There's More To Me Than Just Being A Mother: "One Hot Mama" by Cara North

Rafe decides that it is time to make his move on Layla. Layla adores the man, but she has secrets too dark and too risky to let herself fall for him.

For a man who knows everything about women, he doesn't know anything about Layla and to earn her trust he has to do more than win over her children.

The is the third in the "Country Music Collection and a story which now features the third brother in the family--a man who has always been the peace-maker, the one who has stood in the gap when difficulties make family life uneasy and tense, and who now is drawn to a single mother with two kids. His efforts to draw her into any kind of relationship continually fall flat, and even the relationship he has established with the kids--they absolutely adore Rafe--doesn't seem to make much difference when it comes to bringing Layla and Rafe closer to where he would like to be.

As has been the case in the first two books, the story is edgy and real, the characters are not gilded with literary smooze, and the story smacks of contemporary life. The background characters are, in many cases, persons readers have met in the first two books, and their stories continue on just a bit. Certainly Layla is now in a quandry because the real stories of her past are in danger of being revealed. Yet she craves the relationship Rafe's brothers have managed to have and she wants security for herself and her kids.

This story is one of those novels that grabs your emotions and just doesn't let go until the last word is read. Even then I found it difficult to move away from the story and kept on thinking about the characters long after I had finished the book. I find that is true of the really good ones. If nothing else, the characters and their story connected with me on some level.

I think Cara North is a very accomplished writer and have enjoyed her style and her use of the language. Readers of contemporary romance fiction will like her writing and will find that her stories are compelling and worth the time and effort to read. I give this book a 4.25 out of 5.

No, I Haven't Died!! I'm Really Home, Finally!

What an incredible privilege to be able to travel throughout our beautiful country and experience the beauty that we so often take for granted! Train travel affords a unique view of what is often seen from roads and freeways. Train tracks are most often in a different part of the town and wind their way through meadow and hill a far piece from the roadways. And I continue to sing the praises of train travel--quiet, long periods of time to read, knit, sleep, listen quietly to music, meet people from all over the country, and see some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet. What's not to like??

I continued my journey through Cara North's "Country Music Series" of novels and continue to find her writing very much to my taste. Book Two, She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy is another compelling story about a very different situation: a marriage that is on the rock even before the

marriage begins. Now admittedly we read of such happenings now and then among celebrities--i.e. the rece

Kardashian fiasco is a case in point. But I don't often encounter it in romance fiction. This book deals with such a scenario in a way that is edgy and seems to "go for the throat." It is visceral and gutsy and the characters are hurting big time. There were times when I wasn't sure this book could come up with a resolution. It almost read like a Greek tragedy.nt

Ms North has a wonderful way with a story. I hope that those of you who really like contemporary romance--straightforward, gutsy, and a healthy dose of eroticism mixed in--will take a look at this series. It caught my eye because I like the songs that are referenced in the titles, and while each is a stand alone novel, I would recommend starting with book one since the family and secondary characters are fascinating and really hold the reader's interest. Be prepared to feel the hurt, disappointment, passion, fear, and complicated relationships that are the stuff of real life. I think you'll be glad you indulged.

Never fear: I'll be posting some interesting reviews shortly. I am trying to catch up with some reviews I owe The Book Binge so right now I'm spread kind of thin. Those of you who checked in and found me absent, thanks for your faithfulness. Hopefully we'll all be back together and sharing some of the stuff that we have been reading in the past 4-6 weeks. Let me hear from you. I really love all the comments I receive.

Reading On The Train: "Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off" by Cara North

If you have been checking in from time to time, you know that hubby and I are on our BIG annual train trek, spanning the United States, moving from train to train, and having a ball doing it. Lugging suitcases around can be tiring, but at our age we don't get enough exercise anyway, so that has been all to our good. Moving from West to East, arriving in Boston, trekking North to Portland, Maine, then journeying South to Washington, D.C. and visiting friends who live nearby in Virginia, moving into my home state of Georgia and renewing friendship with long-time friends (that we met and got to know 49 years ago) near Atlanta, and now we are sitting a spell in the home of our oldest daughter who lives in Alabama. Hubby and daughter conspired to drive me to Nashville where we explored really old and unusual cars at the Lane Automobile Museum--absolutely a hoot and trip down memory lane--and an afternoon at the Country Music Hall of Fame. Special displays highlighting the talents and careers of Chet Atkins and Hank Williams, Jr were only a small part of the fun and really encountering a music genre that is uniquely American.

All that train riding makes time for computer games (that's hubby's thing), knitting afghans for church and friends, and, of course, READING!! As many of you have come to recognize, I like some of the older publications I missed out on in years past, and the two novels of Cara North I recently discovered were a treasure uncovered, to be sure. The titles caught my eye be

cause I really love country music and particularly liked the fun titles of these quirky songs.

Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off is a fun contemporary erotic romance about two people needing each other for different reasons and finding out that together they are one insatiable force. Bethany Dodson is running from her past and her fiancé. She needs a new last name and to get lost fast! Jack Johnson needs to marry a woman to get his inheritance so he can stop working on other ranches and rebuild the one he shares with his two older brothers and younger sister. When he meets Bethany, his goal is basically to get some action then get on searching for a wife. But Bethany kills two birds with one stone and the next thing he knows he's the one getting drug down the aisle! What they discover is more than just surface needs. They take each other to new heights in and out of the bedroom, push boundaries, and even fall in love!

What's a girl to do when she has everything money can buy, enough money to float a boat in her underwear drawer, and absolute certainty that she means nothing at all to her parents or the man who is "scheduled" to marry her? Why, she goes to Las Vegas, of course. She needs someone to marry her, give her a new name, let her begin a new life, and then he will be free--that is, if he wants to be free. In the same way, Jack Johnson needs a woman to marry, one who isn't a gold-digger, who can "put out" for at least three months, and who will gladly divorce him in three months--that is, if he is willing to let her go.

Thus the story of Bethany and Jack begins, tossing back shots of tequila, allowing their physical attraction to draw them into each other's sphere, daring one another to marry, and signing on the dotted line--temporarily, to be sure. Yet as life has a way of snookering us into surprises, so the attraction that these two explore and enjoy becomes the hook that seems to keep them connected as their respective stories unfold.

This story explores the healing power of love for a woman who knows her own mind, who has a killer education and plans to use it, and a curvy, voluptuous body she thinks of as fat. Yet Bethany is typical of many women who have incredible talent and learning but who are stunted by the disregard, disrespect, and actually be used rather than appreciated by the people who should have loved her best. Just the simple hugs Jack is willing to share, the fact that a gorgeous man seems to really be turned on by her body as well as her mind, has Bethany beginning to believe that she is loveable and can be valued for herself alone.

I found this novel to be so enjoyable, not really light-weight as it deals with some substantive issues that are unfortunately alive and well in the experience of a multitude of today's women. The loving is warm and inviting, the sex is incredible, and the story of how a relationship that began under less-than-optimum circumstances all combine to make a novel that is a joy to read and, might I add, re-read. Published in 2007, Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off is still contemporary and pertinent to the world of today's women. I highly recommend it as a novel that will warm your heart, massage your libido, and engage your mind as well. Don't miss this one. I give it a rating of 4.25 out of 5.