Friday, November 22, 2013

Review ~ CANDLELIGHT AND KISSES by Nola Cross, Kaylie Newell and Pepper Anthony

Three novellas which will show you the power of forgiveness, love and what can happen when you take a leap of faith.  A Home for My Heart by Nola Cross; The Mariner’s Gift by Kaylie Newell and Sunny’s Second Chance by Pepper Anthony
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A Home for My Heart by Nola Cross
“They say you can never go home again. Try telling that to your heart.”
 
When big-city attorney, Jonathan Silver, agreed to be godfather to his infant niece five years before, he didn’t dream he would actually end up as her guardian. He’d never imagined himself as a family man. Now he’s not only an instant father to little Rachel, but also inherits the house where he grew up in the small town of Everfield, Washington. When he left Everfield fifteen years before, he never planned to return. Now for Rachel’s sake, he’s reordered his priorities and come home to join a two-man law practice.
 
Merridee Cresswell always wanted a big family. She and her ex-husband tried unsuccessfully for years to have kids; their marriage eventually failed from the strain. Since then, she has poured all her maternal feelings into her children’s clothing store, Frog’s Togs, and the special program she runs to help disadvantaged kids in Everfield.
 
When his first legal client hires him to sue Merridee for negligence, Jonathan has to investigate the shop keeper’s character. Is she really as flakey as his client says? Or is she the warm, lovely woman she appears to be, the woman so ready to take Rachel under her wing and make Christmas special again? And what about him? Could there be room in her heart for Jonathan too?


A Home for My Heart by Nola Cross ~ REVIEW

Jonathan and Merridee are the main characters of A Home for My Heart.  Jonathan has become the guardian to his niece after her parents die.  For the child's sake, he moves back to his hometown located in a small community.  He’s afraid to move back because of his deceased father's alcoholism, but he ends up getting a warm reception much to his surprise.
 
Merridee has lived in Everfield, Washington her whole life.  She remembers Jonathan from high school and she had a major crush on him when he was senior and she was a freshman.  Needless to say, sparks fly when they meet each other after Jonathan moves back to town.  The question for Merridee becomes will she alone be enough for Jonathan and his niece Rachel?  


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The Mariner’s Gift by Kaylie Newell
Sometimes the best gifts are the ones you least expect.
 
When LA Times journalist Zola Mitchell decides to head home to San Francisco this December, it’s to write a piece on the legendary Alcatraz prison.  It has nothing to do with her high school crush Oliver Tworek, who’s recently moved back to start up a tour boat business to The Rock.  At least, that’s what she keeps telling herself.
 
But when Oliver ends up asking her to dinner, Zola can’t refuse.  And when he kisses her under a display of Christmas fireworks from aboard his boat, she can barely remember her own name.  After twenty years, nothing seems to have changed.  Oliver’s still popular and gorgeous, and Zola’s still…well, Zola.  Behind the successful job, and underneath her shiny new grown up exterior, Zola still feels like the skinny girl from junior year English.  Will she ever be able to conquer those little girl insecurities?  And more importantly, will she ever get to know the real Oliver; the one who might just have a few secrets of his own?

 
The Mariner’s Gift by Kaylie Newell ~ REVIEW


Oliver and Zola are the main characters in The Mariner’s Gift.  Oliver is a single dad whose wife left him because she couldn't deal with the fact that her daughter had Down's syndrome.  He's a boat captain in the San Francisco Bay area, who does tours.  He ends up taking Zola, an old high school classmate, on a tour to Alcatraz for a newspaper story she's working on.  Zola had a crush on him in high school and Oliver didn't know it.  They were friends but she was kind of bookish and he was popular with the girls and didn't think of her "that way".  When he meets up with her on the Alcatraz tour, sparks fly & he's overwhelmingly attracted to her much to her delight since she's still got a huge crush on him.  They happily rekindle their old friendship and take it to the next level.  She meets his daughter and it doesn't alarm her that she has Down's.  That seals the deal for Oliver and they live happily ever after.


Places to find Kaylie Newell:

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Sunny’s Second Chance by Pepper Anthony
“What if love really is lovelier the second time around?”
 
It’s a rough Christmas for the just-divorced Sunny and her six-year-old daughter, Jasmine. When your no-good husband leaves you for a pretty young dancer, it’s hard not to feel old, fat and frumpy. But then she meets a handsome widower, Ben Stillman, and his young son, Spencer. The two kids hit it off, dragging their parents into an unwitting friendship.
 
Sunny’s never thought about dating a white man. The whole interracial thing seems risky, especially since Jasmine is still struggling with adjusting to her father’s defection. What if the little girl gets attached to Ben and Spencer, and things don’t work out?
 
Ben has been struggling under the weight of grief since his wife’s death a year ago. He suspects it’s too soon to move on, but somehow he wants to make Christmas special for Spencer. Then he meets Sunny and everything changes. She chases away the darkness and makes him feel alive again. Can the two of them learn to trust the magic between them long enough to give love a second chance?

 
Sunny’s Second Chance by Pepper Anthony ~ REVIEW


Ben and Sunny are the main characters in Sunny’s Second Chance.  Ben is a white, widowed single dad, his wife died of ovarian cancer a year ago.  Sunny is a divorced black woman with a daughter.  They meet each other in the town square where the Christmas tree is being erected for the holiday.  Their children become fast friends and they end up spending a lot of time together.  He feels guilty for having feelings for this woman when he thinks he should still be grieving for his wife.  Sunny feels guilty for having feelings for Ben because of their races.  They end up seeing beyond the color of their skin and decide to take their friendship to the next level.  They fall head over heels in love with each other and live happily ever after.


Places to find Pepper Anthony:



Rating: 3 stars for all the books
 
Release Date: November 12, 2013
Book Length: 217 pages
Source: Blog Tour Promoter
Reviewed by: Julie
Reading format: Available only in eBook


Candlelight and Kisses can currently be purchased from Amazon.  Look for other retailers coming soon.

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