Friday, July 12, 2013

[Book Review] California Homecoming by Casey Dawes


California Homecoming
by Casey Dawes

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BLURB:

When Sarah Ladina purchased an old Victorian in Costanoa with plans to turn it into a high-end destination inn, she had no idea life could get so complicated. Well, maybe she did. As an unwed pregnant woman who couldn’t cook, she had her work cut out for her. A good-looking disabled veteran, a doctor who orders modified bed rest, and an ex who’s trying to get back into her life make her wonder if she’ll ever be able to stand on her own and open the inn in time for her mother’s best friend’s wedding.

After returning from duty in the Middle East wounded in both body and spirit, Hunter Evans is in search of employment and a home, but finding a job has been tough and housing doesn’t come cheap in Costanoa, the town that he loves the most on the California Coast. Can he strike a deal with the pretty innkeeper to trade a room for handy work?


Sunday morning Hunter pressed a shirt and put it on, along with his best khakis. He thought about picking up a bunch of flowers on the way, but laughed at himself.  He was trying to find a room, not a relationship.

“Oh, it’s you again,” Sarah said when she opened the door, the dog standing next to her. She was frowning.

Against all reason, something about her made him want to scoop her up in his arms and hug her. Because her t-shirt and jeans were dripping with dust, cobwebs, and streaks of soap, it was probably a bad idea, but her short height and big brown eyes gave her an appealing elfin look. He’d always been a sucker for Eowyn in Lord of the Rings.

“I still don’t have any rooms,” Sarah continued and began to shut the door.

“Wait,” he said.

She stopped. “Why should I?”

He smiled. Considering their size difference, she really had no choice. But he bet she’d fight him with every ounce of her strength.

She’d probably fight like a girl -- nasty.

“This is an inn, isn’t it?” he asked.

She smirked at him. “It’s an unopened inn. No room. Get the picture?” She started to inch the door closed.

This time he shoved his foot in the gap. The swinging door clanked on his prosthetic.

Sarah gasped. “I’m so sorry!”

He grinned. “I’m not. It would have hurt a lot more on the other leg.”


BUY LINKS:

Amazon / iTunes / Kobo


AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Author Casey Dawes lives and writes on the bank of the Clark Fork River in Montana with the love of her life and two cats who think they own the joint. To learn more about Casey, visit her website:  www.stories-about-love.com.

Website:  www.stories-about-love.com

Twitter: @CaseyDawesAutho

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wisewomanshining

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Casey-Dawes/177311175677765

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/caseydawes/

GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5313263-casey-dawes



Should I be ashamed that I love stories with broken characters? California Homecoming is full of hurt, pain and challenges, but luckily Sarah and Hunter find each other to make it through the tough times. Sarah, a newly single and pregnant woman, has to make a life for herself and her baby. She buys a Victorian house to convert into an inn. Hunter, a Marines vet who was injured and has a prosthetic, wants to buy the house or at least live in it since it was his childhood home. Besides all that, Hunter has bad memories from his past and a poor father relationship haunting him. I am a sucker for heroes who are broken and the heroine who helps fix him. However, I think they both do that for each other. I would've liked to have seen some secondary characters come off as more "real." For example, Mandy is just a bit overzealous and Hunter's dad is a bit over the top. I asked myself several times, "Really?" But I fell in love with Hunter. He made the book for me. A real hero in too many ways. 

California Homecoming earns 3 Winks from Flirting with Romance



Casey will be awarding a bottle of Santa Cruz Mountain Pinot Noir (a wine served in CaliforniaHomecoming)(US ONLY) OR a $25 Amazon gift certificate (winner's choice) to a randomly drawn commenter during this tour and her Virtual Book Tour, as well as donating $20.00 to Fisher House (http://www.fisherhouse.org/donate/) in honor or memory of a serviceperson of the winner's choice. At each stop, Casey will be donating on behalf of one randomly drawn host $5.00 to Fisher House (http://www.fisherhouse.org/donate/) in honor or memory of a serviceperson of the host’s choice.

Leave a comment below with a correct email!




13 comments:

  1. Thank you for your review. I am looking forward to reading more about Sarah & Hunter.

    marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

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  2. Thanks for a really great tour, I will have to add California Homecoming to the books I want to read this summer

    fencingromein at hotmail dot com

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  3. Thank you for hosting and your thoughtful review. Mary and Shannon, thanks for stopping by again! I hope you enjoy California Homecoming!

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  4. If you think Hunter's father was over the top, you should have met my dad. He didn't even have the decency to put pictures of other women behind closed doors. They were displayed on the living room "photo wall." :-((

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  5. I love the premise of the story and have already added it to my read list.

    Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com

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  6. Well, it's the last day of the tour and I want to say I've enjoyed following you around, learning more about you and your books. So, thanks for a good time!
    kareninnc at gmail dot com

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  7. Hi again Casey!

    It's been another great tour and I've had lots of fun again! You know how to throw blog tours! lol Thanks so much for sharing all your posts and the reviews from the blog hosts. It's been great!

    andralynn7 AT gmail DOT com

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    Replies
    1. I couldn't have done it without the support of Goddess Fish and my tour hosts. They were amazing!
      Casey

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  8. Melinda...LOL...I too love wounded/broken/haunted heroes, and especially military veterans. I'm a sucker for those romance stories.
    catherinelee100 at gmail dot com

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  9. Thank you for hosting and reading my book, Melinda. I couldn't do this without the support of people like you. Casey

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