Becky Wade Is the New Name to Know in
Contemporary Romance
Former Marine Jake Porter has far deeper scars than the one that
marks his face. He struggles with symptoms of PTSD, lives a solitary life, and
avoids relationships.
When Lyndie James, Jake’s childhood best friend, lands back in
Holley, Texas, Jake cautiously hires her to exercise his Thoroughbreds. Lyndie
is tender-hearted, fiercely determined, and afraid of nothing, just like she was
as a child. Jake pairs her with Silver Leaf, a horse full of promise but lacking
in results, hoping she can solve the mystery of the stallion’s reluctance to
run.
Though Jake and Lyndie have grown into very different adults, the
bond that existed during their childhood still ties them together. Against
Jake’s will, Lyndie’s sparkling, optimistic personality begins to tear down the
walls he’s built around his heart. A glimmer of the hope he’d thought he’d lost
returns, but fears and regrets still plague him. Will Jake ever be able to love
Lyndie like she deserves, or is his heart too shattered to mend?
MY REVIEW: Two hearts that bonded in childhood, then went in
very different directions, come full circle in "A Love Like Ours", an
inspirational contemporary romance from author Becky Wade. Jake Porter's
childhood days were spent riding horses and finding one new adventure after
another in the company of his two brothers and his best friend, Lyndie James.
Nothing could separate Jake and Lyndie--until the fateful day that Lyndie's
family moved far away and left Jake and his broken heart behind. Twenty years
later, Lyndie returns to Holley, Texas where Jake is now the trainer at
Whispering Creek Ranch's Thoroughbred Farm. Jake is not the boy that Lyndie once
knew. Tall and ruggedly handsome, bearing a facial scar from a devastating
incident during his service in the Marines, Jake also suffers from PTSD. He
lives a somewhat solitary life, has trust issues, and guards his heart with
Marine fierceness. Lyndie is still beautiful, full of life, fearless, and
blessed with an abiding faith. Reluctantly, Jake allows Lyndie to work with
special needs horses, which includes riding and retraining. Even while he fears
for her safety, the magic she works on the horses begins to work its spell on
Jake as well, and he starts to allow himself to feel real emotions once again.
However there are many issues which must be resolved before these long-separated
loving hearts are truly reunited. Will Lyndie's great faith and Jake's
rediscovered hope be strong enough to bring them back together and keep them
together for a life of lasting love and happiness? A moving and inspiring love
story from wonderful writer Becky Wade.
Review Copy Gratis Bethany
House Books
Ty Porter has always been irresistible to Celia
Park. All through high school--irresistible. When their paths cross again after
college--still irresistible. This time, though, Ty seems to feel
exactly the same way about Celia. Their whirlwind romance deposits them at a
street-corner Las Vegas wedding chapel.
The next morning they
wake to a marriage certificate and a dose of cold reality. Celia's ready to be
Ty's wife, but Ty's not ready to be her husband. He's a professional bull rider;
he lives on the road, and he's long planned to settle down with the hometown
girl he's known since childhood.
Five and a half years
pass. Celia's buried her dreams so that she can afford to raise her daughter.
Ty's achieved all of his goals. Or thought he had, until he looks again into the
eyes of the woman he couldn't forget and into the face of the child he never
knew he had.
How much will Ty sacrifice to win back Celia's trust and prove to her that their spontaneous marriage can still become the love of a lifetime?
MY
REVIEW: "Meant
to be Mine" drew me in, turned me inside out and upside down, and then set me
right again. Author Becky Wade is an extremely gifted storyteller, effortlessly
developing her characters and adding depth to the story line while treating her
readers to appealing touches of humor. Celia Park had a nomadic childhood, with
her father's job moving the family every few years to a new city. As they
settled into Plano, Texas just as Celia was about to start high school, she was
miserable and found little to interest her in her new home. That all changed
when Ty Porter came into her life. A year ahead of her in school, he shared a
class with her and soon had her mesmerized. Good-looking and much too charming
for his own good, Ty sailed through life, surviving one escapade after another,
and remaining well-liked through it all. Celia was infatuated with him, and
while he dated the most beautiful and popular girls in school, he was always
kind to Celia. After he graduated, Ty enlisted in the Marines. A year later,
after her own graduation, Celia went away to college in Oregon. It would be over
seven years before she would see Ty again. By then, he'd become a successful
bull rider, and when a friend persuades Celia to attend one of Ty's events in
Las Vegas, she and Ty fall into a whirlwind romance. Abandoning her natural
common sense and practicality, Celia headily agrees when an inebriated Ty rushes
her into a kitschy Vegas wedding. The next morning, sober and sorry, Ty crushes
Celia by telling her that he made a mistake and that he loves someone else. His
bluntness is almost bone-shattering, but a devastated Celia manages to move on.
Over five years later, Ty is now a three-time world champion bull rider--wealthy
and a certified celebrity. Still legally married to Celia, and wanting to tie up
loose ends, Ty seeks her out. He finds Celia to be more lovely and endearing
than ever, and she has a very big secret that will change Ty's life forever.
When Ty discovers that Celia never wanted him to know that she gave birth to his
daughter, Addie, his world is rocked. He wants his child, and he wants her
mother too, but he'll have to work hard to gain Celia's trust. Both Celia and Ty
have much to learn about themselves and about each other. A near-tragedy brings
them together in close circumstances, and the two of them want the best for
their child. Having everything come to him so easily in life, Ty had never spent
much time contemplating his faith. Having suffered some major disappointments,
Celia had let her love for Addie and her anger at Ty propel her through her own
life. She too had drifted away from faith and prayer. Can Ty let go of his
long-held guilt and accept a newfound faith? Can Celia truly forgive both Ty and
herself and reach out for a love and joy she never expected? A recommended read
for fans of redemption, renewal, and a romance worth the
wait.
Review Copy Gratis Bethany House
Books
When Meg
Cole’s father dies unexpectedly, she becomes the majority shareholder of his oil
company and the single inheritor of his fortune. Though Meg is soft-spoken and
tenderhearted–more interested in art than in oil–she’s forced to return home to
Texas and to Whispering Creek Ranch to take up the reins of her father’s
empire.
The last thing she has the patience or the sanity to deal with? Her father’s thoroughbred racehorse farm. She gives its manager, Bo Porter, six months to close the place down.
Bo’s determined to resent the woman who’s decided to rob him of his dream. But instead of anger, Meg evokes within him a profound desire to protect. The more time he spends with her, the more he longs to overcome every obstacle that separates them–her wealth, his unworthiness, her family’s outrage–and earn the right to love her.
But just when Meg begins to realize that Bo might be the one thing on the ranch worth keeping, their fragile bond is viciously broken by a force from Meg’s past. Can their love–and their belief that God can work through every circumstance–survive?
ALSO BY BECKY WADE
Kate Donovan is burned out on work,
worn down by her dating relationships, and in need of an adventure. When her
grandmother asks her to accompany her to Redbud, Pennsylvania, to restore the
grand old house she grew up in, Kate jumps at the chance.
Upon her arrival in Redbud, Kate meets Matt Jarreau, the man hired to renovate the house. Kate can't help being attracted to him, drawn by both his good looks and something else she can't quite put her finger on. He's clearly wounded--hiding from people, from God, and from his past. Yet Kate sets her stubborn heart on bringing him out of the dark and back into the light... whether he likes it or not.
When the stilted, uncomfortable interactions between Kate and Matt slowly shift into something more, is God finally answering the longing of her heart? Or will Kate be required to give up more than she ever dreamed?
MY REVIEW: "My Stubborn Heart", from author Becky Wade, is such
a delight! I expected a good read, and I was rewarded with a great read. The
heroine, Kate Donovan, is a woman of heart and faith. She thinks herself "to be
plain", and she doesn't realize her own special appeal. However, someone else
does find her very appealing, much to his dismay. Former hockey superstar Matt
Jarreau lost his young wife to cancer, and his grief caused him to leave his
success and celebrity life behind. He headed home to Redbud, PA and began to
work as a house renovator. When Kate and her grandmother journey to Redbud to
restore their grand old family home, Matt is hired to bring the old house back
to life. Kate is more than ready for a change, having suffered through two
painful relationships and feeling stress from work-related issues. She works at
an emergency residential center for abused and at-risk children, and the suicide
of one of the young girls who had been in and out of emergency care left a deep
emotional impact on Kate. Matt wants to be left alone in misery and memories,
but Kate takes an interest in bringing him back to the land of the living. Each
day, no matter how he objects, she spends time with him, talking to him, and
gradually drawing him in to the circle of friends that she and her grandmother
share. Her grandmother is quite a lady! A fantastic cook, a wise woman, and a
determined matchmaker. She thinks Kate and Matt are just right for each other.
In time, against his will, Matt's frozen heart begins to thaw, and he becomes
intrigued by Kate, whom he compares to Audrey Hepburn. He even starts to watch
movies featuring Audrey Hepburn. Kate follows her heart, praying for healing for
Matt, and seeking guidance in how to help such a troubled man. She sees that he
wants and needs to return to thing he does best, professional hockey, and she
encourages him to go back to the career at which he excelled. Along the way,
they meet and become friends with a very interesting group of characters, and
there are many entertaining moments in the story line. The relationship between
Kate and Matt, with its humor and poignancy, and its great heart and faith, is
really something special. It takes a strong person to let someone go for their
own good and hope that they will come back to you. You have to be "right with
yourself" before you can really be right for someone else. A recommended read
for lovers of inspirational romance.
Review Copy Gratis Bethany House
Becky and her husband lived overseas in the Caribbean and Australia before settling in Dallas, Texas. It was during her years abroad that Becky's passion for reading turned into a passion for writing. She published three historical romances with Avon Books, then put her career on hold for several years to care for her three kids, then recently returned to writing sheerly for the love of it. She felt led to move to the genre of contemporary Christian romance and couldn’t be more thrilled with it.
These days Becky can be found failing but trying to keep up with her housework, sweating at the gym, carting her kids around town, playing tennis, hunched over her computer, eating chocolate, or collapsed on the sofa watching TV with her husband.
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