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Jenny B. Jones, Thomas Nelson, $14.99 trade paper (320p) ISBN 978-1-59554-539-8 9781595545398
Jones's sassy style is merely one of this romance novelist's many endearing talents. Jones (Just Between You and Me) concocts a story line that, though implausible in real life, doesn't detract a bit from an engaging and funny tale that brings together two of the most unlikely love interests: Lucy Wiltshire, the independent and poor proprietress of a young women's transitional housing shelter, and Alex Sinclair, former NFL star, aspiring congressman, and wealthy co-owner of Sinclair Enterprises. Sparks fly when these two strong-minded individuals meet at a gala event and Alex's ratings rise after the gossip rags tag Lucy and Alex as a lovebird pair. Alex devises a scheme that will benefit both him and Lucy; the question is whether these two can see the plan through without killing one another first. Some subtle faith messages about trusting God despite painful pasts round out this fast-paced, lighthearted romantic escape. (Feb.)
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Larkspur Cove
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Lisa Wingate, Bethany House, $14.99 trade paper (352p) ISBN 978-0-7642-0821-8 9780764208218
A decent read from a decent writer may be faint praise, but readers will enjoy Wingate's story of goings-on in tiny Moses Lake, Tex. Following a heartbreaking divorce, Andrea Henderson and her son, Dustin, are in the town where Andrea spent childhood summers. She is trying to build a career as a social worker as her son struggles to fit in. They meet game warden Mart McClendon when Dustin gets in trouble on the lake, but there is more to the handsome game warden than meets the eye. Andrea and Mart are thrown together when they discover a little girl living with the town recluse. As the mystery of the child slowly resolves, Mart and Andrea's relationship becomes closer. Can they overcome their pasts to reach for a new future? They face more than relationship questions when the girl's mother shows up with her renegade friends. A nice tale to enjoy in front of a roaring winter fire. (Feb.)
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The Japanese Lover
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Rani Manicka, Hodder & Stoughton (IPG, dist.), $9.99 mass market (328p) ISBN 978-1-444700-33-6 9781444700336
Bestseller Manicka (The Rice Mother) spins an epic tale of love, loss, and cosmic destiny in her gripping and eloquent third novel, set against the lush backdrop of Malaya throughout the political and cultural turmoil of the 20th century. Prophesied at birth to have a wealthy but disastrous marriage, Parvathi, a poor Ceylonese girl, is married to a powerful man who despises her; she survives life in his house by devoting herself to her children, to a kindly servant, and to Maya, a powerful healer. When Japanese soldiers invade during WWII, she experiences love and passion for the first time in the arms of a commanding officer named Hattori. Manicka's lush, subtle, and arresting story stands out for its unforgettable characters and its emphasis on familial love and friendship as equally (if not more) important than romantic love; indeed, to call this a romance would be misleading. Unfortunately, this otherwise engrossing work is marred by intrusive New Age spirituality, often turning Maya into little more than a mouthpiece, and a glossing over of Japanese war crimes in Malaysia. (Feb.)
Playing for Keeps
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LuAnn McLane, Signet Eclipse, $6.99 mass market (304p) ISBN 978-0-451-23276-2 9780451232762
McLane's trademark devilish dialogue is in fine form for this series launch set in a fictional Kentucky town. Recently dumped by his hit soap opera, former Major League baseball player Noah Falcon has returned home for a bit of R&R before braving the wider world again. Olivia Lawson, a schoolmarm with a voice "like Southern Comfort sliding over cracked ice," will never let Noah forget that he snubbed her back when she was Cricket Creek High School's resident bookworm, though he's quick to admire the ways she's blossomed since then. In a narrative long on "no place like home" parables, the erotic frisson that occurs when the former classmates star together in a local play prevents the story from becoming clichéd, and a lavish finale brings the fairy tale romance to a perfect conclusion. (Mar.)
An Unlikely Countess
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Jo Beverley, Signet, $7.99 mass market (432p) ISBN 978-0-451-23271-7 9780451232717
Beverley's 11th Malloren World romance, which starts a new trilogy, is a delightful, deftly plotted exploration of social class, gender roles, and romance. Prudence Youlgrave's expectations are reasonable for an impoverished woman in 1765 Yorkshire: she hopes to improve her station by marrying well. When roguish Catesby Burgoyne rescues her from robbers and persuades her to marry him, both are shocked by their impulsiveness and then stunned when Cate's older brother's death makes him the implausible earl of Malzard and Prudence an improbable countess. Prudence and Cate's path to love is rife with obstacles and charming secondary characters such as the formidable Lady Arradale. Though the final confrontation with Prudence's former fiancé is disappointingly anticlimactic, the romance is otherwise charming and refreshingly restrained. (Mar.)
Primal Bonds
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Jennifer Ashley, Berkley Sensation, $7.99 mass market (320p) ISBN 978-0-425-24078-6 9780425240786
Ashley, who writes urban fantasy as Allyson James, follows her 2010 paranormal romance, Pride Mates, with another sexually charged and imaginative tale. Humans force shape-shifters to live in shantytowns and wear fae-made magical collars that keep them from using their animal powers. Half-fae, half-lupine shifter Andrea Gray, fleeing a forced mate-claim in her hometown, heads to the Shiftertown in Austin, Tex., where she gets protection from a mate-claim in name only with feline shifter Sean Morrissey. In a twist on the pretend marriage trope, the contract gives decidedly nonsubmissive Andrea and alpha male Sean license to explore their burning passion in electrifying detail. Andrea's mysterious, surprising background and special abilities enhance the plot, as do the interesting supporting characters. Occasional clunky backstory dumps will help new readers grasp the many story line intricacies, and returning fans will love the quick pace and smart, skilled writing. (Mar.)
A Good Man Is Hard to Find
ReShonda Tate Billingsley, Gallery, $15 trade paper (288p) ISBN 978-1-4391-8350-2 9781439183502
Investigative journalist Ava Cole is shocked when her news magazine folds and she's assigned to dig up celebrity dirt for its tabloid sister publication, the National Star, where "if you get killed trying to gather a story for them, they'll send flowers to your funeral, then send another reporter to finish the story." She's surprisingly quick to embrace the lavish lifestyle her new job affords as she jets down to Aruba to cover superstar India Wright's wedding. As Ava works to expose the secrets at the heart of pop culture's most sizzling romance, she heads into her own perilous love triangle with Julian, India's sexy manager, and Cliff, a handsome colleague at the Star. Billingsley's engaging voice will keep readers turning the pages and savoring each scandalous revelation. (Mar.)
From Wine to Water
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Carolyn Brown, Avalon, $23.95 (192p) ISBN 978-0-8034-7706-3 9780803477063
In the first of the Angels & Outlaws historical romance series, Tyrell Fannin and his two cousins leave 1836 Mississippi on the trail of a bandit who killed Tyrell's uncle. They get to San Antonio to find that the bandit has been killed in a bank robbery, and after letting off steam in a saloon fight, they land in jail. Fortunately, they get a chance to shorten their sentences when three "nuns" need an escort home to Louisiana. A week into the journey, the Lavalle sisters take off their fake habits, don pants, ride astride, and claim they can outshoot any of the men. The sixsome encounter numerous western clichés (Comanche who have captured a little white girl, a murdered woman bent over a crying baby, a tornado, etc.) as Delia Lavalle captures Tyrell's heart in this sweet but predictable tale. (Mar.)
Man Enough for Me
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Rhonda Bowen, Kensington/Dafina, $14 trade paper (320p) ISBN 978-0-7582-5956-1 9780758259561
Bowen's debut sends a clear message that people need to "let God lead you right to where he wants you to be," wrapped in a sweet Christian romance package. Jules, hospital publicist by day and gospel promoter by night, takes up with Germaine, owner of a record shop and nightclub. Her friends and mother are impressed, but Jules worries about her choices when an event at the record shop suggests that Germaine's morals aren't all they could be. The sassy dialogue flows well, but the descriptions of people and places sound stilted. Religious musings outnumber snuggles and kisses, and the thin plot leaves Germaine squeaky clean and available to Jules as she realigns the rest of her life to her true purpose. Christian romance fans who find most modern romances too steamy will feel on safe ground with this uncomplicated tale. (Mar.)
A Light at Winter's End
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Julia London, Pocket, $7.99 mass market (392p) ISBN 978-1-4391-7649-8 9781439176498
London follows 2010's Summer of Two Wishes with an emotional contemporary western about people struggling to do the right things. Wyatt Clark's wife left him when her first husband, erroneously reported killed in Afghanistan, returned. Two years later, Wyatt wallows in solitary bitterness on his Texas ranch. Holly Fisher is about to launch her long-dreamed-of career as an Austin, Tex., songwriter when her estranged drug-addicted sister, Hannah, shows up on Holly's doorstep, drops off baby Mason, and heads to rehab. Retreating to the old family homestead, Holly finds herself falling both for the taciturn cowboy next door and for the little boy in her care. London's effective wordcraft and plotting keep readers engaged as she draws drama from her characters' inner strife, breathing life into the journey from quiet desperation and loneliness to happiness and self-discovery. (Mar.)
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