There’s no place like Haven Point for the holidays, where the snow conspires to bring two wary hearts together for a Christmas to remember It’s been two rough years since Andrea Montgomery lost her husband, and all she wants is for her children to enjoy their first Christmas in Haven Point. But then Andie’s friend asks a favor–to keep an eye on her brother, Sheriff Marshall Bailey, who’s … Bailey, who’s recovering from a hit and run. Andie will do anything for Wyn, even park her own misgivings to check on her grouchy, wounded bear of a brother. Marshall hates feeling defenseless and resents the protective impulses that Andie brings out in him. But when a blizzard forces them together for the holidays, something in Marshall begins to thaw. Andie’s gentle nature is a salve, and her kids’ excitement for the holidays makes him forget why he never wanted a family. If only he and Andie can admit what they really want–each other–their Christmas wishes might come true after all.
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Nice story that surprised me.
Another heart-warming page-turner! Andi & Marsh are intriguing characters with complicated pasts that threaten to prevent a happy future. A great story with a terrific supporting cast!
This is a story of courage, devastating loss and moving forward. After suffering the tragic loss of her police officer husband, Andrea moves to Haven Point to begin a new life with her two children. She steps out of her comfort zone to help an injured neighbor-the County Sheriff. She has no intention of becoming involved with another law enforcement officer but fate has a way of intervening. RaeAnne Thayne’s stories tackle life’s challenges but her characters get their happily ever after even when they weren’t looking.
A broody sheriff who turns out to have a marshmallow heart and a wonderful story of how love can change people’s lives for the better. Perfect read at Christmastime or throughout the year. Loved it!
A widow with two children is asked by a friend to look in on her brother, recovering from an accident. This is a light holiday story with enjoyable characters, a little mystery, a little romance, and unexpected surprises.
Love all of her books
A wonderful read.
Rayann never disappoints with her romance, a little mystery and a happy ending.
This was another great visit to Haven Point, just in time to celebrate Christmas in the small town. Andie is a relative newcomer to Haven Point. She and her children were secondary, yet important, characters in the previous book (Riverbend Road). There we saw that Andie grieved the death of her cop husband, and fled from a dangerous stalker, hoping to start anew in Haven Point. When her stalker followed her to Haven Point, it was her new friend Wyn who stepped between Andie and danger. So when Wyn asked Andie to keep an eye on her brother Marshall, Andie felt she couldn’t say no – even though Marshall intimidates the heck out of her.
Sheriff Marshall Bailey was the victim of a hit-and-run driver, leaving him with a badly broken leg and a forced leave of absence from work. He’s hurting, hates feeling helpless, and just wants to be left alone. He’s also convinced that the hit-and-run was no accident and wants his chance to find out the truth. This makes him quite grumpy and uncooperative when the lovely widow shows up at his door.
I loved Andie’s first visit to Marshall. He was rude and recalcitrant, doing his level best to discourage Andie from following through on her promise to Wyn. But Andie had a pretty good stubborn streak herself and refused to be scared away. She didn’t yell or threaten; she simply refused to be run off. It was fun to see him realize that he wasn’t going to win and finally give in. Over the next few days, Andie and Marshall developed a tentative friendship.
I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Andie and Marshall. Underneath the growing friendship was also a simmering attraction, something that neither one was happy about. Marshall was convinced that he wasn’t cut out for a family of his own. Because of that, he tried to keep his attraction buried. For Andie, having lost her husband in the line of duty, she wasn’t interested in taking that risk again. I loved seeing Marshall’s crusty exterior soften, especially around Will and Chloe. He was so fantastic with them. I loved Marshall’s protectiveness during the tree episode, and how he insisted that Andie and the kids stay with him. It didn’t take long for Marshall to discover just how much he yearned for the situation to be permanent. But Andie was still unwilling to risk her heart on another law enforcement officer. I ached for Marshall as he put his heart on the line and Andie pushed him away. Her eyes were opened to her feelings in an unexpected way, and I loved seeing her display the courage she didn’t know she had. The epilogue was great and showed just how much all their lives had changed in a year.
During the book, Marshall had to deal with two big issues. First was the hit-and-run attack on him. He was certain it wasn’t an accident and believed it had to do with an investigation he was involved in. It was easy to see his frustration at the lack of progress and his own inability to be as involved as he wanted to be. He also had some problems happening inside the department, adding to the possibilities for the attack on him. The resolution of the attack was unexpected and heartbreaking. The second issue involved a secret Marshall had kept for many years. He’s haunted by the consequences of his actions, and unsure how to make it right. It was interesting to see how quickly Andie figured it out and tried to help him work through it. That resolution had a much happier ending.
This was the best Haven Point novel yet! I know, I know, I gave 5 stars to the other books too. Well I gave 4 stars to the first book, and if I could have given 4.5 to the other books then I would have. This one gets a FULL five stars!
I loved Marshall’s character progression! We met him in the previous book, but only briefly. He was a rough and work obsessed sheriff. It actually made me sad that he thought that he didn’t need anything more in his life than his job. No family and no kids. Especially when he came from a big, mostly happy, family himself! (What’s really sad is that there are people out there who really believe this.) I loved how smoothly the transition from I-don’t-need-anyone to I-don’t-want-to-be-without-them was. I really liked how Ms. Thayne had him not only fall for the right woman, but her two children as well. It all made SO MUCH SENSE for him too.
Andrea was a wonderful heroine and the perfect match for Marshall! She has quite the backstory, and you really need to read the previous book, Riverbend Road, to get her full history. But that won’t be much of a burden for you cause it’s also a great book! SPOILER ALERT: Andrea is a rape victim. The heroine from Riverbend Road is also a rape victim, but Wyn’s rape had taken place years and years before the book. Andrea’s rape had only taken place several months before this book. My ONE criticism of this book is that I think that she would be having a bit more of a time dealing with the after affects of the rape and other attack from the previous book. I at least would have liked to see her going to see a counselor. Rape victims don’t just get over being raped so quickly. Even if they have people to support and love them. Aside from that, I really loved everything about Andrea and her kids. She was an inspiring character.
The little mystery going on with who was responsible for the hit and run and such was really good! I read a lot of mystery novels and more often than not I’m correctly able to guess the killer/criminal before the climax of the story. But Ms. Thayne surprised me! I was not expecting that culprit! The whole climax of the book was awesome and emotional!
I can’t wait to get to the next book!!!
I loved the storyline and the characters.
An easy to read that keeps your attention with a little bit of everything from romance to mystery.
very good
Easy Read. Likeable characters and book moves along quickly. Feel good holiday book.
Great book!
Always enjoy this writers books and this was as good as I expec ted
Had never read this author before, thoroughly enjoyed it & will buy another of her books
Great book by one of my favorite authors. It will not disappoint.
Love anything She writes.Characters are realistic and fun.
Easy read and I enjoyed reading the book.