That Fine Line by Cindy Steel

About the Book

All I wanted was a quiet summer on my family’s ranch in Idaho…I didn’t think that was too much to ask. With my fiancé in California, I was back home for three months to plan my wedding. I had colors to pick, cows to milk, and a wedding dress to squeeze into. Which was why I didn’t need anybody messing with me. Especially not the guy who had dedicated his whole life to making mine a joke. The guy who filled my high school locker with frogs and my hot car with cans of tuna. I mean…I always got him back. But not this summer. Things were different now. I was engaged. I had grown up. I would NOT fall victim to Cade’s pranks, teasing, or his manly charms. If only my dad hadn’t hired the moron to cowboy for him this summer. Now my childhood enemy is living on our ranch and seems to think we have a score to settle. And all bets are off.

My Thoughts

I randomly stumbled upon this author last December thanks to bookstagram, she had a Christmas novella releasing and I was devouring all the Christmas stories I could get my hands on so I immediately got it. It was a short little story but I absolutely loved every second and it ended up being one of my favorite reads for the season. So when I saw the chance to be on the ARC team for this book I jumped on it without even stopping to read the description! When I did finally look at what it was about I was slightly nervous because I’ve discovered that I’m very picky about my enemies to more stories, especially the ones that involve pranks. Thankfully any worry was for naught and I absolutely loved this story! The pranks were the perfect lighthearted kind that had me laughing out loud. And the characters animosity towards each other was entertaining and not based in any major drama so that kept it fun. I was also a little hesitant about the fact that the heroine was engaged to someone else at the start, because that can be tricky to handle, but the author did it exceptionally well! There was banter and fun but no lines were crossed while she was still in the other relationship, which I really appreciated.

Cade was absolutely fantastic! The way he pranked, teased, and flirted with Kelsey was hilarious, but he also knew when to draw a line and he could be exceptionally caring when he wanted to be. I also really loved that he called Kelsey, Red, I am a total sucker for a good nickname so this was definitely a point in his favor!

Kelsey was a bit of an enigma, which could be blamed on the fact that she had a foot in two worlds and was trying to discover who she was and where she belonged. At times I wanted to make her realize the truth faster but she had to make the journey herself and even if her choices frustrated me at times I could understand what drove her to make them. She gave as good as she got with the pranks and by participating she got to loosen up and settle in to the person she was becoming/finding again.

Cade and Kelsey’s relationship was so fun from start to finish and it played out with just the right timing. And even though they weren’t together to later in the book and they didn’t cross any lines beforehand you could definitely see the groundwork being laid that allowed it to grow quickly when given the chance!

So yeah, I may have like this book just a lot! Can’t wait to see what else this author has in store for us and I know I’ll be reading whatever it is!

Meet the Author

Cindy Steel was raised on a dairy farm in Idaho. She grew up singing country songs at the top of her lungs and learning to solve all of life’s problems while milking cows and driving tractors—rewriting happy endings every time. She married a cute Idaho boy and is the proud mother of two wild and sweet twin boys. Which means she is also now a collector of bugs, sticks, rocks, and slobbery kisses. She loves making breakfast, baking, photography, reading a good book, and staying up way past her bedtime to craft stories that will hopefully make you smile.

Follow her for updates and new release information at www.cindysteel.com and at Instagram: @authorcindysteel

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own. 

The Audacious Miss Eliza by Laura Rollins

About the Book

As it turns out, a London Season is the worst place to find love.⁣

Eliza Mulgrave never expected to make her bows to society. Yet here she is, dancing at Almacks and riding through Hyde Park. It would be perfectly delightful if it weren’t for the whispers and scornful glances. She certainly never sought to quit her place in society as a tradesman’s daughter. At least then she had known who she was and how to act; now, she’s completely lost.⁣

Adam Lambert has been raised to be a viscount and though the time has come sooner than expected he is confident stepping into this new life. Until he meets his Father’s best kept secret—a little girl. And now she’s Adam’s responsibility. Surely someone ought to have told him about her before now.⁣

After stumbling through an initial meeting, Adam and Eliza both find in the other what they most need this Season—a sincere friend. But society is not often willing to grant two people room to learn for themselves who to be, or who to love.⁣

As the first stand-alone novel in a new series by author Laura Rollins, The Audacious Miss Eliza begins the Daughters of Courage series. This charming story is a light-hearted, clean and wholesome romance set in the Regency era.

My Thoughts

This was a new to me author and I took a bit of a gamble agreeing to review it without knowing much about it. 

This story is all the things I’ve come to expect from these lighthearted regency reads, good clean romance without much drama.

The characters were likable, Eliza was selfless and kind and Adam was the a definite gentleman with a good heart. Both of them were navigating unexpected changes to their circumstances and they complimented each other well. 

There was a bit of an amateur feel to the writing at times but overall it was a cute and quick read that entertained me.

Meet the Author

Laura Rollins has always loved a heart-melting happily ever after. It didn’t matter if the story took place in Regency England, or in a cobbler’s shop, if there was a sweet romance, she would read it.⁣

Life has given her many of her own adventures. Currently she lives in the Rocky Mountains with her best-friend, who is also her husband, and their four beautiful children. She still loves to read books and more books; her favorite types of music are classical, Broadway, and country; she loves hiking in the mountains near her home; and she’s been known to debate with her oldest son about whether Infinity is better categorized as a number or an idea.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own. 

All That Really Matters by Nicole Deese

About the Book

Molly McKenzie's bright personality and on-trend fashion and beauty advice have earned her an impressive social media following, as well as a shiny monthly paycheck. When her manager-turned-boyfriend tells her of an upcoming audition to host a makeover show for America's underprivileged youth, all her dreams finally seem to be coming true. There's just one catch: she has little experience interacting with people in need.

To gain an edge on her competitors, she applies to volunteer at a transitional program for aged-out foster kids during summer, only the program's director, Silas Whittaker, doesn't find her as charming as her followers do. But since forfeiting a goal has never been her style, Molly's only option is to accept the terms Silas lays out and submit to his rules--even the most ridiculous ones pertaining to social media.  

Soon as the residents of the home become more than a means to pad her career resume, and Silas becomes more than an obstacle on her path to fame, her once-narrow focus expands to include the deep needs of those she's serving... and perhaps the ones she's neglected inside herself as well. It took years to build her platform, but only one summer to discover what really matters most.

My Thoughts

Well, I’m officially, once again obsessed with a Nicole Deese novel. I will admit I was nervous about this one, because it was honestly one of my top five most-anticipated reads for 2021, and because a lot of books I’ve been excited for have been missing the mark lately. But this one didn’t just meet my excessively high expectations, it exceeded them beyond my greatest hopes! I was dopey grinning my way through the whole book, wanting to just ignore the world and devour it any chance I got.

Let’s start with the characters, because lets be honest they can make or break a book. Molly was so much more than I thought she would be based on the synopsis. Yes, she was a girly girl who loved make-up and fashion but she had such a genuine caring heart and I ached for the way she felt like she didn’t fit into her family and the loneliness she experienced despite her social media fame. I absolutely loved seeing her discover the ways her gifts and talents could be used to help others and finding the connections she’d been seeking long before she even realized she needed them. She had such a bubbly magnetic personality and was one of those people you couldn’t help loving.

Now for Silas Whittaker (can we take a moment to once again appreciate this author’s hero naming magic ability?) I loved him so stinkin much! He was more on the serious side, especially when compared to Molly, but not to the extent of being a fuddy-duddy. His job required a level head and he was the perfect man for the job but he had a sense of humor that snuck up on you and made me laugh out loud several times! The way he saw potential in people before they even saw it themselves was incredible and the compassion he had was unmatched. He took his hard childhood and turned it into an amazing way of helping others. He was everything I could want in a hero!

And the two of them were absolutely perfect together! From their rocky first meeting, to working together, to friendship, to the beautiful more than friends, every step played out in perfect timing and I loved watching their relationship unfold. Their strengths and weaknesses complimented each other balancing out to make them a pretty unstoppable team that I was behind 100%!

I also loved getting to know the residents at the manor with their unique stories, the author really made you feel their pain and be totally rooting for them to overcome! Glo was such a hoot with her wisdom and wit and I also loved Molly’s brother Miles and her assistant, Val. The entire cast of characters was so well done!

In addition to the characters, I was so impressed with the way Deese handled the plot. She tackled the issue of teens who’ve aged out of the foster system with such skill and really gave an authentic view of the troubles they face. And I absolutely loved the way that every time I thought things were about to go down a certain way, a way that I didn’t want them to, she somehow flipped the script and turned the whole situation around to a way that had me cheering for the characters. Grace was given instead of judgement, listening instead of jumping to conclusions, and admitting fault instead of laying out excuses. I wish more books handled things this way because I’m here for it!

So, if you made it this far in my ramblings I will end by saying that this book was amazing from start to finish, it’s going on my favorites list, and you absolutely need to go read it!

Meet the Author

Nicole Deese is a Carol Award winner and a RITA and INSPY Award finalist. When she's not working on her next contemporary Christian romance novel, she can usually be found reading one by a window overlooking the inspiring beauty of the Pacific Northwest. She lives in small-town Idaho with her happily-ever-after hubby, two rambunctious sons, and princess daughter with the heart of a warrior. Find her online at www.nicoledeese.com.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.