Carol Ross (1)

Acquired Book By: I received a complimentary copy of “The Rancher's Twins” direct from the author Carol Ross in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

You can't help but smile your way through the opening paragraphs of this novel, as Ms Ross has all but guaranteed you will have a heartily pleasant reaction to Jonathan Blackwell's spiralling anxiety over his shopping spree to benefit the arrival of his new 'nanny' for his show more five year old twins! The hilarity of it though is seeing how unprepared he is to make simple choices (for women or men in-tune with running a household; a la 'Mr Mom's') for the pending nanny as well as how difficult he seems to struggle to accept she's welcoming one into his life and home.

Whilst Jonathan was up to his eyeballs in last minute preparations for a Nanny he wasn't entirely sure would warm up to his daughters, the Nanny in question had her own surge of issues troubling her as she made her way westward across the state of Montana. I recognised her route - once you move West of Billings, the scenery grows a bit familiar and the irony was how she ended up lost on the side of the road, despite having the road atlas. I loved observing the Rockies through her eyes, as a person who was newly in apt appreciation for their glory as a former East Coaster were the ground was flatter than nails.

Lydia had a past she was not especially keen to reveal - the kind of past you need to put half a country behind you in order to outrun or at least, have a semblance of normalcy to believe you can move forward even if half of the reasons you left were not yet resolved. I was smiling into a burst of laughter hearing the 'directions' she was given by the Deputy who pulled over to ensure she was safe and alright on the highway! There are moments in every road traveller's life where you take wrong turns, end up further afield due to shoddy directions and/or simply run out of ideas of how to find where you're meant to be - this is a lovely classic take on how sometimes locals forget when your brand-new to an area, you might not fully understand all the twists, turns and quirky road angles which make up their country road systems! Ms Ross definitely gave a spotlight of confusion on how hard it is to understand 'local directions' and not feel as if you've driven yourself onto a new planet!

You can't help but laugh at Lydia's predicament as she arrives on the ranch! The mix-up in the ages, the disdained expressions coming from the father and the lightness of joy emitting from Sofie - it was quite a lot to take in for a woman who was dearly trying to outrun her past! Definitely in that one moment, I knew my instincts to think this was similar to The Nanny Express were quite bang-on!

Lydia might have gained more than she feared she could handle but her natural instincts on how to interact with young girls' endeared her straight into Abby and Gen's heart(s)! And, into my own - as I loved watching her first night with the girls - she even knew they might get into mischief whilst she sorted out hot to detangle their hair without having it hurt through the brushing stage! I must admit, most fathers are a bit clueless when it comes to hair and how best to avoid the tangles that can be the worst anguish of a young girl's life!

Ross gives you such a firm grounding of centre - she introduces us to the Blackwells in such a way as it doesn't feel like we're meeting them for the first time (an echo of the style I am used to from Karen Rock and her Rocky Mountain Cowboys). We are getting into the back-histories of the family lore, the angst of having your grandfather go missing without notice and the issues of running a ranch when the grandfather left no forward notice of where to find him should he be unreachable. If you stop to consider everything on Blackwell's mind, it is understandable why he's uncertain how to approach Lydia.

I wasn't entirely sure what I was expecting to find in the segue between the Rancher who needed a Nanny and the Nanny who needed a second chance - at life, at romance - at everything to be honest! Lydia was running towards a place she could re-start her life, even if the one she's left behind was still looming over her shoulders. What I appreciated about the ways in which Carol Ross introduce the elements of Romantic Suspense into her narrative is the unexpected nature of it - your thinking your settling into one kind of story, whilst being giving elements of surprise suspense where you become dearly concerned over the welfare of a character.

Ross knits in a lot of humour into her stories - even the kind of humour where it isn't entirely meant to be funny, as it is awkward circumstances of two people trying to come together but who feel they have nothing in common with each other, so why attempt civility? Except in this case, it is the bloke who is at odds over his hired nanny (on first meeting) who makes soaking into this story quite enjoyable due to the natural high levels of tension erupting through the opening chapters! You truly feel you want to invest in reading this story if only to see if Lydia can succeed in making a positive impact on the twin girls' lives or if she can even soften their father's heart a small bit or if he will forever remain judgemental of everyone who doesn't fit the image he has for a woman to be in hie life on his ranch. On that level, I was thinking about a second Hallmark Channel film which was Straight from the Heart (2003) (starring Teri Polo) where a city girl fell in love with a rancher!

I've mentioned Hallmark Channel quite a heap on this review because what I loved about reading The Rancher's Twins is the fact it has the same kind of uplifting heart I love finding in certain Hallmark Channel movies - let's face it, sometimes they have a few duds amongst the gems, but overall, what I love most about the ones which truly wick out a love of joy for me to be watching (esp the latest series All of my Heart) is how you feel pulled into the story-lines in such an organic way of alighting straight into the shoes of the characters! You can't wait to see if they will get a happy ever after (even if mostly its a given but how will it pan out is always the critical mystery!) - and this same feeling is tucked inside the very first Return of the #BlackwellBrothers!

// This is a quotation of my full review originally shared via jorielovesastory.com show less

I was first introduced to this author last year, upon reading her moving story, Keeping Her Close. She proved to me then, and reassured me now, that she is a wonderful storyteller who creates genuine characters, meaningful storylines, and memorable settings.

Second Chance for the Single Dad is such a heartwarming read. I connected with Rhys immediately and I sympathized and empathized with him. I also related to Camille, and I love how they were both stalled by hesitancy yet found the show more courage to forge ahead.

This well-written, clean story follows a strong theme of stepping out of comfort zones, and the rewards waiting on the other side when we do so. It’s a nicely paced sweet romance that broke my heart and mended it back together even stronger.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Prism Book Tours. show less

"He'd assumed....The truth was, it wasn't uncommon for women to be physically attracted to him, and he'd believed that was the case. Apparently not. That revelation should have been a relief. It was not."

Rhys McGrath is used to having women attracted to him and he doesn't always appreciate their interest but this is a different scenario. There's just something about this dance teacher that sparks his attention. Is it her beautiful smile or could it be her joy for life? She initially appears show more unaware of him but what he doesn't remember is that several years ago he actually had a blind date with her that ended after a short twenty-three minutes. Could this be the cause of her indifference?

I loved Camile Wynn and I hated that she'd had so many disappointments in her life but it soon becomes apparent that she is more aware of Rhys McGrath than she admits. It is when she observes the love that he has for his young niece that she realizes that he is more than a anti-social bachelor. Any man who is willing to take dance lessons so that he can take a young orphaned girl to a father-daughter dance deserves another look!

Second Chance for the Single Dad is filled with memorable scenes that alternate between laugh-out-loud circumstances to grab-your-tissues moments and the chemistry between Camile and Rhys is undeniable. I loved that they both become better people because of their relationship and I couldn't help hoping that they could work through their individual pasts and somehow build a future together.

Author Carol Ross has given readers a heart-warming story and I recommend this book to all who enjoy contemporary romance.

I received a copy of this book from the author but there was no obligation for a favorable review. These are my honest opinions. show less

Acquired Book By: I received a complimentary copy of "Bachelor Remedy" direct from the author Carol Ross in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

I was a bit surprised Tag was interested in a political bid in the Alaskan Senate, however, as Ms Ross explains his stance and his inclination of pursuing the office, it truly fit in with the continuity of the series as this reflects the dedication of the James' family to the towne show more of Rankins! I love this about the series - how it isn't just the lives of the characters which is of import to the series but the towne itself. There is a strong emotional attachment to Rankins, to the natural environment which surrounds it and the honest look at life in Alaska through the pen of Carol Ross. I almost would have suspected she'd either spent a considerable amount of hours in Alaska or her passion for the state is reflective of the research she's done to enable all of us to feel as if we've lived in Rankins as we've come to know her characters as well as she has writing about them!

I had to brace myself for the depictions of what happens shortly after this story begins - as everyone whose interested in this state realises the dangers of which wild animal up there can cause the most grief for a human - grizzlies are not to be toyed with nor are they to be questioned for their need for an expansive territory. Although I've not had an encounter with a grizzly (or a brown bear in general) I did have a rather startling encounter with a mama (black) bear whose errant cubs (up a tree, no less!) gave me a bit of a re-thinking about how wildlife and mankind walk a tightrope of shared territory. I also knew I could handle this sequence of a medical emergency - not just because Tag has been the medic in the air all along in the series but because of how A Family Like Hannah's ended on a note of intensive suspense similar to the #LoveINSPIRED stories I love reading alongside my Mum! I have come to trust Ross's instincts and her method of depicting life in this Alaskan community - in other words, I might have felt slightly uncomfortable for what happened but I knew Ross could carry me through the worst bits to get to the heart of the story!

Ooh, I like this Ally Mowak! I felt an instant liking towards her - not just because she has a firm understanding of natural medicine but because she's rubbing Tag the wrong way! She didn't even do anything yet except be herself, taking charge of the patient (involved with the bear!) and asserted herself when it came time to tell him where to take his plane with them on board. It was classic really - how a woman took a bloke off-guard and how the bloke isn't quite sure how he feels about the experience? Loved too, how he underestimated both her age, her experience and her wherewithal to answer any of his enquiries! The fact she has Native American ancestry warmed my heart, too, as I was curious if Ross was going to broach the fact Alaska has a strong Native American presence and how their cultural history is integrated into Alaskan life.

I was dearly emotionally connected to this story - there is a beautiful arc within the novel evolving through traditional vs non-traditional beliefs which truly was well executed. I loved how Ross explored two strong personalities within her characters of Tag and Ally. They were wonderfully created to give you a wicked good read rooted in realistically emotional life experiences where you never felt you could 'guess' what was going to happen or how they were each going to individually react to their circumstances. It felt authentic and real - the connective feeling I have had throughout the Seasons of Alaska series as Ross roots us into her character's lives as if we're walking beside them.

I could hug Ms Ross dearly for this series!! There is something so dearly realistic about how she's written the dramatic story arc and how she's inter-connected her characters' lives! By the time I put down Bachelor Remedy my heart wasn't just full it was emotionally content!

// This is a quotation of my full review originally shared via jorielovesastory.com show less