Review: When Summer Comes by Brenda Novak

When Summer Comes 

By Brenda Novak 

Book #3 in the Whiskey Creek Series 

Contemporary Romance

One day, Callie Vanetta receives devastating news...She needs a liver transplant. But her doctors warn that, in her case, the chances of finding a compatible donor aren't good. Determined to spend whatever time she has left on her own terms, she keeps the diagnosis to herself and moves out to her late grandparents' farm. She's always wanted to live there. But the farm hasn't been worked in years and she begins to fear it's too much, she'll have to return to town.

One night, a stranger comes knocking at her door...He's an attractive and mysterious drifter by the name of Levi McCloud who offers to trade work for a few nights' shelter. Callie figures she doesn't have anything to lose. He needs a place to stay until he can fix his motorcycle; she needs an extra pair of hands. The arrangement seems ideal until what was supposed to be temporary starts to look more and more permanent. Then she realizes she does have something to lose — her heart. And, although he doesn't yet know it, Levi stands to lose even more.

REVIEW:

One of the things that I love so dearly about this series is the messiness of the characters’ situations. A conflict may begin fairly simply but then wind its way naturally through all the various threads of a character’s relationships. And, they’re pretty appealing. This story is no exception. We’ve seen Callie Vanetta show up in previous stories but always on the sidelines, in the background or as a pretty quiet member of the Friday morning group that meets at Black Gold, the town’s coffee shop. Her story begins with the devastating news of her need for a liver transplant. Callie’s life span won’t go beyond the end of the summer without one and she’s determined to keep her condition a secret as long as she can to avoid being pitied. When drifter Levi McCloud shows up on her front porch in the middle of the night, severely injured, he alters the course of Callie’s life from that point on.

Levi is obviously keeping secrets so he and Callie share that between them. Her friends, particularly Kyle Houseman, who she’s had a “friends with benefits” relationship with recently, are completely in the dark about her illness. They don’t understand why she’s drawn to him, sexiness and all, and why she’s now keeping them at arm’s length. Callie has never been in a relationship where she’s been in love or been loved so Levi represents her last opportunity as she’s facing her mortality. It’s not the only reason she’s drawn to him but it’s a factor. She hires him and of course he lives with her on the farm, helping to prepare it for sale and protect her from some menacing tenants living on a neighboring property. Levi wants to keep his distance and resist his growing feelings for Callie but it’s a lost cause. Both of them find new life in each other in addition to love. It’s a compelling story of two people trying to find a way to keep living under extraordinary circumstances. You’ll need some tissues so be prepared.

Quite a few of the secondary characters appear in the story and several have subplots that are just as complicated and emotionally charged as Callie’s. They’re left unresolved, a perfect set up for the next few books. That’s great news as this series is too good to even think about establishing an end date.

I loved Callie and Levi’s story and cannot wait for the next book as each seems to just get better.

(I received an ARC from NetGalley)

CR Review: When Lightning Strikes by Brenda Novak

When Lightning Strikes

by Brenda Novak

Book #1 in the Whiskey Creek series
Contemporary Romance
August 28th 2012 by Mira  
ARC from NetGalley 
★★★★

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! 

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! 

REVIEW:

Gail DeMarco created a successful PR firm with many A-list clients, including Simon O’Neal, one of the most successful and gorgeous actors in Los Angeles. When she decided to cut him loose after his umpteenth self-destructive act, his business manager retaliated by taking all of her clients with him. Simon is in the middle of a nasty custody battle with his ex-wife and needs to clean up his image so he and Gail make a deal: he'll get her business back in order if she'll agree to marry him and give him instant respectability. Gail reluctantly agrees to do so to keep her staff employed and her business afloat.

I honestly thought this story might be a little on the silly side given the premise. There was absolutely nothing silly about this book with its flawed and complex characters. Simon O'Neal is so layered and has every reason to be angry given his personal circumstances but he chooses to keep them secret and takes the hits for his public venting. No one knows the underlying reasons for his behavior. Gail is extremely smart and has great instincts but is a bit naive when it comes to matters of the heart. She was raised by an overly protective father and her mother was absent so she hasn't had a lot of experience with men, even though she knows how to handle herself in the business arena.

If the characters had stayed in Los Angeles, the story probably would have been as predictable as I feared. However, Gail's decision to have them move to Whiskey Creek provided a much more interesting backdrop and experience. We learn more about the people in Gail's life and the influence they have on who she is. We also get to watch Gail in action as she works to bring Simon back to a healthier place physically and emotionally, putting her own feelings and heart at risk. What started as a modern marriage of convenience transitioned to something quite different and special. You cannot help but adore Gail and then fall in love with the true Simon. There are some interesting secondary characters that give the story added flavor but never seem to overwhelm the central players.

I loved this story and was surprised by just how much I enjoyed the book and its characters. I've read a couple of Novak's historical romances and was uncertain if the shift to this genre would bring me as much pleasure as those books did. This is a great start to the series and I am really looking forward to the next book's release.