GRR Reviews A Mother For Christmas by Jackie Weger

Single dad Decker and his 8-year-old daughter need to renovate a Victorian in 30 days (by Christmas) or he'll lose the house, but his decorator just ran off on a honeymoon. That left Annalise, the decorator's assistant, shouldering the workload. Annalise is always sad but seems competent in her job, and bonded with his daughter quickly. There may be a spark between the couple... THEN he learned the cause of her sadness... and why they bonded so quickly... 

The twist was practically advertised, but the author did the best to distract us with red herrings. It's a Christmas story, so some incredulity is expected. Not bad, but not one of the author's best efforts. 3.5/5

GRR Reviews Finding Home by Jackie Weger

Phoebe is just 24, but she knows how to fend for herself... even with two of her siblings in tow. However, she's trying to find a home for her clan, and she's running out of cash and gas. Things looked REALLY bleak when she backed into Gage Morgan's truck, and he decided to hold her bumper (with the license plate) hostage until she comes up with $70. She doesn't even have $7, but what she does is a ton of pride and ingenuity. With a lot of fast-talking (and emotional blackmail/ con) she managed to talk herself into Morgan's home and became a babysitter/housekeeper for Morgan and his little girl, while she finds work nearby. It's clear that Morgan's been hurt before, and isn't about to trust any women ever again...

Very different from the author's previous works. Love the language, as Phoebe, let's just say, lacks education, just a lot of "country smarts", and the vocabulary shows. You can laugh at Phoebe's attempt to talk herself out of a jam... or to express love, and how it still works out. 5/5

GRR Reviews Count The Roses by Jackie Weger

Count the Roses is a romance about two hurt people, both commitment-shy, meet. Add fish out of water and different worlds, and it's a well polished romance, but I honestly don't feel too much beyond the normal.

Jennifer Dewitt was betrayed and jilted by a man she thought loved her but turned out only to need her connections to her father to get a job. She was also tired of her mother trying to set up her life, forcing her to go into acting. She departed the East Coast for a brand new life in New Orleans, and worked her way up from ground level in a hotel, and got to catering manager, but she's still barely making do. That is, until she encountered Adrien Merrill. Adrien Merrill is Cajun Royalty... he still has a plantation, and he actually owns the hotel Jennifer works at. An encounter between Adrien and Jennifer at the hotel had Adrien intrigued, but Adrien was commitment shy after his previous wife hated plantation life ("boring") and actually had an abortion after their divorce, made him wary of "city girls" and "northerners". But Jennifer was nothing like that. But Jennifer's life experience had taught her to rely on no one, and Adrien's southern charm seems so... smothering. Yet they can't get over each other...

The southern charm was nice but didn't feel as southern as some of the other southern charm romances I've read. The characters just feel a bit flat compared to author's other efforts.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Woman determined to make her own way in the world falls for the cajun royalty and technically her boss

Tropes: hot for boss, betrayed, fish out of water, resort

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews No Perfect Fate by Jackie Weger

No Perfect Fate used a trope start, but managed to populate it with good characters and managed a successful twist at the end to make the ending exciting.

Cleo Anderson had never been good with people, and she sometimes argues with a voice in her head. She thought she found the right man, ignored the warning voice in her head, married him, only to realize the guy's actually bi and only used her to put himself through law school. Cleo bought a camper and traveled the US alone, and ended up at a fishing camp in the wilds of the Okefenokee Swamp, Louisiana, where you get to see bears, gators, and snakes as practical neighbors. The owner was kind, the camp pace slow, and things are okay, then Cleo met Fletcher and his goddaughter, Katie, dying of cancer. Fletcher is a lawyer who's taking time off to deal with Katie's terminal illness... Katie knew the end is coming soon. Cleo's heart went out to the brave little girl, and Fletcher made her feel all gooey inside. But her voice is still doubting. When a swamp fire threatened the camp, and Katie's illness took a turn for the worse, it will be up to Fletcher and Cleo to get everyone out alive... and deal with the doubts in their hearts, even as a threat from her past made an appearance...

At first, I thought Cleo was schizophrenic, but the way the author dealt with it was the voice basically went away "You don't need me anymore" after Cleo and Fletcher got married, in the final page of the book. A little melodramatic, and the part about Katie struggling with her condition was heart-wrenching, but it's *almost* a distraction from the romance itself. The twist later however made up for it, and the voice... is almost a separate character. And the way that ended... was kinda sad, but satisfying ending.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Woman needing a fresh start found a man caring for his dying niece; can they find love among danger in the swamp?

Tropes: small town, road trip. single parent, sick/comfort, conspiracy

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews No Perfect Secret by Jackie Weger

No Perfect Secret is a contemporary romance with elements of suspense about the aftermath of a betrayal, as well as an unexpected affection and love. However, I find the romance slightly forced, despite the excellent twists as the mystery was slowly revealed.

Anna Nesmith had it all... a great marriage, a dream job, a beautiful house, and a group of great friends. But below the surface, things are not what they seem. Despite years of trying she and her husband did not produce any babies. She had to put up with her harping mother-in-law with mental issues. When her husband did not come home for the Holidays, but instead, a state department investigator called Frank Caburn showed up, Anna's life started to unravel. It appears that her husband had kept a lot from her... well beyond his work... Frank Caburn knew the truth, and seeing the devastation his own investigation had caused in Anna's life brought out Frank's protective instincts. He didn't count on getting stabbed by Anna's crazy mother-in-law or winning Anna's affection, even though he wanted it. But how much can he reveal without jeopardizing his investigation, and will she still want him after knowing he kept all the secrets?

The mystery slow reveal for Anna was done in stages and it kept things really tense. On the other hand, I find the romance between Frank and Anna a bit forced, and falls into the "protector falling for the protectee" trope except there is no external threat to push them together.

Category: Romantic Suspense

Primary Plot: Housewife's perfect life fell apart when a government investigator came to her door; her husband kept too many secrets from her...

Tropes: conspiracy, family secrets, law enforcement,s different worlds, hurt/comfort

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews No Perfect Destiny by Jackie Weger

No Perfect Destiny is an interesting tale of "suspect falls for the detective (or vice versa)" trope, with a wounded FMC trying to live her life as a single mother until another false accusation sent her into fight or flight mode.

Leah Spencer struggled to make a decent living with her two kids after a bitter divorce and a scandal that sent her running to a different part of the country. She thought she found a good home on Galveston Island and her job as was good as head of finance. But the owner's retiring, and when the company's being audited as a prelude to the sale, a good chunk of money is missing. The spotlight fell on Leah, and the head investigator, Leo Garvey, knew Leah is hiding something, but he's not sure it had anything to do with this case. Leah's refusal to submit to a polygraph only focused more attention on her. Leo tries to get closer to Leah, as Leo knew he had already fallen for Leah and her ready-made family. Leah likes the detective, but she cannot be sure if his charms are being used to wheedle evidence out of her, or of genuine concern. The company owner is ready to accuse Leah of embezzlement as nothing is going to derail his retirement, something is got to give... and Leah's secret will soon be exposed... And Leo struggles to expose the real culprit before Leah runs again...

There was a good twist at the end when the REAL culprit was revealed (and it's a good twist). The chemistry between Leah and Leo was a little weak, IMHO, but once the relationship got going it works okay. There is one logical problem, which may be explainable, or not.

SPOILER AHEAD

YES, I WARNED YOU

How can the head of finance not recognize that the amount of missing money was spread out over multiple years, and it obviously predated her arrival?

If you can ignore this obvious fact-check question, the story is fine.

Category: Contemporary / romantic suspense

Primary Plot: Single Mother Settling Down To Get Away From False Accusations Faces Off Against Detective When She's Accused Again

Tropes: law enforcement, disguise, single parent,

Overall Rating:  4/5