TLC Book Tours Book Review: Finding Our Forever

Author: Brenda Novak
Title: Finding Our Forever
Publisher: Harlequin Special Edition
Publish Date: March 21, 2017
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: The search for her birth mother brought Cora Kelly to the New Horizons Boys Ranch. Getting a job there was easy enough, but confiding in Aiyana, the ranch's owner, that she's really her daughter? Cora's not sure she can do that, not unless she's confident the news will be welcomed. And once she gets to know Elijah Turner—Aiyana's adopted son and ranch manager—that decision becomes even more difficult.

Although Elijah can't deny his deep attraction to Cora, he's always struggled with trust. Anyone with his past would, and there's something about the ranch's newest employee that isn't exactly as it seems. But if the feelings she awakes in his guarded heart are any indication, she might be just what he's long been waiting for.

Review: Cora is a woman in search of her birth mother. I swear the adopted child storyline is being used an awful lot this year.

Aiyana is Cora's birth mother, but Cora isn't going to tell her that yet. Elijah is Aiyana's adopted son and his past is really unpleasant. It is really amazing that he's turned out to be a good man. He has instant chemistry with Cora.

If you aren't confused now...you are doing well. As much as I know that the only blood relation there is in this story is Cora and Aiyana, it still seems so not quite right to be attracted to the child your mother adopted.

I think that part keeps them from getting too close at first, but once they get together, you know that they are good for each other, though I didn't feel the relationship was well developed. They liked each other for superficial reasons. Elijah was good looking. He was a good man, despite haven't a rough childhood. He was good with kids. When Elijah and Cora were together, you didn't get much of them talking, just physical stuff, which is how they planned it, but they fall in love. (of course)

I have a hard time understanding why children that were adopted choose to hurt the family that gave them love. I almost felt like Brenda was trying to paint Cora's family in a slightly less than flattering light. Why wouldn't you tell them you were looking for your birth mother? I really found that Cora was trying to compare bother mothers. If I were Lily I would have been more than a little hurt by her actions. I think her family handled things more than well.

Then there was the situation with her ex, which left me wondering too.

The ending came with the proper closure, but it was wrapped up too nicely and with a happy little bow. I don't think real life would have been that perfect.

Overall, this was an OK read by Ms. Novak. I think its a little out of her comfort zone of writing. Special Editions are a shorter format than she's been writing lately. This story needed a bit more development to be on par with her other books.

Rating: 3 flowers

Book Review: Home To Whiskey Creek

Author: Brenda Novak
Title: Home To Whiskey Creek
Publisher: Mira
Publish Date: July 30, 2013
Buy: Amazon

Review Copy Provided By: The author in exchange for an honest review
Book Blurb: 

Sometimes home is the refuge you need—and sometimes it isn't

Adelaide Davies, who's been living in Sacramento, returns to Whiskey Creek, the place she once called home. She's there to take care of her aging grandmother and to help with Gran's restaurant, Just Like Mom's. But Adelaide isn't happy to be back. There are too many people here she'd rather avoid, people who were involved in that terrible June night fifteen years ago.

Ever since the graduation party that changed her life, she's wanted to go to the police and make sure the boys responsible—men now—are punished. But she can't, not without revealing an even darker secret. So it's better to pretend….

Noah Rackham, popular, attractive, successful, is shocked when Adelaide won't have anything to do with him. He has no idea that his very presence reminds her of something she'd rather forget. He only knows that he's finally met a woman he could love.

Review: Home At Whiskey Creek is book four in the Whiskey Creek Novels series. It is a good stand alone book as well. Basically a lot of the secondary characters were main characters in previous books, but nothing from the other books ties in too much with this story.

I'm very much on the fence with this book. Brenda strives to create a romance novel that has a lot of edge to it. Not only do you have Addy, a heroine, who has gang raped by members of the baseball team, 15 years prior, but you have a hero dealing with his best friend, coming out of the closet.

Oh and that friend has a crush on him.


She's returned to Whiskey Creek, a place that holds nothing but bad memories for her, to take care of her grandmother. She's not there for long and she's kidnapped and left in a mine shaft...and it is Noah that finds her.

So right there you have the makings of a novel that really has a lot to hold your interest, but Addy was just not a total winner as far as heroines are concerned. She was a mixture of strength and vulnerability. I just couldn't like her.

Noah, I liked a little bit more...but he had so many issues. His twin was the one that instigated the rape and was killed in the mine and he is also dealing with his best friend coming out of the closet, in a most unpleasant fashion for him.

I felt like there was too much hard hitting issues with this book and those issues kept the romance from blossoming in a way that felt more right.

What Brenda did do is create a cast of bad guys that you really wanted to see locked up even though most had grown up and become better people. But god some of them were really nasty, and borderline evil. I hated Derek and Kevin with a passion...and Noelle..I just wanted to slap.

Overall, the romance aspect didn't work for me, but the suspense did. Especially at the beginning, when the first pages of the book involve the heroine trapped in a mine, well you know there's going to be some good suspense. The first pages really made me nervous. That's something some of the best thrillers have failed to do.

The ending brought proper closure...and I have to say I was amazed at who was harassing Addy.

Recommended to readers who like more suspense then romance and who can handle a story that revolves around some tough issues.

Rating: 4 flowers