Book and Audio Review: Everyone Loves a Hero by Marie Force

Everyone Loves a Hero by Marie Force

Publisher & Release Date: Sourcebooks Casablanca, February 1, 2011

Time and setting: Present Day, D.C.

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Length:  386 pages

Heat Level: 2 Flames

Rating: 4 Gold Crowns

Book Description: 

Fame has its perks...

Reluctantly famous, First Officer Cole Langston finds being in the spotlight has its advantages-until he meets Olivia. Having women throw themselves at him everywhere he goes becomes a serious problem when he's trying to convince her she's the one...

And its price...

Olivia has trouble trusting a guy like Cole, and everywhere she turns she sees reasons to run. But he's the only man who's ever seemed to understand her as an artist and as a woman...

Cole is working overtime to prove to Olivia that he's serious, but her deep seated mistrust and his entourage of unwelcomed fans may be more than they can overcome...

Buy Links:

http://smile.amazon.com/Everyone-Loves-Hero-Marie-Force-ebook/dp/B004ISLNVK

http://www.audible.com/pd/Romance/Everyone-Loves-a-Hero-Audiobook/B00BEXBQEQ

Add to Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9519678-everyone-loves-a-hero

Vikki's Musings

I recently discovered this book through the Kindle Unlimited program and was able to purchase the audible for $1.99. I have loved The Gansett Island series by Marie Force, so I eagerly downloaded Everyone Loves a Hero. As usual with Ms. Force’s books, I enjoyed another delightful read!

Cole Langston is considered a hero after saving a fellow pilot when the man had a heart attack. While standing in line to buy a package of Mentos, he steps in to defend the newsstand clerk at the airport and ends up on the wrong end a meaty fist and is thrown into a Washington Redskins display. After blacking out for several minutes, he opens his eyes and sees a striking young woman with long dark hair and big brown eyes hovering over him, the same individual he was defending.

Olivia Langston has not had it easy. At twenty-seven, she is working in a low-paying job while trying to finish her business degree, although, she’s an artist at heart. Cole is the first person to see that in her. While she wants to trust in his love, she wary, especially since his celebrity status has women throwing themselves at him wherever they go.

Can Cole overcome her mistrust, or will the secret he keeps tear them apart forever?

I thoroughly enjoyed Everyone Loves a Hero. This is a character-driven story, showing how this couple can find true love amidst the chaos of their lives. The plot weaves in nicely, helping to showcase their character arches. The pacing is excellent and kept me engaged.

Olivia’s character pulled me in, and I became fully vested in her and liked her a great deal. Now at times, I did become a bit frustrated because of her mistrust and unwillingness to believe Cole is truly in love with her. However, I rooted for her thirst for independence. In this day and age, it is unusual for a young woman to still be living at home with her parents.

Cole is a great hero! I fell in love with him from the start. Although, he has a strong reason to avoid emotional attachments, since a woman from his past is obsessed with him and is constantly trying to interfere in his life. Yet, he immediately recognizes that he has fallen in love with Olivia. Of course, he has been involved with a lot of women and has to un-entangle himself from these many “friends with benefits” relationships. Normally I struggle with a male character who in essence has been a man-whore, his ability to know when he has found the right woman for him kept me from disliking that aspect of his personality.

Tanya Eby is a great narrator, and I enjoyed her performance a great deal. While she reads with emotion, her narration is so smooth and un-intrusive, it’s is easy to become lost in the story. She does an excellent job of giving each character a distinctive voice. Cole actually sounds like a male, which is a great feat, since so many times, the males with a female narrator sound way to feminine. I will definitely be looking for other audio books she has narrated.

Everyone Loves a Hero has great though flawed characters, a bit of humor and a great love story. I am glad I found this book, and I highly recommend it. Happy reading!

Gansett After Dark by Marie Force

(The McCarthys of Gansett Island series, book 11)

Publisher & Release Date: HTJB, Inc. May 12, 2014 

Time and setting: Present Day, Gansett Island, Rhode Island

Genre: Contemporary Romance/Women’s Fiction

Length: 400 pages

Heat Level: 2 Scorching Hot Flames

Rating: 4.5 Gold Crowns

Book Description:

Owen Lawry is days away from leaving Gansett Island to attend the trial of his father, who is charged with assaulting his mother almost a year ago. He has spent his entire adult life trying to outrun his violent past, but the upcoming showdown with the father he hasn’t seen in more than a decade has him spending far more time in the past than in the present. His biggest challenge is convincing his pregnant fiancée, Laura McCarthy, to sit out the trip. The last thing he wants is to expose the woman he loves to the pain of his past. 

Laura is determined to stand by Owen’s side throughout the trial and into the life they have planned together. The trial and her final divorce papers are the only things standing between them and the wedding they have looked forward to all year. Can she convince Owen to let her in and allow her to help him through this difficult time? And what will become of the man she loves if his father walks free?

As Owen and Laura prepare for the emotional battle with his father, his mother, Sarah, finally comes clean about her violent marriage with Charlie Grandchamp, the man who has been her friend and companion for months now. How will Charlie react to hearing Sarah’s secrets, and will their relationship move forward now that he finally knows the truth about why she can’t bear to let him touch her? 

Catch up with all your favorite Gansett Island characters from the past ten and a half books and meet several new characters, including some McCarthy cousins on the island for Laura and Owen’s wedding, who will be featured in future books. 

While Gansett After Dark could be read as a standalone story, readers will enjoy it more if they have read the rest of the Gansett Island Series, particularly book 6, Season for Love. 

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Gansett-After-Dark-McCarthys-Island-ebook/dp/B00JJX4RWG/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1443400663&sr=1-1&keywords=gansett+after+dark

Audible: http://www.audible.com/pd/Romance/Gansett-after-Dark-Audiobook/B00L2E9DUG

Add to Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21897817-gansett-after-dark

Vikki’s Musings

What a delightful series! I am so glad I decided to read the McCarthy’s of Gansett Island books. I am enjoying it tremendously and finding it quite addicting. Gansett After Dark is the continuation of Owen and Laura’s story, which started in Season For Love. I do recommend reading that book first to fully appreciate this one.

Owen and Laura have a big hurdle to get over before their wedding. His father’s trial is fast approaching and Owen is very unsettled by it. Laura is experiencing acute morning sickness that lasts all day and night to the point that she becomes dehydrated and has to spend time at the clinic where Dr. David and Victoria give her fluids so she’ll be able to travel.

Will Owen make it through the trial with Laura by his side so they can at last have their wedding, or will his torment get the best of him?

There’s a lot that happens in Gansett After Dark besides what’s going on with Owen and Laura. I thoroughly enjoyed Dan and Kara’s sub-plot and the way Tiffany tried to intervene at their engagement party was awesome. The cannon that is her ex-husband finally shot off!  

There is a shocking turn of events for big Mac and Linda when Mallory Vaughn shows up on their doorstep. I won’t say more because I don’t want to give anything away, but hold onto your seats, Mallory is going to shake all the McCarthys, especially Janey and Mac.

I love following the other characters as they grow in their relationships. Adam and Abby get engaged and of course Abby wants them to get another tattoo. Sarah finally tells Charlie about the abuse she suffered for so many years at the hands of her husband and their friendship turns romantic. Seamus and Carolina throw a surprise wedding, and Brant finally gets Stephanie to set a date for Labor Day.

 Again, I thoroughly enjoyed Holly Fielding’s performance. How she keeps all the characters from sounding the same is astonishing. She is the narrator for Kisses After Dark, but I have already downloaded Love After Dark and noticed there is a new narrator. She has some big shoes to follow in estimation!

If you’re looking for a series that will have you laughing one moment and crying another, then you will love the McCarthys of Gansett Island. While you could read these books out of order, I don’t recommend it. Start with Maid For Love, you will not regret it. Happy reading!

Waiting For Love by Marie Force

(The McCarthys of Gansett Island series, book 8)

Publisher & Release Date: HTJB, Inc. January 10, 2013  

Time and setting: Present Day, Gansett Island, Rhode Island

Genre: Contemporary Romance/Women’s Fiction

Length: 355 pages

Heat Level: 2 Scorching Hot Flames

Rating: 5 Gold Crowns

Book Description:

Sometimes the best offense is a good rebound... 

Adam McCarthy has had a really bad week. In addition to nearly losing his three brothers in a tragic boating accident, his now ex-girlfriend has double-crossed him right out of the successful computer company he founded in New York City. What he needs is a few days at home on Gansett Island to make sure his beloved brothers are safe and to get back in touch with what really matters—his family, his friends and the tiny island that soothes his battered soul. On the ferry ride home, he runs into an old family friend who's had her own share of heartache, and Adam helps her through some rough moments, sparking an unlikely alliance. 

Abby Callahan has come home to Gansett, single once again after her relationship with Dr. Cal Maitland blows up in her face. After two epic failures in the game of love, she's decided this is going to be the summer she busts loose and finally has some fun—and she's shaking things up in a big way! The new Abby swears, drinks, gets a tattoo, sleeps around and generally does anything her kinder, gentler alter ego wouldn't have dreamed of doing. 

Before too long, Adam has appointed himself her guardian and is determined that the only sleeping around she's doing is with him. That is… unless his brother Grant is willing to risk his newfound happiness with Stephanie to keep Adam from rebounding with his ex. And what happens when Adam and Abby realize their summer fling has taken a serious turn, especially when he gets the chance to return to New York and fight for the company that's rightfully his? Abby has already followed two men off the island. Does she have it in her to find out if the third time really is the charm? 

Another wild summer on Gansett Island is under way, complete with new stories for many of your favorite couples from past books! You'll also see more of Dan and Kara, David and Daisy, and find out whether Carolina has made peace with her relationship with the much younger and very sexy Irishman, Seamus O'Grady. Ready? Set? Let's go back to Gansett Island! 

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://smile.amazon.com/Waiting-Love-McCarthys-Gansett-Island-ebook/dp/B00B00BASU/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1443021050&sr=1-1&keywords=waiting+for+love.+the+mccarthys+of+gansett+island.+book+8

Audible: http://www.audible.com/pd/Romance/Waiting-for-Love-Audiobook/B00CLXHLLU

Add to Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17254062-waiting-for-love

Vikki’s Musings

What a delightful series! I am so glad I decided to read the McCarthy’s of Gansett Island books. I am enjoying it tremendously and finding it quite addicting. Waiting For Love is my favorite, next to Maid For Love, which is the first book in the series. However, just because these are my favorites, they only nudge out the rest by a very small margin!

This is Adam McCarthy’s love story, the last of the siblings to fall in love. When I found out that Abby Callahan was the heroine, I was not sure I would enjoy this book very much. It’s not that I disliked Abby from the previous books, but I thought she had already found her happy ending with Cal Maitland, since she left the island to be with him.

I was so wrong! Adam and Abby are perfect for each other. Abby’s character has definitely received the short end of the stick in the romance department to say the least. First, she suffers her failed long-term relationship with Grant McCarthy and then she fails with Cal, and both for the same reason, lack of attention from the man she loves. This has her wondering if she will ever find someone who will put her first in his life, instead of second and even third.

Abby decides it is time for some changes. She has been a good girl all her life, and it has not gotten her what her heart desires. Abby is determined to drink too much, have meaningless sex and swear, all behaviors, kind-hearted and sweet Abby has never engaged in before.

Adam McCarthy has had the rug pulled out from under him. His long-time girlfriend has managed to push him out of the company he founded. Not only is his heart bruised, but so is his pride. When he overhears Abby talking to a captive audience on the noon ferry to Gansett Island, he is determined to rescue her from herself. If she is so determined to set out on this destructive path, he will just have to be her willing partner in crime. After all, some mindless indulgences may be what he needs as well.

After days of fun and mischief from skinny dipping in the moonlight to getting a tattoo with Abby, Adam begins to see she is the right woman for him in every way. However, Abby is set on spending the rest of her life on Gansett Island. He has a company to get back on the mainland. Could he give up his life in the city for the woman he has fallen in love with?

I do want to mention the narration by Holly Fielding. I thoroughly enjoy Ms. Fielding’s performance, and she does a great job giving this multitude of characters distinctive voices. She reads with emotion and brings the characters to life. However, there does seem to be some background noise in some of the recordings. Not enough to distract, but enough that I noticed it.

I thoroughly enjoyed Waiting for Love and can’t wait to read the next book in this heart-warming series. I love getting a chance to see the other characters growing in their relationships. Since Ms. Force writes “happily for now” stories, there are wonderful opportunities to extend the previous characters’ love stories. This is a series about a town along with a lot of great characters. I highly recommend these books. I am confident you will fall in love with Gansett Island and its wonderful residents, as much as I have. Happy reading!

Ready for Love by Marie force

(McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 3)

Publisher & Release Date: HTJB, INC, June 28, 2011

Time and setting: Present Day, Rhode Island

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Length: 266 pages

Heat Level: 1 Scorching Hot Flame

Rating: 4.5 Gold Crowns

Book Description:

The McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 3

For four of the best summers of his young life, Luke Harris was in love with Sydney Donovan, a wealthy seasonal visitor to Gansett Island. Then Sydney went off to college and never came back. She married another man and had two children while Luke remained on the island, working at McCarthy's Gansett Marina and wondering what had gone wrong between him and the only woman he ever loved. Fifteen months after Sydney suffers the tragic loss of her husband and children, she's returned to Gansett to figure out what's next, and that may very well be a rekindled love affair with the one man from her past she’s never forgotten. But is she ready for a second chance at love?

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://smile.amazon.com/Ready-Love-McCarthys-Gansett-Island-ebook/dp/B0058P4P62/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1439843404&sr=1-1&keywords=ready+for+love+the+mccarthys+of+gansett+island

Audible: http://www.audible.com/pd/Fiction/Ready-for-Love-Audiobook/B00BC7EZAQ/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1439843549&sr=1-1

Add to Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11883748-ready-for-love

Vikki’s Musings

Ready for Love is the third book in the McCarthy’s of Gansett Island series. I have read/listened to the first two books in this delightful series, and now I’m hooked. I just have to find out about the rest of the McCarthys and Gansett Island. Just what I needed, another series to fall in love with! At least I can buy the next three in a bundle, to save a bit of money, but then no audio version for $1.99, decisions, decisions!

Luke Harris has been in love with Sydney Donovan since high school. Sydney went off to college and never looked back, leaving a broken-hearted Luke who has never been able to get over her. When Sydney loses her husband and children in a horrific car crash, she returns to Ganssett Island for the summer to recover from her injuries. Her first summer back, he watches from afar, giving her time to grieve.

The second summer she is there, she speaks to him, letting him know she’s aware that he’s been watching her. Does he dare open his heart to her again? Can Sydney cast off her sorrow and step into the light of Luke’s love, giving them both a second chance?

I thoroughly enjoyed Ready for Love. Luke is a great character, and an outstanding hero with his steadfast heart and quiet demeanor. His willingness to put his love out there for Sydney again, after she apologized for her actions all those years before, touched my soul. It’s refreshing to read of a hero that isn’t a womanizer. Who didn’t let his heart break ruin his life.

Sydney’s character’s devastating loss brought me to tears. Not only did she lose her husband, but her two children as well. Her remorse over how she left Luke without ever telling him it was over was sincere.

Ms. Force’s writing is emotionally-charged, yet without a lot of angst. Her story line is believable and realistic. Her books are about normal, everyday people. It’s about people who make mistakes and learn from them. I loved getting inside the characters heads from the previous three books, and while one would think it would take the focus from Luke and Sydney, it didn’t. I’m so glad I found these great books and can’t wait to read the rest of them in this series. Happy reading!   

  

Fool for Love by Marie Force

(McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 2)

Publisher & Release Date: HTJB, INC, May 26, 2011

Time and setting: Present Day, Rhode Island

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Length: 257 pages

Heat Level: 1 Scorching Hot Flame

Rating: 4.5 Gold Crowns

Book Description:

The McCarthys of Gansett Island: Book 2 

Joe Cantrell, owner of the Gansett Island Ferry Company, has been in love with Janey McCarthy for as long as he can remember. At the same time, Janey has been dating or engaged to doctor-in-training David Lawrence. When things go horribly wrong between David and Janey, she calls her “fifth brother” Joe, one of the few people in her close circle who lives on the mainland. Janey decides a few days with Joe is just what she needs before she goes home to the island to face her parents and family with the news of her broken engagement. It was bad enough for Joe loving Janey from afar, but having her in his house is pure torture. Will he take advantage of this opportunity to show her what they could have together? And what will Joe’s best friend and Janey’s protective older brother Mac have to say about it? 

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://smile.amazon.com/Fool-Love-McCarthys-Gansett-Island-ebook/dp/B0052XQ068/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1439301699&sr=1-1&keywords=fool+for+love+marie+force

Audible: http://www.audible.com/pd/Fiction/Fool-for-Love-Audiobook/B00B88CHRM

Add to Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21809873-fool-for-love

Vikki’s Musings

Fool for Love is the second book in the MaCarthys of Gansett Island series and what a delightful series it is. Until Maid for Love, I had not read any books by Marie Force, but now after reading/listening to two, I’m sold. Light contemporary romance is not my first choice of read, but I loved Fool for Love.

Joe Cantrell has been in love with Janey McCarthy since high school, but since Janey has been with David Lawrence for thirteen years, he knows he doesn’t have a chance. Then he receives a call from a crying Janey asking him to help her.

Janey McCarthy is looking forward to her wedding. On their anniversary of thirteen years, she decides to surprise her fiancée. Unfortunately, David is unaware that Janey comes in and sees him in throes of passion with another woman. He’s so involved in fact, he never even realizes Janey is there.

When Joe takes Janey’s desperate call, he makes a mad dash to help her. Could this be the chance he thought would never come?

While this is a light-hearted story, it has many emotionally-charged scenes between the hero and heroine. I loved the developing romance, and it happens remarkably fast, considering Janey has just broken up with her long-time fiancée. However, it is believable. Ms. Force clearly shows that Janey was not truly in love with David and the relationship had gone on long past the time it should have. I had no problem with the speed in which Janey falls in love with Joe.

I fell in love with Janey’s character from the first book in the series, so I was already predisposed to like her. I could feel her pain over her fiancée’ s betrayal, but it was very clear it was more from the loss of her idealistic dreams than the loss of true love. I loved her awe over the passion she feels with Joe, passion that was sadly lacking with David. She behaved like a child let lose in a candy store, and she couldn’t get enough! Having been in a similar situation many years ago, I totally identified with her reaction.

Joe Cantrell is also a great character. He is fierce in his determination to take this opportunity to win Janey’s heart, and he leaves no stone unearthed in his pursuit. It’s so refreshing to read a romance where the hero is the one completely in love and has to convince the heroine that what is budding between is real and lasting.

If you enjoy a sweet love story with plenty of passion and a few laughs along the way, then you will love Fool for Love. It’s a breath of fresh air. Happy reading!  

Maid for Love by Marie Force

(The McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 1)

Publisher & Release Date: HTJB, INC, April 28, 2011

Time and setting: Present Day, Rhode Island

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Length: 266 pages

Heat Level: 1 Scorching Hot Flame

Rating: 4.5 Gold Crowns

Book Description:

The McCarthys of Gansett Island: Book 1 

Maddie Chester is determined to leave her hometown of Gansett Island, a place that has brought her only bad memories and ugly rumors. Then she’s knocked off her bike on the way to her housekeeping job at McCarthy’s Resort Hotel by Gansett’s “favorite son,” Mac McCarthy. He’s back in town to help his father with preparations to sell the family resort and has no intention of staying long. When Mac accidentally sends Maddie flying over the handlebars, badly injuring her, he moves in to nurse her back to health and help care for her young son. He soon realizes his plans for a hit-and-run visit to the island are in serious jeopardy, and he just may be “maid” for love. 

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://smile.amazon.com/Maid-Love-McCarthys-Gansett-Island-ebook/dp/B004YKZIGI/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1439127128&sr=1-1&keywords=maid+for+love

Audible: http://www.audible.com/pd/Fiction/Maid-for-Love-Audiobook/B00B1TC00W

Add to Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11808919-maid-for-love?ac=1

Vikki’s Musings

This is my first book I’ve read by Marie Force. I met Ms. Force at a conference where she was the keynote speaker and enjoyed her talk a great deal. She is a true success story. At the time, I got the impression that she wrote romantic suspense novels, which are not my first go-to read. After seeing her again at another conference, I decided I needed to read one of her books. Since I enjoy romances set in a small town involving family dynasties, I chose Maid for Love, the first book in her McCarthy’s of Gansett Island series. I’m so glad I found this book!

Maddie Chester is an unwed mother and has been looked down on by the citizens of the island since her high school days. Rumors abound concerning her supposed promiscuous ways. Maddie has no faith in men and her one foray into having a relationship leaves her pregnant and alone, further destroying her trust in the male species.

Mac McCarthy has returned home for a visit after being away for years and steps off a curb causing Maddie Chester to crash her bike and that moment changes his life and outlook forever. Feeling responsible for Maddie’s accident, he barges his way into her life determined to help her during her recovery. His father had told him that when he met the right woman he would know instantly, and Mac knows that Maddie is that woman.

Will Mac break through the barrier surrounding Maddie’s heart, or will his take charge attitude and determination to right the wrongs concerning her reputation send her away forever?

Maid for Love is a moving portrayal of a how a rumor can affect a person’s life, changing the course of one’s very existence. That is the case with Maddie. I found her story heart-breaking. I loved Mac’s dedication to right the wrong that happened years before, even if he goes about it in the wrong way.

Maddie is an endearing heroine. Her character is a waif with a touch of spunky kid rolled together. Even though she should resent her nine month old son, Thomas, for making her difficult life harder, her love for him is fierce and protective. I could feel her pain over what has shadowed her life since she was a teenager, but I admired her determination to rise above and carry on.

Mac is a hero that women love, and I’m one of them. He’s protective, caring and loves whole-heartedly. I fell in love with him right away. When his misguided attempt to restore Maddie’s standing in their small community backfires in his face, tears clouded my eyes. At first he is bewildered over Maddie’s reaction, but once he realizes his mistake, he fights to re-gain her trust.

I truly enjoyed Maid for Love, and I have already bought the next book in this great series. I look forward to reading Janey and Joe’s romance. If you haven’t read books by Marie Force and enjoy stories set in small towns, then Maid for Love is a great introduction to Ms. Force’s enchanting books. Happy reading!