idyllic locale she remembers from her childhood no longer exists. Her aging aunt is facing a bleak financial situation, and a series of incidents are plaguing her new business, threatening to derail her new life and livelihood.

To complicate matters further, two attractive men enter Rita’s life: a down-to-earth yet secretive carpenter who claims he is looking out for her aunt and a wealthy, smooth-talking businessman who offers her a trouble-free life every chance he gets. While Rita untangles the finances of her aunt, she must decide if she can learn to trust and love again. But is she putting her trust, and her heart, in the care of the right man?

Review:

Dangerous Sands is a contemporary romance that focuses on choices. The heroine at a time in her life where decisions must be made. But I honestly had a hard time relating to and liking Rita. She's cynical, closed off, and doesn't trust men, and sometimes she comes off as crass. Further into the story, the reader catches a glimpse of more emotion from her.

The story itself had plenty of things to keep me going. Pacing was great, and I absolutely adored Rita's Aunt.

I wondered throughout who Rita would end up with, the author kept the suspense up in that category fairly well. I enjoyed the story. If you like contemporary romances with an older heroine, then Dangerous Sands just be may what you are looking for.