Lexi Titan – the eldest of the Titan sisters, is faced with exactly thirty days to come up with two million dollars, or she is out of options. Either she marry Cruz Rodriguez or lose everything – the successful day spa she built herself, her tyrant of a father’s respect, and the long- standing competition with her sisters for the family business.
Cruz has money, success, smoldering good looks – everything but the blue blood needed to become a true member of Texas society. If Lexi agrees to be his fiancée for six months, lending him her famous father’s influence and connections, he’ll hand her a check on the spot. And in six months they’ll go their separate ways.
Skye Titan’s wealthy father thinks he can still dictate his daughter’s choice in men. Now widowed and a single mother, Skye isn’t the yes-girl she once was. Especially since the love of her life is back in Texas after eight long years. He won’t like the answers to the questions he’s asking. About why she left him at the altar. And about her eight-year-old daughter.
Former Navy SEAL Mitch Cassidy comes home to find nearly everything different. His wounds from the battle have changed the way people treat him. His cattle ranch is suddenly organic. But time hasn’t touched his desire for Skye – or the sting of her betrayal. Forget lip service. He’s asking that luscious mouth of hers to reveal the truth.
Izzy has always been the fearless Titan sister and the youngest of the three. But when an oil rig blows up, leaving her barely able to see, her sisters find themselves as concerned by her emotional withdrawal as by the possibility that the explosion was no accident. Are the mind games their long-lost brother Garth has been playing turning physical? Or is someone else out to get them?
When her sisters enroll her in a survivor training camp, Izzy is not happy. Nick, her instructor, is determined that she won’t be left in the dark. In more ways than one. But if he tells her the terrible truth behind why he’s helping her, he’ll never see her again. Unless they’re both willing to take the biggest risk of all.
Dana Birch vowed never to put herself at the mercy of a powerful man. She became a deputy so that she could take care of herself and protect those she loves. Especially her best friends, the Titan sisters.
Twenty years ago, Garth Duncan swore revenge on Jed Titan for abandoning Garth and his mother. Now he’s back to fulfill that promise, even if Jed’s daughters get caught in the crosshairs. All that stands between him and his goal is Dana, her gun and a growing passion that can’t be denied.
MY THOUGHTS:
Book 1: An arranged relationship between the hero and the heroine to solve a specific problem is a known story for Harlequin novels. But this book is beyond that. It also deals with relationship between father and daughter as well as between sisters, the courage to survive in the midst of rivalry, emotional journey, and the importance of friendship. The opening chapter deals directly with the current issue and that intrigues me. The author shows not only the power of love between two strangers, but also paints a beginning for an entertaining series. She also builds the character of Skye in preparation for book 2.
Book 2: In this book, Skye’s character feels weak for me, although the story of Mitch is more interesting, knowing he comes home with physical injury and faces Skye, the love of his life and her daughter. There are some detailed hot scenes in few interesting places. Not really my favorite book, but the ending is enough to my satisfaction.
Book 3: I love Izzy’s character. She’s fearless and stubborn and she fights with Nick. Nick’s character is also very interesting. He has a dark secret from the past that connects with Garth and that in itself hooks my attention. But there is more to the back and forth stubborn fight between the hero and the heroine. I love how the author portrays Izzy’s character in the midst of her disability and the courage to face life’s reality. The story is very encouraging and I recommend this book to anyone who wants to be inspired, anyone who’s losing confidence in life, or to anyone curious enough to read about surviving from losing sight.
Book 4: I had a hard time starting this book because of Garth. Since book 1, the ugly side of Garth was established, going against the Titan family. But I was glad I continued reading because the story did not disappoint me. I learned to like Garth after knowing more about his past and about his mother. I learned to accept Garth after hearing his voice through the magical words painted by the author. I learned to accept that Garth isn’t that evil after all, if you’d only give him the chance to be part of the family and to show him what it’s like to love and to be loved. I also enjoy Dana’s character. Although there were times the narration and dialogue became repetitive, I still love her attitude and her strength toward the sisters and toward Garth. The love scenes were hot and enjoyable; the choices of words the author used were melodious. After reading this book, I became a 100% fan of Susan Mallery.
In Summary: I enjoyed each of the books in the series and I will not hesitate to read another novel by Mallery. These were first reads for me from the author and surely not the last.
Most of all, I give my thanks to Hilcia from Impressions of a Reader blog for sharing me these wonderful books (and two others I haven't read yet), and showing me that there are more authors I’d surely enjoy (besides NR). Thanks again.
My daughter loves Susan Mallery. I have read some of her earlier books.
ReplyDeleteNatalie, I'm so glad you enjoyed this series and Susan Mallery's writing. I love your thoughts and impressions of the books. :) Garth was the biggest surprise of this series, wasn't he? Mallery did an outstanding job of making him a sympathetic character afterall... not an easy thing to accomplish.
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy the other books too. :)
@Nise: I liked her style of writing and I plan to read more of her books.
ReplyDelete@Hilcia: I definitely didn't expect Garth to be the hero, although in Book 3 I suspected he'd play a major major role on Book 4. I admit that was very hard for the author to convince the reader to have a change of heart without ruining the entire story and I respected her for that. Glad I read through them all in order.
These were my first Mallery books and I really liked them. Will definitely try more from her in the future...
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