At Every Turn - Anne Mateer

It's been harder to get some reading in with the holiday break, but I did get the opportunity to get this book finished last night.  In the past, I have read Wings of a Dream, also by this author.  I enjoyed that one and put this book on my watch list.  I was extremely pleased when it popped up for free.

Alyce is a young woman who loves to drive.  In the early days of the automobile, this was a big no-no.  Alyce's father is a rich man, but he's not a believer.  One day, Alyce hears the story of missionaries in Africa and feels that God wants her to help.  On an impulse, she vows to contribute $3,000 their cause and challenges the congregation to do the same. Unfortunately, asking her father ends up being pointless.  It's up to Alyce to come up with a plan.  In her eyes, the only thing that she's good at is driving.  Her father is starting to race cars, so she asks the family mechanic to help her drive.

Alyce starts to have feelings for her friend, Webster, who also happens to be the mechanic.  He's the only one who really knows about her passion for driving.  She craves his approval of her plans, but she's not sure why.  Her father's assistant, Lawrence, also seems to be interested in her.  He is a more suitable match than a mechanic, but Alyce isn't quite sure how she feels about him.

Circumstances put Alyce into some situations where she chooses to lie to keep driving. Her lies cause her to start questioning if she is really doing God's will or choosing her own path.  She also starts to learn that not everyone is what they seem.  She misjudges situations and people and it causes them and her pain.

This book is also told from the first person.  Both Lawrence and Webster end up being very mysterious that way.  It's a change from what I am used to, but it was a pleasant change.  You end up going on the journey with Alyce instead of being able to figure out everyone's motives right off the bat.  At the moment, these are the only two books out by this author.  I enjoyed them both and am glad to give this one my Good Book! review.

To Love a Stranger - (Wyoming #4) - Colleen Coble

This is the fourth and final book in the Wyoming series and follows Jasper, the brother of Jessica, the heroine of book 3.

Bessie is shocked when she finds out that her sister, Lenore has married her off to a man she doesn't know.  On top of that, it is legal and she is going to have to travel west to be with him. Bessie has always felt second best to Lenore and her beauty, and is easily persuaded to go along with Lenore's idea.  Bessie has many fears about travelling west and all the dangers, but she is determined to keep her sister out of trouble.

Jasper is also shocked when he meets the stage.  The little wren that meets him is not the beauty that he holds a picture of.  Bessie had no idea that Lenore had sent a picture and confesses what has happened.  Jasper is less than thrilled in the beginning and plans to try and annul the marriage and send Bessie back to Boston.  There is no way that she will be able to survive out in the wild.

Jasper is in for a big surprise when Bessie declares that she has no plans of leaving or annulling the marriage. Whether she knew about it ahead of time or not, she feels connected to this man and is determined to be a wife that Jasper can be proud of.

I did like this book, but it isn't all sunshine and roses.  There are times that tug at the heart, and even though everything is resolved at the end, it doesn't all turn out the way you'd expect.  There is the usual happy ending  and the epilogue is short and sweet.  All in all, it was a good series and I was glad to read it.  Good Book!

The Heart Answers (Wyoming #3) - Colleen Coble

This is another of this author's out of print books that have been published in digital form. This is the third book in the series and does not need to be read in order.  There are a few places where the characters from the first two book appear, but you're not missing anything if you haven't read the first two.

Jessica has been the villain in the past two books of the series and now it's time to see things from her point of view.  When her father dies, her mother accepts her brother-in-law's proposal to be his wife and take over care of his household.  The situation is frustrating to Jessica, because she doesn't get along with her cousin very well and would rather go to Boston.

On the way to the fort, Jessica runs across Clay, a preacher that looks more like a cowboy than a man of God.  Jessica plans to use her time flirting with him and eventually humiliating him, but instead the tables are turned and she comes to find out who she is and what she really wants.  The issue is that Clay seems immune to her charms.

Clay is escorting his cousin and her daughter to the fort when he meets Jessica, a pampered, spoiled young woman.  He knows how to handle women like her and tells it like it is.  Jessica isn't used to this reaction, she's used to manipulating people and getting what she wants in the end.  Circumstances bring them together in caring for the little girl and Jessica is faced with some tough decisions.  She wants to be a better person, but she wonders if she will have to sacrifice getting what she wants.

I liked this book.  I can count on this author to give me a good book just about every time. This was no exception.  I appreciated writing the story about the reformed villain from the first two books in the series. The only thing that bothered me was the end.  The timing of the proposal seemed a little odd to me.  When it comes to books like this, the ending is important and it just didn't fit in very well.  Other than that, it was a good book and I look forward to reading the last one in the series.  Good Book!

End of the Trail (Texas Trail #6) - Vickie McDonough

This is the sixth and final book in this series.  I was glad to get the first one for free and the rest for $0.99.  This is the most unusual series that I have read.  For more information on the series itself, you can read my review on the first book, Lone Star Trail.

Brooks Morgan left home when he was a young man thinking that he would never be good enough.  He didn't want to work on the ranch and took his horse and ran away.  Ten years later, he ends up in a town and runs into a man.  The man is sick and Brooks agrees to take care of him until he dies.  The man has one last card game at his house and Brooks wins the deed to his ranch.

Keri is the dead man's niece and comes back from finishing school to find that her world has been upended.  Her uncle is dead and she comes to find out that the man she saved from a lynching is the new owner of her home.  She wonders if she should have let him be hanged after all.

These two don't exactly hit it off right away.  Keri thinks that Brooks is a charmer and a joker and won't take anything seriously.  She thinks he won't work hard enough to keep the ranch going and ruin her home.  She has no one else and nowhere to go, so she's stuck unless she agrees to marry a man who has his heart set on having her.  There's something about him that frightens Keri a bit, but she's more afraid of the feelings that are growing for Brooks.

I enjoyed this book, as I did the others, and I believe that the series was a good investment.  Sometimes I end up with buyer's remorse when I try out new authors, but this time, there are no regrets.  I liked the characters and the story had great examples of second chances.  Good Book!  Good series!

Cowgirl Trail (Texas Trail #5) - Susan Page Davis

I've been reviewing the books in this series a lot, so I'll cut to the chase.  If you want information on the series itself, check out my review on Lone Star Trail.  I've been glad to get the first one for free and I've gotten the rest for $0.99.

Alex has been working on the Rocking P ranch for years, working his way up to foreman. The past couple years, his boss has been cutting back and taking away the perks he was giving the men.  The men are planning a strike and Alex is torn between his loyalty to the man and the men he works with.

Maggie has come home after being away for a while.  First she was taking care of her mother, then visiting her cousin after her mother passed away.  Coming back, she finds that her father is a different man and that the men are getting ready to walk out.

Maggie finds out that her father is not only short of money, but he is also ill.  He refuses to tell the men anything about his situation.  He feels betrayed and angrily tells them all to leave.

Alex and Maggie are now on opposite sides and they both wonder how they could ever be together.  Maggie feels betrayed that Alex didn't side with her or stay to help her out.  She lashes out at him on a number of occasions.  Her family needs money desperately and now it's up to Maggie to find a way to get the cattle rounded up for the drive to market.

This is probably my least favorite so far of the series, but I liked it nonetheless.  Maggie was unfair to Alex so many times that I wanted to smack her.  Eventually someone calls her out on her attitude and it was about time.  I liked Alex's character more.

I'm going to go ahead and finish out the series with End of the Trail.  This was a good book and I didn't have any issues reading through it and it only took me about 2 or 3 days. The book follows the pattern of the others and is able to be read out of order or by itself. The mentions of the family are barely in there and they only appear at the very end. Good Book!

The Ranger's Trail (Texas Trail #4) - Darlene Franklin

This is the fourth book in the Texas Trail series.  So far, I have been able to read them in order and I have enjoyed each of them.  This series is unusual and for more on it and to see titles of the other books in the series, you can see my review on the first book, Lone Star Trail.  I got that one for free.  The other four I have picked up for $0.99.

A confusing law had started a war between the Anglos and the Germans residing in Mason County, Texas.  The Germans thought that some of the Anglos had been cattle rustling.  When one of the men is found not guilty, the Germans exact their own form of justice and hang the man.

Buck is a Texas Ranger that has been sent to the area to deal with the violence between the Anglos and the Germans.  He has ties to the community.  His uncle's family live in the area and Buck fears that some of his family may be involved in the violence.

Leta's husband was the man hung in front of his family.  Now the two sides are exchanging killings and the violence starts to come back towards home.  Buck comes to investigate what happened to her husband and ends up caught between the two sides.

As with the others in this series, it's not the most perfect book.  There are some typos in there but nothing major that took away from my enjoyment of the book.  I did enjoy it, but it seemed to be a little lacking in the development of the relationship between Buck and Leta.  At the end, I just didn't feel like they had enough interactions of consequence to merit the marriage at the end.  Wasn't a deal breaker, but I just wish there had been a little more in there.

This has been a great series.  I have Cowgirl Trail waiting to be read, and I'm hoping that the pattern holds and I can pick up the last one for $0.99.  I'm crossing my fingers and waiting patiently.  Again, any of these books can be read alone with no issues, but I like seeing the characters from the previous books and knowing who they are.  This particular book definitely gets a Good Book! review.

Head in the Clouds - Karen Witemeyer

Having read all three of this author's other books (I have reviews for Short-Straw Bride and To Win Her Heart in this blog) I was hoping against hope that this one would drop in price.  I have greatly enjoyed all three of her other books and was thrilled when this one popped up for $2.99.

Adelaide has been longing for a family so badly that she is willing to marry a man she doesn't love just to get that family.  When she follows the man to Fort Worth, she gets a rude awakening.  Now that her plans are having to change, Adelaide feels like she needs to ask for God's guidance this time and ends up in the Texas wilderness applying for the position of governess with a sheep herder.

Gideon has come to America from England to prove to his father that he can make something of his life through hard work and sacrifice.  On the ship ride over, he runs into a woman who is dying.  She begs him to take care of her little girl and makes sure that her will is properly changed before she dies.  Since her mother's death, the little girl hasn't spoken a word.  Gideon hopes that a governess will be able to restore the joy to his new daughter.

When Gideon's lawyer brings out the three candidates for the position, Adelaide quickly stands out as the best one for the little girl.  A series of mishaps brings some laughter back into the house and Adelaide wonders if maybe Gideon is the knight in shining armor that she has dreamed of since she was small.

Their joy is short lived when they discover that the little girl's uncle is coming after her and they soon learn that he will stop at nothing to get the little girl and her money.  Gideon and Adelaide have to put their love on hold to fight off the danger that is coming their way.

I loved this book.  The action didn't stop until the very end of the book and it was hard to put down.  As far as I can tell, this author only has out four books and I have now read them all.  I can't find anything mentioning any upcoming novels and that's a shame, because her books are great and I wish there were more!  Great book!

To Protect & Serve (The Courage Series #1) - Staci Stallings

I picked up this book for free quite some time ago.  I normally stick to authors I already like for contemporary romances, but I wanted to give this new author a shot.

Lisa is running her own company and basically running herself into the ground.  While helping her sister celebrate her upcoming marriage, she ends up at a club wishing she was back at work.  There she meets Jeff, who has come with his friends to celebrate their graduation from the fire academy.

Both of these people have issues.  Lisa apparently only attracts the wrong kind of man, and Jeff is so shy that he literally hides from Lisa when he sees her.  I'd like to report more on the story, but not much had happened in the 35% that I read.  They wanted to see each other, but both of them were too nervous to do anything about it.

I had to quit at 35%.  The characters were on my nerves.  I felt like I was reading a teenage drama romance rather than one written about adults.  Labeling people in the club as "elbow guy" and "pullover guy" should have been a hint to me that this book wasn't really going to be for me.  I think what really pushed me over the edge were the times when Jeff would hide from her.  I guess burning buildings aren't as scary as women.

This book just wasn't for me.  I wasn't a fan of the writing and I really was annoyed with the characters.  Maybe it got better later on, but I wasn't willing to invest any more time on it.