From bestselling author Stacey Lynn comes This Time Around, an emotional and sexy standalone contemporary romance!Five years ago I married the man of my dreams. He was supposed to be my last first kiss–my happily ever after. He promised to hand me the world, but in one night, all of those promises were shattered. Now, I was barely surviving the tragic loss of my husband, struggling daily to … my husband, struggling daily to manage what was left of the life we’d promised to build together, when Cooper Hawke unexpectedly walked into my life.
The Hollywood heartthrob had plenty secrets of his own and his eyes held the same darkness as mine. I couldn’t stop myself from needing to know why. And as much as I tried to keep him out of my heart, he slipped past all my defenses.
We both had pasts that destroyed our trust and had broken our hearts, but nothing will stop Cooper from trying to convince me we could have it all this time around.
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Cooper and Rebecca’s story really struck a chord with me. These were two people from totally different places and yet their broken souls found a connection in each other that they wouldn’t have found anywhere else. Both of them are lost after their marriages have ended. Cooper’s going through a divorce from a wife he thought he was meant to have forever with and Rebecca lost the love of her life in an accident. When Cooper heads to Rebecca’s ranch to escape Hollywood for a while, he never would have expected to find love there.
This story had me all twisted up inside. I absolutely adored Cooper. He wasn’t a typical Hollywood guy who slept his way around. He believed in relationships and forever and I think that makes him such a great character. He was smitten with Rebecca. She was a tougher nut to crack with all she had been through. I loved her strength and the woman that she was. These two got under my skin and I fell in love with their story. I was only about a quarter into the book when I knew this was a story I was going to hold near and dear. Fantastic read and I hope there are many more stories to come in this small town!
4.5 beautiful stars
One of the best books I’ve read in a while now. While reading it my heart was breaking for both of them. They had so much happened to them and they were still fighting to try and piece their life back together again.
Copper was such a well written MC. I loved how he understood what Rebecca needed in order to heal. His love for her was felt with every word while reading. I was crying so hard for him when he opened up to her and was willing to leave everything behind him and she just couldn’t accept it.
This story is heartbreakingly beautiful. It will steal your heart and much it has mine. I LOVED IT
What happens when you’re cheated on by a spouse you have cherished since the day you met? Well that is what happened to Cooper now this actor needs to get away and clear his head before he starts filming his next movie that is sure to bring him an Oscar. What Cooper didn’t expect is to fall for the farm owner and widow Rebecca.
Rebecca has had a hard couple of years, first the loss of her parents then the loss of her husband, dealing with day to day chores that farm life holds, and hiding a secret that has turned her world upside down. To say that Rebecca is in a bad place with all that she is dealing with would be an understatement, and I totally understood why she stayed on her farm and hardly ventured into town.
Cooper stole my heart right from the beginning. I thought it would be funny when the city slicker, A List Actor, shows up on Rebecca’s farm to hideout for a while. What I didn’t expect is for him to fit right in as though he lived on a farm his entire life. I loved the strength he showed with moving on with his life after a very public breakup. Cooper cherished his wife and she was a total user and got more than she deserved if you ask me.
The chemistry between Rebecca and Cooper was instant although they didn’t act on it, which is another thing I really enjoyed about this story. We were able to watch them become friends before they moved into anything more, both of them deciding they would do things differently This time around.
A great start to a new series by one of my favorite authors, I look forward to seeing what Stacey Lynn has in store for us with the next book in the Love In The Heartland series.
**I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Readers Copy of this book**
This is one author I’m never reluctant to jump right in her stories because they are all so awesome. This Time Around was no different with another amazing 5 star story.
Cooper is an actor who needs to disappear for a while. No better place than a farm in Kansas. Rebecca is not too fond of having an actor to work with her. But what starts as a working relationship will develop into more. Rebecca has some unresolved issues that she needs to deal with first.
This story captured my undivided attention from the first page to the last one. I loved the storyline and how it flowed well. The characters were perfectly crafted to fit this story. It was highly entertaining and with the just the right amount of drama to keep me attentive.
Standalone told in a dual POV with an HEA. I highly recommend this story.
After being handed a devastating blow by his wife, Cooper Hawke is nursing a broken heart and is looking to escape all of the drama stirred up by his wife’s betrayal, so his manager hands him a ticket to Kansas and wishes him well. Once he arrives at his destination he soon realizes why his manager sent him there, it’s the perfect place to hideaway from the media, and let his heart and mind heal… not to mention the woman he will be working for is pretty easy on the eyes too! Not that he is really ready to jump back into the dating pool yet… or is he?
After losing her parents in a car accident roughly two years ago, and her husband soon after, Rebecca is left a shell of the once carefree and happy woman she use to be, now instead of looking forward to her forever with her husband, she is alone… and it’s been a hard pill to swallow. Her brother is constantly pushing her to try and return to the land of the living, and not hide-out on her ranch, but it’s just too hard to face the folks in their little town, and subject herself to their questions and rumors. Then she unexpectedly gets a little help on the ranch, and in winds up being the best thing to ever happen to her, Cooper wanders into her broken world, and begins to help her put it back together… and jump starts her heart too!
This Time Around is a story of second chances, healing, and hope, with bits of naughtiness mixed in here and there too! This beautifully crafted tale did my heart good, it made me smile and swoon, and of course got the tears welling a time or two also… it’s easily one of my favorites from this author to date! My heart broke for this couple, they both had so much loss to work through, hurt feelings to let go of, but having each other to lean on, definitely made the road to re-discovering their happiness a lot easier… and a lot more enjoyable too! I loved following these two along on their journey, it was quite captivating, and good for the soul! Highly recommend you give this one a try, Cooper is certain to steal your heart!!
I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher, and voluntarily read and reviewed.
I wasn’t real sure what I was getting into with this book I mean we all know you can’t always trust the blurb. What I found from this author that is new to me is a well written story that took an ordinary topic and made it an excellent read. Both parties are jaded when it comes to love and both have wounds they are licking. The chemistry is there but so is their past. This author does well in presenting a story that is well thought out and plotted to keep you hanging on to every page. Before you tire of the angst and indecision the author moves on. No lone dialogues that lead nowhere and descriptions that are meaningless. Just characters that are real and lovable and dear to the heart. Learning not only to accept help but to accept love is not always easy but good friends and an awesome mate make life a little easier.
This author is new to me and so is this series. I can say this book ended and not on a cliffhanger so it is safe to say they are all standalones with carryover characters. This gives you more time to fall in love and get to know them all.
What a great start to the new series Love in the Heartland by Stacey Lynn, this author is fast becoming one of my go to authors and if this book is anything to go by she has another hit series on her hands.
Rebecca and Cooper have both had their hearts broken, both destroyed by people who should never have hurt them but they are both strong in so many other ways, she is determined and he is kind and sincere maybe they need each other to heal their broken hearts and move on.
A hot successful actor finds himself on a cattle farm just outside Kansas, he knows nothing about farming but Rebecca does but is she willing to teach him and is he willing to learn…….
This is so much more than just a romance story, this is a journey where two people who aren’t looking for love manage to fall in love, they both need to learn to trust again and maybe they just need each other. The characters are easy to love and I found myself getting wrapped up in their emotional roller coaster, I found myself hopping and praying this couple got the happiness they so deserved and the author didn’t let me down. It’s great to read a book where you love all the characters, main and secondary and I can’t wait to read more in this this series.
Stacey Lynn is a new to me author, but also a well-established one with more than 30 books to her name. When I received the opportunity to read this novel, I went in blind but eager. I do enjoy a good Hollywood actor romance from time to time, and the fish-out-of-water premise intrigued me.
This Time Around is the first book in the Love in the Heartland series, and is the story of Cooper Hawke and Rebecca Splendid, two people in the midst of heartbreak and left wondering how the rest of their lives will unfold. Rebecca is mourning the sudden death of her husband. She makes her living on her own farm, sheltering herself from the rest of the world by consuming her days with the land and the livestock.
Cooper is one of Hollywood’s hottest actors whose ugly divorce is playing out in the media as the latest celebrity scandal. Looking to escape the public glare of the spotlight, Cooper’s agent offers a unique opportunity to hide out on his niece’s ranch in Kansas. She can use the extra help and he will be far away from the prying paparazzi.
When Cooper first sets foot on Rebecca’s land, the two strangers must learn how to work together while avoiding each other’s personal landmines. As the days progress, they manage to find their groove and their guards inevitably begin to come down as they develop both a friendship built on admiration along with an intense physical attraction to each other.
I’ll admit that this book started slowly for me, taking several chapters to capture my full attention. Regardless, I liked both Rebecca and Cooper and was curious enough about their story to keep reading. The deeper I got into the novel, the more I came to appreciate the slow burn of this unconventional love story. Stacey Lynn took time and care with her characters, developing their relationship with each other, along with those surrounding them, and introducing the reader to the intricacies of farming. Given Cooper’s celebrity status, there were many opportunities to create manufactured drama with this novel, but as a reader I truly appreciated when the author smartly dodged it.
If you’re a fan of second chance romance and are looking for a new series to immerse yourself in, I happily recommend this book. I’m curious to see what happens as other books in the Heartland series are released and will be adding them to my TBR list as they become available.
This Time Around by Stacey Lynn is the story of Rebecca and Cooper.
Cooper is a Famous Hollywood actor who is dealing with a broken marriage. With down time between films he decided to go of the grid which lead him to Rebecca’s ranch.
Rebecca too is dealing with a lost marriage but her is due to her husband sudden death and not to mention her parents early death a few years ago.
Rebecca and Cooper get to know one another and find an attraction that they can’t deny.
But what happens with Cooper returns to his real life?
Great second chance at love story.
4.5 star Review This Time Around (Love in the Heartland #1) By Stacey Lynn
This was an emotional roller coaster of a ride to read with moments of grief, anger, guilt, romance, passion and oh so much more.
Escaping from a bad marriage break up, actor Cooper Hawke is given the opportunity to escape the press by staying and helping out on Rebecca Splendid’s ranch.
Cooper has no idea that Rebecca is a widow, and is surprised by her manner and sharpness at times. Once he knows the truth it all begins to makes more sense. Told in dual POV’s I found both the leads to be strong, yet vulnerable characters; two people broken and without realising it, desperate to heal and find true happiness.
I was entranced with the story that Ms.Lynn wove, wanting desperately for Cooper and Rebecca to open their eyes and their hearts, to give love a chance to grow.The chemistry between them was blazing, with the romance slowly building between the movie star and the rancher.
I was drawn to Cooper almost immediately, Rebecca not so much, but as their story unfolded she grew on me, particularly as the depth of her hurt was revealed.
This is an emotional read and one that is well written with characters who are believable and easy to relate too. The secondary characters were just as interesting as Cooper and Rebecca and I hope to read their stories in the not too distant future.