Summer of Love by Katie Fforde

I have loved Katie Fforde's books ever since I read The Second Thyme Around (now called Thyme Out) in 2000. Summer of Love is a wonderful story about Sian, a city girl who moves to the country with her young son. She is settling into village life and meets her neighbor Fiona with whom she develops a strong friendship. When Fiona's son Gus comes home from exploring, Sian realizes he is the one night stand that resulted in her much loved son. 
The results of this news affect Sian's relationships with her new friend and Gus. Fiona is also sorting out her feelings about a man she has met and who she is very attracted to. I enjoyed all of the angst and craziness that ensues while these couples sort out their lives. As always, Ms. Fforde does a great job with her characters even when they aren't behaving their best. 
I'm also excited that American readers can get these great books without having to order from overseas sellers as I have had to do to get the books.

Melting Into You by Laura Trentham

Melting into You is the third book in the Falcon football series. I have enjoyed every book in the series and this one is no exception. Lilliana Hancock has returned to Falcon after a time in New York working on her art. When her father- with whom she had a love/hate relationship- leaves her the crumbling family home, she decides to turn it into a B&B. Standing in her way is Alec Grayson, inspector, HS football coach, and the former pro football player. Lilliana had always had a thing for Alec until her dream seemingly came true in college and they “hooked up”. Sadly, Alec left the next morning with barely a word and Liliana has not been a fan ever since.

When Alec comes early for his home inspection, Lilliana has relaxed with a little homegrown help and the long simmering attraction comes to a head and she propositions him. After incredibly hot sex, Alec gets it in his head that she is trying to “bribe” him into passing the inspection and again leaves her alone and angry.

I was glad that these two could finally talk about what happened and start to have a real relationship. Lilliana makes a conscious decision to not tell him about their encounter in college when it becomes clear Alec doesn’t remember. Alec and Lilliana become involved in the bad home situation of one of Alec’s players and that brings them even closer. Their strong attraction to each other keeps them together through ups and downs and the sex is pretty darn good as well.

The great thing about books in a series is seeing old favorite characters from previous books interspersed in the story. This book could be read on its own but I recommend reading the others as well. I hope we’ll see more of Falcon in future books.

Blindsided by Jami Davenport

Emma Maxwell has lived most of her adult life in unrequited love with Tanner Wolfe. Emma is the odd duck in her family, being the only singleton in the group and the only one who secretly wants to follow her famous parents and become a professional singer. Her sisters have fallen for famous hockey players and one, Avery, happens to be engaged to Tanner's estranged brother.  Estranged is a mild description for how Tanner feels about Isaac (hero of Melting Ice). Tanner and Isaac have been apart since Isaac left their abusive father's home for junior hockey.

Tanner is a deeply troubled man with a "good ole boy" facade. Unfortunately for him, his love'em and leave'em  lifestyle has angered the new owners of his struggling football team and he needs to appear to clean up his act. When he discovers Emma singing karaoke at a casino, it leads to them pretending to date and then ultimately getting married.

Emma loves Tanner but she isn't sure she wants to give up her dreams.  Tanner likes Emma and the
faux family life she provides but his demons still haunt him. When they finally get together physically it's super hot but not enough to keep them together without some honesty on both sides. Tanner is afraid to reveal his past and Emma is afraid to reveal her hopes for the future. In Emma's case, she has two possible futures and she isn't sure which one is the one she really wants.

I enjoyed both of these characters.  Emma is a bit meek but she's definitely got a feisty side to her. Tanner is a mess but he knows that he can't keep going on as he has without losing everything.   This story has it all, unrequited love, fake marriage, hot hunky athlete with mild mannered woman, family conflicts and even a sort of villainess in Emma's sister Bella. I couldn't read it fast enough!

Christmas at Lilac Cottage by Holly Martin

Christmas at Lilac Cottage is a mix of two of my favorite things-Christmas and Brit-lit. When Penny rents out the side apartment to her cottage, she expected Henry and Daisy to be a married couple.  Instead she gets a hunky guy and his teen daughter. Penny is a professional ice carver and Henry is a custom furniture maker- a match made in heaven! Penny has had bad luck with love before and she is wary of getting close to Henry but she finally gives in and goes for it.  As expected the path to the HEA is never smooth but after some misunderstandings the magic of Christmas prevails.

I loved the characters in this book.  Some of Penny's ice carver competitors are hysterical. The descriptions of the little town and the people made me long to spend the holidays across the pond!  This is a new author for me and I can't wait to read her previous and upcoming books!

The Sparrow Sisters-an intriguing read!

Such an interesting book! The Sparrow sisters, Patience, Nettie and Sorrell live in the ancestral home and own a nursery that seems to be the barometer of the town's mental and physical health. When Henry arrives in town to be the new doctor, he discovers a sort of rival in Patience who is viewed as a healer by the townsfolk. Henry's ire is tempered by his immediate attraction to Patience and her reluctant return of that feeling. As the two become closer to each other, their happiness is tempered by a unspoken distrust of what the other stands for. 

When a tragedy happens, the town and the relationship is poisoned by distrust and everything starts to go wrong. Henry has to finally decide how he feels about Patience and her special gift. The townspeople have to look to their own history to see what happens when unfounded suspicion destroys the balance of the natural magic that the Sparrows seem to embody. I loved the people in this book and the way the story played out. There seemed to be a bit of a teaser about one of the sisters which could mean a future book which would be great.

The Lure of the Moonflower by Lauren Willig; the end of a long and wonderful reading relationship.

As much as I wanted to fly through this book, reading the story and enjoying the adventure, I also wanted to go slowly and not get to the end of what has been a long and wonderful reading relationship. From the first word of The Secret History of the Pink Carnation to the last page of this book, I have enjoyed all of the couples, all of the tight squeezes, the going back and forth from the present to the 1800's and before, every nuance of this amazing series.

In this last book, the Pink Carnation meets her match both in love and war. Two characters that have been consistently woven in through the books come together and find the one person who can love them for who they are warts and all. Add to that the wedding of Eloise and Colin and you have the book we have been waiting for through twelve books and ten years of reading.

Even though I loved this book, I am going to miss anticipating a new installment coming every year, and every one of them a great read. Thank you Ms. Willig for all these years of enjoyment!
PS- I have also listened to every book after reading it and enjoyed the narration of Kate Reading for all of the books. I can't wait to listen to this one.

Perfect Touch by Elizabeth Lowell

When Sara Medina goes to Jackson to meet Jay Vermilion, she walks into a firestorm. First she discovers that the wonderful sexy voice she has been intrigued been belongs to a man who fits the voice. Jay and Sara make a connection almost immediately. When they go out to the Vermilion ranch, it is a western paradise. The big problem is that the paintings she has come to curate seem to be a lure for a murderer and Sara is in the center of it all.

I love Ms. Lowell's mix of suspense and romance in this book. There is plenty of both spicy and scary action, enough to keep you turning the pages pretty quickly.  A great summer read!