Previously published; newly refreshed by author. Welcome back to Petal, Georgia in this spin-off of the Chase Brothers series by Lauren Dane. A town divided. A family torn apart. Is one love strong enough to overcome it all? Caroline Mendoza left home to become a lawyer with one goal in mind: prove her father’s innocence. Now she’s back, and nothing will stop her from uncovering the … stop her from uncovering the truth–not the folks of Petal, who have their own ideas about the case, not her siblings and definitely not Royal Watson, who should probably stand trial for being indecently and undeniably hot.
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Lawyer Caroline Mendoza has returned to Petal, Georgia with one goal in mind uncovering the truth and proving her father’s innocence. No one with stand in her way, not her family, not the town and definitely not the indecently and undeniably hot, Royal Watson.
This Petal, Georgia romance is emotionally gripping and very suspenseful. The characters are strong, bold and have an inner core of strength that really draws readers to them. Royal and Caroline have some super sizzlin’ chemistry and rock readers’ world with their sweet and extremely passionate romance, although the story is also chock full of emotional angst that tugs at readers hot, this couple proves that love has no bounds which makes readers sign in heartfelt envy.
The story takes place at a steady pace that keeps reader thoroughly engaged from the very beginning with suspense and the drama of a divided town, divided family and some downright ugly people that should really mind their own business. The author has a gift for getting real and own to the nitty gritty of a situation that readers can easily identify and relate to. So, once again, Petal, Georgia has it going on and the Chases are front and center as they adopt Royal and Caroline into their ever growing family and the hero and heroine overcome adversity and reach for their happily ever after in this heartwarming emotionally gripping romance.
The author takes us back to Petal, GA. This time the story belongs to Carolina Mendoza and Royal Watson.
Carolina is back in town after having left town to become a lawyer. Her aim, prove her father, who was accused of killing her mother, was innocent.
That enough let’s us know she is a strong determined woman.
Royale is perfect fo her and the chemistry is felt through the pages. Anne was not my favorite person.
Will the murder be resolved? Will Carolina end up with Royale and find her HEA?
An engaging story, and a good addition to this series.
I was entrusted this copy by Netgalley. The opinions expressed are solely my own.
I was so very impressed with the heroine in Lauren Dane’s latest Petal, Georgia book because it takes a lot of grit and determination to rise above a family tragedy and return to the scene of the crime and Caroline is fearless when it comes to solving the mystery of her mother’s death. Now that her father has passed away in prison nothing is going to stand in the way of her finding her mother’s killer and clearing her father’s name. Caroline’s maternal grandparents still live in Petal and have raised her two younger siblings since that tragic night but they hate her father and do everything they can to stop Caroline from discovering the truth. I have a lot of admiration for Royal, the hero in the story because he’s strong and supportive of Caroline’s search for the truth and he introduces her to his friends and they make her welcome. This book has everything I look for in a great read with interesting characters, plenty of romance and plenty of suspense to keep me intrigued. I read an early copy of this book through NetGalley and all opinions expressed in my voluntary review are completely my own.
Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team
Avid Reader –
4.5 stars
M/F Romance
Caroline is a headstrong, independent, intelligent, and beautiful woman. She loves her job and knows how to get things done. When she returns to her hometown, a town that rejected her harshly, she knows that she’s in for a fight. However, her siblings and their relationship depend on her being close to them. And while she isn’t quite sure she’s ready to toe the line with her grandparents, she knows that something will have to happen.
Royal is a cowboy who loves his ranch. When his dad decided to spend more time away from it, Royal took up the reins and went in a new direction. One that has been profitable and fulfilling. When he sees Caroline back in town, he can’t help but be attracted to her. However, Royal’s love life has been a little lacking and despite his ex and him being great friends, Royal will have to decide if he’s really over his ex and ready for a new relationship.
The whole gang is back together with this one and they don’t disappoint. This story has a ton of mystery going on, some bigotry, and a lot of love. I really enjoyed watching this mystery unfold. It kept me up late into the night because I wanted to see how it would end.
Watching Caroline and Royal find their groove was enjoyable, but seeing Caroline’s family relationships unfold was truly eye opening. I wanted to spit on her grandma on more than one occasion and still hold a grudge, despite the book being over. It was sweet, spicy, scary at times, and all around fantastic!
Potential Triggers: Murder, Attempted Murder, Stalking
Mary Jo –
This book is a great addition to the series. We get to see old friends as well as get to know more about Caroline and Royal.
The past has a way of impacting the present in more ways than one. Caroline’s maternal grandparents are a piece of work. They are mean spirited and woefully condescending.
Royal’s family is much more accepting and Caroline only wishes her family could be more like his.
After all is said and done, Caroline and Royal have to figure out if their lives will mesh after all the danger is over.
Ruthie –
This is the third in this series, and follows life in Petal – a community that Dane fans will be very familiar with, but most especially Polly Chase! I would recommend that you read them in order, to fully understand the dynamics – particularly of Royal’s past with Anne.
Caroline Mendoza is a woman with principles, and a deep need to prove that her father was innocent of killing her mother. She has qualified as a lawyer, and even though her father has died, she needs to come back to Petal, find the evidence to help her case, and reconnect with her younger siblings. This all brings trouble to her door, and clearly there is little appetite in Petal to find the truth. Luckily her employer is Edward Chase and family, and their support is extremely valuable.
There is, however, one really bright part to her life and that is Royal Watson. He was her schoolgirl crush, but he is now very much interested back and does everything he can to help her settle back in town and make friends. Unfortunately, his very long time on and off again girlfriend, Anne, is not that keen to see him moving on, and makes his life very difficult – oh, you will be staggered at the lengths she will go. Any fan will know that she has been stringing him along for years and years, and in spite of her sisters trying to persuade her to commit, she just couldn’t. So Royal has every right to move on, and as he gets to know Caroline, he feels more for her than he ever did before. I love how Caroline is such a strong character and perfectly capable of standing up for herself, but how she is even stronger to allow Royal in and let him support her.
I love these stories, and this one had a really good plot about the uncovering of the real criminal, and about how people react to events and become so entrenched in their views – to the detriment of themselves and others. It was good to catch up with the wider community, as well as finally gave Royal the chance to get his happily ever after.
Reviewers received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.
From a rather intense relationship drama to what seems like an impossible to solve legal drama this novel covers a lot of life, living, loving, and growing, trouble, and drama.
I absolutely adore the Chase brothers series and this spinoff to Petal, Georgia has been a great, entertaining addition to the original one.
Royal Watson might be the most honorable, loyal, affectionate, amazing book boyfriend ever, I mean, he is all that and so much more. Just truly a one of a kind man that was easy to admire, trust, and fall for. And I can’t think of a better match to Royal than the sassy, smart, sweet, caring, reliable, steadfast Caroline Mendoza. These two were like the two halves of the whole, they completed each other, were there for each other, and the name of their story, Count On Me, was perfect for them. I loved their love story. I loved the passion between them, the fun, the difficult things they went through, and the way they dealt with the jealous ex (who drove me nuts, really not a fan of her, but Caroline was the Queen dealing with her).
I found the legal aspect of the story intriguing, and the suspense and threat were intense.
So there is a lot I liked, enjoyed, and even adored in the tale, yet there were some aspects that I had a really difficult time to understand, and thus not the five Spoons score for the book. See, in my mind, the people in Petal were petty and just weird to chastise someone for a difference of opinion. And it went so much further than just that, there was violence involved. Now, this might be a cultural thing, but what kind of people do that?! For real?! It all seemed to be based on racist hate, and how deep the venom runs in the society, even within a family. And as such, showing that in the community, the author did a stellar job of it. But as a reader who reads to escape the crazy in the world, this aspect of the tale really got me down.
So first there was the ex who just caused unnecessary drama, and then there were the crazy people that turned on one of their own, and after all the research and drama and disturbance, the ending to the murder case was a bit too easy in my mind. I expected fireworks, and maybe it was my expectations that failed not the story, yet here we are…
So. This is difficult because while I absolutely loved some aspects of the story, there were others that made me want to quit reading it, yet the desire to find out more kept me going.
Do I want to read more of the series? Yes.
Can I recommend the series and this book? Yes.
I just want you to be aware that there might be some issues and events in the story that can cause serious irritation and even sadness on the way to the happily ever after…
Royal and Caroline, despite all the hate, difficulties, and obstacles you had to go through to find peace and serenity into your life, I loved your love story and cheered you all the way.
~ Three Spoons with a teaspoon on the side
I really enjoyed this one even if life had a way of trying to put all kinds of road blocks in my way of reading it. Caroline Mendoza has finally come home to Petal, Georgia, after being away, pushed away, after her mother’s murder and her father being accused and convicted of the murder and sent to prison where he died. She grew up convinced of his innocence and became a lawyer and now it looks like they might finally have some traction to finding the actual killer. Although along the way she has picked up a stalker. She also has caught the eye of Royal Watson and he likes what he sees. These two have explosive chemistry and Royal starts out as laid back but when his woman is threatened he is alpha through and through and it is H-O-T. All the supporting cast of Petal characters come out to play and make for interesting side lines and even the side story with Anne is enough to raise an eyebrow but Caro handles it as a good Southern woman lawyer should and it is spectacular. I wish life had left me alone because I could have spent a wonderful afternoon reading this one and probably give it 5 stars but reading it in spurts brought me down to 4.5 but I highly recommend it. I would deem it standalone if you chose.
Count on Me by Lauren Dane is book Three in the Petal, Georgia Series. This is the story of Royal Watson and Caroline Mendoza. I have read previous books but feel you could make this a standalone book if you wish to do so.
Caroline left Petal Georgia when she was around 16 to go live with her other family members after her father was found guilty of killing her mother. Caroline went on to become a lawyer to come back someday to clear her father’s name and reconnect with her family there.
Caroline also reconnects with Royal who was a high school crush that of course didn’t go anywhere. Royal is sweet and caring guy who although has been coming and going into a relationship feels something different with Caroline.
Enjoyed their story and also the side mystery.
Lauren Dane lights it up with a new Petal, Georgia Book! The storyline and familiar characters will keep you turning page after page.
Caroline Mendoza came back to Petal for several reasons, one to reconnect with her sister and brother and the second reason is to clear her fathers’ name posthumously.
Royal Watson wasn’t expecting this “fun size” woman to barrel through his life and give him so many feelings that he was done for. But that’s exactly what Caro did and he fell head over heels for her.
Now if he can protect her from her fathers’ actual killer and get through to Anne Murphy his ex that they are finished. Life would be perfect.
#TeamRoyal – I want this guy in my corner every time.
This is one of my favorites in the Petal, Georgia series. What an awesome-make me never want to put down- kind of story! This is a nicely revitalized story by Ms. Dane.
Caroline is a great character and a strong heroine and I really liked her. Royal is the perfect yin to her yang. They have crazy hot chemistry and I love them as a couple. I really felt everything they were feeling! This story had me very emotional at times.