I may have asked the author for an early copy. Possibly.

Oh, who am I kidding - I shamelessly begged as soon as I saw CrabbyPatty reading it. 

And I would beg again, if given the choice, because this book was fabulous. Gorgeous. Rapturous. Captivating. Brilliant. If my 15 status updates didn't convince you to pick up a copy of this as soon as you can, hopefully my review will.

Where book 1 was a mostly easy love story between Andrew and Joel, book 2 isn't like that at all. In this 2nd book, the author created a much more emotional and pain-filled plot, giving both of the MCs past hurts and some big issues they must overcome.

Gilbert Bryant (Andrew's cousin who sold him the cabin), a member of one of the founding families of Lavender Shores, has escaped his hometown as soon as he could. He designs one of a kind jewelry for the rich and famous, and he's perfectly happy in his cabin above Lake Tahoe, having no illusions that he'll ever be as happy as his cousin. Not that he thinks he deserves to be. Except he's having to go back for family get-togethers every so often, one of which is Andrew and Joel's engagement party.

Walden Thompson has recently moved to Lavender Shores, a place he visited once as a kid and dreamed of making his home ever since. He's a teacher and running from a past he's not proud of. It's clear early on that Walden keeps mostly to himself, and also doesn't have any aspirations of finding someone to love. 

The two meet at the gym, where Gilbert is on a treadmill behind Walden on a Stairmaster. Lusting for the well-formed ass in front of him, Gilbert thinks Walden is a tourist. Attraction is immediate, and after some steamy times in the steam room, they spend a hot night together. Their specific kinks line up pretty well, and that first bedroom scene was .... uh, well... let's call it rough and rowdy. I don't think I've ever read a scene like that in an M/M romance novel... not even in one that I knew would be kinky. 

I might have fanned myself.

Moving on.

Then Gilbert and Walden meet again at the engagement party, and Gilbert finds out Walden is a teacher. Immediate recoil by Gilbert makes things a bit awkward for Walden. I was scratching my head as to why that would be an issue for Gilbert, since no reason is given at that time.

Still licking his wounds, Walden ends up in a resort kind of place on a short vacation near Lake Tahoe, unaware that Gilbert lives in the area. While being propositioned by a Gilbert-lookalike, the real deal shows up, and the attraction still burns brightly. Also, Gilbert might be a little jealous. Possibly. Even if he tells himself that he shouldn't be, because he's no good for Walden.

And Walden fears being hurt again, and possibly falling down that rabbit hole of pain and shame once more if he lets himself get close to Gilbert. Sex is easy (and super hawt) - feelings are not welcome here. 

I really liked that the author didn't make things easy for them. There's a lot of angst here, and both men have pasts that still haunt them. No, I'm not going to tell you what those pasts are, but let it suffice that they both struggle, in their own ways. They're both still hurting, and while they don't immediately share their deepest and darkest secrets, they are both honest about being troubled, and how those troubles are impacting their views and actions. 

Of course, true love will not be thwarted, no matter how hard they both fight it. This is a romance, after all. 

What I really loved is how Gilbert and Walden help each other come to terms with their pasts. Even as Gilbert believes he doesn't deserve Walden, believes the things hateful people have told him in the past, even as he confesses his fears, his depression, his attempts at ending things when the pain got too much, all of his darkness, it is clear that Walden doesn't judge Gilbert for his past. And when Walden comes clean about his own past, he realizes that Gilbert isn't judging him either. 

The author created two complex, flawed, and yet strong characters, with histories that still shape their actions, but also allowed them to grow, to realize things, and to forge a new path - together. Their story isn't without pitfalls, and for some time, it's two steps forward, one step back, but as the plot progresses, their relationship goes from hot animalistic sexy times to real intimacy. Their fears don't disappear overnight, there's no magical healing here, but they face their fears, they move forward, they learn, they grow. 

This is hurt/comfort/healing at its finest, and I didn't want to put this book down until I had finished their story, only stopping for such pesky reasons as work and sleep. Absolutely heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. A fantastic supporting cast rounded out this novel, with many of the characters making repeat appearances in this book and its predecessor. 

While this book could easily be read as a standalone, I would personally recommend you read the first one too, because a lot of the history of the town, as well as the intermingled family history, is explained in that first one.

What I also want to mention are the titles. The Palisade and The Garden are both places that are important to the stories and to the characters. I thought that this was rather clever on the author's part, since both places play a huge role in the plot lines of their respective stories. I imagine that a veranda will be prominent in the third book, which is Donovan's story.

That's next. I'll be begging for a copy, for sure. 

This is one series you do not want to miss. Read it!


** I received a free copy of this book from its author. A positive review was not promised in return. **

I have no plans to read book #3 since I am sure it will just irk the living daylights out of me again. Book #2 was so good and I still have the same feeling I did back when I read this the first time, I didn't want it to end. When Roberts is good, she's really good. I just enjoyed the heck out of these books and was so satisfied by the ending.

In book #2, "Black Rose" we follow Rosalind Harper (Roz) as she does what she can to find out more about the Harper Bride (a ghost living in her family home for hundreds of years at this point). Taking place in Memphis Tennessee (not a typical romance location) we follow Roz as she she works with Dr. Mitchell Carnegie to try to find out the mystery behind the Harper Bridge. Roz is also still running her In the Garden business and doing what she can to be rid of the memories of her second husband who was a piece of dirt. 

What I really loved about this book is that you see a flawed but strong woman in Roz. She feels so much more human to me than Hayley (Red Lily, Book #3) or Stella (Blue Dahlia, Book #1) ever did. Roz is 47 years old and she's raised three sons by herself. She still throughout this book mourns her first husband John. And she regrets letting loneliness sneak in and get to her which caused her to marry her second husband. 

This was a slow burn romance novel and honestly I would say the romance wasn't even secondary this time. It was maybe third on the list. Most of this book really is about Roz, her sons, and her not letting her ex husband get to her when he comes back to town and does what he can to ruin her reputation. I loved seeing her friends and family rally around her. And I loved that Roz decided what she wanted when things turned to the romantic with Mitch. I wasn't really feeling Mitch even though I loved this book. Probably because most of this book was unraveling the mystery of the Bride who appears and gets really confrontational with Roz. 

I received a free kindle copy of The Bees, Down in The Garden Book One by DC Swain With Anna Bonita in an Amazon promotion in exchange for a fair review.

I gave this cleverly written rhyming children's book five stars. My favorite little boy loved the illustrations that went with the bee's activities.

I recommend this for parents, grandparents, beginning readers, librarians & teachers.

Wow! The first six chapters of KILLING WEEDS had more things happening than I’ve read in entire books. But it’s not surprising to me that authors Joy & Jim Lavene had my full attention in this mystery so quickly, because they have in every book I’ve read by them.

This was a wonderfully written story with plenty of mystery coming from every direction. There was never a dull moment. I turned each page eagerly awaiting what would come next. The Lavenes have taken the twists and turns associated with mystery and supersized them.  When the reveal came, I was completely shocked!

I love that each chapter started with the names of poisonous plants and information about them. It just goes to show the research the authors did for their story.

There was only thing I didn’t like about this book…it had to end. L I just wanted more an more!

Check out the back of the book for Peggy Lee’s Garden Journal, a yummy recipe, and gardening tips for keeping our bee friends happy.

Boy, oh boy! Have I hit the jackpot in rediscovering Joyce and Jim Lavene's series of work. I am avid reader but admit to not being one that completely keeps track of all the series. My bad. I have been a big fan of the Ren Faire series by these authors and am kicking myself for missing the Peggy Lee series. It is one that I cannot wait to start from the beginning. I was absolutely delighted by Killing Weeds.

The characters are well developed and give you the sense of being real. What I love about their book is that the characters speak and act like real people. So many books fall into the trap after awhile of their characters becoming versions of themselves or so loved by everyone. These characters have real lives with real problems. There are many characters in the book but it what was not difficult of keeping track who is who and where they fit in.

As someone who use to garden with her grandparents, I love all the tibits and information that are placed thru out the book. Really makes me hope to have room for a garden again one day.

I read it one sitting, forgoing all my tasks needing to be completed. It is so well written, and such a page turner I feel you will do that same. As in a previous title I read, I felt compelled to start from the beginning, but enough of the past plot details were woven in where I felt connected with the characters and not out of the loop. I will not divulge spoilers, but will definitely say this is in A+ book. I thought the the book was finished (was reading on epub) and was left with a cliff hanger but was delighted when there was more. There is a bit of a cliff hanger at the end that has me waiting not so patiently for the next book already! Hope you all enjoy it as much as I did. More, more more please Joyce and Jim!!