Series:
Gingerbread Girls (Book 3)
A wedding guest from her past…
After a rocky year, Casey Caravetta pulls herself together and puts on a
smile for her best friend's Christmas Eve wedding. However, she hadn't
expected to see Turner Kennedy, the first man to break her heart.
Special Forces commando Turner is now hard, dark and dangerous, tortured
by his experiences of war. Coming face-to-face again with beautiful
Casey is a painful reminder of the path he might have taken.
Back then they were living on borrowed time, but now -- with a
sprinkling of holiday magic -- they have a another chance…if only
they're prepared to believe it!
Very good book with some intense emotions on both sides. Casey has come to Gingerbread Inn to help her two best friends with Emily's wedding. She's trying to keep a cheerful attitude with all the love that's floating around but it's hard. In the last year she had ended her engagement, lost her father and seen her mother become a nun. She's given up on the idea of ever having romantic love of her own and plans to become a single mother to have the family she wants. The last thing she expects is to see the first man to break her heart, the groom's best man, Turner. She remembers three magical days with him after the first wedding, before Turner disappeared without a word. Now he's here again, but very different than the man she remembers. She's still angry and hurt and has no intention of getting involved with him again. But he seems determined to make her have fun while remaining apart himself. It was interesting to see the way that her pragmatic scientist's way of looking at things warred with the way that being with Turner made her feel. She was so afraid of being abandoned again by someone she had come to care for. I really liked the way that she could see past the shell that Turner had erected to the man that was hurting and had fears of his own. There were some really great scenes as the two of them had fun. There were also some really heartwrenching scenes as Casey told him about her family issues. I loved her courage in telling Turner how she felt and then dealing with the consequences. I found the way that she refused to give up on him the best part of all.
Turner had had a happy childhood with his parents and brothers. Then his father was killed in the 9/11 attacks and Turner joined the military to deal with the pain. This created a rift with his brothers that only widened as he ended up in Special Forces. The day of the first wedding was just a few days before his first deployment. Seeing Casey and how serious she was made him want to celebrate life by bringing some fun into hers. He offered her three days in which they had a grand time, but he left before she woke up on the fourth day. Since then he had seen and done things that have caused him a lot of pain. A friend died during his last mission and now he wonders what his future should hold. When Cole asked him to come for the wedding he did, not thinking about the possibility of seeing Casey again. He was surprised to see that she was even more solemn than when he had seen her last and disturbed to think it could be partly his fault. He was determined to bring some fun back into her life but he didn't want her to get too close to him. I loved seeing the ways he tried to get her to laugh. The snowman scene was so much fun, as was the ice skating. Being around her was having an effect on him too. There were a few times when he felt a lessening of the dark feelings he had, but he didn't want his issues affecting her so he tried to keep his emotions locked up. I loved the way that she wore him down enough to get him to really talk to her about some of his experiences, but it scared him into running. I liked the way that he finally was able to make the choices he needed to make.
My only complaint about the book wasn't with any part of the story but with the cover. Turner is a brooding Special Forces guy. The man on the cover looks way too happy and the body type doesn't seem to match with the impression I got from his description.
Series:
Gingerbread Girls (Book 2)
When you wish upon a star…
After single dad Rick Jenner and his little daughter stumble upon Andrea
Fleming's toy shop one snowy evening, he can't get Andrea's beautiful
eyes out of his head. But with Christmas coming up, he can't afford any
distractions.
Andrea is no stranger to heartache, and Rick has it written all over his
face. Her head tells her to stay away, but nevertheless she is
irresistibly drawn to this twosome in need of a miracle.
With a few festive sparks, a little girl's yuletide delight and a
toe-curling kiss under the mistletoe…this Christmas, anything could
happen!
Good book. Andrea is still recovering from the death of her husband three weeks after their wedding. Rick and his daughter Tessa come into her toy shop and Andrea is immediately drawn to them. Rick lost his wife and is dealing with being a single dad. He had no plans to get involved with another woman but he couldn't get Andrea out of his mind. Once he accepted his feelings nothing was going to stop him from pursuing her.
When Andrea first sees Rick and his daughter outside her shop she is drawn to him. She is still mourning her husband and doesn't understand how she can be attracted to Rick. When he lets her know he is interested in her she tries to discourage him, but her own actions show that she is just as interested as he is. Andrea is afraid to get too involved because Rick is a firefighter and she fears what would happen to her if she were to lose another man she loved. Andrea also comes to care for Rick's little girl Tessa although they did get off to a bit of a rocky start. Because the accident that killed her husband also injured her, Andrea isn't able to have children. She sees this as a drawback and is sure that no man will be able to love her if she can't have kids with him. I loved seeing Andrea start to open up with Rick and see the possibilities.
Rick had lost his wife to leukemia and is coping as a single dad. For awhile after his wife's death everyone indulged his daughter and she is beginning to be rather spoiled. So when she pitches a fit in the toy shop he isn't exactly happy with Andrea's actions, but he is also attracted to her. He hasn't felt like that in a long time and he isn't sure at first if he wants to be. I liked the way that he decided to risk it and started pursuing Andrea. He was frustrated by her reluctance, but he wasn't going to give up. When she finally confessed her fears about his work he was stunned, especially when she explained that she saw the same kind of fears in his daughter. I loved how he found a way to continue doing what he loved while at the same time relieving their fears.
There was also a concurrent storyline about an arsonist in the area. It was interesting to see how they figured out who was doing it. The connection of the arsonist to Andrea and Rick made for a nice bit of suspense. It also helped move the romance along.
Series:
The Gingerbread Girls (Book 1)
The secret to mend their marriage
With an aching heart, Emily Watson knows her marriage is in trouble. She
wants it to work more than anything in the world, so walking away from
Cole is the hardest thing she'll ever do. But one last night together is
set to change her life and her marriage forever….
Needing time to think, Emily returns to the one place that always feels
like home: the Gingerbread Inn. It is the perfect setting to work out
what to do with her little secret.
And when Cole finds her, and her growing bump, he realizes that this Christmas, some things are worth fighting for….
What an emotional book. Emily and Cole have been married for ten years and Emily has had enough. She understood Cole's long hours and dedication when he was just starting his business. But business is still his number one priority and nothing she says will get him to lighten his load and spend time with her, except for one night. Now she's pregnant and looking for answers for what to do about her future. Cole tracks her down and tries his best to get her to come back home, but he's having trouble understanding why she left in the first place.
Emily feels that she has no choice but to give up on her marriage. For years she has been trying to get Cole to spend less time at the office and more time on their marriage. Whenever she thinks she's making a little headway he goes right back to his workaholic ways. Six months ago she asked for a separation and began to think about what she wants for herself. The problem is that Cole keeps showing up trying to stay part of her life. She gave in once to her hope that he would change and ended up pregnant. She has wanted a baby for a long time but Cole kept putting her off saying the time wasn't right. She can't handle his frequent appearances as she is trying to make some decisions, so she heads for the Gingerbread Inn, a place with a lot of happy memories for her. She is dismayed to find it in poor repair and up for sale. The innkeeper has just not been able to keep up with things but welcomes Emily back and gives her a place to regroup. Emily plans to take the time to pursue her dream of writing while she decides her future. I loved seeing the way that she really got into her writing and how happy it was making her. She's surprised when Cole tracks her down and continues his campaign to bring her home. She's even more surprised when he stays around to make repairs on the inn. She doesn't know what to do about his presence. She has had her hopes dashed so often that she just can't handle trying again. I really ached for Emily. She has tried to tell Cole how she felt but he never seemed to actually listen to her. She sees him there at the Inn, making the repairs, but wonders how long he's going to stay before he gives in to the lure of his business again. She still loves him but feels she has to do what is best for herself and the baby. The longer he stays the more she begins to hope, until she tells him about the baby. His reaction breaks her heart and she feels there is no longer any hope at all for them. I liked the fact that at the end she admitted that not all of the fault was his.
Cole was so clueless about what was happening. No matter what Emily tried to tell him it never seemed to make an impression on him until she left. Cole is a man who doesn't like to lose or quit at anything and he is determined to get Emily to come home. I liked the way that he found himself doing repairs at the Inn himself rather than just hiring someone to do it. He was surprised at how good it made him feel to do it himself. I liked the way that he knew he still loved Emily and wanted to repair their marriage. He just had no idea what he was doing wrong. Every time he felt that he was making some progress with her, something would happen to send her off again. He didn't seem to be able to see that always putting business ahead of her was at the root of the problem. Because he had had a father who expected perfection, all he knew was to treat his business that way. Plus, they had been so poor at the beginning of their marriage that he equated his love to being able to provide more and more for Emily in the way of material goods. He never really heard her pleas for his attention. Emily's requests for them to start their family also fell on deaf ears, mostly because the idea scared him. He was afraid that he would turn out to be the type of father he had. The more time he spent with Emily and away from his business the more he liked it, but breaking habits like that were very hard. I really loved the way that both his friend and his secretary also told Cole the same thing about needing to put Emily first. Emily's ending up in the hospital was a real eye opener and it took him awhile to process what it really meant for him. I liked seeing him open up to Emily about why he is the way he is. It was hard to see him so fearful about his abilities as a father. I loved the ending and how he was finally convinced of the possibility of a future for them. I hope to see more of them in the next two books and see how things are going for them.
