When Snow Falls

When Snow Falls is the 2^nd book in the Whiskey Creek series from NYT bestselling author Brenda Novak. The publisher is Harlequin MIRA. From the back cover.~

After growing up in cheap motels, moving from town to town with her sister and mother, Cheyenne Christensen is grateful to be on her own. She's grateful, too, for the friends she found once her family settled in California. But she's troubled by the mystery of her earliest memories, most of which feature a smiling blonde woman. A woman who isn't her mother.

Although Cheyenne has repeatedly asked for explanations, the people who could help aren't talking. Cheyenne is set on finding answers, but without so much as a birth certificate, it won't be easy.

Things get even more complicated when her closest friend is attracted to the man Cheyenne has secretly loved for years. For Eve's sake, she decides to step aside—which lands her right in the arms of Dylan Amos, oldest and baddest of the hell-raising Amos brothers. He's the kind of guy she's sworn to avoid. She can't afford to make a mistake, not when she finally has a chance to learn who she really is and change her life for the better. But…maybe there's more to Dylan than she thought. Maybe letting him go would be a bigger mistake.

I was lucky enough to get a review copy of When Snow Falls from the publisher through NetGalley. I really love the Whiskey Creek series, and was excited to get the next book.

I have to say I felt like When Snow Falls moved a little slow in the beginning. It took me to about 20% to really get into the story. None of it was because I didn’t like Cheyenne, but because I really couldn’t see her pursuing a relationship with Joe, since her best friend Eve liked him. This goes against every girl code out there and I was kind of put off with her until Dylan came into the picture.

I loved Dylan with Cheyenne from the moment they had their first conversation. They had amazing chemistry and he was so very sweet with her their first time together. Especially since it was her first time. Cheyenne doesn’t think Dylan is the right man for her, yet she can’t seem to stay away from him. Dylan has had feelings for Cheyenne for years and knows he should stop getting together with Cheyenne when she doesn’t think there can be anything between them. However, when Cheyenne needs help locating her sister and dealing with her mother’s death, she immediately calls Dylan. She also only initially shares her memories about the blonde woman with Dylan and he believes her and thinks she should try and find out more about her past.

I’ve always liked Cheyenne’s group of friends. However, as they all were warning her away from Dylan and telling her to give Joe more of her time, I got mad at them. None of them seemed to listen when she was talking about Dylan and even made her doubt him just when she was starting to give their relationship a real try. Can’t say she didn’t make me mad by hurting Dylan. Luckily, Dylan was the better man and didn’t totally give up on his feelings for Cheyenne and was there for her when she really needed him.

The discovery of the secret of Cheyenne’s past really only came as a surprise to Cheyenne in the end. Her sister Presley had learned earlier what happened, but continued to keep the news to herself because she feared she would lose Cheyenne in her life. Once again, Dylan is the one Cheyenne needed in her corner.

I really enjoyed When Snow Falls, and I look forward to more books from this series in the future. The official release date was October 23, 2012 and can be found at your favorite bookstore or online retailer. For more information about this series or other books from Brenda Novak, visit her website.

When Lightning Strikes (Whiskey Creek)

When Lightning Strikes is the 1^st full length book from Brenda Novak’s Whiskey Creek series. The publisher is Harlequin MIRA. From the back cover.~

Simon O'Neal's causing trouble again. And it's up to Gail DeMarco to stop him.

Gail DeMarco left Whiskey Creek, California, to make a name for herself in Los Angeles. Her PR firm has accumulated a roster of A-list clients, including the biggest box office hit of all—sexy and unpredictable Simon O'Neal. But Simon, who's just been through a turbulent divorce, is so busy self-destructing he won't listen to anything she says. She drops him from her list—and he retaliates by taking the rest of her clients with him.

Desperate to save her company, Gail has to humble herself by making a deal with Simon. The one thing he wants is custody of his son, but that's going to require a whole new image. He needs to marry some squeaky-clean girl who'll drag him off to some small, obscure place like Whiskey Creek….

Gail's the only one he can trust. She agrees to become his wife—reluctantly. But she isn't reluctant because he's too hard to like. It's because he's too hard not to love!

I was lucky enough to get an early copy of When Lightning Strikes from NetGalley. I’ve read Brenda Novak for years, and have to say that her Whiskey Creek series might just be my favorite of all.

I really liked Gail from the start of the book. She is a tough lady, but knows how to get what she wants out of life. Simon was a bit harder for me to love at first. I figured out pretty quickly that he was covering up something as he tried to destroy his life. Once he and Gail strike a deal to marry to help him turn his life around to try and win custody of his son, I think we got to finally see the real Simon.

Keeping their secret that their marriage is in name only isn’t too hard, but fighting their mutual attraction becomes harder with each passing day. Gail has always found Simon attractive, he has even starred in some of her fantasies. Once Simon is sober he starts to things more clearly, which includes how he sees his new wife. He has always thought Gail was nice to look at, but now sees her for who she really is and sees her true beauty.

Of course, someone is trying to make waves with their new marriage. Photographers find their new home in Whiskey Creek, and soon Simon’s father follows to try and make Simon return to Hollywood to do his latest movie. Gail is finally clued into one of Simon’s biggest secrets when she meets with his father. She sees more than ever what steps Simon will take to protect his son. I think it was just the final thing she needed to learn to cement her falling for Simon.

The chemistry between Gail and Simon increases the more time they spend together. When they finally stop fighting their attraction to one another, Gail and Simon love scenes were hot, sexy, and even sweet at times. Of course, Simon’s ex-wife is still pulling his strings a bit where their son is concerned and will do anything to try and get Simon back. Simon and Gail’s new love is put to the test very early in their relationship. Only trust and real love will get them through this latest hurdle.

The official release date for When Lightning Strikes is August 28, 2012 in both print and digital release. You can find it at your favorite bookstore or on-line retailer. For more information about the Whiskey Creek series or any others, check out Brenda Novak’s website.

When We Touch (Whiskey Creek)

When We Touch (Whiskey Creek Novella) is the current eBook release from Brenda Novak. From the author’s website.~

You're invited to a wedding in Whiskey Creek, Heart of the Gold Country

Unfortunately, it's the wrong wedding. Olivia Arnold is arranging the festivities—and it's the hardest thing she's ever done. Because she should be marrying Kyle Houseman. They were together for more than a year…. But her jealous sister, Noelle, stole him away—and now she's pregnant.

All their friends in Whiskey Creek know as well as Olivia does that Kyle's making a mistake. His stepbrother, Brandon, knows it, too. But Kyle's determined to go through with it, for his child's sake.

Olivia's devastated, but surprisingly Brandon—the black sheep of the family--is there to provide comfort and consolation. The intensity between them, both physical and emotional, shows Olivia that maybe Kyle wasn't the right man for her….

But is Brandon?

I’m a big fan of Brenda Novak and was really excited to see she was offering up her novella for her new Whiskey Creek series for free. I have to say this story was an excellent start to a new series.
I absolutely loved Olivia Arnold so very much. I have to say she is totally a better person than me, because if my sister had stolen my boyfriend and gotten pregnant, there is no way I would be at the wedding, let alone plan it. Luckily, she runs into Brandon when she first arrives back in Whiskey Creek. She has someone who is on her side, since even her parents expect her to be supportive to her sister. Olivia and Brandon went to prom together and Brandon has wanted Olivia ever since. I found myself falling pretty fast for Brandon. He seemed to always get the short end of the stick from his family and be put in Kyle’s shadow, even though Brandon is very successful in his own right.

I’m pretty sure I’ve never disliked 2 characters as much in any book as I did Kyle and Noelle. I totally believed they deserved each other so much. Anyone who would cheat on the woman they dates for a couple of years with her sister, deserves anything he gets. Kyle and Noelle both seemed to have a major problem with Olivia and Brandon spending time together. Olivia and Brandon have a really strong attraction to one another. While they fight their attraction for a while, readers get some pretty sexy and emotional scenes.

The official release date for When We Touch was August 1, 2012 and can be purchased at any of your favorite on-line retailers. I’m not sure how much longer it will be available for free download, but know it is more than worth the regular $1.99 price.