Category Archives: The Wild Rose Press

November 17, 2019 · 11:57 pm

Review: The Healing Summer by Liz Flaherty

Title: The Healing Summer by Liz Flaherty
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press, Inc
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 251 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by the Author

Summary:

When Steven Elliott accidentally rides his bike into Carol Whitney’s car at the cemetery, the summer takes on new and exciting possibilities. Long friendship wends its way into something deeper when their hearts get involved. Feelings neither of them had expected to experience again enrich their days and nights. But what happens when the long summer ends? When Carol wants a family and commitment and a future, Steven isn’t so sure. He’s had his heart broken before—can he risk it again?

Review:

The Healing Summer by Liz Flaherty is a captivating romance that is also a little bittersweet.

Carolina “Carol” Whitney is a compassionate and caring woman who has suffered more than her fair share of heartache and loss. She is a successful business owner and student with a close circle of friends. Carol is not looking for a relationship when she reconnects with Dr. Steven Elliott but their unexpected friendship takes a decidedly romantic turn. Carol cannot deny how much Steven means to her, but will their romance fade when summer ends?

Steven never imagined he would move back to his small hometown. However, after  a tragic professional loss, he returns to Peacock for some much needed downtown with his sisters and friends.  Although Carol has long been on periphery of his life, their acquaintance has always been somewhat casual. Which is why Steven is rather surprised by how much he enjoys spending time with her. What he finds even more shocking is his unexpected attraction to her.

Carol and Steven are beautifully developed, three dimensional characters. Steven is a well liked, sought after cardiothoracic surgeon and Carol is concerned small town life will eventually bore him. She goes into their relationship with few expectations but she does not count on falling in love.  Steven is willing to commit to a short-term romance and he is stunned when his feelings for her deepen. Carol is strong enough to make a tough decision but will Steven decide to risk his heart again?

The Healing Summer is a heartwarming novel of friendship, love and healing. Steven and Carol are vibrant, charming characters with relatable fears, shortcomings and admirable strengths. Their friendship provides a strong foundation for their eventual romance but both of them bring plenty of emotional baggage to their relationship. Steven and Carol have wonderful relationships with their friends and family who give them plenty of love and support.  I highly recommend Liz Flaherty’s emotional and uplifting novel to readers who enjoy wholesome, small town romances.

Comments Off on Review: The Healing Summer by Liz Flaherty

Filed under Contemporary, Liz Flaherty, Rated B+, Review, Romance, The Healing Summer, The Wild Rose Press

April 20, 2014 · 11:57 pm

Review: The Drake House by Kelly Moran

Title: The Drake House by Kelly Moran
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal, Romantic Suspense
Length: 350 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Author

Summary:

In her dreams, a ghost demands to be heard…

Once plagued by mysterious nightmares, Trisha Eaton always chalked them up to childish nuisances–until they return with a vengeance. Something about the Drake house next door haunts her, and now her night terrors and sleepwalking seem to be luring her to something dark. After a series of strange events, Trisha turns to Nick Mackey.

As the new deputy in town, Nick wants to forget his traumatic past. His undeniable attraction for Trisha has him wondering if a shot at a normal life is possible. But Trisha has somehow struck a nerve in their small, superstitious town, and a long-buried secret threatens to surface again. A secret that someone will kill to keep veiled.

Answers only lead to more questions in a case where nothing makes sense, but one chilling fact remains…some nightmares are all too real.

The Review:

The Drake House by Kelly Moran is the perfect combination of romance, mystery and paranormal elements. Long time secrets, nightmares and a ghostly presence are just a few of the intriguing aspects of this compelling and well-written story.

The return of Trisha Eaton’s childhood nightmares and sleepwalking coincides with threatening notes and phone calls. She turns to local police to investigate and new Deputy Nick Mackey is assigned to the case. All clues point to the property that borders Trisha’s orchard, but Drake House has remained uninhabited since Alexandra Drake’s mysterious death twenty years ago. As Trisha and Nick soon discover, someone is willing to go to any lengths, including murder, to keep the truth about long held secrets from being revealed.

Trisha is a feisty, independent woman who is not easily intimated. She is very protective of her friends and family and she will do whatever it takes to keep them safe. With no one willing to talk about a puzzling event from her past, Trisha is willing to risk just about anything to uncover the truth.

Haunted by a justified shooting and the devastating aftermath, Nick is enjoying his new career as a small town deputy. Surprised by his attraction to Trisha, he tries to keep their relationship on professional level as he investigates the inexplicable occurrences at her orchard. Working closely together, the two give in to their passion but his unresolved past continually comes between them.

Nick and Trisha’s relationship is rocky right from the beginning. They quickly indulge in a casual fling, but it is short-lived. The investigation continues to put them in close proximity, but neither is ready for a serious commitment. Nick and Trisha work well together, but their personal relationship runs hot and cold for much of the novel.

The mystery aspect of the storyline has its roots in long ago events, but Nick and Trisha are stone-walled by her parents and her close friends. Nick and Trisha, along with her best friend Brad, quietly look into Alexandra Drake’s past and what they uncover is puzzling. Equally troubling are the present day murders of two of Trisha’s friends and the unexplained disappearance of a longtime family friend.

The Drake House is a suspense-laden mystery with a just the right amount of romance and the tiniest bit of a supernatural component. The characters are wonderfully developed with realistic flaws and imperfections. Kelly Moran does an excellent job obscuring the perpetrator’s identity until the novel’s exciting conclusion.

3 Comments

Filed under Contemporary, Kelly Moran, Paranormal, Rated B, Review, Romantic Suspense, The Drake House, The Wild Rose Press

April 16, 2014 · 11:58 pm

Review: Summer’s Road by Kelly Moran

summerTitle: Summer’s Road by Kelly Moran
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 298 pages
Book Rating: B

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Author

Summary:

After her father’s death, Summer Quinn realizes just how alone she feels in the world. With no family to fill her life now, she finds comfort among friends, but yearns for true love, contentment, and family. When her boyfriend, Matt, suggests they raise their relationship to a higher level, Summer jumps at the chance to get everything she’s always wanted. Only she doesn’t expect the heat arising between her and her best friend, Ian–a man who never seems to settle down. A man the complete opposite of what she’s looking for. But when her estranged mother reappears after twenty-eight years, Summer’s world completely flips upside down. As secrets from her family’s past and Ian’s true feelings for her emerge, Summer’s now faced with choices she’s not sure she can make. The rest of her life’s happiness hinges on her finally confronting a past she’d rather deny and legitimately opening her heart to love, even if it’s not where she expected to find it.

The Review:

Summer’s Road by Kelly Moran is a lovely friends to lovers romance. It is also an emotional journey of healing and forgiveness for Summer Quinn as she makes peace with her past. But the heart and soul of this wonderful story is the delightful friendship that Summer shares with her best pals Ian, Rick and Dee.

Summer has been unable to move on from the two defining moments of her life-her mother’s long ago abandonment and more recently, her beloved father’s death from cancer. On the four year anniversary of her dad’s death, she is shaken by her mother Sharon’s unexpected reappearance in her life. As if her life is not in enough turmoil, her longtime boyfriend Matt is suddenly asking for a commitment and her close friendship with Ian takes a surprisingly romantic turn.

Although Summer has a very close friendship with her childhood friends, she always holds a little piece of herself back from them. Instead of confiding in them, she puts on a happy face and keeps her strongest emotions to herself. This defense mechanism works perfectly well until her past and present collide and she comes very close to ruining her friendship and, quite possibly, her future with Ian. But help arrives from a surprising source and Summer has a few revelations about her parents and her friendships that help her heal the wounds from her past.

The budding romance between Ian and Summer is full of misunderstandings but lack of communication is probably their biggest issue. For two people who think they know one another inside and out, it turns out they really don’t know each other very well at all. Even worse, they are both guilty of assuming they know what the other person is thinking and this leads some frustrating conversations where they keep their true feelings hidden.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of the novel is the close-knit friendship between Summer, Ian, Rick and Dee. Ian, Rick and Dee are more than Summer’s friends; they are her family. The three have been with Summer through good times and bad and their support for her is unwavering. But as they soon discover, their good intentions have undesirable consequences that have hindered Summer more than they helped. Fortunately it is not too late for Summer to make amends for her past behavior and she embraces what she has in life instead of lamenting what is missing.

Summer’s Road by Kelly Moran is a wonderful story of forgiveness, friendship and love. The cast of characters is appealing and beautifully developed. The story line is engaging with plenty of strong emotions. A heartfelt novel that fans of contemporary romances are sure to enjoy.

2 Comments

Filed under Contemporary, Kelly Moran, Rated B, Review, Romance, The Wild Rose Press