NIGHTINGALE WAY BY Emily March

OMG what a book!  Nightingale Way if the fifth book in the Eternity Springs series.  I got a signed copy in the mail as one of my Emily's Angels gifts.  I went to bed and thought I will just read a couple of pages to get a flavor of the book.  Well, five chapters later I reluctantly put it down and turned out the light.  The next day I finished it and I hated for it to end.  I have loved each book in the series but I think each book gets better than the last.
Jack Davenport has always been sort of a mystery man flying in and out of Eternity Springs in his helicopter.  He certainly helped save Gabe Callahan's life in the first book of the series, Angel's Rest.  However we never really got to know him as a person.  Now we find him to be a rescuer in the fullest sense of the word.  As the book begins he is abducting his ex-wife, Cat and flying her to his home, Eagles Way, in Eternity Springs to protect her from folks angry about some investigative journalism that she had published.
I really liked the way Emily March used flashbacks to let us see into Jack's and Cat's former lives.  It really explained how their relationship grew and then floundered. Could it be revived again?  Both Jack and Cat's characters are very likable although at time it seemed as though Jack's arrogance came through.
I love seeing the characters from the former books entwined in each others lives.  It promoted a desire in me for that sort of community that is so often missing in our society  and for which we all yearn and need.
The humor that surrounded the bachelorette party for Sarah had me laughing hysterically.  It just shows the range of emotions that March is able to draw out in her readers. Yes, I went from laughter to tears at some points in the story.
So who will be the focus of the next book?  Will it be Zack, the sheriff or some other character who has shown up in Eternity Springs.  I am rooting for Zack!!
If you haven't read any of the Eternity Springs series, please start with the first, Angel's Rest as each book really builds upon the previous ones.  They are all excellent and highly recommended.

THE PROPOSAL BY MARY BALOGH

Mary Balogh has long been a favorite author of mine.  Her latest book The Proposal does not disappoint.  It was fun to meet again some of the characters from her other books.  It was so good to know Lady Muir's (Gwen) story.

Her fateful meeting with Lord Trentham (Hugo) on a deserted beach at the Pendarris estate and the subsequent development of their relationship made for good reading.  Gwen always seemed so aloof and not quite alive and it was great to see her growth into a wonderfully alive and caring person.

Lord Trentham was a big, burly man who seemed at times so crude and rude but then so tender.  He was a very plain speaking man who had been through the horror of war and came back a titled hero who was wounded inside.  His care for his sister and stepmother was admirable.

I really liked the humor that was apparent from time to time especially as Hugo would say he hadn't decided if he was courting Gwen even as he actually was.
The secondary characters were well done and at times helped moved the story along but it was Gwen and Hugo that made this book!

Mary Balogh writes some of the best sex scenes.  She handles them with taste but does not leave out the feelings of passion and love  The way Hugo and Gwen traversed between two worlds was somewhat amazing although at times I was not sure whether they would be able to do that.
All in all a very satisfactory story that I highly recommend.  It is also available in audio from Audible.com

Beyond Seduction by Stephanie Laurens - Narrated by Steven Crossley

This sixth book in the Bastion Club series by Stephanie Laurens is a great book and I loved the series.  I have waited for along time for this book and Mastered By Love to come out in Audio.  What a disappointment to have Steven Crossley as the narrator.  He is terrible at women's voices and not much better at men's.  His children's voices are even worse than the women's.
Jill Tanner narrated the first books in the series and she did an excellent job.  Simon Preble has narrated the rest of Lauren's books and he is superb!
The narrator makes the audio book ands when Blackstone contracted with Crossley they made a big mistake!  Now I have the audio books I will listen to them but not with the enjoyment that I had anticipated.  It is a shame to take such a good book and give it to such a poor narrator.
Take note Blackstone and chose your narrators very carefully.

BRIDE BY MISTAKE by Anne Gracie

OMG, I just finished Bride by Mistake by Anne Gracie.  I loved this book!  I have been waiting for Luke's story and it was worth the wait.
Luke Ripton married a young thirteen year old Isabella to save her during the war.  She is sent to live in a convent where her aunt is a nun.  When Luke applies for an annulment it is denied.  He begins his journey to Spain to collect his bride after 8 years.
Isabella has been dreaming of the day when he would come and has had very romantic dreams about how that would all work out.
Well it didn't work out the way either of them thought.  Luke thought he would find a very obedient, passive woman and was he ever surprised.  Isabella thought he would be so happy to finally see her and her disappointment and hurt was so obvious.
I loved seeing the way their relationship developed and how they came to trust and love each other.  These two characters were so well developed.  Luke from being withdrawn from all emotion and finally finding his heart and learning to trust and Isabella relatively open but hiding some secrets to becoming such a comforter and partner.
I didn't want this book to end as I was so drawn to Luke and Isabella, I wanted to know how their life developed after they reached England.  I am eagerly awaiting Gracie's next offering.

A PLACE CALLED HOME by Jo Goodman

As I have mentioned before I have been a big fan of historical romances but lately I have been drawn to contemporaries.  First, Emily March's Eternity Springs series and then I discovered Jo Goodman's A Place Called Home.


This story of Mitch Baker and Thea Wyndham becoming legal guardians of their friend's three children was not quite what I expected.  Gabe and Kathy have been killed in a car accident.  The children are living with Mitch.  No one has been able to get in touch with Thea for a month.  When she finally gets the notification of her responsibility to her friend's children her reaction is not positive.
I really liked Mitch's character from the beginning.  He remained pretty much the same person throughout the book.  He had a good sense of humor and a caring nature.  While Thea came across as a cold hearted snob.  But I really liked the way her character developed and once one knew of her childhood and upbringing it was easy to understand her.  The relationship that developed between Mitch and Thea was one of growing respect for each other and genuine caring.  The sexual tension between them gave me goose bumps.  You might call this a hot novel but it was nicely done.
The kids characters were well drawn and I loved Emilie, who was older in wisdom than in years.  Case and Grant, five year old twin brothers were great characters.
I absolutely loved the scene where Thea brought her mother and father to the twin's ball game and I chuckled as I pictured her dressed in her career suit with a baseball cap on her head, dragging her snobby mother and father through the crowd with foot long hot dogs and cokes.  It was surely not what they had expected as a dinner out.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes contemporary romances.  It is a winner!