I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Nevada Sweet is on the run and with a lack of funds, she decides to hit up an old work colleague to see if she has a job for her. Unforgiven is a small town but the restaurant where Nevada buses tables has a cook that makes it hard for her to want to move on.

Joseph “Fishing Eagle” King is Dine through and through and would do anything for his Navajo community. He offers the diner's new employee a place to stay but never sees himself getting involved with a white woman.

Nevada is busy trying to hide from her present and Joseph refuses to let the past go, these two can try and hide from themselves but they can't hide from each other.

She is an odd combination; equal parts swagger and fear. Once you realize the swagger is a mask, it's easy to see the fear beneath.

Home at Chestnut Creek is book two in the Chestnut Creek series and while it is possible to read this as a standalone like I did, you miss some of the background relationships in the first that end up playing a part here. I was lost as to why Nevada would go to her old work colleague, who I guess is more of a friend that Nevada wants to let on. If you're on the run and don't want someone to find you, I'm not sure you'd go to someone you had a previous connection with, but again, not having read the first, I'm not sure how close these two characters actually were.

This story was written in first person point of view and present tense, this is a very hard combination for me to personally read, if you're not bothered by that structure, then your mileage would vary greatly. I also had a very hard time warming up to Nevada. She came across extremely immature and trying a bit too hard to be a rebel, she was more bratty teenager than closed, hardened heart woman to me (her age is early twenties). She mellows some in the second half and opens up a bit to Joseph but her being rude, snarky only came off as thus, and didn't translate to scared, vulnerable, just lashing out in fear of not wanting to get close to people.

“Forgiving others is much easier than forgiving yourself.”

Joseph was the more interesting character to me but it takes a while to get why he feels he shouldn't get involved with a white woman and must devote his life to his Navajo community. There was so much just tell and talk about him being dedicated to his community, but besides running with a group of Navajo girls, we never get any showing. Which was one of the biggest problems I had with this book, a lot of surface telling and no substance showing what the author was trying to relay about the characters.

The suspense story line of why Nevada was running, made sense when we finally are let in as to why but the villain she is running from gets only a handful of povs, does basically nothing but get lucky to find Nevada and then is dealt with very quickly. The ending was a rushed, forced happy everyone gets along now.

This might have benefited from a larger page count to allow the author to expand on the plots and emotions. Joseph's pain from thinking he betrayed his family, the running group that doesn't like Nevada but has a sudden moment of sharing their deepest darkest secrets with her to never really become a part of the story again, Nevada finally saying she is going to “stop running” and opens up to Joseph telling him the truth, only to on the same night, after they are inmate, run away for “his safety”.

The writing structure, lack of depth to characters' emotions and actions, and motivations not always making sense, had this a tough read for me. I would only recommend this to previous Drake readers who enjoyed her style or people who have read the first in the series and enjoyed.

A woman on the run, hero trying to make up for past mistakes, and a clash of personalities. 

Home at Chestnut Creek by Laura Drake purchase link

Strawberry Cream Cheese Crescent Danish recipe

It’s a million degrees here, so this started melting as soon as I brought it outside. Tasty but going the quick easy route of using strawberry pie filling had a touch overly sweet and not as fresh. I’d suggest making your own filling for better results 

Chestnut Creek #1, This is a new author for me and I am so glad I picked this one up. It amazed me how real this book seemed to me, how emotionally this book pulled me in and the citizens of Unforgiven are right Carly and Austin are better than T.V. I also loved that this book took place in New Mexico, as much as I love my home state of Texas it's nice to see NM get some attention. 

Carly and Austin have been together since Kindergarten and shared the same dreams through it all until Carly didn't any more. At twenty-nine Carly figured she'd be married already with babies already but Austin first love is the rodeo and his "one more year" got to be one year too many. Unfortunately for Carly no one believes that she's serious that she had it with Austin, so in a fit of rebelliousness she buys a motorcycle, and then she goes of to Albuquerque to let off some steam. Austin has a hard time reconciling the fact that Carly means business and after he realizes it he's left at a loss and this time there is no more "one more year" he leaves the rodeo and now he left floundering, wondering if he can achieve his dream without Carly.

Overall, this is probably one of the best second chance books I've read in awhile. The old adage, If you love something let it go, fits in nicely with this story. I love that Carly and Austin had to grow up apart from each other to find out who they really were as adults and not just love sick kidds. This is a sweet and sexy story that plays with your heartstrings. First person that switches between Carly and Austin mostly Carly at the beginning but as the book goes on you see more and more of Austin's POV. Carly's past of self discovery is quite amusing and I love Nevada, I'm glad she's getting her own book.         

They say the scars you bear inside and out make you who you are. I don't know who they are but they say that. LOL 

Scarring or disfigurement is a huge Romanceland theme. What happens when we are altered? How do we find love as less than perfect or having survived something that left a mark upon us- fire, abuse, torture, surgery, assult, catastrophic accident. 

Sometimes the scars are small eteched phyiscal memory in skn. 

Here are some wonderful Contemporary Romanes that play with this theme.

My lists are never in any particular order. Happy Reading! 

1. Beyond Repair by Charlotte Stein

When Alice Evans finds a bona fide movie star on the floor of her living room, she has no idea what to do. Ordinary men are frightening enough, never mind someone as famous and frankly gorgeous as Holden Stark.

However, once she realizes that Holden is suffering behind that famous facade, she knows she has to help. He needs someone like her to give him a taste of sweetness and desire and love. He needs normality. The only problem—Alice is hiding a secret that is far from normal. In fact, her name isn’t even Alice at all.

And once Holden finds out, the intense connection they are just beginning to build may well be torn apart.

2. Skin Deep by Pamela Clare

Broken on the inside



Megan Hunter has worked hard to get back on her feet, leaving the nightmare of her teenage years behind. The last thing she wants or needs in her life is a man. But when she is attacked by someone from her past, a scarred stranger intervenes, saving her life and that of her little girl. Looks can be deceiving, for despite the man's rough appearance, she feels safe with him. And for the first time in her life, she knows the stirrings of desire.



Broken on the outside



Nathaniel West paid a high price serving with the Marines in Afghanistan. He returned to his family's ranch in the Colorado mountains to heal--and be alone. Disfigured as he is, he has put all thoughts of sex and romance aside. But something about Megan brings him back to life, heats his blood, makes him feel like a man again. As danger pursues her, and the truth about her past is revealed, he vows to protect her -- and to heal her wounded spirit. 

But confronting the past is never easy -- especially when it's carrying a gun. Megan will have to learn to trust Nate to survive and to claim a passion that is much more than ... Skin Deep.

3. Nobody by Sarah M. Anderson

Nobody Bodine is a nobody who came from a nobody and will always be a nobody.  

He disappears into the shadows—no one sees him if he doesn’t want them to. He exists in neither the white man’s world nor the tribe’s, dispensing vigilante justice when he sees fit. There’s no other place for a man like him in this world. 

Until Melinda Mitchell shows up on the rez. From the first moment he lays eyes on her, he can tell there’s something different about her. For starters, she’s not afraid of him. She asks where his scars came from, and why he has so many. But more than that, she sees him. For the first time in his life, Nobody feels like a somebody in her eyes. 

Melinda has come west to run the new day care on the White Sandy Reservation. She’s intrigued by this strange man and his tattered skin, and when she discovers that he’s a self-appointed guardian angel for the boy in her care, she realizes that there’s more to Nobody than meets the eyes. But how far will he go to keep the boy safe? And will she be able to draw him into the light

4. Lingerie Wars by Janet Elzabeth Henderson

Englishman Lake Benson loaned his life savings to his dippy sister so that she could buy a shop. It was a big mistake. His sister has been steadily flushing his money down the drain – and now he wants it back. Years in the special forces taught Lake that if you want a job done, do it yourself. So he steps in to make the shop profitable, sell it and get his money back. The only problem is, the business is an underwear shop. And all Lake knows about underwear can be summed up in how fast he can unsnap a bra. To make matters worse, the tiny highland town already has a lingerie shop. A successful one, run by an ex-lingerie model. A very gorgeous ex-lingerie model, who’s distracting him from his mission more than he’d like to admit. If Lake wants to get his savings back, and get out of Scotland, he only has one option – wipe out the competition. 

Kirsty Campbell has spent years rebuilding her life after she woke up in hospital in Spain to find her body scarred, and her ex-fiance had run off with all her money. The last thing she needs is a cocky, English soldier-boy trying to ruin all she has left. Her home town is only too happy to help her fight the latest English invasion, although Lake is beginning to sway them with his sex appeal and cut price knickers. With the help of her mother, and the retired ladies of Knit or Die, Kirsty sets about making sure that her shop is the last one standing in Invertary. 

5. After Hours  by Cara McKenna

Erin Coffey has been a nurse for years, but nothing’s prepared her for the physical and emotional demands of her new position. Needing to move closer to her dysfunctional family, she takes a dangerous job at Larkhaven Psychiatric Hospital, where she quickly learns that she needs protection—and she meets the strong, over-confident coworker who’s more than willing to provide it.  

Kelly Robak is the type of guy that Erin has sworn she’d never get involved with. She’s seen firsthand, via her mess of a sister, what chaos guys like him can bring into a woman’s life. But she finds herself drawn to him anyway, even when he shows up at her door, not eager to take no for an answer. 

What Erin finds even more shocking than Kelly’s indecent proposal is how much she enjoys submitting to his every command. But he can’t play the tough guy indefinitely. If they want to have more than just an affair, both will have to open up and reveal what they truly need. 

6. The Chocolate Touch by Laura Florand

Dominique Richard's reputation says it all--wild past, wilder flavors, black leather and smoldering heat. Jaime Corey is hardly the first woman to be drawn to all that dark, delicious danger. Sitting in Dom's opulent chocolaterie in Paris day after day, she lets his decadent creations restore her weary body and spirit, understanding that the man himself is entirely beyond her grasp.

Until he touches her. . .

Chocolate, Dominique understands--from the biting tang of lime-caramel to the most complex infusions of jasmine, lemon-thyme, and cayenne. But this shy, freckled American who sits alone in his salon, quietly sampling his exquisite confections as if she can't get enough of them--enough of him--is something else. She has secrets too, he can tell. Of course if she really knew him, she would run. 

Yet once you have spotted your heart's true craving, simply looking is no longer enough. . 

7. BEAST by Pepper Pace

A marine with a destroyed face and a plus sized beauty who has identity issues. A lesson learned is that beauty is not what is on the outside...In this romance that is taken from the Beauty and the Beasts' fairytale, it will leave you questioning 'who is the beauty and who is the Beast?' 

8. Tall, Dark and Fearless: Frisco's Kid by Suzanne Brockmann

Being a Navy SEAL is more than a career to Alan "Frisco" Francisco—it is his whole world. So when a bullet wound threatens his future in the Navy, he is determined to achieve a full recovery…all on his own. But his lovely neighbor Mia Summerton has other plans for him. She can't mend his wounded body, but can she heal his heart?

9. Nothing Sweeter by Laura Drake

Aubrey Madison is starting over. Leaving Los Angeles and everything behind except the scars of her ruined past, Bree sets out for cowboy country. Now she has a new home, a new job-and a new worry: the ruggedly sexy rancher who makes her long for things she shouldn't . . . 

Rough and tumble cattleman Max Jameson has broken wild stallions and faced angry bulls. Yet the redheaded city cupcake who turned up at the High Heather Ranch might be his undoing. Bree has a plan to rescue the ranch from foreclosure that's just crazy enough to work. But will Max gamble his future on a beautiful stranger?

10. Fire Inside by Kristen Ashley

Lanie Heron isn’t looking for love—no surprise, considering her last serious relationship nearly got her killed. So when Lanie propositions Hop Kincaid, all she wants is one wild night with the hot-as-hell biker who patrols with the Chaos Motorcycle Club...

For Hop, Lanie has always been untouchable. She’s too polished and too classy for his tastes. But when she gives Hop the once-over with her bedroom eyes and offers him a night in paradise, he can’t say no. And he doesn’t regret it when he finds that Lanie is the best thing that’s ever happened to him—in or out of bed. Now the trick will be to convince her of that.

Do you have a great scarred hero or heroine in Contemporary Romance to recommend? Please do!

Vote for the best of the best on my Goodreads list: Scarred Heroes or Heroines in Contemporary Romance.