REVIEW ~Come Home to Me by Brenda Novak~

Title: Come Home to Me

Author: Brenda Novak

Series: Whiskey Creek #6

Release Date: March 25, 2014

My Rating: 4 Stars

Home is where her heart is...

When Presley Christensen returns to Whiskey Creek with her little boy after two years away, she has completely changed her life. She's made peace with her past and overcome the negative behavior that resulted from her difficult childhood. Now she's back in the small town that was the closest thing to "home" she ever knew—the town where she can be with the sister who's her only family.


There's just one catch. Aaron Amos still lives in Whiskey Creek, at least until he moves to Reno to open a branch of the Amos brothers' auto body shop. And no matter how hard she's tried, Presley hasn't been able to get over him. Seeing him again makes the longing so much worse. But she hopes she can get through the next few months, because she can't fall back into his arms…or his bed. She's come too far to backslide now. And there's a secret she's been guarding—a secret she'll do anything to protect.

I've got a conundrum where Come Home to Me is concerned. On one hand, I devoured it. Ate up every bit of heart-wrenching and sometimes frustrating drama. On the other hand, I can never, ever condone some of the characters' actions. The easiest way to explain this book is that I hate to love it. But it's true I loved it. I don't often devour 400 page books in a 36 hour span, when I worked 16 of those hours, and slept a good chunk of the others. This may have been my fastest reading to date, and I consumed every single word and couldn't wait to get to the next. I don't know what it is about Ms. Novak but, even when I disagree with a character's actions, she can still make me glued to every aspect of their life. 

Come Home to Me is the second chance story of Presley and Aaron. After two long, hard years away from Whiskey Creek, Presley has finally decided to return home. Dependent upon Aaron's impending move to Reno to expand the auto shop he runs with his brothers. However, Aaron decides to stick around a lot longer than anyone is expecting. That throws a huge wrench in Presley's plans. She's got a big secret she's hiding from everyone, except her sister Cheyenne, and Aaron trying to pick up where they left off isn't helping her resolve of keeping that secret. Cheyenne doesn't ease matters when she propositions Aaron to help her and her husband... without her husband's knowledge. Side note: Cheyenne's husband, Dylan, just so happens to be Aaron's brother. So as the web of lies and secrets grows, some slip through the cracks and even more mistakes are made. All boiling down to the reveal of Presley's secret that will shatter Aaron's reality, and has the ability to affect Cheyenne and Dylan's future and happiness as well. But let's not stop there. Let's also include the ordeal Cheyenne has Presley and Aaron roped into... and this just can't end well for someone.

This book blew my mind. Cheyenne crosses lines, that I could not even begin to fathom. I'm hoping for some kind of happy and honest conclusion where her story line is concerned, but I don't see that happening. As for Presley and Aaron... well they just have a big old mess on their hands. Part of me couldn't stand Presley, but looking at the big picture she won me over in the end. You can only hold someone's past against them for so long. Aaron on the other hand, went with the flow much more willingly that I had expected. Despite his jealous tendencies, I saw him as a bit of a rockstar. He fought so hard, and just wanted Presley to accept the changes in him, as he had for her. I think my biggest point of contention with this book is Cheyenne. If I extricate her story line from the book, I loved it. But when I remember her actions and what she pulled Presley and Aaron into... it kinda spoils things for me. However, I still devoured this book. It reminds me of a soap opera, not necessarily in a bad way. When I watch one, although I'm not a frequent viewer but, when I do, I just can't stop watching. I want to know everyone's back story, who's cheating on who, this couples history, etc. It's all so fascinating to me. That's how I feel about Come Home to Me. Was it a Grade-A romance? Probably not, BUT it was a Grade-A book! I think what'll make it better is if I just imagine Dylan and Cheyenne's story ended in their book, and the Dylan and Cheyenne in Come Home to Me were on an alternate plane of existence. A little far fetched, but it let's me love this book without feeling a little wigged out. In terms of Presley and Aaron's story though, big thumbs up!

Happy Reading!

*ARC received by the author in exchange for an honest review*

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ARC REVIEW ~Take Me Home for Christmas by Brenda Novak~

Title: Take Me Home for Christmas
Author: Brenda Novak
Series: Whiskey Creek #5
Release Date: October 29, 2013

My Review: 4.5 Stars

Christmas is a time for remembering….

Too bad all memories aren't pleasant. Everyone in Whiskey Creek remembers Sophia DeBussi as the town's Mean Girl. Especially Ted Dixon, whose love she once scorned.

But Sophia has paid the price for her youthful transgressions. The man she did marry was rich and powerful but abusive. So when he goes missing, she secretly hopes he'll never come back—until she learns that he died running from an FBI probe of his investment firm. Not only has he left Sophia penniless, he's left her to face all the townspeople he cheated….

Sophia is reduced to looking for any kind of work to pay the bills and support her daughter. With no other options, she becomes housekeeper for none other than Ted, now a successful suspense writer. He can't bring himself to turn his back on her, not at Christmas, but he refuses to get emotionally involved. He learned his lesson the last time.

Or will the season of love and forgiveness give them both another chance at happiness?

First off, this is my first ever Brenda Novak novel and let me just say that after I finished Take Me Home for Christmas I went and added all of her books to my TBR list. Take Me Home for Christmas is such a wonderful story. I know everyone that is a Whiskey Creek Series fan has been looking forward to Ted and Sophia's story and now I know why. This story completely warmed my heart at some parts and almost broke it in others. We start with Sophia's husband having disappeared. As a single mother left penniless and alone Sophia struggles to make ends meet while the townspeople continue to make her life hell at every turn. There are a few exceptions. Even though some of his friends invested money with Sophia's ex and lost everything they invested, Ted and his close group of friends refuse to hold Sophia responsible for for her husband's crimes. And while the townspeople are demanding their slice of the pie back Sophia is struggling to hold on to anything that she has left. I was so outraged at the way Sophia was treated, I understand the hurt these people went through but Sophia graciously offered them anything she had to help repay them and they still demanded more. Villain of the Year award goes to Chief Stacy. He was the ring leader of the backlash against Sophia and I was so wishing that he would get a taste of his own medicine. Meanwhile, Ted reaches out a helping hand to Sophia, and while she would love to refuse, she had to swallow her pride and think logically. The exchanges between Ted and Sophia made me laugh with their banter and ache with their sadness. These two have such a complicated past to work out and it takes some time amidst all of the other current drama surrounding them. 

This book gave me so many mixed emotions. There were times when I could completely understand Ted and his decisions and other times where I just wanted to shake him or slap him upside the head. Same goes for Sophia. She started out rocky but, with the help of Eve she got back on track. However, she is dealing with much more than the loss and betrayal of her husband and the hatred of the town. Sophia has a secret that not too many people know about. She thought she had her situation under control, until the stress begins to wear on her and her demons find her in a moment of weakness. I really felt for Sophia, and her daughter, Alexa. They have been through so much and are still able to hold their heads up and push through. Ted is a big helping factor in Sophia's ability to turn her life around. Ted on the other hand is confused up one side and down the other. He can't fathom how he got into his current predicament and he begins to act rash. In my opinion, total human reaction. He can't control a part of his life, so he goes and potentially screws up another part of it. Eventually, he is able to work it all through but, it takes some understanding and trust from the people in his life. 

As a whole I absolutely loved this book. It is gut-wrenching, and heart-warming. Hilarious and devastating. It is a romance but, it tells a much bigger and grander story than a couple finding love. It's a story of a second chance at love, a woman righting her wrongs, a man learning to trust and love again, a woman becoming her own person again and so much more. Take Me Home for Christmas engaged and hypnotized me and I am so thrilled to have read it. Trust me when I say you will not regret reading this book. Brenda Novak wrote a beautiful story and I cannot wait to return to Whiskey Creek. Side note to Whiskey Creek Lovers: You do get quite a few glimpses of your favorite characters from past books in Take Me Home for Christmas. For Whiskey Creek Newbies: This is #5 in a series, but I didn't feel lost a bit. Ms. Novak gives you just enough information about the other couples to entice you to go read their stories but, I don't believe there are any major spoilers. I also want to thank Brenda for reaching out to me and asking me to review this book, it was truly wonderful and has been added to my favorites for 2013!

Happy Reading!

*ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review*

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