I still have a little one running about the house but in therory I well old enough to have an empty nest. 

 

Lots of my freinds do. Lots of my single friends to do and let me tell you Romance as a full grown up with a grown up around that you have rasied makes for some interesting momentts. 

 

Here are some great Romances that explore that dynamic and do it well. 

 

My list are never in any order. They are all great. Give them a try!

 

 

1. Apples Should Be Red by Penny Watson

 

ecipe for Thanksgiving Dinner: 

Start with 62-year old politically incorrect, chain-smoking, hard-cussing curmudgeon. 

Add 59-year old sexually-repressed know-it-all in pearls. 

Throw in a beer can-turkey, a battle for horticultural supremacy, and nudist next-door neighbor. 

Serve on paper plates, garnished with garden gnome. 

Tastes like happily ever after.

 

2. Hearts and Swords by Robin D. Owens

 

Heart Story:  Blush (Arabusca) daughter to the deceased poisonous former Grandlady Willow, finally gets her happily-ever-after with the Heartmate denied her, but both Blush and the man she has longed for have to overcome the anger and hurt born of the machinations that kept them apart.

 

3. Sun-Kissed by Laura Florand

 

They called her the Ice Queen. 

Anne Winters. Self-made billionaire. Household name. Divorced single mom. Convicted felon. She didn’t let anyone or anything get to her. No one was allowed to breach the walls around her heart except for her own son. She had only one trusted friend: her vacation house neighbor. They’d been walking the beach together for twenty years. Not that this gave him access to her heart, of course… 

They called him a man who got what he wanted. 

Mack Corey. Self-made billionaire. Dominant world player. Widowed father of the bride. No felony convictions yet, although his daughters had come close. He’d transformed his family company into one of the top 500 by the age of thirty. He’d raised two daughters who dumped him for idiot arrogant French chocolatiers and went off to live in Paris. Hell, he even managed to tolerate his dad. But that Ice Queen act Anne Winters had going was really starting to get to him… 

They’d been best friends for twenty years. Could they become lovers? 
Could a frozen heart be kissed by the sun?

 

4. Feral Heat by Jennifer Ashley

 

Jace Warden is sent to the Shiftertown in Austin to find a way to free all Shifters from their Collars. But pulling off the Collars can cause Shifters to go mad or kill them outright.

In Austin, Jace meets Deni Rowe, a wolf Shifter with troubles of her own--she was deliberately run down in the road, and while her body has healed, she still has episodes of total memory loss during which she retreats into her pure animal self.

Jace has never met anyone like Deni. Courageous and beautiful, she volunteers to help him test the Collar removal. And as Deni and Jace work together, they feel the mate bond begin. But can Jace help Deni believe she can heal enough to be anyone's true mate?

 

5. Dockside by Susan Wiggs

 

With her daughter grown and flown, Nina Romano is ready to embark on a new adventure. She's waited a long time for dating, travel and chasing dreams. But just as she's beginning to enjoy being on her own, she finds herself falling for Greg Bellamy, owner of the charming Inn at Willow Lake and a single father with two kids of his own.

Greg lost his first marriage to a demanding career. Now he's determined to make a new start before it's too late. Juggling work, raising his young son and helping his nearly grown daughter face life's ultimate challenge, he has no time to fall in love. Still, with Nina Romano, love feels just right this time around.

 

6. A Proposal at the Wedding by Gina Wilkins

 

You are cordially invited…as the bachelor father of the bride falls for the sweet and single wedding planner! Don't miss the latest installment of Gina Wilkins's new Special Edition miniseries, Bride Mountain! 

 

It's the perfect place for a wedding…and Paul Drennan's lovely daughter will make a beautiful bride. But Bride Mountain Inn co-owner Bonnie Carmichael only has eyes for the father of the bride. Too bad she's already married—to the inn itself. Still, if anyone could make her think of her needs, her wants, it's this sexy single dad…. 

 

Marrying off his only child, Paul can taste freedom for the first time in two decades. What's not on his agenda is falling for a young woman with commitment for a middle name. The only aisle Paul wants to walk is on the arm of his daughter…until spending time with Bonnie makes him rethink his future plans. After all, the strangest things happen at weddings….

 

7. Fly Away Home by Kimberly Cates

 

Eve Danaher's eye for beauty has earned her renown in the fine-art community. But for all her success, her life feels empty without the love of her estranged eighteen-year-old daughter. Determined to discover the peace and happiness that has been missing in her life, Eve books a trip to rural Ireland. There she meets Michael Halloren, a handsome horse trainer who introduces her to the troubled children he cares for at Glennamura Farm. 

 

For years Eve has buried her emotions, but in the healing beauty of the Irish valley she opens herself to the warmth and compassion that surrounds her. And as Michael Halloren teaches her how powerful love can be, she becomes ever more determined to find her way back -- into her daughter's heart, and to the life she knows is her destiny.

 

8. Baby, It's You by Jane Graves

 

With only the wedding dress on her back and her honeymoon luggage in the car, Kari Worthington is running away. Determined to put her controlling father, her rigidly structured life, and the uptight groom she left at the altar in her rearview mirror, she escapes to the Texas Hill country . . . and lands on a tall, dark, and gorgeous winery owner's doorstep. All she needs is a job and a place to live until she can get back on her feet. So why is she fantasizing about losing herself in his powerful arms?

For Marc Cordero, freedom is so close he can taste it. He's devoted his life to managing the family business and being a single dad. Now with his daughter away at college and his brother taking over the winery, Marc is ready to hop on his Harley for parts unknown-until a runaway bride bursts onto the scene. Free-spirited and tantalizingly sexy, Kari excites him like no other woman has before. But when irresistible passion turns into something more, will Marc give up his future to take a chance on love?

 

9. Let Love Be by Melissa Collins

 

For Lucy Crane, the answer is simple: her daughter. When her husband is killed in a tragic accident, Lucy loses her desire to live, but only one thing keeps her going – her unborn daughter. Focusing on being a mother helps Lucy cope with her loss, but kids grow up and they leave home, eventually. Eighteen years after losing her first and only love, Lucy is faced with the opportunity to find the happiness for which she’s always longed. Her own fears become her worst enemies as she learns how to embrace love once again. 

Evan Donovan is also facing his own struggles. Forced to retire from the FDNY because of lung damage caused by 9/11, Evan moves to upstate New York where he hopes to find a little peace and quiet. Old habits die hard, and Evan’s hero complex and survivor’s guilt constantly remind him of how difficult it is to be vulnerable. But for the first time in his life, he’s tired of being alone. 

Drawing strength from one another, Lucy and Evan discover how beautiful it is to let love be a part of their lives. 

 

10. Fanning the Flames by Victoria Dahl

 

Some men are off-limits. Close friends of your ex-husband, for instance. Or firefighters who work in the same building as you. Yet despite her best judgment, librarian Lauren Foster can't help noticing fire captain Jake Davis whenever he jogs by…shirtless. They've always been friends, but all it takes is one not-so-chance meeting at a local bar and one not-quite-innocent walk home to ignite a fierce, uncontrollable desire between them.

 

Widower Jake Davis has tried to ignore the spark he feels whenever Lauren's around, but once he sees her curves in a little black dress, there's no turning back. No matter how often she says she's all wrong for him, the sexy, outspoken divorcée is driving him wild in the best possible way. Maybe she's just blowing off steam. Or maybe he can convince her to fan these flames into something deeper, hotter and truer than they ever expected….

 

Do you have any recommendation? Gimme!

 

Check out and vote on my Goodreads list: Empty Nest: Romance Novel Leads with Adult Children

This was my second MTW Series story, and proved to be just as a quick read with the added benefit that I actually liked the romance part this time around. You can find this story free in the NOOK store or in an anthology in print version. Because these stories are based on real-life charities, I won't use the star ratings.

 

Harlequin's MTW Series is designed for Harlequin writers to write a short story spotlighting a worthy charity run by women. The charity featured in this book is Casting for Recovery; the group provides fly-fishing retreats for women undergoing treatment or surviving breast cancer. Fly-fishing during the day, therapy and medical information sessions at night, along with a lot of friendship made throughout the three day event. The events in the book take place in Arizona and Atlanta; Arizona was used as it is the home base for Donna Fischer, a breast cancer survivor, former participant of the retreat, and program director for the Arizona chapter of Casting for Recovery. Her biography is at the beginning of the book. For more information, go to http://castingforrecovery.org/

 

As for the book, here is what I liked:

1) The heroine was drawn realistically, and she was not at all Mary Sue. She had her issues to work out, including waiting to hear if the cancer was cleared from her entire body. She was emotional and constantly on a rollercoaster when trying to deal with her cancer almost alone and not seeing a future for herself; then she had to deal with the fact her heart and soul still craved affection and intimacy. Then there were her issues to deal with concerning her body (namely her breasts). She lost part of one breast to surgery due to the type of cancer she developed. Lots of angst, but reality.

2) The retreat was a powerful punch that got the plot and character growth moving after both started to spin its wheels.

3) The author did not shy away from medical terms. This may be because the author herself is a breast cancer survivor (if you read this story, please continue all the way through the author's note at the end).

4) This was a romance with older characters (I venture to say late thirties to mid-forties). The hero was an old flame and at times was a little too perfect.

 

There wasn't anything I disliked about the story, but a copy editor may want to go through the story and catch the handful typos that showed up.

 

And finally, this:

 

Weddings. Modern society's version of stalking on the Serengeti.

 

Geriatric Rebels (Books We Love Mature R... I read somewhere that the author wrote this as part of a writing class. While I'm glad she's taking classes, I'm not sure it's fair to practise on the unsuspecting public like this. I'll try to give you a sense of the book:The writing was bad. Elsa said, "Dagnammit. The writing is bad", and took a swing at Mike. Mike got the feeling Elsa thought the writing was bad. He giggled and hid a whoopee cushion on her seat."I'm a Geriatric Rebel!" Mike whooped. Elsa said, "I'm not bad for my age. You look like a fool", and fell down. Because she's old. Mike thought that Elsa wasn't bad for her age. Then he threw a tray of food at somebody for no reason at all. That'll teach 'em to treat old people like children.Elsa curled up with a good book. Mike decided not to disturb her. Worse thing having your concentration broken while you're reading.That last "sentence" was actually in the book.