Wild Iris Ridge - RaeAnne Thayne (HQN - June 2014)

Series: Hope's Crossing (Book 7)

Lucy Drake and Brendan Caine have only one thing in common… .

And it's likely to tear them apart. Because it was Brendan's late wife, Jessie -- and Lucy's best friend -- who'd brought them together in the first place. And since Jessie's passing, Brendan's been distracted by his two little ones…and the memory of an explosive kiss with Lucy years before his marriage. Still, he'll steer clear of her. She's always been trouble with a capital T

Lucy couldn't wait to shed her small-town roots for the big city. But now that she's back in Hope's Crossing to take care of the Queen Anne home her late aunt has left her, she figures seeing Brendan Caine again is no big deal. After all, she'd managed to resist the handsome fire chief once before, but clearly the embers of their attraction are still smoldering…

Good reunion story. Lucy lost her high powered job and has come back to Hope's Crossing to regroup in the only place that ever felt like home. She spent several years there while growing up, becoming best friends with her cousin Jessie. She couldn't wait to leave, and isn't really looking forward to being back, especially with Jessie gone. She plans to turn her aunt's house into a bed and breakfast while she looks for a new job, and then move on. At the top of her list is avoiding Brendan whenever she can. She had an explosive kiss with him while she was in college, and was stunned when he not only blew her off, but shortly after that met and married her cousin. Ever since then, they've had a rocky relationship.

Brendan loved Jessie and has been pretty overwhelmed with taking care of his two kids in the two years since her death. He could handle Lucy's brief appearances in their lives, but having her back in town is going to be a little tougher. He's never forgotten that kiss, but the intervening years have been spent sniping at each other.

On Lucy's first night in town, she has a chimney fire at Iris House, resulting in a visit from the fire department, including Brendan. There are more sparks than just those in the chimney, but neither is going to admit it. Lucy's not planning to stay and Brendan certainly isn't going to leave. But as the days go on, they spend more time together, getting to know more about each other. Brendan discovers that Lucy is much nicer than he had thought, and her love for his kids is obvious. He begins to see that there's more to her than he had previously thought, and also sees some vulnerability under the shell she shows to the rest of the world. His feelings for her are growing, but he doesn't want to open his heart again only to have to deal with another loss. If her own problems aren't enough, Lucy's father decides to guilt her into taking care of her teenaged half sister, who has gotten herself into trouble at home. 

Lucy and Brendan find their lives changing in ways they never expected. I loved seeing Lucy give her sister the kind of love and support she had never had herself. Not only did it make a difference to Crystal, I loved the way it brought out a whole new side of Lucy. I loved seeing her settle in to life in Hope's Crossing, making friends and getting involved. She'd actually consider staying, but while her feelings for Brendan are growing, she doesn't think he'll ever be ready to move on. I liked seeing her stand up for herself and her needs. Brendan was so determined to keep her away at first, but he just couldn't fight what was growing between them. But those feelings were also scary for him, because he didn't think he could take a chance on losing someone else that he loved, so he kept pushing her away. He had quite a different scare at the end, that showed him what he really needed.

It was great to see so many characters from previous books. I loved seeing Gen and her decorating business helping Lucy with Iris House, so different from what she was like in earlier books. I also had fun seeing Dylan so happy and dispensing love advice to Brendan. His dad, Dermot, has always been a great character and it was especially satisfying to see him get his own happy ending.

Woodrose Mountain - RaeAnne Thayne (HQN - Apr 2012)

Series: Hope's Crossing (Book 2)

Evie Blanchard was at the top of her field in the city of angels. But when an emotional year forces her to walk away from her job as a physical therapist, she moves from Los Angeles to Hope's Crossing seeking a quieter life. So the last thing she needs is to get involved with the handsome, arrogant Brodie Thorne and his injured daughter, Taryn.

A self-made man and single dad, Brodie will do anything to get Taryn the rehabilitation she needs...even if it means convincing Evie to move in with them. And despite her vow to keep an emotional distance, Evie can't help but be moved by Taryn's spirit, or Brodie's determination to win her help -- and her heart. With laughter, courage and more than a little help from the kindhearted people of Hope's Crossing, Taryn may get the healing she deserves -- and Evie and Brodie might just find a love they never knew could exist.

Very emotional book. Evie left Los Angeles and her job as a physical therapist when the emotions involved in one of her cases got too hard to handle. She came to Hope's Crossing at the urging of a friend and has found a sense of peace while she works at the local bead store. She has put her life as a physical therapist behind her until Brodie comes to her asking for help with his daughter. Taryn was in a terrible accident that left her unable to move or speak easily, and has been refusing to cooperate in therapy. Brodie is desperate and will do anything he can to convince Evie to help.

Evie tries hard to refuse to help. She knows that she can't handle getting emotionally involved with Tayn or Brodie. But something about Taryn compels her to help, though she tries to protect herself. It isn't long before she is as emotionally invested as she'd feared. To top it off, Brodie isn't as much of an arrogant jerk as she had thought he was, and she sees past the attitude to the worried father. Evie is determined to do whatever is necessary for Taryn and this sometimes puts her at odds with Brodie. She stands up for her methods and things start to look up for Taryn.

Brodie is a man with a mission. He wants Evie's help and he will do whatever he has to in order to get it. It doesn't help that he doesn't like her much, her free spirit knocking up against his need for control and order in his life. Being around her as much as he is, he starts to see a different side to her. Soon he is fighting an unwilling attraction to her, and finding that being with her brings him a sense of calm that he hasn't experienced with anyone else. 

Things don't always go very smoothly between them as they find themselves on opposite sides of one particular therapy issue. Evie has discovered that Taryn's therapy is more successful when assisted by friends. One of those friends is the young man who caused the accident that injured Taryn. Brodie is furious at his presence, but Evie stands up for what she feels is best for Taryn. The romance itself is slow building as they get to know each other and open up about their own issues. Brodie comes to the realization of his feelings before Evie does, and tries to get her to agree to pursue them. Evie has to find the courage to risk her heart again.

Taryn's story is emotional in itself. She has gone from a vivacious teenager to a girl who needs help with the most basic of needs. She wants to get better, but she also feels that she may deserve everything she is going through. Throughout the book there are indications there may have been more to the accident than everyone believes. Taryn's emotional ups and downs seem to be tied to the blame everyone places on Charlie. There's an extremely emotional scene at the end when Taryn attends Charlie's hearing and speaks in his defense.

Blackberry Summer - RaeAnne Thayne (HQN - May 2011)

Series: Hope's Crossing (Book 1)

Claire Bradford needed a wake-up call.

What she didn't need was a tragic car accident. As a single mom and the owner of a successful bead shop, Claire leads a predictable life in Hope's Crossing, Colorado. So what if she has no time for romance? At least, that's what she tells herself, especially when her best friend's sexy younger brother comes back to town as the new chief of police.

But when the accident forces Claire to slow down and lean on others -- especially Riley McKnight -- she realizes, for the first time, that things need to change. And not just in her own life. The accident -- and the string of robberies committed by teenagers that led up to it -- is a wake-up call to the people of Hope's Crossing. The sense of community and togetherness had been lost during those tough years. But with a mysterious "Angel of Hope" working to inspire the town. Riley and Claire will find themselves opening up to love and other possibilities by the end of an extraordinary summer....

Fantastic book.  I love small town stories and this is one of the best.  All the characters are very realistic with hopes and dreams and problems that any one of us could experience.   When tragedy strikes the town it's the way they deal with it that will make or break the ones living it.

Claire is a divorced mother of two.  She owns a bead store that is doing pretty well but will never make her rich.  She lives in the same town as her ex and his new wife so that her kids can see their father on a regular basis.  She is also the person who takes care of her mother, a woman who turned very needy after her husband's scandalous death.  The investigation of a burglary at her store brings her back into contact with Riley McKnight, the younger brother of her best friend and the new chief of police.  The bad boy teen has grown up to be a handsome and responsible man and too darn tempting for her peace of mind.  When a car accident puts her in need of depending on other people, Riley is one of those who is there.  I liked Claire's sense of independence but she also had trouble accepting help.  After her father's death, Claire's mom fell apart leaving teenage Claire to take care of her younger brother, the house and her mother.  Ever since then Claire has been taking care of everyone but ignoring her own needs.  Seeing Riley again stirs feelings in her that have been quiet for a long time, but she's not too happy about having the hots for him.  After the accident that injured her and another girl and killed Riley's niece, Claire has to give up some of the control of her life in order to accept the help she needs.  She finds herself spending more time with Riley and is quite impressed with the man he has become.  She has trouble believing him when he tells her about the crush he had on her when they were younger, but she can't deny the feelings that are growing now.  I loved the way that she can separate the troubled boy he was from the man he is now and that she has no trouble standing up for him to other people.  It was terrific to see his care for her give her the desire to look after her own needs for a change.

Riley had been a bit of a hell-raiser as a teen.  He is the youngest of six kids and the only boy.  He had a lot of anger to deal with when his father left the family and it came out in destructive ways.  As soon as he graduated from high school he left home and ended up becoming an undercover cop in California.  After years of doing that work he is feeling burned out when he is offered the job of police chief in his hometown.  He takes it on a probationary basis, not sure if it will be a good fit.  He begins to think he was right as so many in town don't seem to be able to forget his teenage mistakes.  A bright spot in his return is seeing Claire again.  He has never forgotten her and meeting again as adults shows him that the feelings are still there.  As much as he'd like to pursue them, he feels that he's too damaged to be good for her, because of his cynicism from his former job and his fears that he'd be like his own father.  But he also finds that he can't stay away from her.  He's first on the scene after the car accidents and is desperate to make sure that she and her kids are safe.  Finding out about the occupants of the other car, and the death of his niece, Riley feels like the whole mess is his fault.  He spends a lot of time helping Claire and growing closer to her, but afraid to take it further.  I liked the way that he owns up to his stupidity from when he was younger, and I got really frustrated with the townspeople who refused to see the man he had become.  Even his own family seemed to be blind to who he was.  He did have a couple instances of idiocy, especially the one where he was so cynical about the "Day of Hope" that Claire and her friends were planning.  I'm glad he saw the errors of his ways.  His oh-so-romantic actions at the auction were the perfect ending to the book.

One of the things I like best about small town stories is the complicated and interwoven relationships.  As the first book in the series we learn at least a little about quite a few characters.  Claire's ex isn't a bad man, but he's pretty oblivious to the pain he causes Claire with some of his actions even after their divorce.  Claire's mother really irritated me.  I hated the way she leaned on Claire for everything and still managed to put her down about so much.  Her attitude about Riley really made me mad.  She was slightly redeemed at the end, but I think she still has a ways to go.  I loved the "Angel of Hope" and the way he/she has been doing things to help out various people.  Those things and the way that small towns have of coming together in times of tragedy go a long way toward improving the atmosphere of the town.  

Christmas in Snowflake Canyon - RaeAnne Thayne (HQN - Nov 2013)

Series: Hope's Crossing (Book 6)

Holiday gifts don't always come in expected packages…especially in the town of Hope's Crossing.

No one has ever felt sorry for Genevieve Beaumont. After all, she has everything money can buy. That is, until she discovers her fiancé has been two-timing her and she's left with two choices: marry the philanderer to please her controlling father or be disinherited and find a means to support herself.

Genevieve's salvation appears in the most unlikely of prospects: Dylan Caine, a sexy, wounded war vet whose life is as messy as hers. Dylan's struggling to adjust after his time in Afghanistan, and the last thing he needs is a spoiled socialite learning about the real world for the first time. True, she may have unexpected depths and beauty to match. But he knows he could never be the man she needs…and she knows he could never be the man she thinks she wants. So why are they each hoping that a Christmas miracle will prove them both wrong?

Wonderful book.  I loved the beauty and the beast theme.  Gen has been the girl that everyone loves to hate.  While engaged to her fiance she was the epitome of a bridezilla.  When she caught him cheating she dumped him and fled the country to recover.  Now she's back, with her father cutting her off financially until she can get her act together.  Dylan is back home in Hope's Crossing after losing a hand and an eye in Afghanistan.  All he wants is to be left alone.  When the two of them end up having to do some community service together, sparks start to fly.

From the moment Gen and Dylan met in the bar there was a connection between them that couldn't be denied.  Gen is there trying to forget that she's stuck in town until she can fix up her grandmother's house and sell it.  Dylan is there, waiting for his brother, because his family won't let him hide out in his cabin by himself.  Both are getting annoyed by the Christmas carols being played on the jukebox, but Gen loses it first and starts a brawl with another patron over it.  Dylan steps in to try to protect her and both end up arrested and sentenced to community service.

The place of their service is A Warrior's Hope, the local center for wounded veterans.  Dylan isn't happy about it because it reminds him of everything he's lost.  Not just the physical losses but the emotional ones also.  In the same blast that injured him he lost five friends and he blames himself.  All of these things make him feel that he is a "washed up army ranger with missing parts" and not someone worth being around.  But he mans up and puts in the time.  As he and Gen work together at their assigned tasks he finds that she is not the spoiled brat that everyone thinks she is.  I loved the way that he sees the goodness in her that others take much longer to see.  He also discovers that being around her is changing him.  Just listening to her talk relieves some of the mental stress he is under and soon he is laughing and smiling more.  I loved seeing him cave in to her demands when they were decorating the trees at the cabins.  He doesn't quite understand what is happening to him and at times it really scares him.  The occasional thought he has of getting closer to her tends to send him running in the opposite direction.  His cynicism crops up now and then when her optimism gets to be too much for him.  I loved the ending when his fears get shown up by her courage and he decides it's time to embrace life again.

Gen's time at A Warrior's Hope shows her that she can change from the spoiled brat she used to be into someone she can be proud of.  She started by standing up to her father and not letting him get her off from her sentence.  She was also determined to do the best she could at renovating her grandmother's house.  I really enjoyed her enthusiasm for the project and the way that it spilled over into her interactions with Dylan.  She really wants to change but it's really hard when the people around you can only see the old you and not the person you're trying to be.  I loved the fact that Dylan was one who could see that the apparently snobby person on the outside was hiding the woman who was shy and not very sure of herself.  The changes in her started to become really apparent when they were working at A Warrior's Hope.  Her enthusiasm and talent for decorating the Christmas trees surprised everyone and started them looking at her differently.  I loved seeing her start to connect with people and let them see who she really is.  The party she went to with Charlotte started out so well, until she ran into one person who was a real nasty piece of work.  It set her progress back a little until Dylan was able to show her that she couldn't let one person's opinion affect her that badly. I really liked the way that she saw Dylan for who he was, not the damaged surface.  She realized that she was falling for him and got frustrated with his hot and cold attitude. I also loved seeing how her optimism and softhearted personality caused her to try to help one of the wounded vets who was staying at the center.  In spite of Dylan's cynical attitude about it she was sure that she was doing the right thing.  Her way of calling the vet, and by extension Dylan, on his stupidity on throwing away love was fantastic and incredibly moving.  I loved the whole wedding planning scene and the way that she was embraced by the people who used to look down on her.  It gave her the final boost of confidence that she needed to then go after Dylan and tell him how she felt.  

The romance between Dylan and Gen was a slow build up as they had to deal with their own issues before they could truly open themselves up to the other one.  Each was much better at seeing the good in the other person.  I loved the attraction that was so evident between them but also that it didn't take over the entire story.  

Once again I loved the people of Hope's Crossing.  They all have their flaws and issues but they live their lives as best they can.  Most are cautious about trusting Gen at first but are willing to be convinced.  Dylan's family love him, but are also very good at getting up in his business.  I loved seeing the way they came together to help Gen plan the wedding and encourage her to stay around.