Acquired Book By: I started hosting with Prism Book Tours at the end of [2017], having noticed the badge on Tressa’s blog (Wishful Endings) whilst I was visiting as we would partake in the same blog tours and/or book blogosphere memes. I had to put the memes on hold for several months (until I started to resume them (with Top Ten Tuesday) in January 2018). When I enquiried about hosting for Prism, I found I liked the niche of authors and stories they were featuring regularly. This is how I came to love discovering the Harlequin Heartwarming authors & series as much as it has been an honour to regularly request INSPY stories and authors. Whenever I host for Prism, I know I am in for an uplifting read and a journey into the stories which give me a lot of joy to find in my readerly queue of #nextreads. It is an honour to be a part of their team of book bloggers.
I received a complimentary copy of “A Ranger for the Twins” direct from the author Tanya Agler in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
No, you’re not mistaken – I skipped over #RomanceTuesdays recently!
As you might have recently noticed, I have started to focus on revealling my thoughts and reactions to reading Harlequin Heartwarming and Love Inspired stories during my weekly #RomanceTuesdays featured reviews. However, during the past few months, I’ve fallen a bit behind in my readings (overall) due to an increase frequency in my migraines and due to the health emergencies of my parents; of which came back to haunt me a bit last night as my Mum burnt her eye on pepper oil when I mistakenly purchased the wrong pepper!
Thankfully our local paramedics knew what to do and within an hour of that nightmare, Mum was recovering despite the fact my nerves still were full of the anxiety of the emergency itself which meant binge watching Charlie’s Angels (thank you, Roku!) and drinking copious amounts of tea! And, here I was hoping I could end September without any further medical issues or emergencies – whilst the remnants of my last migraine which took me offline this past weekend and the early bits of this week were tweaking their way back into my life. Blessedly will full rest and a morning of comfort reading (this novel!) I am thankfully able to resume participating on blog tours and by default, resume blogging!
I have a full October of bringing new #RomanceTuesdays featured reviews to Jorie Loves A Story as well as a wonderfully lovely Harlequin Heartwarming series chat via @SatBookChat – as on the 17th of October, the authors behind the #BlackwellSisters series will be chatting live with my chatters and giving away some books, too! If you loved reading the Return of the Blackwell Brothers series like I did – mark the date and start following us on Twitter to receive updates about #SatBookChat!
Today, I am celebrating the fact I am reading (without a migraine hanging over me!) and being back in the throes of a new Harlequin Heartwarming author I’ve just discovered who is writing about another small towne I was rather charmed to meet and am thankful I had as my ‘next read’ as I re-transition back into reading after a very hard and dearly adverse September! If you are seeking a cosy comfort read yourself – I highly recommend either Harlequin Heartwarming or the Love Inspired Suspense imprints due to how warmly uplifting all the stories are to read for readers who have a bit too much strife in their lives and need some ‘downtime’ in stories which rejuvenate their spirits!!
A Ranger for the Twins
by Tanya Agler
Source: Direct from Author
She fell from grace…
Before falling for himWhen her husband defrauded the town of Hollydale, now-divorced mom Lucie Decker went from being the town darling to total pariah. Now she’s launching a new business and needs ranger Caleb Spindler’s help. And her twins adore Caleb. After all, he’s a genuine hero—even if he is hiding a secret. But while Lucie’s heart has forgotten how to trust, it still remembers how to fall in love…
Places to find the book:
ISBN: 978-1335889928
Also by this author: The Soldier's Unexpected Family, The Single Dad's Holiday Match
Also in this series: The Soldier's Unexpected Family
Published by Harlequin Heartwarming
on 13th October, 2020
Format: Larger Print (Mass Market Paperback)
Pages: 384
The Hollydale series:
The Sheriff’s Second Chance (book one) – Mike and Georgie’s story
Broken things can’t be fixed…
Or can they?
Officer and single dad Mike Harrison doesn’t believe in second chances. Ever. That is, until he learns that his former best friend—gorgeous green-eyed car mechanic Georgie Bennett—is back in town. Unfortunately, she’s also a suspect in a recent break-in! But it’ll take an old classic car to show Mike and Georgie that almost anything can be restored with a little patience…and a whole lot of love.
A Ranger for the Twins (book two) – Caleb and Lucie’s story
The Soldier’s Unexpected Family (book three) Aidan and Natalie’s story
→ forthcoming March, 2021!
Please note: I noticed there is a connection with all of these stories being set inside the small towne of Hollydale and have chosen to collect them into a ‘series’ as they are a series by setting – however, I am not sure if they have been officially named as either a collection and/or a series or continuity with Harlequin Heartwarming as there isn’t a series name on the books nor on their informational pages online. I collected them together for my own frame of reference and for other readers and visitors to my blog Jorie Loves A Story who likes to read series in order and/or meet stories in order of how they were first disclosed.
Published by: Harlequin Heartwarming (@HarlequinBooks) | imprint of Harlequin Books
Formats Available: Paperback* and Ebook
*Harlequin has the luxury of offering Regular, Large & Larger Print editions which I personally can attest are lovely to be reading! Especially after a migraine or when my eyes are fatigued.
Converse via: #ContemporaryRomance and #HarlequinHeartwarming with #TanyaAgler
This story received my Best Scene Stealing Secondary Character
(Contemporary Romance).
Author Notes to Readers & learning more about this novel:
I learnt a few things by reading the author’s lovely note ahead of the story – first off, she must share my admiration and LOVE of “I Love Lucy!” as she named two pigs: Fred and Ethel! If that weren’t enough she included a bulldog to reflect her University days – I love seeing writers use personal touches of recognition out of their own lives wherein the stories they are writing become small touchstones of memories which can be a collection of insight into who they are outside of the world of writing. Anyone who loves Lucy is a winner in my book! She is smart, classy and her comedic style is evergreen because irregardless of how much time goes past – Lucy and the entire cast of her show remain a firm fixture in our lives for how timeless their artistry truly was and how much they give to us each year we tune in to re-live those memorable scenes which never fail to leave us in fists of laughter!
I loved learning about how she has her own set of twins as that made reading this story extra sweet and special knowing she was pulling from her own memories of mumhood to write about the twins in this novel! Whilst at the same time, I loved the personal bits she disclosed as it gave a lovely introduction to her as a writer and it was a nice transition into Chapter One!
Whilst at the same time, I love stories of either second chance love, redemption or a mix of the two thrown in for good measure! It sounded to me like this story was a crossroads of sorts for both characters – where one took the other unawares right in the midst of other plans – as so oft is the case for romance! As sometimes it has a way of sneaking up on you and giving you a butterfly kiss!
my review of a ranger for the twins:
I cannot even imagine how Lucie must’ve felt when she realised the truth behind her husband’s deception and the fuller cost of what his deceit had cost their marriage and their family. The fact she had the fortitude to start over was a feather in her cap but what warmed you to her was her sincerity. About how she wanted to take a bit of her past (the properties of her parents) and turn them into a self-sustaining asset which could provide for herself and her twins long into the future. Anyone whose attempted to seek out a fresh start in life would understand what motivated Lucie and seeing her trying to work out the painting and deciding the fate of a bat was a cute way of opening us into her world – in the full chaos of beginning a new business against the tides of anxiety on the fringe of your conscience as you work through a to-do list which feels too long to accomplish!
You have to give credit to Caleb – he answers a long lost friend’s message and shows up at her new business site dead on his feet knackered whilst enduring her sale’s pitch! Laughs. Lucie hasn’t quite picked up on the fact Caleb was trying to be supportive but with exhaustion writ all over him which put them into a bit of a fix on their first meeting back into each others’ lives! I had a good chuckle about how he seemed more interested in an endangered species of woodpecker than he had with her sense of excitement about the business. I had a feeling he was holding his cards close to his chest as much as she was herself – they both had reasons to keep glib about their personal lives and for whichever reason, I think Caleb took the easier way out to reschedule speaking with Lucie at a latter date than the one in which he arrived.
Ooh dear, and then the penny drops as they say! When I learnt of the truer motivations for Caleb’s visit to Lucie, you had to question how she’d take the news once it was finally revealled! Would she put him in the same category of her husband? A man whom you couldn’t trust to give you the truth at the time in which it was needed? Or was this a life lesson brewing between them where they both had to learn how to give and to take whilst owning to the fact that nothing in life is guaranteed? Part of me realised why this had to be the path Caleb was walking as it tied together two key aspects of the story but my first instinct was to protect Lucie and to see if there was a way to mediate this where she wouldn’t have to find out the truth. Even if that in of itself felt like a betrayal to her there were circumstances involved that I felt wouldn’t benefit her knowledge given everything she’d recently gone through.
Go Lucie! I was cheering on her behalf – mostly because she rooted out Caleb was up to something devious and he hadn’t exactly denied it when she called him on it! Honestly – I loved that whole sequence of dialogue because Agler pivoted the storyline round to Lucie in such a strong showing of dexterity of spirit! I loved how Lucie held her own against Caleb and how Caleb quite literally had nothing left to say or give to the conversation simply tucked tail and left! I mean, he could have defended himself – even spilt the truth about why he was behaving the way he was and yet, all he could muster as a reply was to simply leave without giving Lucie any encouraging words at all about his motives! Imagine!? Either he is in the midst of too much personal duress to see straight or he just made one gigantic mistake in regards to how to treat your friends!
Ooh dear,.. as much as I love wildlife like the next person, through reading different series over the past few years with Harlequin Heartwarming, I’ve learnt more about wildlife conservation and protection – which means, sometimes the best interest of preserving the wildlife and their habitat interferes with the plans we as the persons who are living in that habitat have made for the same land and space. I am hoping this won’t bode ill for Lucie – because for whichever reason, as soon as I started to get to know her, I wanted her to not just succeed but feel more comfortable in her skin and live a life where she didn’t feel like she had to look over her shoulder very two seconds! Sometimes I wished there were easier ways to work out preservation projects which would work with land owners and the wildlife in harmony rather than causing more stress for the land owner who might not be able to recoup if something changed their situations.
It soon grew more complicated – watching Caleb try to dance round his real reasons for getting back involved in Lucie’s life whilst I was enjoying the quieter moments at Lucie’s house – where the full range of animals were free to roam and be loved by her and her children. It was a nice contrast to the storyline because the town of Hollydale was quite an unforgiving one – where people judged harshly and did not change their minds about you even if there was evidence to contradict their opinions; tides were slow to change. It is in that kind of environment we find Lucie – attempting to pull herself out of the ashes of her ex-husband’s deceitful mess and strive towards standing confident in the future knowing she rectified her circumstances on her own.
Caleb though was the odd duck out in this story because he was purposefully holding himself back – he wasn’t disclosing his true intentions and part of me questioned if that was going to be a breaking point for Lucie to turn away from him. I understood his motivations and why he was doing what he was doing – as family comes first and foremost, but at the same time, he had all the information he needed and yet he still remained silent (at least to Lucie). He was a hard nut to crack – part of you wanted to see Caleb ease up a bit in both his way of living and how he approached his friendship with Lucie. I, for one, expected him to step up and do the right thing – yet part of me questioned if he was capable of it.
Ooh my dear stars! Caleb’s Mum stole the show for me! And, I loved her for it!! She had the most to lose and the most to gain but in the artful way Agler chose to give us a winning scene wherein Tina herself became the champion of her own story was the best moment of A Ranger for the Twins! It bespoke to the underlying theme of the story – about family, redemption and second chances – about rebuilding a life after the ashes have erased the past and of having the faithfulness of believing in the beauty of tomorrow! Ooh my goodness, what a wonderful toasting of mercy and the beautiful ways in which you can find yourself redeemed!
On the Contemporary romance styling of tanya agler:
It was hard not to burst into a proper fit of giggles when you first meet Lucie – if it weren’t for the seriousness of her situation and the hard-won luck she was providing for herself and her kids, it would have been a cracker of an opening! Plus, honestly – it just proved that whenever you think you are juggling all the chaos in your life, sometimes life has a way of giving you a bit more than you bargained after and proving that sometimes you just can’t lock it all down ahead of time! I loved how Agler gave us this comfortable opening to the novel – as it was a very relaxed start to the story whilst at the same time, it was full of cheeky humour lit round the edges!
I loved the tender moments Agler created between the twins, Mattie and Ethan with their Mum, Lucie as she gave you this wonderful warm home and hearth setting wherein a young family was patchworking their way into a better tomorrow. The young twins respected each other and their Mum, whilst they also had quite a large collection of animals to care after which gave you a burst of smiles because of how eclectic they were in species! It was the kind of home where you’d feel comfortable on your first visit and might not want to leave too quickly because of how engaging the family was to everyone who graced their home. It was a wonderful burst of life and love and I loved discovering this side of Agler’s writing style.
I definitely have found a new series to keep my eyes on for Heartwarming! I know this series isn’t officially named or even declared but for me, Hollydale is my new favourite small towne I can’t wait to revisit!! Here’s to more installments and more lives being healed and restored through Agler’s vision for her growing community where hearts and lives intersect with a lot of love and hope! Agler has a style for Contemporary Romance which is smooth as key lime pie and as charmingly lovely to read as a cool Autumn afternoon.
I am not sure how I missed the first novel in this series – “The Sheriff’s Second Chance” but I’ll be sure to grab a copy down the road when I can start adding missing installments out of the series I love reading for Heartwarming! The joy this story gave me restored my readerly sensibility during a month where a tirade of illness and adversity struck me down quite hard and wherein settling into the cosier towne of Hollydale where residents and family alike have to remind themselves of the virtues of both grace and mercy is what happily restored my own spirits after such an adverse month!
PS: I am so thankful for “The Sheriff’s Second Chance” postie
which I used as a bookmark whilst reading “A Ranger for the Twins”!
This blog tour is courtesy of: Prism Book Tours
By clicking this badge you can find out about the giveaway associated with the tour;
my particular tour stop doesn’t host the giveaway as I’m a review stop, however,
you’ll find many other bloggers who are hosting the information!
This review is cross-posted to LibraryThing.
{SOURCES: Cover art of “The Sheriff’s Second Chance” and “A Ranger for the Twins” as well as the synopsis for both stories, the author’s photo and biography as well as the Prism Book Tours badge were all provided by Prism Book Tours and used with permission. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. LibraryThing banner provided by librarything.com and used with permission. Tweets embedded by codes provided by Twitter. Blog graphics created by Jorie via Canva: Book Review banner; 7th Annual Jorie Loves A Story Cuppa Book Love Awards badge (using Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo) and the Comment Box Banner.}
Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2020.
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