Joanna Sims

Good friends to lovers story. Shayna and Noah have been best friends since they were children. Unbeknownst to him, Shayna has been in love with him for nearly as long. The book opens with a prologue where Noah is headed off to his first duty station as a Marine. He's been stood up by his long-time girlfriend, Annika, so Shayna is the one who takes him to the airport.

Seven years later, Noah is back home on emergency leave, thanks to the news that he is the father of a six-year-old little girl. Isabella has been chiefly cared for by her grandmother, May, as her mother is not a very responsible person. When May is injured in a fall, she asks Shayna to care for Isabella and tells her that Noah is the girl's father. Annika and her husband have disappeared, so Shayna is all that stands between Isabella and foster care.

I ached for Noah, who is floored by the idea that he's a father and angry that Annika kept him from knowing Isabella. His conversation with May is heartbreaking as he learns what happened. The first meeting between Noah and Isabella is sweet, even though she has no idea that he is her father. Even so, there is an instant connection between them. For his part, Noah feels an instant and overwhelming love for his daughter and knows his life will never be the same. That doesn't mean he isn't nervous around her and unsure of how to treat her.

I liked Shayna. She is intelligent, talented, and has a huge heart. For her to take in the daughter of the woman who held Noah's heart for so long shows how much she loves Noah. She also knows that Noah doesn't see her as anything other than a friend and has to decide if she will continue to hold out hope or put him behind her and move on. When her personal trainer asks her out, Shayna chooses to give him a chance.

I wanted to shake Noah for being so blind. Not only doesn't he see that Shayna loves him, but he also doesn't realize that he loves her. It isn't until he sees her going out with Blake and is jealous that he can see how much she means to him. Once that light goes on, he is determined to make her see they belong together. I enjoyed watching him pull out the stops to win her. Shayna hesitates to believe that Noah truly loves her and blames the upheaval in his life for making him think he does. I loved that he was persistent in making her understand his feelings. I loved their first actual date and his effort to make it memorable.

Just when things look good for them, Annika reappears in their lives. I didn't like what I knew of her from the early descriptions of her and her actions. However, I liked seeing that she's made significant changes in her life, admitting her mistakes and working to improve her life. Noah has a tough time forgiving her, and it becomes more complicated when Shayna begins putting distance between them. I liked how Noah confronted her about it, listened to Shayna's fears, and made sure that she knew that she was the one who had his heart.

Noah has some decisions to make about his future. Does he stay in the Marines and face long separations from Shayna and Isabella? Or does he get out and find something to do that will keep him in Montana? I loved the solution his commanding officer came up with and the huge difference it made to Noah and Shayna. There is a sweet bit at the end where they have plans to attend the Marine Corps Ball together, but something comes up, and it looks like Noah won't be back in Montana in time. However, he pulls off a fantastic surprise and makes that dream come true after all. The scene at the Ball is sweet and romantic and perfectly expresses his love.

There were several things I loved about this book. I adored Shayna's Christmas enthusiasm and joy in preparing her Christmas displays. I loved watching her involve Isabella and how it brought them closer. I liked Noah's realistic struggle with forgiving Annika and adjusting to being a father. My all-time favorite part was seeing Noah and Shayna at the Ball. As a Marine wife myself, I have been to the Washington, DC, Ball several times and can attest to the splendor of it. My only complaint about the book is that the word Marine was not capitalized as it should be. That is a frequent issue with Harlequin's editors and doesn't reflect on the story itself.… (mer)

Good story of opposites attracting. Nick is a Chicago lawyer, from the non-Montana branch of the family. When his aunt dies, Nick is the one sent to get the land ready to sell. It had been occupied by Davy Dallas until his death, and Nick enlists his daughter Dallas to help go through his things. Dallas is a barrel racer who spends most of her time on the rodeo circuit. She was raised on the road by her father and is fiercely independent.

I enjoyed the development of their relationship. It starts out slow and easy as they become friends while going through all the stuff that Davy left behind. There is also attraction. Nick is somewhat baffled by his fascination with Dallas. When he first arrived, all he wanted was to get rid of the property and get back to his city life in Chicago. But the more time he spends with Dallas, the harder it is to think of leaving. But he needs to get back to work soon. Dallas is just an intrigued by Nick, but her life is on the road. There's no way that their lives could mesh.

Nick missed Dallas when he went back to Chicago and couldn't stop thinking about her. I loved the way that he showed up at some of her competitions just to see her. He knew he was starting to care for her and was determined to expose her to the good things in his life. But he also had worries about how she would fit in with his Chicago life. Dallas missed him too. She was surprised and pleased when he would show up. His attentions made her feel special in a way she never had before. I loved how they talked and texted over the next few weeks, sharing bits of their lives. When Nick invited her to spend a week in Chicago, she was happy to go.

I had mixed feelings about Nick in Chicago. I loved how he wanted to show Dallas a good time while she was there, even though he also had to work. His enjoyment of introducing her to things like the symphony and some of Chicago's attractions was real. He was also thinking into the future and found a place where she could continue her training. But there were also a few traces of his parents' attitude in him, and there were several times when he let something she said or did bother him. The dinner with his parents was especially irritating to me when he said something that was really hurtful.

I liked Dallas a lot. She's independent and content with her life. She's had issues in her past that have had their effects on her present, causing her to be cautious about giving her heart. She has her own goals for her future. Though she has a pretty tough exterior, she also has a soft center. Going through her father's things was difficult, and having Nick's support helped. I liked the thoughtful way she decided to go to Chicago, wanting to see Nick's world. She was excited and nervous. I loved the visit with Jordan and her husband. Having Jordan nearby gave Dallas an extra layer of support. Dallas really enjoyed the different things she got to see and do. She started to understand that Nick really was looking at a future with her. But there are times when she wonders if she can fit in his world. A couple of incidents reinforce that feeling.

When Dallas goes home to Montana, Nick realizes how badly he hurt her and has to take a hard look at himself. I loved his self-assessment and the realization of just how much he loves her. At the same time, Dallas has her own hurt to deal with. I liked her conversation with Nick's aunt and everything it gave her to think about. Nick's big moment at the end was sweet and romantic and emotional. I loved the engagement "ring" that he gave her.… (mer)

Good book. This story is about Casey Brand, sister of Taylor from High Country Baby, and Brock, Clint's stepbrother from the same book. Casey is a special education teacher who has come to Montana on her summer break to visit with her sister and new niece while Clint is on the road. Her truck breaks down near Brock's ranch just as a big storm is approaching. He rescues her, and they spend the storm in the basement along with Brock's autistic daughter.

Brock is pretty stressed. He's foreman of one ranch while owner of his own. He's been separated from his wife for awhile now and is going through a rough custody battle with her. He just wants what is best for Hannah and is willing to do what he has to in order to get it.

There's a quick connection between Casey and Brock, and also between Casey and Hannah. Brock is impressed with how easily Casey handles Hannah. When Clint is injured and ends up coming home for the summer, Brock offers Casey the apartment over his barn if she will work with Hannah over the summer. She snaps it up, not wanting to intrude on the newlyweds.

Over the next month, the three of them spend a lot of time together. I loved seeing the changes that Casey brought to Hannah's life, and how much it meant to Brock. Casey and he met regularly at the little chapel on the Brand ranch to have lunch together. I loved how they got to know each other, sometimes talking, sometimes just being quiet together.

But technically Brock is still married and Casey is cautious about risking her heart. It was interesting to see Brock's reaction when the divorce became final. I enjoyed seeing Casey see him through it, then give him the kick in the pants he needed to get on with his life. Brock knew exactly what he wanted and had no trouble going after her. Things are looking good for them when Casey gets hit by a health crisis that really shakes her up. I loved Brock's support of her and how he was there with her as much as he could be.

Casey still has some trouble making a final commitment to Brock. I liked how he went to Taylor for advice and then made his plans. His big moment at the end was sweet and romantic and I loved it.

There was a lot made over the last two books about the rift between Brock and Clint. We get an idea of why from something Brock says to Casey. I liked that they were making steps to repair the relationship, but I would have liked a little more detail about how it was going.… (mer)

Good book. Taylor is nearly forty and recently divorced. Desperate for a change in her life, she has challenged herself to spend a month on the Continental Divide Trail. Her overprotective uncle won't agree to her going alone and has assigned cowboy Clint to be her trailguide. She's not happy about it, but she doesn't have a choice. Clint isn't any happier than she is, especially when he finds out how long she plans to be out. But he's been off the rodeo circuit for awhile due to injury and he needs the money, so he'll just have to suck it up and do it.

I really enjoyed the development of their relationship. From unwilling companions to friends to lovers, it was a voyage of discovery for both of them. When they first met, Clint thought Taylor was a clueless city woman and she thought he was a slightly scary drunk. But after a couple days of practically ignoring each other, they decided to make the best of things and work together. It wasn't long before Clint saw that Taylor had put a lot more thought into this trek than he'd realized and he grew to respect her determination. Taylor began to see that there was much more to the rough cowboy that she had thought. I loved seeing them get to know each other, with a background of their love of nature. There were times when I felt like I was right there with them.

Partway through the trip, Taylor put a business proposal in front of Clint. She will pay his debts, allowing him to get back to rodeoing, if he will get her pregnant. Both will get what they want with no obligations on either side. Right from the start the connection between them is deeper than either expected, even after they got back to the ranch. When their plan is quickly successful, neither is quite ready to let go. As Clint returned to the road and Taylor's pregnancy progressed, they stayed in touch, growing ever closer.

I loved how Clint returned to support her when problems with the pregnancy arose. His care for her was more important to him that his rodeo career. What was really nice was that their realization of their feelings was a result of how close they'd gotten, not the result of some argument or disaster. I also adored how Clint fell under the spell of baby Penny.

I really liked both Clint and Taylor. Both had issues at the beginning that they had to overcome. Thanks to her divorce and problems that came up during her marriage, her self-confidence was pretty low. Her trip on the Trail, and then her pregnancy and subsequent relationship with Clint went a long way toward fixing that. She especially had poor body image, and Clint had a bit of a battle to show her that she was exactly what he wanted. For his part, Clint knows that he drinks too much and smokes too much. He also feels that without even a high school diploma Taylor is way too good for him. What she quickly came to see was that he was actually very smart, being a man who reads and listens. I loved how he set out to make changes in his lifestyle to better fit the life he wants. I'm looking forward to seeing more of them in future books.… (mer)