Mulberry Moon - Catherine Anderson

After a career on the rodeo circuit, Ben Sterling longs to settle down on his farm and start a family like his brothers. He’s searched all over for the woman of his dreams. Yet the only one to spark his interest is the new owner of the local café. Getting her attention, however, won’t be easy.
 
Sissy Sue Bentley has worked hard to make it on her own, and she doesn’t need another man in her life. From her alcoholic father to the men she’s dated, who were after only one thing, they are nothing but trouble.

Except Ben keeps showing up whenever she really needs help. Sissy struggles to deny her growing feelings for him—but soon Ben’s tender concern has her hoping for a happier future. Then her past comes barreling back into her life, and it will take more than the love in Ben’s heart to hold them together.

I had a hard time deciding between three or four stars which frustrates me because I was anticipating this installment so much.

However it was mostly a character flaw that prevented me from voting it up to four.

Sissy lived up to her name too often too much. Sissy was ridiculous, Sissy was childish, unstable, insecure and more. That kind of personality doesn't mesh well with what I look for in a female lead in a story like this. At the same time I really liked Ben.

Yet I wanted to shake him and tell him to drop Sissy but he was king and kept with it - which is admirable considering how determined he is.

There was plenty of good interactions and funny scenes that made me laugh I just didn't care for Sissy as a person, I didn't like Sissy and Ben as a couple and that bogged down how I felt about this book.

Catherine Anderson

 This title will be available January 3rd 2016!

Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews received a print copy. All thoughts, comments and ratings are my own.

Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews received a print copy in exchange for an honest review from the publisher.

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New Leaf by Catherine Anderson
Have read some of the author's other works and have enjoyed the story.
This one starts out in Mystic Creek where a woman, Tabbath runs the local nutritional health store, lives above it.
The town is small so it doesn't take much to excite some of the residents-especially when they can watch her dance provocatively with loud music.
That makes them call the sheriff's deputy and he has keys to all the main street stores and notifies her she has to turn the music down, and get some blinds.
He tries to befriend her with coffee but she needs to keep her distance, keep to herself as her daughter who's living with her ex has temporary custody.
She does summon him for help, with a proposition....He's attracted to her but knows he should not date the locals. Her proposition is so much more than he anticipated and he has a lawyer friend check out what she's told him.
Not very predictable when he finds out what her real situation is, nor his reaction. Like how he explains all the horse details to her in a way to make her understand and make her feel at home.
Lots of other family members in the picture and it takes time to understand who they all are.  Like the travel to the city and the things they do there...things don't go according to plan, as in real life either which makes this a  good read.
Romance and sex scenes and an excerpt from the next in the series is included.
Won this in a contest.

New Leaf (Mystic Creek #2) by Catherine Anderson

When Taffeta Brown was viciously betrayed by her wealthy husband, she lost everything—including custody of their daughter, Sarah. Now that Taffy has moved to Mystic Creek, Oregon, to start over, she unexpectedly meets the one man who might help her get Sarah back.
 
Barney Sterling, a local lawman, finds himself drawn to the lovely, guarded Taffy, but he’s stunned by her proposition—that they marry immediately to improve her chances of regaining custody of her daughter. Barney takes marriage too seriously to commit himself to a woman he hardly knows. Yet soon his sympathies fall with the desperate Taffy, and pretending to be in love becomes the easiest part of the plan. But they have no idea what they’re up against, or what they’re willing to risk to make a miracle come true in Mystic Creek.

My Review:

New Leaf is so precious. I love Mystic Creek. I love Taff and Barney, I love the redeeming and clearing your past and finding yourself and a happy ending Catherine brings so much to the table this time with Taffy's secret background and our Fife silliness. I love all her characters its fun its warm its a town you wish still existed today. I had a great time reading this book, it really helped cheer me up during a down period in the holiday season.

Thank you Catherine for a fantastic read.

My Rating:

5 Stars

Reviewed By: Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews
http://kkmalott.booklikes.com/


Note: I received a print copy in exchange for an honest review from Berkley/NAL/Penguin

http://witandsin.blogspot.com/2015/12/review-new-leaf-by-catherine-anderson.html

Taffeta Brown has moved to Mystic Creek in order to rebuild her life and regain custody of her daughter. She has no interest in attracting attention and having her past come to light, so when handsome deputy Barney Sterling catches her eye, she decides to keep her interactions with him strictly in the realm of nighttime fantasies. Then a late-night noise complaint throws her in Barney’s path and suddenly she has his attention. It’s then that Taffeta decides to change her plan of action. She needs help to get her daughter back and who better to assist her than a lawman with a sterling reputation? Taffeta proposes a marriage of convenience to improve her chances and repair her reputation, and to her surprise, Barney agrees. But somewhere along the line, what starts as a marriage-in-name-only begins to feel all too real…

New Leaf is a somewhat difficult book for me to review. On the one hand, it’s sweet and charming, featuring characters who are nearly perfect. On the other hand, there’s something just slightly off about the central characters and their actions that kept me from enjoying the story. To start, everyone in the story reads far, far older than the author tells readers they are. It makes sense in some ways for Taffeta, who has lived a hard life and thus would be more mature than her years. Barney, however, shocked me when I learned he was under thirty. When you add in the fact that the main characters – all born and raised Oregonians – speak like they’re from the South, it’s impossible not to be pulled out of the story by the characters’ speech. Everything about this story felt old-fashioned – which I would enjoy – but it wasn’t at all organic. The pacing was uneven, the type of story it was changed and not in a seamless way. Most of all, I found myself deeply frustrated by Barney. He’s supposed to be this perfect hero with a heart of gold, and most of the time he reads that way, to an unbelievable extent. However, he was incredibly focused on Taffeta’s looks, not noticing her until she wore makeup, then asking her over and over to dress sexier and alter her appearance.

New Leaf isn’t a bad book, but it wasn’t my cup of tea. The story has charm in parts and all the good guys wear white hats while the bad guys wear black. However, the dialogue was stilted, I never connected with the characters as much as I wanted to, I couldn’t suspend disbelief well enough to enjoy the book, and the last quarter of the story took a religious bent I was not expecting. I don’t think I’ll be returning to Mystic Creek, but I would try Catherine Anderson’s work again in the future.


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