. . . a cozy romantic mystery with suspense from the Mystery Angel Romances series. An angel hidden in every book, and it’s up to the reader to figure out who . . . Kellen Brand’s inheritance turns out to be a whopper–one dilapidated farm in West Virginia and one guardian angel!
Since Kellen is convinced no sane woman would choose to live in Riverside, she vows to sell her farm and quick. Her … a whopper–one dilapidated farm in West Virginia and one guardian angel!
Since Kellen is convinced no sane woman would choose to live in Riverside, she vows to sell her farm and quick. Her handsome neighbor Luke Kenyon must block the farm sale or risk exposure of his family’s secrets. While Kellen has located one potential buyer, she faces a town full of objectors. Someone is trying to frighten her off, and Luke is forced to step in and rescue her more than once.
Unfortunately, Kellen can’t seem to stay out of trouble. She stumbles onto a clandestine hazardous-waste-dumping operation next to her farm, and she prays Luke has one more rescue up his sleeve. It’s her only hope of staying alive.
Unless her mother really did leave her a guardian angel . . .
more
When Kellen’s mother died and left her and her brother the run-down farm in West Virginia, the last place Kellen wanted to be is back where she was ridiculed for being poor, her hometown. But off she goes to clean it up and sell it to a uber-rich developer. But the longer she’s in town, the less her childhood memories haunt her. She reconnects with friends and meets handsome cowboy Luke Kenyon, a man who comes to her rescue more than once.
Luke is drawn to Kellen for reasons unknown to him. She’s a spitfire and makes him lose his temper at the slightest provocation. But he tells himself he won’t wind up alone and bitter, like his father. But circumstances throw him and Kellen together, and when her life is threatened, he acts. Can he let down his walls and let love in or will he continue to be stubborn like a mule?
Wow! What a gripping and emotional romantic suspense. Petie McCarty weaves a romance between two strong personalities with plenty of chemistry between them to light the whole county on fire. The dialogue made me laugh as well as cry. Emotions run high in this story and there’s many layers too. It’s about coming home, dealing with childhood bullies and letting go of the past. It’s about forgiveness, trusting in love and choosing your destiny. Trying to figure out who the guardian angel may be was a bonus. A must read, especially for romantic suspense fans. Can’t wait for the next book in the series!
Favorite Character/Quote: Luke. I found him to be mysterious yet every woman’s book boyfriend. He’s got layers and his protective streak comes out in weird ways whenever Kellen is near.
My Rating: 5+ stars
This mystery romance keeps readers in suspense regarding the romance and the mysterious angels all the way through the steady to fast paced plot. The characters are strong, compelling and easily draw readers into their story which is a pretty rocky romance as this relationship starts off on the wrong foot. The heroine and hero both have some communication issues and the heroine is a bit hard to relate to in some circumstances because she has such contradicting traits. On one hand some of her issues are easily understood and her motivations make sense but then in regards to others they aren’t really clear but the she keep readers interested in what’s happening. The sparks flying between Luke and Kellan keeps the relationship on the edge as readers can never guess whether those sparks are going to lead to another clash of wills or a steamy kiss.
The suspense of the relationship also builds due to another suitor for Kellan, one she has a past with and is still close to. The danger and excitement of the story comes from some unscrupulous characters that won’t hesitate to do violence and a mean spirited sheriff. Readers are kept guessing whether there really is a guardian angel and just who he or she is. While some of the events that happen during the excitement and danger of the story is a little on the predictable side, the story is most entertaining and during all the revelations made toward the end of the story readers will want to read the next intriguing mystery in the series.
When Kellen’s mother died, she willed her old property to Kellen, and, more mysteriously – a guardian angel! Of course, Kellen reasons, angels don’t exist, so she heads out to her childhood home intending to sell up, and get out. But selling the old place proves harder than she thinks; odd things happen, the townsfolk seem dead-set against it, and handsome neighbor, Luke, also seems to want to block her sale – for reasons of his own. Then Kellen stumbles on an illegal, hazardous-waste-dumping operation next to her property and suddenly it’s a lot mroe serious – and a lot more deadly. This had a few twists I didn’t see coming, but (of course!) the outcome is very satisfying. If you like a cozy mystery tied in with a feisty heroine, a handsome cowboy, and some chaste romance, this one is for you!
Whether it is a romance or a mystery, I love small town stories, and Petie McCarty’s No Cowboys No Angels is both. This romantic suspense is filled with empathetic townsfolk, nefarious bad guys, and questionable land developers.
At the reading of the will, Kellen and Joey learn their late mother never sold their old farm. The siblings weren’t expecting to inherit given their meager beginnings, and they certain want nothing to do with the homestead that only holds bad memories. The clear-it-out-and-sell-it-to-the-land-developer plan isn’t as quick and easy as they initially thought. Naturally, the extra time in Riverside allows Kellen to work through some of her bad memories as well as capture the attention of a few gentlemen in town.
Ms. McCarty provides her readers with an emotionally gripping story about two strong, stubborn characters. Their attraction to one another is as evident as their attempts to deny that attraction! The smattering of secondary characters is fantastic. They are stereotypical small town people—friendly, kind, and above all nosy. I loved David, the childhood friend who is now the school teacher. His devotion to creating a better academic experience for the local children is heartwarming.
The plot is well paced and the tension builds steadily through the story. Ms. McCarty nicely weaves together the romance, mystery, and dealing with childhood trauma aspects of her tale. Those plot points are perfectly blended and balanced, and the story flows organically. No Cowboy No Angel is a clean romance, and a delight to read.
Returning to Riverside opens up a can of worms for Kellen as the past comes storming in to swamp her with memories she would rather not face. Whilst Kellen would like to forget the past, Luke is trying to keep it alive resulting in this unlikely pair finding themselves on opposite sides of the fence in the sale of the property Kellen is desperate too make. Compounding the problems facing them, there are strange activities taking place in the area and threats from unknown sources. Kellen’s mother promised her a guardian angel, but the angels appear to be falling down in their responsibilities. The story comes to a surprising conclusion, but did leave me with a number of questions. The romantic attraction between Luke and Kellen was strong but their constant jumping to conclusions and arguments made it difficult to make the connection they both wanted. The story is well written with romance and suspense and a small town full of people who each had their opinion on the outcome. I received this book for free from eBook Discovery. I voluntarily post this review. This is my honest review.
I really enjoyed reading this book and totally had a smile on most of the time I was reading it!
This is the second book I’ve read from the incredible writer, Petie McCarty. Last year I had the privilege of reading her book, “Betting on Cinderella,” which is part of the Cinderella Romances Book Series and I totally loved it, so I was very excited to read her latest work, even though it falls into a different book series.
Petie’s writing only continues to improve, grow, and expand with each book! I know she will be an author I will continue to read over the years!
This book focuses on Kellen returning to her hometown that she hasn’t visited in years to sell the home her mom just left her and her brother in the will. Kellen is eager to sell the house and get out of Riverside ASAP, but she starts running into problems, objections with the sale, nosy townspeople, discovering hazardous-waste-dumping, someone trying to frighten her off, oh and a sexy rancher neighbor that comes to her rescue multiple times. It’s clear that this simple and quick trip to Riverside is going to be anything but that!
I really enjoyed the small-town setting of Riverside and how the town itself is almost like a character and an underlying theme as well throughout the book. I used to live in a tiny town when I was younger. We had two flashing stop lights (rest is stop signs) and whenever one went out (which happened more than it should), it would make the front page of our paper lol!!! It was headline news lol – so yes, very small town!!! Anywho, it was interesting to see how the townsfolk can play such a huge role in the selling of Kellen’s house and how they can significantly impact the town’s decisions. Even though they were divided on the issue of selling to the developers they still caused issues for Kellen.
I really liked the main characters, Kellen and Luke. They were likable, kind, and genuine. I loved that Kellen was a strong, smart, sassy, driven female-lead – those are my favorite type of characters and role-models. I loved that Luke was that sweet, sexy, stubborn, charming, charismatic cowboy – oh there were times I think I was drooling over him when he rode up on that black stallion lol!!
I also loved Kellen and Luke together – they fit well together and just had that instant chemistry you could actually feel sizzle off the pages!!! I loved how they pushed each other’s buttons and at times drove each other crazy lol!!
I think the author did a fantastic job on her character development as these characters were so real and personal on many levels.
It is clear Mrs. McCarty does not know how to write a boring, cookie-cutter character. She writes her characters with depth, that have emotional baggage, are dealing with real-life struggles, and are working on over-coming personal obstacles. She writes real-life characters that face real-world problems. Which is one of the reasons I love her books, because I know when I read it, I will be able to easily connect with the characters and possibly even grow with the characters in the story.
This book has a creative storyline, fantastic writing style with meticulous and vivid scenes, well-developed characters, is steady paced, and keeps you completely entertained through the last page.
The author’s writing is strong and eloquently detailed. She really provided so much detail in her writing that is was easy to picture! There were a few times I found myself totally caught up in the story!
This book genre is marketed as a contemporary romance and yet the authors found a way to throw in a mystery, intrigue, and suspense element to the book. It definitely added a fascinating twist to the story!
There are some predictable scenes. However, there are still a few unexpected twists and turns that you won’t see coming! Bet you’ll be shocked to find out who Kellen’s mystery angel is!!! I know I was!!!
This book is book one in the Mystery Angels Romances Book Series. So, it can obviously be read as a standalone. Mrs. McCarty listed that she has two additional books in the works for this series that are to come out later this year. So, I would definitely encourage readers to check out this book sooner than later before the rest of the series comes out, so you don’t fall behind.
For me, this book absolutely worked!!! It hit everything I look for and need when I am reading and reviewing a book!!!
All in all, I really enjoyed reading this book and would absolutely recommend not only this book, but this author as well! I was truly impressed with the quality of writing, intriguing storyline, and excellent character development! I will definitely be continuing to follow this author and check out her upcoming books – especially the two new impending books in this series out later this year! I think all contemporary romance readers will like this book too! So, be sure to add it to your TBR List and get to reading – you won’t be disappointed!
**Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book and have voluntarily provided an honest, and unbiased review in accordance with FTC regulations.**