KEPT FOR HER BABY - Kate Walker

Author: Kate Walker

Line: Mills and Boon Modern/Harlequin Presents Extra

Release month UK: September 2009/ North America: October 2009

The S-Factor: Sizzling and Simmering

Back-Blurb:

Staring at the granite-handsome features of Italian billionaire Ricardo Emiliani, Lucy knows she's made a mistake coming back to their palatial Lake Garda home. But she'll do anything for her baby son—even return to the husband who never loved her….

Ricardo branded his bride a gold digger. However, tiny Marco needs his mother, so he will keep Lucy captive on his private island until she proves herself a worthy wife—in every sense….

Review: ♥♥♥♥♥

Author Kate Walker has written an extremely perceptive, powerful and heart wrenching romance with Kept for Her Baby. The author addresses a medical problem one out of ten women In North America face after giving birth to a baby which is postpartum depression. Her heroine suffers so badly she actually doesn’t remember what’s she’s done or where she’s been and on top of that leaves her husband and baby in search of help.

Ricardo Emiliani in all of his relationships and affairs with women believes them to be all alike and only interested in one thing…..money! When he meets the lovely Lucy Mottram, he is immediately attracted to her and is determined to become involved with her. She turns him down and realizes what a mistake it was to do so. When she’s given a second chance she jumps on it and eventually becomes pregnant. Ricardo demands they marry for the sake of the baby. The passion they share continues to leaps off the pages. However, there is one problem, Lucy believes that he only married her for the baby and that’s she’s not good enough for him.

Lucy realized early in her relationship with Ricardo and later in their marriage that she loved him. However, she also realized another thing, that once the baby was born he would probably discard her. After the baby comes, they both make many mistakes; he for not paying careful attention to her moods and she for thinking that he only cared about his business and that he possibly found her unattractive. Because of the way their marriage began and after their baby Marco is born, Lucy suffers a depression and does very strange things. In the end, she’s afraid she’ll harm the baby so she leaves Ricardo a note and disappears. Now months later, she’s better and returns to the villa to plead with Ricardo to let her be a part of her baby’s life.

In the end, Ricardo allows Lucy to stay and get to know Marco but their relationship is up and down as far as trust, communication and their emotions are up and down, changing daily. It’s extremely obvious their attraction for each other is still as powerful as when they first met. How they get to the point of understanding what went wrong in their marriage and how they should move forward was very emotional and distressful to read. However, their journey in finding peace, happiness and realizing how much they loved each other was a beautiful ending.

As a mother myself and never having suffered from this sort of depression, my heart went out to Lucy’s character because I can’t imagine having the feeling of ever harming a child. The other day on US national TV, there was a short piece on postpartum depression where the doctor said that everyone after giving childbirth should be screened and evaluated for postpartum depression. Now that I’ve read Kept for Her Baby, I totally agree. I hope that anyone who reads this book, who has recently given birth or is about to will pay attention to the storyline.

For author Kate Walker I can only imagine this was an emotional book to write. My personal thanks to you for taking the courage to address such an emotional and sensitive subject. You created a very moving and beautiful love story.

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Reviewed by: Marilyn

TWICE IN A LIFETIME - Marta Perry

Title: TWICE IN A LIFETIME

Author: MARTA PERRY

Line: Steeple Hill Love Inspired
Release month: September

The S-Factor: Sensible and Secretive

Back-Blurb:

Where The Heart Is

When her family calls broken-hearted Georgia Lee Bodine home to Charleston, she knows there’s trouble. Her beloved grandmother hired some fancy lawyer to carry out eccentric requests – and unearth an old family secret.

Georgia plans to send Matthew Harper packing until she discovers how much the widowed father cares about her grandmother. And that his heart is even more deeply guarded than her own. As they work together on the Bodine history, they uncover a surprise about themselves: that love can strike twice in a lifetime.

The Bodine Family: A Southern family finds their way home to love – and each other.

Review: ♥♥♥♥♥

When Georgia comes home to Charleston, it’s not only because her family want her help in finding out what her grandmother is doing, hiring a strange lawyer to carry out eccentric requests. It turns out she would have been moving home right about then anyhow. But she didn't want the rest of the family to know. So what is this big secret that she doesn’t want the rest of the family to know? And is her grandmother really doing the strange things they say she’s doing, or is it just because she refuses to tell them about her decisions?

Why had Matthew Harper moved to Charleston? How does his little girl fit into the picture? And how do the turtles fit in? Does Georgia finally learn to stand up for herself? Do Matthew and Georgia find the proof that her grandmother wanted?

This is the first book in a mini-series on the Bodine family by Marta Perry. I am already looking forward to the next book in the series. Marta does an excellent job in weaving lives together. She takes three generations, and makes a beautiful braid. Her stories are realistic, and believable. When you read one of her books you feel as if you’ve been given a glimpse into that family. It could even be you.

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Reviewed by: Donna B

HIS BABY BOMBSHELL - Jessica Matthews

Title: HIS BABY BOMBSHELL

Author: JESSICA MATTHEWS

Line: Mills & Boon Medical
Release Month: September

The S-Factor: Sizzling and Surprising

The Back-Blurb:

The last thing nurse and single mother Sabrina Hollister needs is the father of her baby to turn up as her new boss! Adrian is knocked out by Sabrina’s baby secret – but he’s not going to let her raise their son alone. . .

Review: ♥♥♥♥♥

Adrian MacReynolds was knocked out by Sabrina’s baby secret – but that wasn’t the only thing that knocked him out. Will the hospital she works at ever forget that Sabrina knocked him out with a golf ball on his very first day at work? Will he ever let her forget it?

Why did Sabrina not want Adrian to find out about Jeremy? And when he finally did, did things happen just as she had predicted? What “gene” is it that causes a person to have a one-track mind, and to totally take over a given area, running rough-shod over anyone who gets in his way? What other area had Adrian done this in? Did he finally learn how to not do this by the end of the story?

Jessica Matthews outdid herself in writing this story. She had so many twists and turns I found it impossible to put the book down. I always had to read “just one more page, to find out what happens next”. Jessica’s imagination in setting up tension scenes for the hero and heroine take second place to no one! Her solutions to these scenes are inspirational. This book was a joy to read. I especially loved the end.

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Reviewed by: Donna B

INVITATION TO THE BOSS'S BALL - Fiona Harper

Author: Fiona Harper

Line: Harlequin/Mills and Boon Romance

Release Date: September 2009

The S-Factor: Sweet

Back-Blurb:

Alice's plain-Jane world is turned upside down when she's hired to organize tycoon Cameron Hunter's company ball.

She's shocked by an invitation on her doormat, and the next thing she knows, she's dancing in her oh-so-delicious boss's arms in a stunning dress!

Alice knows that on Monday morning everything will go back to normal. But for now, she's going to enjoy every second….

Review:

Fresh, funny, tender and absolutely mesmerizing, Fiona Harper's latest Harlequin Romance, Invitation to the Boss's Ball is simply fabulous!

Alice's love life has always been a bit of a disaster area. Men seem to either treat her like one of the guys or else date her for a couple of weeks before someone better comes along. Alice seems destined never to meet her Prince Charming, but at least she has her best friend Coreen and their business which they are looking to expand. Yet, little does Alice realize that her love of vintage clothing is going to bring her up close and personal with the man she's been waiting for all her life!

When an old friend ropes her into organizing her stepbrother, Cameron Hunter's, company ball, Alice is shocked when she realizes that the awkward, shy and bookish boy she knew as a teenager has now been transformed into one of England's most eligible bachelors. But Cameron can have any woman he wants and he will not want to date Plain Jane Alice...or will he?

Cameron is detemined to show her that, in his eyes, she is the belle of the ball. But will Alice's insecurities and fears keep her from recognizing that her boss is head over heels in love with her?

Invitation to the Boss's Ball is Harlequin Romance gold! Fiona Harper continues to get better and better with every book and readers who haven't discovered her wonderful stories should race to the bookshop and get ready to discover one of the best voices in contemporary romance writing today.

With a delightful heroine, a sexy hero, a lovely cast of supporting characters, humour, pathos, charm and warmth, Invitation to the Boss's Ball is another Fiona Harper novel readers will simply not be able to resist.

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A TRIP WITH THE TYCOON - NICOLA MARSH

Author: Nicola Marsh

Line: Harlequin Romance

Release Date: September 2009

The S-Factor: Sweet

Back-Blurb:

Determined to forget her husband's infidelity and bring her confident, fiery self back, Tamara Rayne is in India on a trip of a lifetime. Love isn't on her itinerary, so she hardly notices when blast from her past Ethan Brooks boards her train….

The maverick entrepreneur has wanted Tamara ever since he met her. Under the shimmer of the Indian sun, Ethan decides he's waited long enough….

Review:

Nicola Marsh's latest Harlequin Romance, A Trip with the Tycoon, is a magical tale of new beginnings, second chances and happy endings set under the beautiful Indian sky.

For Tamara Rayne, her husband's sudden death came as a relief. Although the whole world thought that they had the perfect marriage, Richard had always belittled her by making snide comments about her job and appearance, until the once-confident Tamara began to doubt herself. After taking a year to regroup and to get her life back on track, Tamara plans to celebrate her new found freedom by taking a trip to India, her late mother's beloved birthplace. Company is the last thing she needs. However, one of Australia's most eligible bachelors and her husband's former business partner, Ethan Brooks, is determined to accompany her and he is not going to be deterred!

Ethan's reputation as a playboy is legendary, but his suave exterior hides a wounded soul who is scared of commitment and of letting anyone get too close to him. Yet, there is something about Tamara - the woman he's been attracted to for years - that beguiles and compels him. He is determined to finally make Tamara his and will use all of his charms on their Indian trip to seduce her...

But as they begin to spend more and more time together, Ethan realizes that he has fallen head over heels in love with Tamara. But before he can spend the rest of his life with her, he must first face the demons from his past which have held him back for years....

A Trip with the Tycoon is absolutely wonderful! It's fresh, witty, sassy and feel-good, but also poignant, tender and moving. Nicola Marsh never fails to make me care and emphatize with her characters and in A Trip with the Tycoon, she has created a wonderful heroine and an absolutely gorgeous hero!

Set against the majestic Indian landscape and full of charm, pathos and romance, A Trip with the Tycoon will delight and enchant readers everywhere!

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THE BILLIONAIRE’S FAKE ENGAGEMENT - Robyn Grady

Author: Robyn Grady

Line: Silhouette Desire

Release month UK:/ North America: September 2009

The S-Factor: Sweet and Steamy

Back-Blurb:

A scandal threatened one of Australia's most powerful bachelor billionaires. The solution? A proposal.

Alexander Ramirez was committed to the idea of family, and Natalie Wilder certainly brought the right assets to his bedroom. The engagement that he'd intended as a media distraction soon became a real possibility. As one obstacle after another got in the way of his plans, Alex became more determined than ever to keep Natalie in his bed. And he always got what he wanted!

Review: ♥♥♥♥♥

Natalie Wilder had a past and she was keeping it a secret from her billionaire lover Alexander Ramirez and the rest of the world. At seventeen she became pregnant; the father left her and her home town leaving her and her family to be town gossips. She delivered her baby girl early due to an accident and two hours later watched her pass away in her arms. Now she’s living in Sydney Australia and is a high end real estate agent. However, her grief for her baby is real and she visits the grave site and her mom when she can.

Alex Ramirez is a well known billionaire and is awaiting an answer on an important business deal. However, he’s attending his sister’s engagement party and has taken Natalie along as his guest but he also wants her to meet his sister. They’d been together for 3 months in a very intense relationship with no talk of future. Alex new he would marry and produce heirs and the reputation of the woman he would marry would need to have a wife to be above reproach. He remembers a discussion with his father about marriage and responsibility

It’s an awaiting game to get the results of the paternity test and Alex needs Natalie with him. He purchases a mansion and asks her to move in and also makes arrangements with her boss for her to have time off where they spend time on the beach at his secluded summer home. Their time together is romantic yet tense because the tests haven’t come back. The reporter is lurking around and Natalie makes her trek back home to her home town to see her mom. People in the town still stare at her and more and more she realizes sometime soon she’s going to need to tell Alex the truth because she’s in love with him.

It’s very clear to Natalie that that how he sees his future is married and with a son, a son she can’t give him due to complications that happened after the birth of her baby. Secrets as we all know have a way of blowing up in ones face and she keeps putting off telling him about her past. For them blow after blow, a young man they met on the beach whose mother was ill, her telling him about her infertile condition and her mother having a heart attack. How much more could they survive because there was one thing for sure….he wanted her, wanted to marry her.

Trust me, for this couple things keep going down hill with the exception of Alex finding out he’s not the father as he was accused. But when he she sends him away, he’s at his lowest. Be prepared for a good cry as it’s obvious they both belong together. Especially when he gives her a gift of love, a pledge of honour, truly a selfless gift one the reader will long remember.

Robyn Grady has a special gift of expressing her thoughts, and showing her character’s deepest emotions, a gift that is so romantic and sweet especially in this wonderful love story. I could actually believe her baby was an angel which brought them together and tears to my eyes.

The longer they saw each other the more Alex became open about their relationship and of course he had questions and wanted to know about her family and past. So as they are getting ready to leave the engagement party, he is accosted by a former business man and accuses in front of the party goers that his daughter is expecting and accuses Alex of being the father. To make matters worse, a reporter is awaiting them on the street and asks Alex two questions…..what’s he going to do about the baby and is he going to marry Natalie. On the spur of the moment, Alex answers “yes”!

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Reviewed by: Marilyn

Behind the book from Dear Reader:

Robbie poses the question “ have you ever been so badly burned that you were unable to forgive the person responsible? Sometimes forgiving ourselves over enduring regrets can prove even more difficult than forgiving others”. RG

Texan's Wedding Night Wager

Author: Charlene Sands


line: Desire


Release Month: September 2009

The S Factor: Sizzling

Back blurb:

No one walked away from this Texas mogul ... especially not his wife! So when Cara chose to leave rather than play second fiddle to his company, Kevin plotted revenge. Four years later, she returned, intent on finalising their divorce but Cara had no clue Kevin had constructed the perfect pay back plan. It's a wager she can't refuse. The divorce would be official ... if she agreed to one last week of playing house. And nothing would be off limits.

Review: ♥♥♥♥

I often shy away from stories in which the hero and heroine have known each other previously. I've always been of the opinion that if their love wasn't strong enough the first time around, then why would it be the second time? This book was a lovely surprise and smashed my pre-conceived notions to bits.

Cara left Kevin because he was a workaholic, even though she had explained to him over and over he didn't have to work so many hours. She would have preferred to have Kevin home on an evening than him trying to prove he was 'good enough' for him. Cara wanted to start a family; Kevin wanted to build an empire.

When they met again, Cara wanted a divorce. She wanted a loan to enable her to expand her own business. I loved Cara immediately. Here is a strong woman determined not to be defeated following the failure of her marriage, she picked herself up and made a new life for herself. It's easy to admire Cara, her parents were wealthy and she really didn't have to work at all.

Kevin tells herself he wants to pay Cara back for leaving him, but he quickly starts falling for her all over again--not wanting to accept he's loved her all along.

He dates Cara for a whole week, telling both Cara and himself that at the end of the week he will give her the divorce she's asked for. Of course, a week isn't long enough for either of them ...

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Reviewed by: Joanne

Mistress to the Merciless Millionaire - Abby Green

Author: Abby Green

Line: Mills and Boon / Harlequin Presents

Release month UK: October 2009/North America: September 2009

The S-Factor: Sizzling and Steamy

Back-Blurb:

It's been ten years since Tiarnan Quinn humiliatingly rejected Kate, and she's still smarting. As a famous model she can have any man she wants. But there's something about the cold hearted millionaire that makes her go weak at the knees. So much so she agrees to jet off to his luxury villa in Martinique.

Kate knows Tiarnan can't give her what she wants: true love and a family. But as the sultry nights close in she begins to see hints of a different man beneath the hard exterior….

Review: ♥♥♥♥♥

Awareness, passion, conflict are what author Abby Green does best and Mistress to the Merciless Millionaire is no exception. Earlier in the year in “Brought for the Frenchman's Pleasure" readers met Sorcha Murphy who was Tiarnan’s sister and Kate’s best friend. This reviewer has long been awaiting Tiarnan and Kate’s story.

Tiarnan is a handsome and ruthless man and one alpha who doesn’t miss a thing. During a christening of his sister’s baby in which he and Kate are godparents, he becomes distinctly aware of the power he has over her and literally sees into her soul. Because ten years earlier after realizing what a lovely young woman she had grown into, they shared a kiss, a kiss neither of them have forgotten, especially Kate. And now weeks later he still remembers what passed between them and now he’s attending an auction where Kate is up for bid for a kiss. He wins in more ways than one but for Kate she’s in turmoil because he still means the world to her.

Kate flees the auction and Tiarnan catches up and brings up their past and how he realizes their passion for each other is NOT over! She remembers his long ago rejection and is humiliated but he keeps reminiscing about their past and discusses with her how due to their mutual desire, he would like to spend time with her. However, Kate also is aware that he goes from one woman to another, in fact he’s been married and divorced and has a lovely little girl Rosie. She doesn’t want to be a notch on his bedpost to satisfy his curiosity of what might have been. However, this very determined alpha has other plans for Kate. He’s sure that once they become lovers an eventually end the affair, it will be the last he’ll think of this beautiful woman, the same woman who has haunted him for years.

As for the women in his life, he keeps them at arms length. He’s also concerned because of his daughter as to what lengths women would go to win him over. His past with his ex-wife and parents have somewhat shaped his ideas about marriage so he’s not into a permanent relationship. For Kate, all she wants eventually is to be loved and have a home full of children and love.

Second chances? It’s a lovely romantic love story set is some of the most beautiful parts of the world. San Francisco, New York, the Caribbean and Spain where Tiarnan and Rosie live and where Kate has just finished modelling. He uses his daughter to get Kate to visit and when his nanny has to leave because of an emergency and he has a business trip, Kate volunteers to stay with the sweet little girl. Upon his return he invites to accompany he and Rosie to his Caribbean home for a holiday.

Can she take this holiday with the man of her dreams? Can she survive an affair? Kate decides to go for that reason but on her terms and she’ll walk away at the end of their holiday. What she doesn’t count on as how much she enjoys her time spent with both of them.

Just prepare yourself for tears as you watch their romance blossom and sizzle; the interaction between Kate and Rosie and Rosie’s Caribbean extended family and friends. On top of everything else the conflict between Kate and Tiarnan and his mistrust of her when he sends her home because he feels Kate has used Rosie to get to him. I think what I personally enjoyed the most was reading about Tiarnan coming to terms with his feelings. Mistress to the Merciless Millionaire is just another amazing and wonderful love story so well penned by Abby Green; quite stunning!

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Reviewed by: Marilyn

BOUND BY THE MARCOLINI DIAMONDS - Melanie Milburne

Author: Melanie Milburne

Line: Mills and Boon / Harlequin Presents

Release month UK: July 2009/North America: September 2009

The S-Factor: Sizzling and Sexy

Back-Blurb:

When the joint guardianship of baby Molly is threatened, Italian playboy Mario Marcolini knows there is only one option: Sabrina, the child's nanny, must surrender to his diamond-laden proposal….

Sabrina is wary of Mario, whose dark good looks and advances are as tempting as the devil. But marry him she will, for baby Molly's sake. The only problem is Mario thinks he's marrying an experienced gold digger—when in fact the young woman bought to be his bride is as pure and unblemished as the diamonds he has used to bind her to him!


Review: ♥♥♥♥♥

Bound by the Marcolini Diamonds is book two in Melanie Milburne’s The Marcolini Men. It will make the reader think how far and to what lengths one would go for a friend. It’s an incredibly moving and magnificent story with one hot Italian alpha and a sweet Australian nanny. Milburne has written an incredible love story, one with a battle of wills and temptation.

Sabrina is a sweet woman who adores children and in her profession as a nanny has been wrongly accused as to having an affair and breaking up a family. Now on top of everything else, she’s lost her best friend and her husband in an automobile accident. She and Mario Marcolini have been made co-custodians of their surviving baby Molly. Sabrina has only had one other experience with the sexy and ruthless billionaire Mario and wonders how she will carry out her friend’s wishes as she is now unemployed and lives in Australia while Mario resides in Italy. A short meeting with Mario after the funeral, she realizes he plans to take Molly to Italy and with his low opinion of her and all of his money, she wonders how she will play a part in Molly’s life.

It’s very obvious Mario has deep feelings for his departed friend Rick and feels an overwhelming responsibility to Molly. Even though he’s not to keen on Sabrina because of the scandal she’s caused, he realizes he needs someone to care for the baby and since she has all of the qualifications, the looks, and the body he decides the only option is a marriage of convenience. Of course it’s secretly one he’s looking forward and he’s hopeful theirs will be a physical marriage with all of the benefits. He’s also determined once Molly is older he will compensate Molly for her time and they will end the marriage. However, Mario realizes after a passionate kiss he’s never felt anything like it; the fire of the kiss and her touch. Even though his parents had a happy enough marriage, he wasn’t sure he wanted the responsibility or that sort of emotion in his life.

Can Sabrina survive this marriage? He constantly brings up the alleged affair and she can’t understand why he won’t try to understand that it was a set-up. Surely being in the press like he was should make him understand how things get twisted around? One thing she’s sure of is that women come and go in Mario’s life and he’s holding all the cards.

As one can well imagine, there’s a lot of emotion in this vibrant love story, loss of their best friends, loving Molly as they both do, their shared passion which taunts them both and the roller coaster emotions on top of everything else, a lot to take in and digest for them. So when they act on their desire and Mario realizes she inexperienced, can you imagine how he feels and that he got it wrong by believing the worst of Sabrina?

Both of the books in The Marcolini Men were exceptional and Mario and his brother learned valuable lessons about their women, valuable lessons we should all learn like trust and believing in each other because in the end both brother’s wanted it all…..love and marriage.

Hero Hotness Factor♥♥♥♥♥
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Reviewed by: Marilyn

Behind the Book:

“The story behind Mario and Sabrina was more to do with the issue of what you would do for a friend. How far would you go to protect a young baby that you have been given guardianship of? For Sabrina this was a huge decision as by agreeing to marry Mario Marcolini she was effectively giving up her own dreams of a happy marriage and children of her own one day. It was a fun book to write as Mario and Sabrina struck sparks off each other right from the start.” M. Milburne