by Annette Lyon
ebook, 350 pages,
July 2015
by Mirror Press
Source: I received a copy in exchange for an honest review
My Rating: 5 Stars
Description:
The ANNETTE LYON COLLECTION contains brand new contemporary romance novella OUR SONG, as well as five hand-picked readers’ and reviewers’ favorites of Annette’s popular Timeless Romance Anthology novellas. Readers will love this selection of three contemporary and three historical romance novellas.
In OUR SONG, a charming romance novella, Cassie and Matt have been dating in the Yellowstone area for two years, and things are, well, average. When Cassie meets up with two college friends who are visiting, their love lives like sound like fairy tales: rose petals, chocolates, candles on the beach… Cassie goes home feeling like she’s missing out. After all, repeatedly watching Old Faithful erupt and walking through sulfur-smelling gases at Fountain Paint Pot don’t exactly say “romance.” Maybe things with Matt aren’t going anywhere, and it’s time to move on. Then she discovers that perception and reality are completely different things. Now she can only hope it isn’t too late to show Matt how much she really cares.
In the sweet novella GOLDEN SUNRISE, Natalie takes time out of her crazy schedule to fly to Vegas for her best friend’s wedding. Sierra and Jason, high-school sweethearts, are finally getting married. Fortunately for Natalie, her old high-school flame, Adam, has a work commitment and can’t be there as best man. But when she arrives at the wedding rehearsal—late and ragged—Adam is there. When Adam makes a wild suggestion, Natalie just may take him up on it, even though she knows he’s moved on. A single choice may mean Natalie is taking a shot at reclaiming the past—or that she's putting her heart in harm’s way a second time.
FIRSTS AND LASTS, an enchanting novella, begins with Dani’s last week in New York. She’s failed in her dreams to catch a break as an actress and is now ready to return home and dust herself off. As she visits the places on her final to-see list, she meets Mark, another New York City transplant with big dreams. Except Mark hasn’t given up on his. As they spend the day together, Dani realizes that even though she hasn’t hit the “big time” she might be living her dream after all. Only problem: she has a one-way ticket back home.
In the compelling novella WAR OF HEARTS, Anna, a journalist, is desperate to escape the magazine where Pete, her now-former boyfriend, also works. Heartbroken and still in love with him, Anna snags an assignment to cover the Winter War in Finland. She arrives at a snowy Finnish battlefront only to discover that Pete is already there—as her photographer. She’s determined to be professional about the situation until a battle breaks out in camp, putting her and Pete in harm’s way and putting their love to the test.
The captivating novella BETWEEN THE LINES follows Jane Martin, who is intelligent but extremely shy, especially around men. When the Aid and Cultural Society proposes a letter-writing program, Jane signs up, hoping she can find true friendship. The program doesn’t run as smoothly as expected, and unknown to Jane, one of the men in her city becomes her writing friend. Thomas Allred has always known shy and quiet Jane, but reading her letters written to his secret persona, opens his eyes to what an amazing woman she is. The only trouble is, Jane doesn’t know that the man who she is falling in love with through letters is also Thomas, the man who is falling in love with her in person.
In the charming novella A TASTE OF HOME, we meet Claire Jennings, who’s on her way to spend Christmas with her family. As she rides the train with William Rhodes, who grew up across the street, memories of Christmases past flood her mind. He may be twenty-one now, but she can’t forget his torturous teasing from their school years. At the rail station, Claire discovers that her home is under quarantine because her little brother has measles. She's stuck in town, away from her family, on her favorite holiday. William stays behind with her, and as Christmas Day approaches and her homesickness deepens, she discovers that perhaps he has changed in more ways than one.
My Review:
I've read most of these Timeless Anthologies and it's often very hard to choose a favorite, since they're written by some of my favorite authors. I think it's a brilliant idea to compile a specific author's works into one book!
Although I've read most of these stories before, it was so much fun to reread them. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed the love letters in Between the Lines. The poetry and eloquent speaking was so romantic! The insta-attraction and adventures between Dani and Mark in Firsts and Lasts had me swooning. Natalie and Adam's reunion in Golden Sunrise was toe tingling for sure! I found myself almost rooting for them to have a Vegas elopement. William was so sweet and charming towards Claire in A Taste of Home, much to her surprise. I guess annoying little boys do grow up nicely. I thought War of Hearts would be depressing, but how could it be when two former lovers reunite across the world in times of war, giving themselves a ray of hope in a dismal situation? And I absolutely loved the new story, never before seen in a collection--Our Song. It's so easy to take life and relationships for granted and to think the grass is greener on the other side. There were some sweet and important lessons learned in this story and I thought it was a great kickoff to the book.
Each of these stories hit the sweet spot in my heart in different ways and I enjoyed every minute of them. I love the mix of contemporary and historical. I love the clean romance and felt my stomach drop in anticipation so many times with thoughts of the sizzling chemistry. I love the characters and the relationships they all had with both friends, family, and each other. Those are the threads that really tie a story together and this one is definitely a favorite!
Content: mild kissing; Clean!
About the Author:
Source: I received a copy in exchange for an honest review
My Rating: 5 Stars
Description:
The ANNETTE LYON COLLECTION contains brand new contemporary romance novella OUR SONG, as well as five hand-picked readers’ and reviewers’ favorites of Annette’s popular Timeless Romance Anthology novellas. Readers will love this selection of three contemporary and three historical romance novellas.
In OUR SONG, a charming romance novella, Cassie and Matt have been dating in the Yellowstone area for two years, and things are, well, average. When Cassie meets up with two college friends who are visiting, their love lives like sound like fairy tales: rose petals, chocolates, candles on the beach… Cassie goes home feeling like she’s missing out. After all, repeatedly watching Old Faithful erupt and walking through sulfur-smelling gases at Fountain Paint Pot don’t exactly say “romance.” Maybe things with Matt aren’t going anywhere, and it’s time to move on. Then she discovers that perception and reality are completely different things. Now she can only hope it isn’t too late to show Matt how much she really cares.
In the sweet novella GOLDEN SUNRISE, Natalie takes time out of her crazy schedule to fly to Vegas for her best friend’s wedding. Sierra and Jason, high-school sweethearts, are finally getting married. Fortunately for Natalie, her old high-school flame, Adam, has a work commitment and can’t be there as best man. But when she arrives at the wedding rehearsal—late and ragged—Adam is there. When Adam makes a wild suggestion, Natalie just may take him up on it, even though she knows he’s moved on. A single choice may mean Natalie is taking a shot at reclaiming the past—or that she's putting her heart in harm’s way a second time.
FIRSTS AND LASTS, an enchanting novella, begins with Dani’s last week in New York. She’s failed in her dreams to catch a break as an actress and is now ready to return home and dust herself off. As she visits the places on her final to-see list, she meets Mark, another New York City transplant with big dreams. Except Mark hasn’t given up on his. As they spend the day together, Dani realizes that even though she hasn’t hit the “big time” she might be living her dream after all. Only problem: she has a one-way ticket back home.
In the compelling novella WAR OF HEARTS, Anna, a journalist, is desperate to escape the magazine where Pete, her now-former boyfriend, also works. Heartbroken and still in love with him, Anna snags an assignment to cover the Winter War in Finland. She arrives at a snowy Finnish battlefront only to discover that Pete is already there—as her photographer. She’s determined to be professional about the situation until a battle breaks out in camp, putting her and Pete in harm’s way and putting their love to the test.
The captivating novella BETWEEN THE LINES follows Jane Martin, who is intelligent but extremely shy, especially around men. When the Aid and Cultural Society proposes a letter-writing program, Jane signs up, hoping she can find true friendship. The program doesn’t run as smoothly as expected, and unknown to Jane, one of the men in her city becomes her writing friend. Thomas Allred has always known shy and quiet Jane, but reading her letters written to his secret persona, opens his eyes to what an amazing woman she is. The only trouble is, Jane doesn’t know that the man who she is falling in love with through letters is also Thomas, the man who is falling in love with her in person.
In the charming novella A TASTE OF HOME, we meet Claire Jennings, who’s on her way to spend Christmas with her family. As she rides the train with William Rhodes, who grew up across the street, memories of Christmases past flood her mind. He may be twenty-one now, but she can’t forget his torturous teasing from their school years. At the rail station, Claire discovers that her home is under quarantine because her little brother has measles. She's stuck in town, away from her family, on her favorite holiday. William stays behind with her, and as Christmas Day approaches and her homesickness deepens, she discovers that perhaps he has changed in more ways than one.
My Review:
I've read most of these Timeless Anthologies and it's often very hard to choose a favorite, since they're written by some of my favorite authors. I think it's a brilliant idea to compile a specific author's works into one book!
Although I've read most of these stories before, it was so much fun to reread them. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed the love letters in Between the Lines. The poetry and eloquent speaking was so romantic! The insta-attraction and adventures between Dani and Mark in Firsts and Lasts had me swooning. Natalie and Adam's reunion in Golden Sunrise was toe tingling for sure! I found myself almost rooting for them to have a Vegas elopement. William was so sweet and charming towards Claire in A Taste of Home, much to her surprise. I guess annoying little boys do grow up nicely. I thought War of Hearts would be depressing, but how could it be when two former lovers reunite across the world in times of war, giving themselves a ray of hope in a dismal situation? And I absolutely loved the new story, never before seen in a collection--Our Song. It's so easy to take life and relationships for granted and to think the grass is greener on the other side. There were some sweet and important lessons learned in this story and I thought it was a great kickoff to the book.
Each of these stories hit the sweet spot in my heart in different ways and I enjoyed every minute of them. I love the mix of contemporary and historical. I love the clean romance and felt my stomach drop in anticipation so many times with thoughts of the sizzling chemistry. I love the characters and the relationships they all had with both friends, family, and each other. Those are the threads that really tie a story together and this one is definitely a favorite!
Content: mild kissing; Clean!
Buy Links:
Website || Twitter || Facebook || Goodreads
Follow the Tour!
July 27th
Katie’s Clean Book Collection http://
Bookworm Lisa http://lisaisabookworm.
I Love to Read and Review Books http://
July 28th
Lindzee Armstrong http://www.
Literary Time Out http://literarytimeout.
Rachel DeVaughn http://empowermoms.
July 29th
My Book a Day http://mybookaday.
Mel’s Shelves http://www.
July 30th
Wishful Endings http://www.
Singing Librarian Books http://
Bubble Bath Books http://www.bubblebath-
July 31st
Min Reads and Reviews http://www.minreadsandreviews.
LDS Women's Book Review http://www.
Fire and Ice http://fireandicereads.
Why Not? Because I Said So http://www.
Smiling Book Reviews http://www.Why Not? Because I Said So http://www.
Great review. Thank you!
ReplyDelete