From award-winning author Laura Trentham comes an emotionally layered novel about redemption, second chances and discovering that life is worth fighting for. At thirty, Greer Hadley never expected to be forced home to Madison, Tennessee with her life and dreams up in flames. A series of bad decisions and even worse luck lands her community service hours at a nonprofit organization that aids … organization that aids veterans and their families. Greer cannot fathom how she’s supposed to help anyone deal with their trauma and loss when everything that brought her joy has failed her.
Then Greer meets fifteen-year-old Ally Martinez, a gifted girl who lost her father in action and now hides her pain behind a mask of sarcasm. But Greer sees something undeniable that she can’t walk away from. To make matters more complicated, Greer finds herself spending more and more time with Emmett Lawson–a man with both physical and emotional scars of his own. When a situation with Ally becomes dire, the two of them must become a team to save her–and along the way they might just save themselves too.
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Once again, this talented author manages to grab the attention and the emotions of the reader from the first page to the last one.
The story of Army Capt. Emmett Lawson is one that sadly is very real. An honorable man fighting to keep us safe, in a war full of danger, as well as physical and emotional losses. Losses that can leave them with survivor’s guilt and that can destroy an individual leaving him a shell of his former self.
Greer Hadley is struggling with finding herself after trying to make it as a songwriter in Nashville. Back home, at her lowest point she loses her temper and is given community service. Never realizing that this low point of her life, would bring her to a man and a teenager and that those new relationships would change everyones lives.
In addition to the touching plot with complex and likable characters, the author reminds us that we as a nation and as individuals, for the brave troops upon their return to civilian life.
There will be moments you will laugh and others you will want to cry, so have tissues readily available.
I was entrusted a copy of this book by Netgalley and St Martin’s. The opinions expressed are solely my own.
I loved this story! Greer is beaten down by rejection & life. Emmett is ex-military, was injured & lost his leg to an explosion & ambush that took some of his men. They both are wallowing in pain, guilt & self loathing. Greer has to donate time to a veterans organization for community service & is asked to approach Emmett to try to shake him out of his funk. She is also charged with helping Ally, the young daughter of a deceased veteran.
The author does a wonderful job of bringing three people that need each other together. Greer’s sarcasm & sass are perfect to bring Emmett out of his shell in a way sympathy wouldn’t have. Ally has a tough shell but Greer can see glimpses of pain & despair underneath. Both Ally & Emmett give back to Greer as much as she gives them & they don’t allow her to back out of the same things she forces them to face. As I read through this, there were times I laughed & times I cried. From the very beginning, I was pulled into the story & it just didn’t let go of my heart.
An Everyday Hero was a seriously good read! The Southern sass was alive and well, with sarcastic remarks and tongue in cheek humor-and a bit of fun from a charming little furball named Bonnie! The humor and sass was well balanced with everyday issues, struggles, and personal journeys hidden behind close doors. One never truly knows what another is going through unless they walk a mile in their shoes themselves. And as Greer, Emmett, and Ally discover, life comes full circle, sometimes in the oddest ways and when you least expect it. A chance meeting, a simple act of kindness, or a random comment can easily impact someone’s life whether realized or not.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest review.
From the beginning I could not put down this book!
Greer is such a relatable heroine. Her predicament that lands her a community service assignment that she resists. The relationships she develops with a local teen and an old high school acquaintance are believable and draw the reader in. I especially enjoyed the sarcastic humor and touching dialogue. Throughout reading this story I both wiped away tears and laughed out loud. There were so many themes explored including family and friendship. The most pronounced theme for me was facing your biggest fears. Both Emmett and Greer find that coming home because they thought they had exhausted their possibilities in life, might actually be the beginning of new possibilities. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and will definitely look for my by this new-to-me author.
This is now my favorite Laura Trentham book. The two main characters stole a piece of my heart. They are so perfectly imperfect! Emmett Lawson and Greer Hadley are a great couple. They do not start out smoothly, the relationship is definitely strained for a while, but they are exactly what each other needs.
Emmett has recently returned home, leaving the military after recovering physically from a bomb explosion (as much as anyone can). He has a lot of work to do to heal mentally. Greer is fighting her own battles and is a work in process. She found herself in a mess that left her with a court ordered sentence of doing service hours at a center to help military members and their families. That sentence turns out to be the salvation she needs and that grace extends to several others that she meets.
I truly loved this book. The plot had me thinking of the sacrifice that members of the military services and their family go through. Their sacrifice does not end when they leave active duty. The memories and injuries change their lives forever. Also, how difficult the path to achieve a goal can be. It takes so much positivity and determination. When your number one goal is not attainable, finding a new path shows so much of what is deep within you. This book has that as a basic theme. If the original path started in life hits a roadblock, take a path on a new road to find happiness.
I think this book was very realistic. I want to believe it can be true, that ex-service military can find peace and a positive future.
The friendship to romance of Emmett and Greet was so very enjoyable to read. I love the spunk and feisty banter. I love that they both care so deeply and I wanted them to have a happily ever after.
I want to thank St. Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley.com for allowing me to read the ARC for this book. I truly was touched by this story and I hope other readers will pick it up and also experience the relationship of Greer and Emmett. This review is my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.
Put together a reclusive wounded veteran, an angry rebellious teenager, and a failed musician and what would have been a recipe for disaster becomes the long road back to healing and restoration. Greer’s moment of inebriated rage lands her in a community service program where her unconventional approach to reaching her clients earns her their respect and that of her mentor. Ally’s anger stems from the death of her father and the inability of her mother to handle their terrible loss. Emmett has lost his leg but the loss of his teammates draws him into a darkness that no one can penetrate. Greer is just lost. Feeling like a miserable failure she returns home to lick her wounds. As with all really good writers, I found that once I started reading this book, I was unable to put it down. Waking up in the middle of the night, instead of turning over and shutting my eyes, I instead got up and gleefully crept into the lounge where I could continue to read in peace. I enjoyed the wit and Greer’s streetwise approach to Emmett and Ally, as she pushed her way past their objections and bad attitudes. Once Emmett gets beyond his anger at Greer for ignoring his warnings about approaching his cabin, he finds a spark of humor bubbling up within him at her outrageous comebacks. Ally has thwarted all attempts to reach her, but when she discovers an echo in Greer’s own past, she pauses in her verbal assaults long enough to really listen. This novel is heartwarming and moving, dealing with real people and very real problems. I laughed and I cried, sometimes at the same moment. The book is a standalone and comes to a successful and hope-filled ending. I received a copy of this book through NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.
Ms. Trentham grabbed me again. I adored this book. It brought tears and laughter as I read it.
The second in a wonderful series(Heart of A Hero). An Everyday Hero who doesn’t feel that way at all.
Greer won’t give up on Emmett. He may be stubborn and downright mean at times he’s lost.
Greer is lost as well. She’s doing community service at non profit organization for families of veterans. They help out in any way they can.
So that’s what she’s doing. Her first is a teen who lost her father. Her mother is trying to make ends meet. But Ally is a troubled 15 year old. Greer try’s to break through to her. They have something in common.
They live music..well she used to.
Want more? Preorder the book to see what else happens. So good.
Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley that provided me an Advance Copy.
Read the first book. The Military Wife. Another winner.
Greer Hadley leaves Nashville after a bad experience makes her give up her dream of making it big in the music business. Returning to her hometown, she makes a bad decision one night and is sentenced to community service at an organization that helps disabled veterans and their families. She is an unwilling participant at first, but soon finds that she has a gift for helping people who are hurting. She finds that, by helping others, she helps herself to heal.
Ally Martinez, a bitter fifteen year old girl whose father was killed in the war, makes a bad decision and is sent to the organization where Greer is trying to help veterans and their families through songwriting. Greer begins to doubt that she can break through Ally’s wall of bitterness.
Capt. Emmett Lawson was the town’s all-star athlete in high school. He followed the family legacy and enlisted in the military after graduation. He returns home from the war minus a leg and feeling like he should have been the one to die instead of the enlisted men serving under him. I couldn’t help but laugh at the interaction between Greer and Emmett. Emmett understandably has a bad attitude and wants nothing to do with anyone…not even his parents. The first meeting between Greer and Emmett was explosive to say the least! Emmett’s bad attitude is no match for Greer’s grit and determination. She is going to help him whether he wants help or not.
Ms, Trentham has created an engrossing novel with characters and situations that weave their way into your heart. I was drawn into the story from the very first chapter and I couldn’t put it down.
This is Book 2 in A Heart of a Hero series. It is a stand alone book, but you won’t want to miss Book 1 in the series, The Military Wife. I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series.
**I received a copy of An Everyday Hero from St. Martin’s Press and Net Galley in exchange for a voluntary and honest review. **
An Everyday Hero by Laura Trentham is the second book in her A Heart of a Hero series. This was such a wonderful book that I had a hard time putting it down and I’d say its worth all 5 stars and many more. I truly can’t wait for the next book perhaps Dr Ryan and Karen could get a book in the future?
Greer Hadley has come back to Madison, TN after trying to make it big in Nashville. But a few too many drinks, a cheating ex-boyfriend and attacking a juke box has lead to community service hours at Music Foundation courtesy of the Judge (her uncle). Her first client is a surly 15 year old girl, Ally, whose active duty father was recently killed. Can Greer use her music talents on Ally and bring her the love and also help her mother who’s lost without her husband ?
Emmet Lawson doesn’t want to be a hero as he feels like he failed to keep his soldiers safe but he’s Greer’s second client and she’ll find out that he’s going to need more than music to give peace after losing one of his teammates and his leg to a IED. Because they went to school together hopefully she can convince him to put away his shotgun and whiskey and realize that he find himself with the help of Greer, Ally and his parents horse farm. All three of them will need to find their way again when given a second chance to start over in Madison. When Ally needs help for her mother Greer and Emmett won’t hesitate to be there giving them both the help they need.
Oh my, those wounded warriors get me every time! An Everyday Hero is a phenomenal contemporary romance by Laura Trentham. I think this might be my favorite of the books I’ve read by this author. Ms. Trentham has provided readers with a book that’s well-written and populated with a cast of characters you can’t help but love. Greer had a meltdown at a bar after finding her boyfriend with his assistant. The jukebox objected, the cops were called and Greer found herself in front of a judge. Emmett has been hiding away in his family’s cabin since losing part of his leg since leaving the military. Emmett and Greer’s story is loaded with drama, humor and spice. While I loved the characters in this book, I feel I should also mention Ms. Trentham deserves kudos for the outstanding dialog. I love Greer’s sass. An Everyday Hero is book 2 of A Heart of a Hero Series but can be read as a standalone. This is a complete book, not a cliff-hanger.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.