Review: To Tame A Wild Horse (The Untamed Frontier Series Book 2) by Genny Cothern

Can Friends Ever Fall In Love?

I have only been at Fort Lewis for a year, but my friendship with Good Eagle has blossomed and has brought me a kind of happiness like nothing I have ever known. Daily I ride over the prairies and mountains with Good Eagle, and, I've now learned to herd horses, to hunt wild game and to aim at a target and bring it down. But, when a grizzly threatens both Good Eagle and me, and, when Good Eagle commands me to hide from it while he faces the grizzly alone, I refuse. Desert my best friend? Never.

But, after we rescue some stolen horses, I begin to believe my friendship with Good Eagle might have been love from the very start. This is not good. Not only has Good Eagle given my Uncle Jed a promise to treat me like an almost-sister, we share nothing in common except our friendship. Nothing. And, when I slyly bring up the subject of love, Good Eagle reminds me of his vow to my uncle.

And yet, when we track and bring down the wild, black stallion we are seeking, Good Eagle gives me an unexpected gift.

Is falling in love really impossible, or are we merely too young to know our own hearts?

 

My Review:

A beautiful friendship.

I really enjoyed the first book in The Untamed Frontier series and I was so happy to be able to return to Starling and Good Eagle’s story.  In this installment of the series, Starling and Good Eagle’s friendship deepens as they set off on an adventure to find a black stallion.  Starling starts to fall in love with Good Eagle, but struggles to let him know how she feels.  After all, Good Eagle thinks of Starling as his almost-sister.  This book is entertaining and educational and I am already counting down the days until the next book comes out.  Even though this book is aimed for younger readers, I still enjoyed it.  And I am 60 years old.   

Review: Paging Dr. Breakup (Yukon Valley, Alaska #2) by Jillian David

Widow Deirdre Steen has spent the last five years making sure she’s the best chief nursing officer Yukon Valley Hospital has ever seen. It cost her a personal life—and protected her heart. But now her childhood friend, Dr. Calvin Garrett—the one who got away—is temporarily lending his emergency medicine skills to their rural hospital in Alaska’s interior. The community’s relentless matchmaking network loves a challenge, which leaves Deirdre with one viable a fake dating pact with Calvin until the spring Breakup Festival and his inevitable departure to his regular job and his life in Seattle.

Calvin moved away years ago rather than watch his best friend marry Deirdre. Now, amazingly, she’s in Calvin’s bed and the center of his world. Yet a woman like Deirdre deserves forever—as well as a man who didn’t finish as runner-up the first time around.

Can an Alaskan spring thaw help two wounded healers thaw the ice surrounding their hearts and fulfill this second chance at love?

 

My Review:  

A great fake dating/friends to lovers story.

Deirdre and Calvin were old friends who secretly had feelings for each other.  After being away from home for years, Calvin is finally back in Yukon Valley and working at the same hospital as Deirdre. To get the town matchmakers off their backs, they decide to fake date.  But it turns into much more pretty quick.  I enjoyed seeing Deirdre and Calvin take their relationship to the next level.  This is such a great story and I enjoyed learning about Alaska and what goes on behind the scenes at hospitals.  Also, the friends to lovers and fake dating tropes are always fun to read. 

Review: Dead in the Ditch (Elmo Simpson Mysteries Book 3) by J.C. Kenney

 

Wild animal removal specialist Elmo Simpson needs to act fast before the good people of Paradise Springs decide to remove him!

Halloween has arrived, and all is well in Elmo Simpson’s life until his beloved cat Oscar wanders off and doesn’t return. While searching for Oscar, Elmo discovers a body in a ditch. A body that turns out to be Elmo’s former arch-nemesis, a man who Elmo believes stole intellectual property from him worth millions.

When word gets out who the victim is, the town becomes convinced Elmo is the murderer, intent on taking revenge. With nowhere to turn and the reputation of his recently purchased Sea Breeze Resort on the line, Elmo takes it upon himself to figure out who the real killer is. All the while, trying to assemble the threads that connect a dark time in his past with the equally perilous present.

 

My Review:

A fast-paced entertaining story.

Elmo Simpson has finally left the critter removal business and is enjoying the easy life running the Sea Breeze Resort.  But Elmo’s life quickly changes course when someone from his past turns up dead at his resort.  To save his reputation, Elmo puts his sleuthing skills to work to find the killer.  This book is a great addition to the series.  As with the rest of the books, I just couldn’t get enough.  It’s always fun to return to Paradise Springs and it’s quirky and fun characters.