Fotografía de autor

Judy Duarte

Autor de Mulberry Park

90+ Obras 893 Miembros 34 Reseñas

Sobre El Autor

Judy Duarte is an award-winning romantic fiction author. She is the author of a number series including Bayside Bachelors, Fairbrook, Brighton Valley Medical Center, Texas Homecoming, Baby Chase, and Brighton Valley Babies. She is also the author of several stand-alone novels and has contributed to mostrar más a number of anthologies. (Bowker Author Biography) mostrar menos

Series

Obras de Judy Duarte

Mulberry Park (2008) 72 copias
Big Sky Baby (2003) 32 copias
Their Unexpected Family (2005) 28 copias
A Real Live Cowboy (2009) 26 copias
Almost Perfect (2003) 24 copias
And Babies Make Five (2010) 21 copias
The Matchmakers' Daddy (2005) 20 copias
Once Upon a Pregnancy (2008) 19 copias
Her Best Christmas Ever (2008) 19 copias
Entertaining Angels (2009) 18 copias
The Virgin's Makeover (2004) 18 copias
Healing Dr. Fortune (2011) 17 copias
Hailey's Hero (2005) 16 copias
Bluegrass Baby (1892) 16 copias
Their Secret Son (2005) 15 copias
Worth Fighting For (2005) 14 copias
The Cowboy's Lullaby (2007) 14 copias
From Fortune to Family Man (2017) 14 copias
Call Me Cowboy (2006) 14 copias
Romancing the Cowboy (2008) 13 copias
El hijo del millonario (2004) 13 copias
Mendoza's Miracle (2012) 13 copias
The Perfect Wife (2006) 12 copias
Race to the Altar (2009) 12 copias
Daddy On Call (2007) 12 copias
A Baby Under the Tree (2011) 12 copias
His, Hers and...Theirs? (2010) 11 copias
Marry Me, Mendoza! (2013) 10 copias
Rock-a-Bye Rancher (2006) 9 copias
His Mother's Wedding (2006) 8 copias
Family Practice (2002) 8 copias
Cowboy Courage (2002) 8 copias
A House Full of Fortunes! (2014) 7 copias
The Cowboy's Family Plan (2012) 6 copias
Tammy and the Doctor (2013) 6 copias
No Ordinary Fortune (2018) 3 copias
Anyone But a Fortune (2022) 2 copias
Fortune's Proposal [and] Healing Dr Fortune (2012) — Autor — 1 copia
Queen Of Hearts (2009) 1 copia
Bianca Gold Band 24 (2014) 1 copia

Obras relacionadas

Silver Bells [Anthology 4-in-1] (2008) — Contribuidor — 214 copias

Etiquetado

Conocimiento común

Género
female
Lugares de residencia
California, USA

Miembros

Reseñas

A good book about two people from vastly different backgrounds competing for the same business award. Sofia is a self-made woman from a poor family. She worked hard through school and setting up her financial planning business. She watched her mother and grandmother struggle to make ends meet as she grew up while watching those with more money have all the advantages. Then she suffered through the betrayal of her wealthy college boyfriend, who disrespected her because of her past. This left her with a bad taste for anyone with money. At the top of the list are the members of the Fortune family, who seem to be taking over the town of Rambling Rose.

Beau Fortune and his brother Draper have opened a branch of Fortune Investments in Rambling Rose. They work hard to give their clients the best service possible. Rather than living in the exclusive section of town, they rented a house in a "normal" development. Beau is aware of his advantages growing up but hasn't let them go to his head.

At the end of the previous book, A Soldier's Dare, Beau and Sofia had a brief conversation at the Valentine's Day dance. As she was there with someone else, Beau backed off when the other man seemed to have a problem with him. But he has never forgotten the beautiful woman in the red dress. At the beginning of this book, they meet again while dog walking and quickly connect though still without exchanging names. Beau's subsequent encounter at the dog park is with Sofia's grandmother, who, after a not-so-subtle interrogation, invites him to Sunday dinner. In the meantime, Sofia and Beau are notified that each has been nominated for a prestigious business award. But in an awkward scene, Beau overhears Sofia complaining to a friend about how those prosperous Fortunes seem to walk away with all the accolades because of their unfair advantages. That puts a damper on the budding relationship between them. Complicating matters further, as part of the competition, they are assigned to work together on a project to benefit their community.

At this point, I wanted to give Sofia a good, hard shake. She is such a reverse snob, looking down on anyone who hasn't had to struggle to succeed. Beau is hurt by her attitude but doesn't let it get to him. He is determined to do his best in the competition and let his actions speak for themselves, while Sofia takes every chance to take potshots at his job, background, and lifestyle. I loved the project they decided on - teaching high school seniors about financial responsibility. They covered budgeting, saving, taxes, loans, and even investing. (I wish my school had offered something like that!) I loved watching the students get involved in the subject and seeing how Beau and Sofia brought their personal experiences into play. I liked seeing how Sofia and Beau learned a little about each other during those classes.

I enjoyed watching the relationship between Beau and Sofia develop. Beau is a great guy, down-to-earth and good-hearted. He is attracted to Sofia and ready to show her that he's nothing like she thinks. Something proves her wrong whenever she thinks she has him pegged as a spoiled rich guy. I got to the point where I couldn't wait to see which preconception got blasted next. I especially enjoyed seeing her reaction when she discovered that he and Draper clean their own house, cut their grass, and make their meals. I liked how Beau and Sofia came to respect each other and their abilities during their time together. I was initially not very happy with the judging for the award but felt the judges redeemed themselves with their creative solution.

Their relationship is also helped by Sofia's grandmother, Maria, and her mother, Camila. From the moment she met him, Maria was sure that Beau was The One for Sofia. I loved her first meeting with Beau and her not-so-subtle interrogation before inviting him to dinner. She takes every opportunity to throw them together. She's a source of great advice for both characters when trouble arises. I ached for both Beau and Sofia when the mysterious delivery of a pink baby blanket brought Sofia's fears and insecurities back to the surface, driving a wedge between them. I felt like Sofia had earned her misery but hurt for Beau. I loved watching Beau try to find a way to show Sofia that she could trust him, but none of the "grand gestures" that other people suggested felt right. I loved the one that finally hit him as just right because of the way it showed how much he respected and admired her. I also liked that Sofia realized how wrong she'd been and that her issues, not his actions, caused the problems. I loved seeing Sofia face up to her mistakes and her scene with Beau. The ending was terrific.

The book has a secondary romance between Beau's friend, Dan, and Sofia's mom. I loved seeing them meet and experience an unexpected attraction to each other. Both have painful pasts, and I liked seeing them take their time to get to know each other. Maria is over the moon with happiness at having helped with two successful relationships.

In this third book, another mysterious gift is given to a Fortune. The first book had a sculpture; the second was a picture and a pink baby blanket in this one. No one has any idea who sent them or what they mean. I'm looking forward to reading the other books and solving the mystery.
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Denunciada
scoutmomskf | Aug 2, 2022 |
Good book. Ellie is the young and popular mayor of Rambling Rose. She loves the town and its people and is determined to do what is best for them, even if that means standing up to the wealthy Fortunes and their plans. She has had more than one run-in with Steven Fortune and his hotel plans. There's more than antagonism causing sparks between them, but she won't be seen consorting with the enemy.

But Ellie is also in a bit of a predicament. She recently ended her relationship with a man, only to discover she was pregnant with his baby. He made it plain he had no interest in being a father and left the country to pursue his career. That leaves Ellie pregnant, unmarried, and worried about the reactions of her constituents. Ellie always holds herself to very high standards and feels she's letting everyone down.

Steven is the oldest in his family, charming, good-looking, and used to things going his way. He has his vision of where he wants the Fortune properties to go, and nothing will deter him from making it happen. Clashing with Ellie is frustrating but also stimulating, and he looks forward to winning her over.

I enjoyed seeing Steven and Ellie's encounters. She focuses on the town's residents, while Steven seems more interested in the high-end tourists he envisions spending time there. I could feel her frustration as her efforts to get through to him fell on deaf ears. I especially enjoyed seeing her take him to talk to ordinary people. He's charming and easy to talk to, but he still doesn't get it.

One thing he does get is his attraction to her and how much he enjoys her company. While she resists dating him, she isn't opposed to the idea of being friends. As a friend, he offers her a marriage of convenience, giving her the cover to preserve her reputation with the town. Ellie is hesitant to accept, fearing that their chemistry could lead to heartbreak. I liked Steven's feelings of protectiveness toward Ellie and his desire to take care of her. But as they start their married life, Ellie realizes she wants more than Steven agreed to when they hatched this plan. I wanted to shake Ellie when she ran instead of talking to Steven and risking rejection. I hurt for Steven, who had no idea she was unhappy until after she left. An unexpected visitor helped Steven see the truth of his feelings. I loved the ending and seeing them finally admit their feelings to each other.

I loved the importance of family in this book - family of the blood and the heart. Both Steven and Ellie were adopted, which had a significant impact on their lives. Ellie's history made it easy to see the impact on her life and actions and why she made her decisions. Steven's backstory was easier but still profoundly affected his life. I loved how close he was to his parents and siblings.
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Denunciada
scoutmomskf | Feb 27, 2022 |
After a one night stand with Erica when on vacation, Clay realizes that he's fraternizing with an enlisted woman. But Erica winds up pregnant and not reenlisting, and Clay is injured in a training exercise, so now their relationship is free to blossom
 
Denunciada
nancynova | Nov 28, 2018 |
Eh.
If the second novel in this book had related to the 1st novel, I might have had more interest in actually reading the 2nd novel but ... it's a completely different story and since the first novel ended with such a false and rosy ending, I don't have any interest in reading the second novel.

The first novel is about a "rebel" cowboy who doesn't seem to be much of a "rebel cowboy" falling in love with a short chic with 4 daughters (who may be 4 months old or 4 days old -- it's hard to tell and they're not written clearly and never ever age or progress in their development, even though they're infants and infants develop quicker than this poorly written story progressed ... ).

The next story looked to be about a guy who lost his first wife and gets his second wife from surrogacy for the remaining two daughters he has on ice.

This author might have a fetish about pregnancy, which, unfortunate, is never even touched on in the writing because the sex that does happen is beyond vanilla.

Adrianne
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Denunciada
Adrianne_p | Oct 5, 2018 |

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Estadísticas

Obras
90
También por
2
Miembros
893
Popularidad
#28,689
Valoración
½ 3.5
Reseñas
34
ISBNs
283
Idiomas
4

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