Playing With Fire - Susan May Warren

Playing With Fire is the second book in the Montana Fire series by Susan May Warren.

About the book:

She can’t forget the man she walked away from . . . Liza Beaumont knew she was playing with fire when she let smoke jumper Conner Young into her life. Just friends, she promised herself, but she couldn’t help but fall for the tall, blond firefighter who needed her. But loving him got her burned, and she’s not about to risk her heart again.  

His once chance to get her back . . . Conner Young knows he blew his one chance with Liza. His personal losses—and his profession—made him wary of offering any promises he couldn’t be sure he’d live to keep. So he let her walk away, but he never forgot the place she’d held in his heart.  

A race to find a missing girl . . . Until Liza is attacked in the mountains by a rogue grizzly. Her panicked phone call alerts Conner to everything he lost—and still wants. Now, with a teenage girl missing in the woods, and a predator on the loose, Conner and Liza must fight against time and the elements to save her. But when the old friendship ignites into fresh sparks, are they setting themselves up to get burned again? And when disaster happens, will their nightmares pull them apart, or will they find the courage to survive?

My review:

Conner doesn't make any promises.  Ever.  He makes a friend with the potter Liza Beaumont while in Deep Haven (remember the forest fire that came through there?).  They hit it off as good friends, watching sunsets together and enjoying each others company.  Liza is content with the situation, knowing she was never meant to be more than a good friend to guys in her life.  But with Conner things feel different.  Then he leaves to go back to work in Montana.  But he finds her again.  Now she's in Arizona and he gets Gilly Priest, his smokejumping team pilot, to fly him down there.  They have a great time, going skydiving and ending the night up on a mountain watching the sunset.  But unfortunately their evening doesn't end as well as it started . . .

Conner has nearly given up trying to contact her.  She answers none of his calls that he can put through during his short breaks from his exhausting work on the fire line - when he has cell service.  When he receives a panicked phone calls from Liza, he's momentarily happy - until he discovers that something is terribly wrong.  Liza is being hunted by a grizzly bear.  He needs to rescue his friend (that he wishes was so much more) before the bear gets her or the two missing teens.  He brings in his smokejumping team.  Searching for the two teens, Conner and Liza come face to face with the grizzly again, and face a wild and dangerous ride ahead of them.  

The slight cliffhanger at the end with clues to an arsonist was very nice.  It was an enjoyable book to read with plenty of adrenaline rushes.  I also love how all three books in the series have so many characters from the other series, either mentioned or actually a part of the story.  Definitely recommend!

Where There's Smoke - Susan May Warren

Where There's Smoke is the first book in the Montana Fire series by Susan May Warren.

About the book:

She’s a smokejumper afraid of fire… Kate Burns is a legendary smoke jumper, known for her courage and willingness to risk everything to get the job done. Only she has a secret, one she won’t admit to anyone.  

He can’t forget the love they once shared… Supervisor Jed Ransom commands the Jude County Smoke Jumpers with a reputation as a calm, level-headed leader. Kate is the only one who’s ever gotten under his skin.  

They must face the flames together… A raging wildfire in the mountains of Montana brings Kate and Jed together to train up a new team of jumpers. Suddenly, they must face the past they’ve been running from and the secrets that keep them apart. When an arsonist goes after their team, Kate and Jed must face their deepest fears—and learn to rely on each other as they fight a blaze that could destroy them all. 

In this first book of the Montana Fire: Summer of Fire trilogy, Kate and Jed are about to discover that where there’s smoke, there just might be a chance to start again. 

My Review: 

Jed and Kate have so much anger and distrust between them.  They have been friends ever since they were teens.  Kate's father, the head of the Jude County Smokejumping team is now way going to let his daughter join the team.  Smokejumping is way to dangerous.  But when she's goes off to join another team, he is steaming mad and scared for her safety.  So he sends Jed after her.  Kate is mad and distrustful of Jed's reasons for being there.  Jed and Kate get caught in a dreadful fire where they almost lose their lives.  Their friendship is starting to build into more when Jed suddenly tells Kate that he wants her out of his life.  Kate is mortified after practically having her heart on her sleeve and is sure that Jed blames her for getting him into the fire mess.  She couldn't have been further from the truth . . .

Kate goes through another traumatic event that leaves her in the office - not smokejumping.  But then there's a memorial for her father and his team - most of whom died in fighting a fire.  It's her chance to jump again and she takes it.  She also happens to be an instructor for the new year's team.  An awful mishap in the sky has Blazin' Kate Burns flying - literally - to the rescue, shocking every one on the ground with her daring moves.  Especially Jed, who just happens to be the team's supervisor.  As soon as Kate lands, he promptly fires her, telling her that she cannot put her life in danger like that and that she was a role model that rookies would look up to and try to copy.  She would put their lives in danger with her image to look up to.

Plenty of fights and fiery kisses.  Everything was fiery - almost too much.  Towns, restaurants, sports teams, nicknames, descriptions.  Tons of smoke and fire.  Two points of the book that I really loved:  How Jed is always struggling to deal with the fact that Kate is always in danger while smokejumping and that he might not be able to save her.  The role the song "Great is thy Faithfulness" plays in the book.  It was Kate's father's song.  Overall, I liked the book.  I've never been disappointed by a Susan May Warren book yet.  But I didn't find it to be as absolutely amazing as, say, If Ever I Would Leave You.  But I definitely recommend the book!

If Ever I Would Leave You - Susan May Warren

If Ever I Would Leave You is the prequel novella for the Montana Rescue series by Susan May Warren.

About this book:

If you harbored a devastating secret, had given your solemn promise of silence… what would make you to break it?
Ian Shaw can have anything he wants…
...except the woman he loves. After all, Sierra Rose is his amazing assistant, a woman who helps him hold his empire together, leaving him free to pursue his adventurous hobbies—his only distraction from his excruciating past… until now. But what if she is the one who can finally free him from his regrets?
Sierra Rose harbors a terrible secret…
...the fact that Ian’s favorite niece and ward, Esme, just might elope with her less-than-awesome boyfriend. Sierra’s made a promise to Esme—but her first loyalty belongs to her boss Ian, the man she's admired for years. But letting herself fall in love with him risks the best job she’s ever had.
When tragedy strikes, sparks ignite…
...because Esme has vanished. Ian fears the worst--has she run away with her boyfriend? Or, has something more sinister happened in the wilds of Glacier National Park? It's a race against time, with Sierra and Ian caught in the crossfire of secrets, regrets and what-ifs.
The exciting prequel to the Montana Rescue series! Get your copy today—and jumpstart your epic romantic adventure.

My review:

Sierra is in love with her boss.  The thrill-seeking, stubborn, risk-taking billionaire.  And Ian Shaw loves her back.  Sierra can never tell Ian how she feels because she doesn't want to lose her job as his assistant.  She distances herself from him by calling him Mr. Shaw, which ticks off Ian to no end.  Sierra also has a secret.  She knows what's up between Ian's niece and ward Esme and her boyfriend Dante.  Esme is smart and studious, just like her uncle.  She can attend any university or college in the country, especially if she has Uncle Ian to help her out.  Sierra promises not to tell Ian about discovering how deep their relationship has apparently gotten.  Esme even wants to elope!  Instead, she invites Ian on the youth group camping trip as another chaperone so he can see for himself.  Ian, himself, isn't concerned.  He had a little talk over a fancy dinner with Esme who told him that she was definitely going to further her education.  One morning the camp awakens to find that Esme and Dante are gone.  Right away searchers are sent out.  But they aren't found.  Weeks pass and Ian puts those billions to use.  He's frantic to find Esme.  He works out all the time, going crazy with worry, believing every call might be the one that says they're found her body.  He buys equipment (including helicopters), hires people, and puts ads everywhere.  But Esme and Dante are nowhere to be found. 

The whole prequel is a cliff-hanger!  The novella ends with the founding of PEAK Rescue and a completely unfulfilling agreement between Ian and Sierra.  And I can't help but wonder over the times that Esme would say "It's not what it looks like" when she's with Dante.  This is the best prequel novella I've ever read and it's the perfect set-up for a promising series.  I can't wait for Wild Montana Skies in October - and the whole rest of the series.  This prequel is full of loose ends and cliff-hangers that need to be wrapped up.  I liked the little bits of each character that were introduced, especially Ben King, the hero of book one.  Looking forward to finding out what happened to Esme and Dante and finding out how Ian and Sierra's relationship is going to unfold.

Just a Kiss - Denise Hunter

Just a Kiss is the third book in the Summer Harbor series by Denise Hunter.

About the book:

Riley Callahan’s plans to reveal his secret feelings for his best friend are derailed when his life is drastically altered in Afghanistan.

Watching the love of his life fall for his brother was enough to send Riley straight to boot camp. But over a year later, he’s officially a marine, and Beau and Paige are no longer an item. When Riley’s tour in Afghanistan is up, he intends to confess his feelings to Paige and win his best friend’s heart once and for all.
But all that changes when an IED takes the life of a comrade and leaves Riley an amputee. Now he’s heading home, injured and troubled. His plans to win Paige are a distant dream. She deserves so much more than the man that’s left. All he can do now is put some healthy distance between them. But upon his return he discovers his family has arranged for him to stay with Paige.
Paige is a nurturer at heart and happy to take care of her best buddy. By all appearances Riley is adjusting miraculously well to his disability. But as the days pass, Paige begins to see that the smiles and laughter are just a mask for the pain he’s hiding. To make matters worse, her job is in serious jeopardy. The animal shelter that she’s poured her heart into has lost its funding, and she has three months to come up with the money needed to save it.
As the weeks wear on, Paige’s feelings for Riley begin to shift into uncharted territory. Why is she suddenly noticing his arm muscles and the way his lips curl at the corners? Will she be able to deny her feelings for another Callahan brother? And will Riley let his heart heal so he can let Paige in?

My Review:

As already mentioned in The Goodbye Bride, Riley plans to return home and finally tell his best friend Paige that he's in love with her.  After all, he originally left because he couldn't handle the fact that she was going out with his older brother.  But now she's single - and just waiting for him to claim her.  Paige of course has no idea or her best friend's feelings toward her, especially since she was half-drunk during the only time he kissed her, during one of the lowest points in her life.  She didn't remember the kiss that she has so willingly responded to and he never mentioned it again.  Riley's good intentions are derailed when he loses a leg.  Paige deserved better than that.  When Riley returns he finds the farmhouse's lower level under construction and his old room off Zac's Roadhouse gone to make room for a larger kitchen.  He's stuck bunking in Paige's main-floor master bedroom.  All good for her - she loves taking care of her best friend.  Not so good for him.  He's struggling with his feelings towards her and constantly being bugged by how overprotective she's being.  He's too stubborn to accept help, even if it means falling down all the time.  Riley knows that he needs to get out of Paige's house and her life.  They can never be more than best friends - no matter how badly he might want to.  He has plans to move away just as soon as his leg heals.  Until he starts falling for Paige big time.  She goes out with her boyfriend, Dylan, and he's stuck at home, entertaining thoughts of jealousy and acting like Paige's father in front of the guy.  But just as he's starting to tell Paige about his feelings for her, he realizes that he can't protect her like she deserves.  She needs someone stronger and more worthwhile in her life.  Riley is angry and frustrated and Paige's stress over work doesn't make things any better.  Finally Riley walks out - for the second time.  It's a time of soul-searching for each one.  Can Paige be content just to be friends with the man she loves?  Can Riley ever view himself as a whole man again?  And will Aunt Trudy ever 'kiss and makeup' with Sheriff Danny Colton over decisions made so long ago?  I enjoyed The Goodbye Bride more, but this story was also very cute.  I love how Aunt Trudy has such an impact on both Zac and Riley.

The Goodbye Bride - Denise Hunter

The Goodbye Bride is the second book in the Summer Harbor series by Denise Hunter.

About the book:

She only remembers loving him. But he can’t forget the way she left.Following a concussion, Lucy Lovett can’t remember the last seven months of her life. She doesn’t remember leaving her fiancé Zac Callahan weeks before their wedding or moving to Portland, Maine. And she sure doesn’t remember getting engaged to another man. All she remembers is loving Zac more than life itself.  

It’s taken Zac months to move on after Lucy left him with no explanation. He’s thrown himself into his family’s farm and his restaurant business in Summer Harbor. Now Lucy’s back, vulnerable, homeless, and still in love with him. She needs his help putting the pieces together, but letting her back into his life is a risk—and the stakes are high. If he follows his heart he’ll win back the love of his life. But if her memory returns he’ll lose her all over again.

My review:

Lucy falls and smacks her head just hours before she is going to get married.  When she comes to she finds she finds her brain stuck seven months in the past, in love with Zac Callahan.  And she needs rescuing because she had absolutely no clue where she is.  So she calls Zac up.  And just like that, she's back in his life.  He doesn't want her around.  She jilted him and ran off only a few weeks before their wedding.  Zac had fallen in love with sweet southern Lucy, with her tiny height and cute drawl, almost immediately.  But that was all once-upon-a-time.   Before she left for no reason - or did she have a reason that he didn't know about?  But anyways, she's back and thinks they're going to get married.  He wants nothing to do with but can't deny that there are still feelings on his end also.  He's terrified of rejection.  What if Lucy regains her memory and remembers why she left him?  She would leave him all over again and he couldn't live through that.  Will Zac risk his heart?  Will Lucy go back and marry her other man - because he was her fiance!  And in the midst of all their drama, Zac's stubborn Aunt Trudy reveals a secret of her own - she has quite the history with the town sheriff.  Can Aunt Trudy find a happily-ever-after that should have come years ago?  Not my favorite Denise Hunter book, but it's still amazing.  I loved Zac's vulnerability and fear of rejection as well as Lucy's sweet out-going character.  Their story is not one that will be forgotten.

Gone South - Meg Moseley

Gone South by Meg Moseley.

About the book:

The charm of the South drew her back to her family’s roots. But when the town’s old resentments turn the sweet tea bitter, can Tish find a welcome anywhere?
 Leaving frosty Michigan for the Deep South was never a blip in the simple plans Tish McComb imagined for her life, dreams of marriage and family that were dashed five years earlier in a tragic accident. Now an opportunity to buy her great-great-great-grandparents’ Civil War era home beckons Tish to Noble, Alabama, a Southern town in every sense of the word. She wonders if God has given her a new dream— the old house filled with friends, her vintage percolator bubbling on the sideboard.
 When Tish discovers that McCombs aren’t welcome in town, she feels like a Yankee behind enemy lines. Only local antiques dealer George Zorbas seems willing to give her a chance. What’s a lonely outcast to do but take in Noble’s resident prodigal, Melanie Hamilton, and hope that the two can find some much needed acceptance in each other.
 Problem is, old habits die hard, and Mel is quite set in her destructive ways. With Melanie blocked from going home, Tish must try to manage her incorrigible houseguest as she attempts to prove her own worth in a town that seems to have forgotten that every sinner needs God-given mercy, love and forgiveness.

My review: 

Sorely dissapointed by this book. The cover is amazing! But the book was not. I got about half way through before quitting. I mean, the name Tish? Natrualizers? Late 30's? Mama's girl? Antiques?  Tish goes to Alabama to visit buy the home of her great-something granparents that they owned during the civil war, leaving snowy Michigan.  She's not welcomed in Alabama because of her last name.  I couldn't relate to any of the characters and thus didn't connect to them.  They seemed dull and boring.  Everything flowed so nicely and there was no excitement.  I don't recommend this book at all.  Except, maybe older ladies or lovers of antiques would like it. I don't know.  

Unfailing Love - Julie Lessman

 Unfailing Love is the first book in Julie Lessman's Isle of Hope series.

About this book:

She stole his heart.
He stole her peace.
Can hope steal their pain? 

At the age of eighteen, Lacey Carmichael was a wild girl bent on fun, promised to Jack Carmichael, a straight-and-narrow pastor’s kid bent on the seminary. When her father kicks her out of the house, she runs away from Isle of Hope, turning her back on everything she loves. Now, eight years later, she’s back as a woman of faith, hoping to make amends to the father she defied, the boyfriend she deserted, and the best friend she denied. Only the bridges she’s burned are still smoldering, kindled by an adulterous affair by Jack’s pastor father that damaged his son’s faith. But can a turning of tables—and hearts—lead the way back to “hope” for them all? 

My review: 

An amazing story of love and forgiveness between the characters and God and between themselves.  A firm reminder than sin, even if done in secret, always has consequences.  Also stressing the everpresent fact that God grants forgiveness and new life in Him.  And if we forgive those who trespass against us, there is hope for new life.  A life lived in hatred and bitterness is no life at all.  Another Biblical truth is also evidenced.  "For the wages of sin is death."  This is especially seen in the life of Adam, Jack's dad.  His pride ruined his life and God saw fit to take it to the extreme when Adam could not find it in his stubborn heart to repent.  In addition, he might as well just have killed his son, when his sins caught up with him.  Jack suddenly sees nothing in the Christian faith but hypocrisy and abandons it all together.

I loved this book so much and it even made it to my favorites list!  Lacey, the sweet giggling tomboy who's ridiculed by her father is taken in the roqdy crowd by her cousin Nicki.  She's dating Jack, a seminary student who she tempts to no end to go further than he wants to.  When she's kicked out of the house by an angry father, she runs away leaving her life behind her.  But now she's back, 8 years later.  She's come full circle - found God and forgiveness and she's forgiven the ones she's hurt most.  She's knows the hope forgiveness can give and she wants nothing more to return to the Isle of Hope to make amends and beg their forgiveness.  Jack, with his unforgiving nature and hurting heart, is taken off guard when Lacey returns, 8 years after she 'abandoned' him, her best friend, and the woman who was like a mother to her.  He was definitely my favorite character with all his competitiveness, love of fishing and teasing, and adorable unwanted jealousy which he tries to drive away by spending time with a flirt of a barbie nurse.  He's a player - but it's not what you think after a certain agreement he made with his twin sisters... He can't deny the deep bond between him and woman he was once going to marry.  But can he ever forgive her?  And she no longer wants him because he no longer believes in God.  Lacey needs someone with her faith and that someone might just be the hot young preacher - Chase.  After losing a bet during a game of basketball, Dr. Jack/Jock finds himself spending far too  much of his time associating with Christians in a church - even though it's mosting just a competitive game of volleyball.  And Chase might just turn out to be good for him...  Tess, Jack's mom is meanwhile at work on her hermit heart-surgeon neighbor, Lacey's dad and the husband of the woman who ran away with her own husband.  Tess is determined to bring him out of his bitterness and hatred of himself and others by bribing him with food for him and bacon for his dog, Beau.  In Ben's opinion, bribery is an outright sin, but it seems to work - until Lacey is conspiring with Tess over how to woo him back to the land of the living.  Lacey is determined to get everyones forgiveness for what she did to them, whether they want to give it or not.  Will Jack ever be able to forgive her?  Will her best friend Cat?  Will her father?  And will that hermit of a father of hers ever get his life back together?  What about Tess, that sometimes lonely mother with 3 of her kids already grown up?  Or Adam, who has long since disappeared?  And who can catch a bigger fish - Lacey or Jack - especially when they're betting?

Julie Lessman has written another masterpiece.  A book filled with the power of forgiveness, hope, good humor (especially when it comes to Jack's family's backyard lake), good-natured competition, fishing, plays on words, and plenty of romance.  Also, beware of plot twists.  The book is full of them!  But, then again, that's what makes a book so great.  The vivid description is another high point of this book.  Since when can an author make a reader see everything that happens without an overloading of the senses so that the action is gone?  Since now!  I have rarely seen description so amazingly executed!  The author's note at the end of the book added so much to the story.  It was a great way to end the book.  I cannot wait to read the story about Cat and Dr. Jack's other doctor friend.  The glimpses we see of him already are touching - him mooning of the pictures of Jack's sisters that are flaunted atop his desk (Jack tells him absolutely not) and his desire to have the barbie nurse, that has attached herself to Jack, as his girlfriend.  One thing I did not approve of, however, was the repeated use of 'freakin' throughout the book.  Language like that should not be in a Christian book and much less spoken by Christian people.  I encourage every one of you to read this book!