Showing posts with label Alexis Morgan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alexis Morgan. Show all posts

Friday, May 2, 2014

Review: A Reason to Love by Alexis Morgan

A Reason to Love by Alexis Morgan
Series: Snowberry Creek, Book 3
Publisher: Signet
Genre: Contemporary Romance A Reason to Love Cover
ISBN: 9780451417732
Release Date: May 6, 2014
Source: Publisher
Buy it here: Amazon | B&N

All roads lead home in Snowberry Creek...

After a devastating tour in Afghanistan, all Spencer Lang wants is for life to return to normal. But when he rides into his hometown on his Harley, he learns that his friends and family have tried to move past their heartbreak since he was reported killed-in-action—and the woman he loved is about to marry his best friend. Now, all he can do is pick up the pieces of his life.

Years ago Melanie Wolfe left town, with no intention of ever coming back. But when her father dies, she reluctantly returns home to salvage the family business. Reuniting with Spencer, her high school crush, complicates the already thorny situation, especially when she begins losing her heart to him all over again.

As Spencer and Melanie work to restore order to her family’s company, two damaged hearts face an unexpected new future that is filled with possibilities...and love.

A Reason to Love is a great mix of heartbreak and hope. Alexis Morgan has woven a tale of two people finding love and home after devastating losses in this third Snowberry Creek novel.

Melanie’s family has long been a major employer in Snowberry Creek, but she herself wanted to break free of the restraints her last name put on her. Now that her father has died, she finds herself back at home, trying to save the family business from ruin. I adored Melanie – she has a good heart and works herself to the bone to help others. Romance aside, I really liked that she found someone she could lean on in Spence. He’s a former soldier and POW who returns home only to find everyone thought he was dead. Spence has to cope with PTSD in addition to the hit that the life he had mapped out for himself no longer exists. His friends and comrades are now living in the house that was once his and his sergeant is marrying the woman Spence once planned to wed. It’s a lot to handle, and I appreciated that Ms. Morgan didn’t let Spence cope perfectly. He makes mistakes, hurts those who love him, and it grounds the story in reality, making Spence’s character arc that much more satisfying. Melanie is key to Spence wanting to start the healing process, and the way they fall in love as they work together is simply lovely. Both Melanie and Spence struggle to find their place in their new lives, but they do so and it was a joy to see them find what it is they wanted and needed in Snowberry Creek and with each other.

A Reason to Love is the third full-length book in the Snowberry Creek series, and having not read A Time for Home and More Than a Touch I can safely say new readers will have no problem enjoying Spence and Melanie’s story. In fact, not having an emotional attachment to Spence’s friends probably helped me see Spence’s side of things easier. That being said, I’ll definitely read Nick and Leif’s books and I’m hoping the Snowberry Creek series continues even though the three former soldiers have found happiness (cue my adoration of Liam the bartender ;)). All in all, I thought A Reason to Love was an enjoyable, heartwarming story and I’m looking forward to spending more time in Ms. Morgan’s Snowberry Creek.


FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Monday, December 23, 2013

Review: Christmas on Main Street by JoAnn Ross, Susan Donovan, LuAnn McLane, and Alexis Morgan

Christmas on Main Street by JoAnn Ross, Susan Donovan, LuAnn McLane, and Alexis Morgan
Publisher: Signet
Genre: Contemporary Romance
ISBN: 9780451419538
Source: Publisher
Buy it here: Amazon | B&N
'Tis the season to fall in love in these four small towns.

In “Christmas in Shelter Bay,” New York Times bestselling author JoAnn Ross returns to Shelter Bay, where Kelli has long tried to keep her feelings for her friend Cole a secret. But when the local matchmakers conspire to send them to a secluded lakeside cabin, the two friends soon discover that a little love will keep them warm.

TV producer Nathaniel Ravelle knows the Bayberry Island mermaid legend is a joke— how could a statue grant a wish for true love? But when a Christmas Nor’easter lands him in close quarters with local Annie Parker, they see magic at work in matters of the heart in New York Times bestselling author Susan Donovan’s “A Seaside Christmas.”

In LuAnn McLane’s “Mistletoe on Main Street,” Clint isn’t sure how to rekindle his romance with high school sweetheart Ava—until his father bows out of playing Santa at the annual Cricket Creek holiday parade and Clint gets the chance to make this Christmas one to remember.

And in Alexis Morgan’s “The Christmas Gift,” business is booming at Bridey Roke’s pastry shop. Everyone in town stops in to sample her holiday treats. But in her spare moments, she’s perfecting a special recipe to charm the handsome new neighbor—who has his own surprise gift for her come Christmas Eve!


Christmas on Main Street Cover “Christmas in Shelter Bay” by JoAnn Ross
Shelter Bay, Book 0.5

I admit, I picked up this anthology for “Christmas in Shelter Bay.” I’ve been waiting for Kelli and Cole’s story ever since I read the first Shelter Bay book, The Homecoming. Kelli’s been in love with Cole for practically forever, but he’s been too blind to see it. Of course, both of their families can tell the two of them are perfect for one another, so with a bit of joint scheming and a snowstorm to aid them, Kelli and Cole will find themselves in a cozy cabin for the holidays. What “meant to be” couple wouldn’t fall in love in such a setting?

I love these kinds of stories, so I was immediately sucked into “Christmas in Shelter Bay.” Kelli and Cole made a great couple, but their switch from friends to lovers seemed a bit too fast to feel organic. If the story had been a bit longer, perhaps the progression of their relationship would have felt more natural. Still, fans of the Shelter Bay series should enjoy “Christmas in Shelter Bay.” Kelli, Cole, and their families are all as charming as ever and the story has holiday spirit to spare.


“A Seaside Christmas” by Susan Donovan
Bayberry Island, Book 0.5

Mermaids, magic, and a touch of mayhem make “A Seaside Christmas” a bright and bubbly story. Fate – and a bit of interference by some well-meaning Bayberry Island “mermaids” – lands an injured Nat on local author Annie’s doorstep during a storm. Close quarters and mutual desire leads to them burning up the sheets pretty fast. What’s unexpected (for both of them) is how swiftly they also fall in love.

I enjoyed Nat and Annie, but I felt their story could have used a bit more development. In addition, the supporting characters in “A Seaside Christmas” were a bit too much for my personal taste and overall the story had a bit of an erotic, yet cartoony feel. Susan Donovan’s stories tend to be wonderfully wacky, but usually there’s a touch of realism at their heart to make them feel grounded. “A Seaside Christmas” isn’t my favorite story of Ms. Donovan’s, but I do still plan on picking up her first full-length Bayberry Island novel, Sea of Love.


“Mistletoe on Main Street” by LuAnn McLane
Cricket Creek, Book 5.5

I love a good reunion romance and “Mistletoe on Main Street” hits all the right notes. Clint and Ava were high school sweethearts whose paths took them in different directions. It’s been fifteen years since they broke up, but now that Clint is back in Cricket Creek, the feelings he has for Ava and she for him are impossible for either to deny.

“Mistletoe on Main Street” is one of those stories that simply gives off the warm and fuzzy vibe. I adored Clint, Ava, and their friends and was pretty much charmed by “Mistletoe on Main Street” from beginning to end. LuAnn McLane has written a story that’s the perfect mix of Christmas and romance. Clint and Ava’s story will definitely get you in a festive mood while providing a love story that can be enjoyed all year ’round.


“The Christmas Gift” by Alexis Morgan
Snowberry Creek, Book 1.5

“The Christmas Gift” might just be my favorite story in the entire anthology! Bridey is a sweetheart of a pastry chef who has been burned by her ex and has since devoted herself to her bakery. Seth is an artist who feels like he’s lost his gift and needs to get away from the business persona he’s been forced to wear for far too long. The two of them have been circling one another for a while, but with a little nudge, their romance begins to blossom.

I hesitate to use the word, but I found “The Christmas Gift” to be adorable. There was something so sweet about Seth and Bridey that I found myself smiling time and again while reading their story. There’s a warmth to “The Christmas Gift” that I simply cannot convey in my review. I fell in love with Snowberry Creek and enjoyed watching the town’s Christmas festivities every bit as much as I loved reading about Bridey and Seth. Alexis Morgan is the only author in this anthology whose work I hadn’t read before, but after reading “The Christmas Gift” I can guarantee I’m going to be picking up the rest of the Snowberry Creek series.


Christmas on Main Street is a wonderful collection of small town romances. As with any anthology, readers are sure to like some stories better than others. Personally, I think “Mistletoe on Main Street” and “The Christmas Gift” are not to be missed, but all four stories are enjoyable. Whether you’re looking for romances to get you in the Christmas spirit or simply want to curl up with four well-written love stories, Christmas on Main Street is the book for you.


FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.