Bobby Hutchinson

I generally enjoyed this book and its tale of Bobby Hutchinson's trial-and-error approach to running a "slightly less than legal" bed and breakfast in Vancouver. The cast of characters in the story is fun, the situations are relatable, and the author's wit shines through. I could have done without the suggestions that the author invented some commonplace wisdom (what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, experience is the best teacher, etc.) but these things are relatively minor. The story of show more Louis and Sammy the Demon Cat were the best! Also we will try the recipes show less

I believe this is the first book I've read by this author. At first, I wasn't sure I was going to like it but by the end, I was invested in the characters.

Hutchinson did a good job at having parallel storylines that weren't overtly obvious.

Cam has a job he likes but doing the right thing means going against the "blue line" and his fellow officers turn on him. This results in him asking for a transfer without consulting his wife--to be a bit fair to Cam, his wife's brother was in critical show more condition at the time, so it probably was not the best time to add something to her plate though I do still think he needed to.

Alex, Cam's wife, likes her job in the big city hospital, but chooses to follow her husband to the small town he's transferred to when she gets a job at the hospital there. She does find she likes the family practice more than she'd thought she would, but errors by the senior doctor there force her into reporting him which earns her the same treatment Cam received from his coworkers.

There were times I did wish that Cam and Alex would just sit down and talk and it did get frustrating, but it turned out that was part of the plot and when they finally did talk honestly, it meant that much more.

I am also glad to see Cam's brother, David, maturing and taking responsibility. I'm not sure I believe in the love-at-first-sight idea espoused in the book--and I certainly wouldn't recommend marrying someone after knowing them for so short a time, but . . . for a fictional happy-ever-after it was nice to see. show less

Coal-miner’s daughter, Bobby Hutchinson, is normally a writer of romances, but it’s probably inevitable she’d write a book called Stand By Your Man. Only, this is not a romance by any stretch of the imagination. Oh, it has a lot of romance, but this is a rip-roaring, gas-passing mystery novel that will have you checking your underwear for railroad tracks for sure.
Maddie Bertusso is a private investigator in Seattle. She and her partner Hannah do all kinds of cases, from checking on show more straying spouses to purse snatching. When Maddie’s sister Francine gets hooked up with a convicted felon, Sebastian Fisher, though, the detecting schtick becomes intensely personal for Maddie. It becomes moreso, and quite complicated, when Maddie meets Sebastian’s brother Finn and his adorable daughter Zoe.
I haven’t read any of Hutchinson’s romance novels, but if they have the snappy dialogue, spot-on characterizations, and no-frills narrative of Stand By Your Man, she just might convert me to the genre. In the meantime, this is a mystery novel that stands in a class of its own. I got a free review copy of SBYM, but I’m putting the sequels on my to-buy list. It was a bit choppy in places, but then again, that fit the story which was about the ups and downs of romance, family relations, and a whole boatload of other stuff that our heroine had to contend with. You’ll like the ending – because it’s not the normal mystery novel ending, and I’ll say no more so as not to spoil it for you.
Kudos to Hutchinson for this five-star story! show less

Bella's husband of sixteen years walks out on her, leaving her with two teenage kids, debts, and a house she needs to sell. Handsome, divorced, ex-cop now realtor, Charlie, offers to help Bella fix up her house because unbeknownst to her, he's hoping to get the listing on it. Both Bella and Charlie have baggage, neither is looking for a relationship, but the more they work together, the closer they become. Enjoyable story of two people trying to piece their lives back together and finding show more love along the way. The cast had many entertaining and memorable characters including Bella's troublesome teens, bickering parents, deadbeat ex, and Charlie's overly dependent ex-wife, and his daughter who's feeling neglected. show less