When Chase Stone’s estranged father dies, leaving his multibillion-dollar business to his children, no one is more surprised than Chase. Growing up outside of the high-stakes world filled with human vultures, Chase and his sister, Alex, are less than enthusiastic about stepping into their father’s shoes. That is until they learn of a half brother they didn’t know existed and must find to share their inheritance with.
Piper Maddox was the elder Mr. Stone’s übercapable assistant—abruptly fired two weeks before his death. She knows everything about Stone Enterprises and the man who built it. But Piper has no desire to work for another member of the Stone family. Even one as down-to-earth as Chase.
Desperately needing financial security, Piper agrees to return so long as kissing up to Chase and accepting unwanted advances are not part of her job description. A promise that becomes a serious hurdle for both of them. Piper and Chase scramble to find the third Stone sibling before the media does, sharing secrets along the way. Secrets that can bring them together or tear them irrevocably apart.
ALL OUR TOMORROWS (The Heirs Book #1) by Catherine Bybee is the start of a contemporary billionaire romance series. I normally do not read this subgenre, but I love Ms. Bybee’s style of writing, and these reluctant billionaires receive their financial windfall when their estranged father dies, so I gave it a try and I am very glad I did.
Chase and Alex Stone are shocked at the reading of their estranged father’s will. Both are successful, but the inheritance of their father’s business and money are at a completely different level. They also discover they have a half-brother out there somewhere that they never knew anything about and to complete the conditions of the will and share a third of their father’s wealth, they must find him.
Chase Stone has to learn all about his father’s business in a hurry to keep the vultures at bay. He learns his assistant has only been in the position for two weeks and his father’s previous assistant was fired abruptly. Chase digs into the situation and finds out the injustice of the firing and wants the straight shooting and intelligent Piper back to assist him.
Piper Maddox has no desire to work for another member of the Stone family, but when she meets Chase, she learns he is nothing like his father. She needs the financial security of the position, but she has a few rules. As they work together with Chase’s sister to stabilize the company and find the missing Stone heir before the press, they discover a chemistry that both fight, but neither can resist.
I really enjoyed this introduction to the Stone siblings and Chase and Piper’s romance. All the characters are fully developed and realistic. Chase is an endearing hero of strength and integrity, and Piper is an intelligent heroine who can smoothly handle the politics of a multi-billion-dollar company but has a very big secret in her personal life. The two together are perfect. All the secondary characters round out a varied cast of good and bad players with secrets that will be answered over the future books in the series. The search for the missing heir and the treachery in their father’s corporation and boardroom have the plot moving at a fast pace, while the romance is intertwined and moves along at a believable pace. The corporate intrigue and the discovery of the missing heir are slight cliffhangers at the end of the story.
I highly recommend this first book in this new billionaire contemporary romance series.
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About the Author
Catherine is a #1 Wall Street Journal, Amazon, and Indie Reader bestselling author. In addition, her books have also graced The New York Times and USA Today bestsellers lists. In total she has written thirty-six beloved books that have collectively sold more than 10 million copies and have been translated into more than twenty languages.
Raised in Washington State, Bybee moved to Southern California in the hope of becoming a movie star. After growing bored with waiting tables, she returned to school and became a registered nurse, spending most of her career in urban emergency rooms. She now writes full time and has penned the Not Quite series, The Weekday Brides series, the Most Likely To series, and the First Wives series. Learn more about Catherine and her books at www.catherinebybee.com
When Chase Stone’s estranged father dies, leaving his multibillion-dollar business to his children, no one is more surprised than Chase. Growing up outside of the high-stakes world filled with human vultures, Chase and his sister, Alex, are less than enthusiastic about stepping into their father’s shoes. That is until they learn of a half brother they didn’t know existed and must find to share their inheritance with.
Piper Maddox was the elder Mr. Stone’s übercapable assistant—abruptly fired two weeks before his death. She knows everything about Stone Enterprises and the man who built it. But Piper has no desire to work for another member of the Stone family. Even one as down-to-earth as Chase.
Desperately needing financial security, Piper agrees to return so long as kissing up to Chase and accepting unwanted advances are not part of her job description. A promise that becomes a serious hurdle for both of them. Piper and Chase scramble to find the third Stone sibling before the media does, sharing secrets along the way. Secrets that can bring them together or tear them irrevocably apart.
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Elise’s Thoughts
All Our Tomorrows intermingles the romance genre with family fiction. Readers will not be disappointed in this first book of the series. Per usual, Catherine Bybee provides poignant and bittersweet moments where readers will have a roller coast of emotions: laughing, crying, and worrying right along with the characters. This one has emphasis on relationships: family, corporate business, and personal.
The book opens with the funeral of Aaron Stone who has been estranged from his children, Chase and Alexandra (Alex) all their lives. They are shocked to find out that he has left his multibillionaire business to them, but also that they have a half-brother who shares the inheritance.
Desperately needing help in understanding and digging into their father’s business and personal accounts, Chase reaches out to his father’s recently terminated (without cause) executive assistant, Piper, who he rehires with a raise. They spend a lot of time together to research the company and to find hints on where to locate the brother. As the attraction grows, Piper is trying very hard to keep her distance since she is pregnant with another man’s child. Until she blurts out to him the secret. The relationship takes off from there.
Bybee fans will also enjoy finding some old characters in the story. Jack, Jessie, and the father Gaylord play a somewhat prominent role. They come in to help Chase and Alex with the business and embrace them into their family, including helping to find their lost brother, Max.
This book has witty banter. It is a heartfelt story that has sexual tension and tension regarding the business. It is one of those books’ readers will not want to put down.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: How did you get the idea for this series?
Catherine Bybee: Right now, there will be three books, all about the siblings. I knew I wanted to write about rich people again since I did not do that for a while, plus do possible global play. Other pieces I wanted to put in is a grumpy boss, and a pregnancy. I keep looking for someone to put me on a private plane so I can do some personal research. I did a lot of research into the corporate world. Often the controlling interest is not 50% or higher.
EC: Is Piper an executive secretary with power?
CB: Yes. I wrote her to be the right hand and, in some ways, having more detailed knowledge than the actual CEO. She wears two faces, seeing the executive side but also knows the office gossip.
EC: How would you describe Piper?
CB: She speaks her mind, fierce, confident, honest, and a powerhouse. She is also loyal, has a sense of humor, and sarcastic. She can be insecure and vulnerable. Her soft side is on the inside. She tries to hide it in the corporate world. She is sassy, a departure from when she was the executive assistant of the father, because she knows she is needed.
EC: What is the role of the dog Kit?
CB: I got the name of the dog, Kitty, after I met someone who literally had a dog of that name. I used it because it is so funny. He is an anchor at her side that protects her. Kit is an angry looking rottweiler, like my neighbor’s dog, but the dog would not hurt a flea.
EC: What about the pregnancy?
CB: I intentionally made it so that the baby was not the hero’s child. It affected all the characters’ lives, depending on the decision about the baby. I wanted her to struggle with the decision of keeping the baby or giving it up for adoption. I also did not want this to be a child of incest or rape. She was not in love with the guy who was the father. I hoped I showed how the decision is never easy, that she was faced with the judgement of others. I wanted to have it come across that the decision about the baby should be solely hers. As I put in my notes at the end of the book, my experience helped me write this part of the story. I saw decisions made because someone else wants it. How young women ignored the pregnancy until they were five months along without any natal care.
EC: How would you describe Chase?
CB: He has a sense of humor. He is honorable, protective, skating around having wealth. Based on his experience he knows how wealth can affect people. He is family oriented.
EC: What about the relationship between Chase and Piper?
CB: I wanted to show how Chase stepped into the role of wanting to be the baby’s father. She walks into the office for the first time, dressed as a powerhouse, has him spellbound. They are guarded and have mistrust. She fears his judgement. They like to tease and flirt with each other. He made her off balance. He gives her the reprieve of thinking about the baby.
EC: What is the relationship between the siblings, Alex and Chase Stone?
CB: They respect each other, loyal, and equal partners. They can be honest with each other. There is a difference in that Chase came to terms about his absentee dad, while Alex still has daddy issues. She has this overwhelming need to overcompensate. The two of them have kept each other grounded. They have family values they got from their mother. They have each other’s back.
EC: Why bring in Gaylord?
CB: He is the counter to Chase and Alex’s father, Aaron. He is the father everyone would want. He, Jack, and Jesse were featured in the book written over a decade ago, Not Quite Dating. Since I brought back the hotel world of corporate business I decided, why not bring back these from a previous book. This is an update for those readers who have read it. He is someone the Stone children could ask questions. I wanted to show there could be some good fathers in this book. There is a secondary relationship between Gaylord and the Stone children’s mom, Vivian.
EC: Does Melissa and Floyd represent the not so nice people?
CB: They will be in play in the next books. They continue to have their issues.
EC: Next books?
CB: I wanted to be fresh when I approached Mari’s story, from the D’Angelo series. I wanted this series to be finished before I tackle silver-haired romance.
The next book will feature the half-brother Max who they found at the end of this book. There is a lot to his story. There are some dangling plot points that will be wrapped up at the end of the series. The title The Forgotten One comes out in November. All the Stones will be back in book two with Max realizing he now has a family.
THANK YOU!!
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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
Cowboy Max Romero is a married man—even if he hasn’t seen his bride since their impulsive Reno wedding. When the seriously sexy Brit Phoebe Creighton-Smith suddenly shows up in his life again, the last thing he expects is a request to play man-and-wife in front of her family. But it sounds like a challenge to the mischievous Max, who offers Phoebe one in return—give up proper English etiquette for riding the range like a real rancher’s woman.
Phoebe is willing to rope a stallion, if it means she can convince her grandmother to release the trust fund she’s entitled to after marriage. She’ll just have to pretend that her deliciously brawny “husband” isn’t tempting her to total abandon every minute of every day—and night. But just when the heat between them crackles into a blaze, Phoebe’s snobby clan forces Max to make a choice, he knows he’ll risk everything to convince her that with them, true love is a sure thing . . .
THREE COWBOYS AND A BRIDE (Three Cowboys Book #3) by Kate Pearce is the third book in the Three Cowboys trilogy of cowboy contemporary romances and Max’s story which I have been waiting for and I believe my favorite of the three. While this book can be read as a standalone, I read them in order to follow all three of the cowboys’ romances because the main characters live together, and all appear in each book.
Cowboy Max Romero has never felt he deserved a permanent home, and he has an unfiltered mouth which gets him in trouble often, even with his friends. When he takes off a without notice from the ranch after a disagreement with Luke and Noah, they are surprised when he returns a few months later with a bride in tow that no one knew anything about.
Phoebe Creighton-Smith has tracked down the man she married in Reno. Four years ago, she conceived a marriage of convenience to Max to solve a problem with her inheritance back in England and then they parted ways. Now she is back requesting Max to play her husband at her sister’s wedding. Max agrees, but only if Phoebe will play a real rancher’s wife until they need to leave.
While playing husband and wife, Max and Phoebe discover an explosive chemistry between them, but these two have a few secrets to clear up. When Phoebe’s brother manipulates them to part, will Max risk it all for the woman he loves?
I loved Max and Phoebe. I really had no idea how Max would find the one for him after his problems in the first two books of the trilogy, but they were perfect for each other. There was a large communication gap between them, and it was slowly settled throughout the story and ended with the HEA I wished for. The sex scenes were smokin’ hot and steamy, but not gratuitous. I also always enjoy catching up on the lives of the other main couples and secondary characters. This is an entertaining and sexy romance with a great cast of characters.
I highly recommend this entire trilogy and I will definitely be checking out more of this author’s books.
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Author Bio
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Kate Pearce was born in England in the middle of a large family of girls and quickly found that her imagination was far more interesting than real life. After acquiring a degree in history and barely escaping from the British Civil Service alive, she moved to California and then to Hawaii with her kids and her husband and set about reinventing herself as a romance writer.
She is known for both her unconventional heroes and her joy at subverting romance clichés. In her spare time she self publishes science fiction erotic romance, historical romance, and whatever else she can imagine.
Brynn Haywood’s impulsive marriage to a man she’d known less than 24 hours leaves her with deep regret. She flees to Cape Cod, finding refuge with her loyal friend, Dawn Dixon. As Brynn grapples with her emotions, Dawn acts swiftly, eager to help secure a lawyer for her through her mother Marnie’s good friend, Lincoln Hayes. However, Lincoln’s preoccupation with his daughter’s lavish wedding brings unexpected challenges.
The arrival of Lincoln’s estranged son, Bear Hayes, stirs the waters further. Alarmed by his father’s extravagant generosity toward the Dixon family, Bear ignites friction between Marnie and Lincoln. As the wedding day arrives, Lincoln vanishes–and an unwelcome guest makes a surprise appearance.
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Elise’s Thoughts
Love On A Whim by Suzanne Woods Fisher is a delicious read. The quote at the beginning of the novel sums it up, “Eat ice cream. Read books. Be happy.” The book explores family, faith, romance, forgiveness, friendship, and second chances.
The plot begins with Dawn Dixon’s best buddy from college, Brynn Haywood, attending a civil engineer convention in Las Vegas. While there she, uncharacteristically, decides to leave the convention with someone she just met, see some of the sites, and eventually gets married. When she wakes the next morning, appalled by her behavior, she sneaks out of the room and heads to Cape Cod, hoping Dawn can help get her out of this mess. Dawn, an inveterate “fixer,” spends her energy plotting how to get Brynn’s marriage annulled, while her mother, Marnie urges Brynn to slow down and listen to her heart.
There is also Lincoln Hayes, Marnie’s boyfriend, whose estranged family is coming to town for his daughter’s wedding. He agreed to finance the wedding to ease his guilt for being a terrible absent dad. Although the daughter is willing to forgive and forget, the son, Bear, is very resentful, the epitome of what his father used to be: concerned only about himself, too busy for others, unkind, and trying to make trouble for the Dixon family.
Then the caterer gets Covid, and everything falls apart. The Dixon family to the rescue. Callie takes over the catering, Dawn makes the ice cream treats, and Brynn who is a good hobby baker, agrees to make the wedding cake.
Readers will be on the edge of their seats wondering what will happen to Brynn’s marriage, as well as other issues facing the characters that include Dawn’s infertility, Lincoln’s health problems, and can the family reconcile. The story is compelling, filled with wit and wisdom, and all the characters have their issues resolved in a satisfactory way, where the reader feels they are part of the drama. But there is also a humorous tone that lightens up the tension.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: Since this is the last book in the series what do you want to say about it?
Suzanne Woods Fisher: The characters might be revisited in another series. I got the original idea because my husband is a professional ice cream maker. My editor said to write a book about ice cream in Cape Cod. It is a family saga. I enjoy writing books about outsiders who try to fit in. All the books in the series have family members who try to get back on their feet after a couple of bad mishaps. They are trying to make a go of it in a tourist town. This is all about people and relationships.
EC: Did you also put in important issues in the books?
SWF: Yes. People trying to recover from grief, having to deal with cancer, dealing with clinical depression, and infertility.
EC: How would you describe the heroine in the story, Brynn?
SWF: Sensible, responsible, impulsive, predictable, even keeled, and passionate. Because she is a civil engineer, she is logical, a planner, and organized. She is also insecure and does not like it when her heart tries to overrule her brain. She and Dawn bonded in college. Unlike what we know about her she meets and marries a guy in 24 hours and panics, fleeing to Cape Cod. She pursues her passion to be a baker.
EC: What role did Marnie, Dawn’s mom, who considers Brynn her adoptive daughter, play?
SWF: She pushes Brynn to think why she said yes to this man. She is telling her to slow down. She is a good counterbalance to the three young women. She plays the mother who is over-protective, leading them to come to a good decision, but she also will not be so direct and leads them with questions or hints to think what they want. Marnie has a quiet way because she cannot say too much, or the women will shut down. She relies on feelings, intuition, and faith.
EC: Dawn was the featured character in book 1, The Sweet Life, Callie was the featured character in book 2, The Secret to Happiness, and this features Brynn. What are the similarities and differences between each?
SWF: They are like a three-legged stool. They all are sister-like. They are all perfectionists, reasonable.
Dawn has always been in the shadow of her cousin Callie, where they both competed against each other. She grew up with a little bit of a jealous streak. She now sometimes feels like third man out. She does not look for good in people unlike Callie and Brynn. She is matter of fact. She is a perfectionist, logical, likes to find other people’s mistakes, stays on task, and is stable. Dawn likes to interfere because she likes to be in control. Readers appreciate her, but she can rub on them, very frustrating, meddling, and has blinders on because her way is the way. But she is very loyal to her friends and family and is always there for them.
Callie is a talker, positive, a perfectionist, bold, creative, effervescent, decisive, persistent, and like Dawn she also likes to be in control. She is good at time management.
Brynn is softer, gentler than Dawn and Callie. Yet, she has always been attracted to the family life of Dawn and Callie. She is logical, reasonable, relies on feedback, calm, reserved, and eager to learn.
EC: What about the relationship between Brynn and T. D., the man she impulsively married?
SWF: They were attracted to each other. The relationship was based on spontaneity and light-heartedness. They did trust each other. They had a real intimacy when they met and were able to share their real self with each other, bearing their souls to each other. They had a lot in common because they came from the same perspective of being from divorced parents and forced to be on their own. They did not want their future to be like their parents. But after Brynn left, she felt humiliated, helpless, and emotional.
EC: What about Bear, Lincon’s son?
SWF: He had a lot of baggage. He was defensive and feels abandoned. Now he is placed in a situation where he must deal with his father who abandoned him, and an over-bearing mother. He is a damaged guy. He is suspicious, distrustful, skeptical, cold, angry, uncaring, harsh, and condescending. He is incredibly loyal to his sister and his mom. He tries to protect his father because he is afraid the women are taking advantage of his generosity. Readers do see him as a good person in the way he reacts to the child, Cowboy Leo. Bear was like an older brother to him, and Leo thinks he is a caring person. Because of Bear, Cowboy Leo became baseball Leo.
EC: Does Marnie and her beau, Lincoln’s relationship take different turns in the story?
SWF: Lincoln’s daughter is getting married at Cape Cod. The wedding caused a lot of insecurities between them. Marnie relies on him. They are best friends. This is a second romance for both. She finally realizes how much he has changed over a decade. He previously put everything into his work, sacrificing his family, before he met Marnie. She sees him when he became a generous, caring person.
EC: Next books?
SWF: A series will come out with four novellas. The print version will come out in November, titled The Year in Flowers. Three girls work in a flower shop in the South. They are best friends, but around the time they leave for college something dreadful happens in the shop. Each novella has what they are doing seven years later.
I will also have an Amish book coming out in October titled A Healing Touch. It is about a doctor to the Amish, who makes house calls. She is the central character.
THANK YOU!!
***
BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
The “Three Men” by Kate Pearce novels are cowboy books with three heroes who are former Marines that have PTSD and are now cowboys, working on the ranch. The characters are enthralling and likeable with plots that are riveting and engrossing.
What is great about all three books is how Pearce has the previous characters all back with a continuation of their stories. Readers will enjoy the humor and sense of family the group formed, even if all are not related by blood, but remain a family just the same.
Book Description – Book #1
When an old military buddy turns up at the ranch he shares with two friends, Noah Harding never imagines the friend will skip out overnight and leave his baby boy behind. Noah will have some choice parenting advice to offer when the baby’s mother turns up, but until then, he’ll do his best to take care of the little one. Yet when a relieved Jen finally tracks down her son, Noah realizes the story is more complicated than he thought. And soon, so are his feelings for Jen . . .
Jen Rossi doesn’t expect much from her unreliable ex, but she’s shocked to return from an extended mission and discover he’s abandoned their son with three men she doesn’t know. Not that Noah isn’t doing a good job as fill-in daddy. In fact, there seems to be very little the straight-talking cowboy can’t do. And with a winter storm settling in, and close quarters making it impossible to deny their chemistry, this temporary solution might just become the key to forever . . .
Elsie’s Thoughts – Book #1
Three Cowboys and A Baby is inspired by the 1980’s classic hit, “Three Men and a Baby.” The book has an old military buddy turning up at the ranch with his child and asking his three former Marine buddies to help with the care of his baby boy, Sky. One of them, Noah Harding, realizes his friend has skipped out overnight, leaving his baby boy behind. Noah is designated as the one to take care of the little one until his mother, Jen Rossi shows up. Because of a long winter storm, she is stuck on the ranch with her baby, Sky, and the three men. The proximity has Noah and Jen constantly miscommunicating including their feelings and the parenting of Sky.
Book Description – Book #2
With a thriving cattle ranch and good friends all around, there’s not much Luke Nilsen would change about his life. But when his buddy Noah’s sister comes to visit, Luke begins to wonder if it’s time to change himself—and become the kind of man a sophisticated city woman like her would want. Maybe his female bestie, Bernie Cooper, who runs the local coffee shop, can use her womanly expertise and give him a man makeover . . .
Bernie thinks Luke is just fine the way he is—more than fine, even—aside from being blind to the fact that Bernie is perfect for him. But what’s a BFF to do? Perhaps it’s time for her to finally get over Luke and move on. Yet as Luke helps organize their small town’s Adopt a Shelter Dog auction event, one sweet little puppy seems to be on a mission to help Luke realize that the right woman has been right by his side all along . . .
Elise’s Thoughts – Book #2
Three Cowboys and A Puppy is a friends-to-lovers romance. The hero, Luke Nilsen, is attracted to Noah’s sister and asks his female bestie, Bernie Murphy, to use her womanly expertise and give him relationship advice. He is oblivious to the fact that she is in love with him. The book has several storylines including Luke’s inability to see that Bernie’s in love with him, and her reaction to her absentee father, Brian, who now wants to get to know her. Then there is Bernie who is trying to juggle her involvement in an upcoming puppy auction, adding an on-line ordering and delivery service to her cafe, expanding her business and needing additional staff, and constantly dealing with the people around her who make her feel second rate. Luke eventually gets some sense knocked into him more than once thanks to friends and family, that make him realize Bernie is right for him. Complications in the relationship exist because Luke almost loses her, when he won’t talk to her about his PTSD and is so blockheaded that he forgets to tell her that he loves her. It takes an intervention from friends and family to push these two to their happily ever after.
Book Description – Book #3
Cowboy Max Romero is a married man—even if he hasn’t seen his bride since their impulsive Reno wedding. When the seriously sexy Brit Phoebe Creighton-Smith suddenly shows up in his life again, the last thing he expects is a request to play man-and-wife in front of her family. But it sounds like a challenge to the mischievous Max, who offers Phoebe one in return—give up proper English etiquette for riding the range like a real rancher’s woman.
Phoebe is willing to rope a stallion, if it means she can convince her grandmother to release the trust fund she’s entitled to after marriage. She’ll just have to pretend that her deliciously brawny “husband” isn’t tempting her to total abandon every minute of every day—and night. But just when the heat between them crackles into a blaze, Phoebe’s snobby clan forces Max to make a choice, he knows he’ll risk everything to convince her that with them, true love is a sure thing . . .
Elise’s Thoughts – Book #3
Three Cowboys and A Bride has the hero Max secretly married to Phoebe for the past four years. Seems he’s been married and never told his best friends. He was married in Reno to a British lady name Phoebe who has returned to America to find Max because she needs to prove to her family she does have a husband. She needed to be married to get her trust fund that her family is holding hostage. Her father has now passed away and her brother is still holding the purse strings. While in the US, Phoebe surprises everyone by helping with the ranch chores. She can ride and doesn’t have a problem getting dirty. The longer she and Max are together, both come to realize maybe being married to each other is a good idea. Navigating miscommunications, self-doubt, fears and emotions, they grow as individuals and partners, bringing out the best in each other. With a little help from their friends, they overcome their hesitancy and stubbornness to realize they love each other and want to stay married.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: How did you get the idea for the series?
Kate Pearce: This is a three-book series plus a novella. I have written a lot of cowboy books. My editor suggested a title, Three Cowboys and A Baby. There is a movie “Three Men and A Baby,” where the mother leaves the baby, but in my book the dad leaves the baby, with the mother having a perfectly good reason why she cannot be there. The men immediately assume that the mom is a problem, that she is a fault. I would describe my book as a 21st century take on the movie. Even though these are romance novels I try to put very important themes: how war affects people, and how hard is the world of ranching and being a cowboy in real life.
EC: Why did you have PTSD play a role with all the three men heroes in each of the three books?
KP: I have talked to friends of mine who have been in the service as well as friends who are spouses of those serving. It seems PTSD comes on differently with everyone. There is this book quote by Jen, “Combat does weird things to people’s minds. No one is the same after dealing with that. You create order out of your chaos rather than unleashing it on the world. That is admirable.” I wanted to show a shared experience but how they reacted differently because of their personalities. Noah reacted by controlling everything with his spreadsheets and life mapped out. He is very rigid, a black and white guy, someone who is obsessive. Luke never leaves his surroundings. He seems so in control, on top of everything, but has a vulnerability where he does not feel safe including afraid of the forest when dark. Max is the one who everyone thinks is the problem child. But he has releases and has come to terms with PTSD better than the other two. He can express his emotions and has not bottled them down.
EC: How would you describe Dave, the father of Sky?
KP: Charming, a fly by night person, not a good parent. He is a playboy, inconsiderate, not responsible, not reliable, and self-centered.
EC: How would you describe the heroine in the first book, Jen?
KP: Sarcastic, witty, an optimist, someone who seeks solutions and tries to avoid conflicts. She is patient, a peacemaker, honest, and has a sense of humor.
EC: What about the heroine in the second book, Bernie?
KP: She has her hand in many projects including the Humane Society for Animals, and her bakery. She is impulsive, a go getter, ambitious, direct, yet sometimes has low self-esteem. She is like Jesse from “Toy Story” in personality and appearance.
EC: What the heroine in the third book, Phoebe?
KP: She is like an English princess. She is honest, polite, likes to fit in, and wants to stand on her own two feet. Because I am British it is easier for me to write British people. She is very proper, like a Mary Poppins person.
EC: What about the hero of the first book, Three Cowboys and a Baby, Noah?
KP: Responsible, speaks his mind, old-fashioned, judgmental, gentle, a planner, and over-protective. He is not very good at expressing his feelings.
EC: How would you describe the hero of the second book, Three Cowboys and a Puppy, Luke?
KP: He is a planner, detailed, calm, level-headed, and likes to hide his feelings. He was the hardest to write. Outwardly he is a together person, but he has visceral fears of the darkness which is why he does not sleep.
EC: What about the hero in the third book, Three Cowboys and a Bride, Max?
KP: He likes to tease, does not mince words, and is outspoken. Sometimes he is not a people person and is known to have a temper. He is efficient, chatty, and jokes. He can be suspicious and stubborn because he does not take criticism very well. He is very good at giving advice.
EC: What role does the baby boy Sky play?
KP: He is sunny. I think he helps with the humor in the book and brings Jen together with Noah. I usually do not write children in the books.
EC: What about the relationship between Noah and Jen?
KP: It starts off bad because he makes accusations towards her. Because of his misconceptions he holds a grudge towards her. As they get closer, they do not know how to handle themselves. She has her own expectations, and the relationship becomes very frustrating. Max is a kind of matchmaker. He gets them to think about things.
EC: What about the relationship between Luke and Bernie?
KP: They are best friends. Luke has taken her for granted and is oblivious to her true feelings about him. He is the object of her dreams. She can overreact towards him, while he presents barriers. Max speaks his mind and gets them to speak with each other. Banging their heads together in a sense.
EC: What about the relationship between Phoebe and Max?
KP: She captivated by this maverick cowboy. From the moment he saw her he was smitten. He tries to do everything right by her and thinks she is awesome. This was my favorite to write. They were so different but are compatible. They complement each other. He makes her feel safe and she offers him stability.
EC: In the third book Noah and Jen got married. How did that play a role?
KP: With a wedding there can be different conversations, misunderstandings, and everyone gets involved with their little moments. It gave Phoebe a chance to become integrated into the ranch family and to get to know the women. This is a book where the women were nice to each other, welcoming to her.
EC: Do you think all these books show how they are an extended family?
KP: Yes, this is crucial to the books. Noah is the protective one of everyone. Max is the advisor to everyone. Luke is like the commander he was in the Marines to everyone. The ranch is their home. They care about each other and love each other.
EC: Next books?
KP: I also write cozy historical mysteries as Catherine Lloyd, set in Regency and Victorian England. The daughter of an aristocrat who died in disgrace becomes a companion to an industrialist. It goes from there. I will also be writing historical romance and historical fiction.
In December there is a novella coming out that continues with these characters titled Here Comes Cowboy Claus. Pen from the B & B will be the heroine. I wrote it with my daughter in mind who has ADD and so does the heroine. This will be the last one in the series.
THANK YOU!!
***
BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
Rodeo star Tate Oakley has loved Ellie Rowland since high school, even after she married his best friend. Now the newly single cowgirl is back in Clementine, Oklahoma. Ellie is focused on opening her own restaurant, helping her sick father with his ranch and raising her adorable twin girls. But could she also be ready to give the gun-shy Tate the second chance that he’s been looking for?
The Cowboy Academy
Book 1: A Cowboy Worth Waiting For Book 2: A Cowboy’s Fourth of July Book 3: A Cowboy Christmas Carol Book 4: A Cowboy for the Twins
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Elise’s Thoughts
A Cowboy for the Twins by Melinda Curtis is a fun read. The story has two high school classmates reuniting after several years. The hero, Tate, had a crush and was in love with Ellie, but she broke his heart by choosing his best friend, Buck.
The story begins with Ellie returning to her dad’s ranch, now divorced from Buck who fooled around on her. She wants to make her dad’s sheep ranch profitable and is trying to raise her twin daughters. As the two spend time at the rodeos and helping each other, their feelings grow, but both must let go of past issues to finally have their happily ever after. They must navigate through hurt feelings, but thankfully Ellie’s twin girls and her grandmother push the relationship along as they become the humorous matchmakers.
The story is engaging, humorous with quirky and relatable characters.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: Idea for the story?
Melinda Curtis: I grew up on my grandfather’s sheep ranch. To me, it was interesting to find out how these sheep ranchers survive. I wanted the heroine to come home to a sheep ranch and try to figure out how to make it work. Plus, someone I know raises llamas. This was a leap to having the hero’s mom raising alpacas, a lucrative type of wool. I like to draw on something from the past.
EC: How would you describe the hero, Tate?
MC: He is a confirmed bachelor who cannot say no. He is guarded, loyal, vulnerable, funny, and kind. He must get over his feeling of abandonment. Because of this, he needs people to like him.
EC: How would you describe the heroine, Ellie?
MC: Stubborn, detailed, caring, and sincere.
EC: What about the relationship?
MC: Ellie did not expect it to happen. Tate was hurt by her in high school and now is unsettled about his feelings for her. There is easy banter between them. She feels frustrated by him because he is putting up walls. Both do not want to acknowledge the attraction and depth of feelings between them.
EC: What about the grandma, Gigi?
MC: Outspoken, direct, she is the truth sayer, someone who tells it like it is.
EC: What was the role of Prince the horse?
MC: Tate needed to embrace the fact that the horse was a worker more than a pet. The horse was a symbol: how Tate can get ahead if he stops being so much a pleaser.
EC: Does Ellie’s twin girls also play a role?
MC: They say the truth. They like to give advice. They have an answer for everything. They are Yin and Yang. One is prissy and the other is cowboyish. Together they are a force, which I use for comic relief.
EC: Please explain the quote, “You can’t neglect your own needs and dreams for someone else’s.”
MC: Self-care is not selfish. Reaching for their dreams was self-care.
EC: Next book(s)?
MC: The next book is A Cowgirl Never Forgets, part of the Blackwell series, out in July. It is a story about two best friends that work for the rodeo. It will be a cross series with this one, the “Cowboy Academy Series.” The hero gets tossed by a bull to protect the heroine. He gets temporary amnesia, and everything goes from there.
Later in August will be another book in this series titled Rodeo Star’s Reunion. The hero, Griff, helps the high school rodeo team. His son will finally find out Griff is his father.
THANK YOU!!
***
BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
