Gypsy Bradbury was never destined for great things. Or at least that’s what she’d convinced herself of. Growing up on the wrong side of the tracks, she had learned that hoping for more was a waste of time. Then Marco forced his way into her life and gave her a glimpse of a future brighter than any she could have imagined. But if her past taught her anything, it was that if something seemed too … good to be true… it probably was.
The promise of a quiet, simple life was what drew Marco Castillo to Hope Valley. After experiencing war and death first hand, he was looking for something easy. Then he met a woman with guarded eyes and the most beautiful smile he’d ever seen. The only problem was she came with more baggage than a 747.
There is nothing easy about Gypsy, but Marco knows without a doubt that the promise of her is well worth the effort. She’s the strongest, bravest woman he’s ever met, and when the life she’s fought to build for her and her family is threatened, Marco is determined to win that battle for her. Whether Gypsy wants his help or not.
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FACT: Jessica Prince is a one click author for me
FACT: I love small town romances
FACT: I love small town romances where characters “visit” in other’s stories
FACT: I love small town romances that have a continuing thread tying them all together yet keeping them uniquely apart.
WRONG SIDE OF THE TRACKS is my favorite of the “Hope Valley” series (please don’t remind me if I have said this about each book that has been published). While it is number four of the series, it can absolutely be read as a stand-alone.
I was immediately invested in the characters. The female protagonist is a real life super hero (even though “he” gets called a superhero) and one of my favorite things about her story is that she is not looked down upon by her friends or siblings for what she does. There are so many moments when my heartstrings tugged. This story is full of romance and heat and also emotion and conflict. I love that the slow burn and angst that we are treated to.
Were there times that I wanted to shake both MC’s and tell them to get over themselves? Indeed Were there times when I wanted to call her friends and tell them what was going on? Yup
Were there times when I didn’t adult because “just one more chapter”? YES THERE WERE
This was a fantastic read that I read in one sitting and ignored all of my grown up responsibilities and I absolutely recommend it.
***5 ‘Brilliant’ Stars***
This series is killing me.
No.
Seriously. Killing. Me.
Why you ask?
Because not only do I grow more fond the couples I’ve already met, but fall into adoration with the current couple doing their own special mating dance and THEN become absolutely fascinated with a newbie character (and OMG I’m ALL in with this one ~ Mr. Beardsalot is sooo MINE) all while needing another couples story ASAP.
It’s truly a vicious cycle, one admittedly isn’t a horrible one, but really? How can I pick my favorite when there are already so many to choose from and more to come? It’s not fair. It really isn’t…but onto the review.
I’ve loved Gypsy since first meeting her in Eden and Linc’s book and after experiencing all that she has been through and all that she is fighting to hold onto, I couldn’t help but adore her. She has her walls and she did things that had me growling and shake her BUT she comes by it all honestly and it was hard to truly be upset with her knowing just how huge her heart was. Marco. This man killed me. In the best of ways. He has his secrets and his walls, but when he’s in. The man is ALL in. Alpha AF definitely describes him, but in the best of ways: charming, kind, generous, honest and protective. The man is the total package.
As for their journey to their HEA. I thoroughly enjoyed the push/pull between them. Their chemistry was off the charts, but more than that, they just flowed when they were together. Even with their mile high walls, and yet Marco’s are just as thick and high as Gypsy’s, they had that thing that had me believing that they were a perfect fit for each other.
There is a bunch of stuff I could add here, but what it comes down to is that this book hit all the right buttons for me and has me loving this series even more. The family dynamic, the well written characters, the touch of suspense…it’s just all that and a bag of chips. As for the supporting cast of characters. I loved hanging out with Eden & Linc, Tempie & Hayes and Nona & Trick and seeing how their relationships are going. Gypsy’s siblings were so much fun and Odette was awesome! Rox is killing and I’m hoping we see more of Susan, because she was awesome, but…Xander, Xander is mine. Simple as that. But I cannot wait to get my hands on Cord and Rory’s book! I’ve been waiting not so patiently since Out of My League and I NEED to know all that happened between them and see how they’ll finally get their HEA!
~ Copy provided by Love Affair with Fiction & voluntarily reviewed ~
This series keeps getting better and better!!! Gypsy boy that girl deserved her happily ever after and she got it but not without her not being able to catch a break. Gypsy had a lot on her plate for a 25 year old. She’s been taking care of her 5 siblings since she was 17 years old. She lives for those kids and has thick walls around her heart because of sour past relationship until Marco. Marco was all alpha and knew how to make her change her mind. He was genuine and he embraced the kids and her older neighbor that helped her out as his own. Kids loved him too which was enough for Gypsy to give him a chance. Marco is all about protecting his family and goes above and beyond even confronting her deadbeat parents. There was a work drama in which Gypsy was involved that stops your heart for a bit but besides that it’s a great story that will make you cry and laugh all in one.
This book was everything I was hoping for and even more!
Ever since Consume (third book in the Civil Corruption series), I’m in love with Marco Castillo and have claimed him as mine. I’ve been waiting for him since then, and it was so worth the wait.
Marco Castillo is totally alpha, bossy, cocky, but he’s also loyal to a fault, someone who met pain and grief but overcame, sweet and protective, and when he loves, he gives everything he has.
And Gypsy Bradbury deserves nothing less.
The problem, though, is that she is also someone who met pain, rejection, prejudice and was forced, since a very young age, to become the anchor and safe nest to so many little people.
She is guarded, stubborn, prideful, but oh so resilient, loving and a total mama bear!
But being told more often than how unworthy she was, living for so long in the wrong side of the tracks gave the wrong idea that she is not worthy, even though she is one of the bravest and most special people ever (and I’m saying about other books too).
“‘If not you, then who, huh?’
‘Someone worth it’
‘I’m right where I want to be, and I’m with exactly who I want to be with'”
It was definitely not an easy journey for them. They experienced so much in their lives, that trust wasn’t something to give so easily. Gypsy was also so used to being the one people counted on, the one to be responsible and take all the baggage, that accepting all that was Marco was a hard task, because he was so all consuming in an amazing and scary way.
She had yet to realize she deserved it, she deserved all the beauty life could give her, she deserved her amazing brothers and sister, she deserved her friends, she deserved all the love Marco was willing to give her.
“‘She deserves everything’
‘I know’
‘If you’re not sure you can give her that, then just walk away now’
‘I promise you, Rhodes, I wouldn’t be where I am right now if I wasn’t sure'”
And what should I say about her brothers and sisters. I was in love with them all and I couldn’t decide which one I loved the most. They made me laugh, they filled my heart, they made me have unshed tears in my eyes.
They were what Gypsy deserved and what they made them to be. They all lived for each other, they struggled together, they fought and survived and loved for each other. They were the whole and complete package, and loud and loving package. And when Marco realized they were more then he could ever have wished for, there wasn’t a single question about it: he wanted to be a part of it all.
“I didn’t realize it at the time, but I had nothing before I met you. You gave me purpose. You gave me strength. You and those kids gave me everything I could ever want or dream for”
“The Bradburys were back on track, and offically made whole with the inclusion of Marco Castillo into our family”
The walls behind Gypsy’s eyes were not easy to break down, but the light they held was worth all the waiting and fighting.
She was as resilient as she was full of love, and loving was something she did with all she had. And when she realized it was safe to love Marco, they shone so brightly.
“‘What do you see right now?’
‘My whole world, girasol. Every time I look at you, I see my world'”
But life wasn’t only hard because of their trust issues. Much bigger and more dangerous things were lurking around just waiting for the chance to break them and create tragedy.
Things that could easily get out of control, things that forced even independent Gypsy to turn for help in her most vulnerable state.
So it was a good thing they were walking together in the right side of the tracks , building the lives they wanted for each other and their loved ones. They had friends and family they could count on, and they had each other.
So no matter the darkness they faced, their beautiful joruney was only beginning.
“Starting today. Remember this moment, because this is exactly when our great life started”
I loved everything about this book! I love Gypsy’s strength and loyalty to her family no matter what. I loved Marco’s draw to Gypsy. The Hope Valley relationships are incredible. True real friends.
Jessica Prince does a great job drawing readers in and developing an amazing story. I couldn’t put the book down. It has all the best parts of a great book: a little drama, people fighting for those they love, honesty, chemistry,suspense and love! The real conversations between Rhodes and Marco were amazing. The power of love and when you put others above yourself- makes for a perfect book!
Can’t wait to see what Jessica Prince gives us next!!
Wrong Side of the Tracks is the fourth book in the Hope Valley series. This is Gypsy’s and Marco’s book.
I absolutely adored Marco! He was hot, sweet, protective and did everything he could to look out for Gypsy. He accepted that she was the sole provider and responsible for her five younger siblings, and he cared for them as much as he did Gypsy. That man had endless amounts of patience and took every snide comment or brush off Gypsy threw his way. I felt so much relief when Gypsy finally opened her eyes!
Needless to say, it took me a little time to warm up to Gypsy. Between her dead beat parents who abandoned them and her sucky past boyfriends, I understood Gypsy being insecure and scared to try again. However the girl genuinely annoyed me with her stubbornness and the way she treated Marco. He had not one single thing in common with those jerks, and he never once treated her with anything but respect. He never judged Gypsy or made her feel she was less because she stripped to provide for her family. I was worn out by the time she finally dropped the wall she had surrounded her, and realized how wonderful Marco was.
Gypsy’s siblings were great additions to the story. I especially loved Rhodes and how protective he was of his sister. Those kids loved Gypsy and never took for granted everything she did to take care of them. Odette was special too.
We finally get Cord’s and Rory’s story next and I can’t to find out what happens.
4.5 Stars
Wrong Side of the Tracks is everything! It is book 4 of the Hope Valley Series and follows Marco and Gypsy in this small-town romance.
You originally meet Marco in the Civil Corruption Series, so it’s fantastic that he gets his own story for us to swoon over him. Marco is all alpha and once he sets his sights on Gypsy he will pull out all the stops to protect her, her family and breakdown her walls to show her her worth.
Gypsy is a strong AF heroine that is working two jobs to take care of her five siblings. She is broken from past relationships but once you are in her inner circle she loves you fiercely.
I also love Gypsy’s siblings and how protective they are of her. Marco embraces her siblings like their his own and builds connections with them individually. *Heart melting*
Like Prince’s other series, the girl gang in the Hope Valley series is the best! Basically I want to be besties with any of the women Prince writes.
Gypsy Bradbury knows she is from the wrong side of the tracks, most people in town do not understand why she has made the choices she has made but raising her siblings is the most important thing in her life. Having a life for her own is not a priority for her. What she doesn’t need is Marco Castillo coming into her life. She has tried relationships in the past and they are disasters, but Marco is insistent that they can build something. Gypsy though is gun shy and when she attracts the interest of a drug dealer she is in danger and Marco is planning on protecting her even if she doesn’t agree.
This was great, a bit angsty with Gypsy but you get why. I thought Marco was a force to be reckoned with and he doesn’t look down at Gypsy or any of her choices, he gets it and admires her for it. Great series each character has its own individual story that unfolds in a beautiful way.
Title: Wrong Side of The Tracks
Series: Hope Valley 4
Author: Jessica Prince
4.5 stars /
Maria××
This is such a sweet and heartwarming love story. I love Marco Castillo and the kids! The only reason that’s holding me back to give this a full 5 stars read is when the heroine keeps pushing away the hero, it annoys me full stop. Don’t get me wrong I understand the reasoning behind the fiasco, and trust is really important in relationship and after all the heartaches that the heroine suffered from her past relationships I can’t really blame Gypsy girl for having a hard time and doubt if this time around is different from the past.
For Gypsy I really like her character, she’s such a sweet and strong woman who’s in the very young age she becomes the parent for her 5 Siblings (blame it on the neglectful parents). And Marco, I’m swooning over him all through out the book, he is protective, caring and really patience with Gypsy. He understands and respects her, showing her that his love for Gypsy is genuine.
Overall I bona-fidely enjoyed reading this, I love how the author conveys the importance of family love, the strong bonds bet Gypsy and her “kids”. I really felt for each characters. The interaction between the characters, its such a monumental act. I can say that this book will always have a special place in my heart.
Source: Goodreads
Many many errors in grammar, spelling, word placement, characters confusion etc. Good story otherwise. Think I’m done with this author though because of the poor editing/proofreading which makes for frustrating reading.