Julie N Ford

This was a bitter sweet story that I read over Valentine's day. It reminded me a bit of the movie How Stella Got her Groove Back and I guess it's because Finley needed to get her groove back too. Finley had been stuck in a stagnant marriage for quite some time. Finally catching her husband cheating on her was the push she needed to end things. She probably would have just stayed in the marriage and spent her life unhappy if not for that.
Her best friend seems to be in a rush to get her into another relationship, but she has another motive for wanting to make sure that Finley has someone in her life to lean on.


I received an advance copy for review… (más)

Kelly Grace Pickens is in love and about to be married--or so she thinks. Her fiance Trevor, who is also her manager for struggling singing career, doesn't show up for the wedding. On the same day, she learns that she's not getting the touring gig she and Trevor had been counting on. She's emotionally devastated and publicly humiliated, and she soon learns that she's also homeless and destitute. Trevor hasn't actually been paying the mortgage on her condo as he had claimed. She's also left holding the bill for the very expensive wedding that didn't happen.

What's a girl to do? Into the breach steps her cousin Sissy, co-producer of the reality show, Count Down to Love. It's a show that will be instantly familiar to anyone who has ever watched, or seen the ads for, The Bachelor, or Who Wants to Marry a Millionaire. She descends on Kelly while she's sitting on the front porch of her daddy's home, eating her wedding cake, because daddy's not home and her keys are locked up in her foreclosed condo. Kelly needs someplace to be, and some way to earn some money. Sissy, it turns out, needs a replacement contestant for Count Down, because the "naive, wholesome girl" is now in the hospital with anorexia and won't be out in time to start shooting. Kelly, a genuinely naive, wholesome girl, daughter of a Baptist minister, is not happy with the idea, but she really does need money, needs to not be sitting around brooding over Trevor's disappearance, and accepts Sissy's promise that she'll be off after the first show anyway.

Things don't go exactly according to plan, and Kelly spends the next few months traveling the country, getting acquainted with the other contestants, making both friends and enemies, and most of all spending time with the handsome bachelor, Dillon Black. It's complicated enough even before Trevor reappears and she learns where he's been and why. She's got some major decisions to make, and the repercussions send shock waves through all her new relationships.

Skipping lightly away from the plot points, the interesting thing here are the relationships, among the women as much as between each of them and Dillon, or between Kelly and Trevor. Kelly is a sweet, naive, but under it all smart and tough young woman. She's also a Southerner, born, bred, and raised in Nashville, TN, and of course she takes it for granted that the Southern view of the world is the fact-based one. There is one black contestant on Count Down, and she is, surprise surprise, annoyed and offended when Kelly comes to breakfast wearing a nightshirt bearing the Confederate battle flag. Kelly staunchly defends it as a symbol of Southern heritage, not a symbol of slavery and oppression, apparently never having stopped to give two seconds' thought to what "Southern heritage" with respect to the Confederate battle flag really is. She even refers to the Civil War as "Northern aggression," never having been taught the bits about the states that became the Confederacy seceding after the country had an election and they didn't like the results. Or the bit about the Confederacy, specifically South Carolina, launching the first attack, against Fort Sumter.

That episode wouldn't be nearly as funny if we weren't supposed to agree with Kelly and think Patrice is a hyper-sensitive idiot. It gets better when she assumes that, because she is black, Patrice--who is a native New Yorker from an upper middle class background, will have a really good recipe for fried chicken, and then defends that silly assumption on the grounds that fried chicken is "soul food." Of course they wind up using Kelly's grandmother's recipe, and the irony is completely lost on everyone, especially Kelly.

But this really is more amusing than offensive, though I won't vouch for everyone reacting the same way I did. Kelly really is a solidly nice girl, honest and kind and too trusting for her own good. The Christian beliefs she was raised with are central for her, and she does an impressive job of living up to them while in the midst of a reality show that encourages cut-throat competition. She also forms a close friendship with another of the contestants, and is friendly with all who aren't hostile to her. The complications of these ladies all living together while competing for the one handsome, rich, charming guy who is dating all of them, and by the rules of the show can't commit to any one of them until the end, are nicely handled.

I won't claim this is great literature, but it's an enjoyable, entertaining romance with values that will be pleasing to readers who sometimes find it a challenge to locate good reading that doesn't conflict with values and customs more conservative and restrained than are typical here in the early 21st century.

Recommended.

I received a free electronic galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.… (más)

This is Brian and Holly's story. Brian is a bit of a player. He doesn't want to settle down. Holly is an ex-socialite whose husband cheated and planned on leaving her. So Holly has many issues and insecurities. Her sister works on a case with Brian. Well, things get interesting from there.... A stalker, corrupt police as well as contractors, they are all part of the mix. Add to that a budding attraction between Brian and Holly. Well, that is just a recipe for disaster....

It took me time to find my feet with this book. there are many twists and turns. It took time to understand Holly, she is quite contradictory sometimes. But once you are in the swing of things, it gets really interesting. The storyline dragged a bit at times, but otherwise the book was very enjoyable.

I received a free copy for review from ebooks for review.… (más)

See full post @ The Indigo Quill: http://theindigoquill.blogspot.com/2013/10/review-giveaway-replacing-gentry-by.h...

I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review from the author.

Like the description says, the best way to describe this book is a modern twist on Gothic-romance classics like Rebecca and Jane Eyre. You will find the mystery, thrill, and marital secrets. There were many facets to this book, many intriguing and captivating, keeping me engrossed within the story and turning pages to find answers. Ford did well with her story development and creating open ends. It was great to read a book that reminded me of quality literature! Not to mention it has a gorgeous cover...love it!

I also enjoyed how Ford was able to surface my emotions through situations and the emotions of Marlie. My heart broke for her and I felt the pain, sadness, and anger of her rejection from her husband and the people around her.

One big thing I did not like was the lack of a true hero. Daniel was pretty lame and just not likable. It kind of made the whole situation feel hopeless. There were also a lot of unanswered questions leaving the end feeling a bit rushed and lingering.

If you're reading Replacing Gentry for the sheer mystery and thrill, then I would recommend it. You will definitely enjoy the eerie and foreboding suspense!… (más)