About
Dare Riker is a doctor who saves lives, but someone seems determined to end his. It may have something to do with the traitors he dealt with during the Civil War, or it might be related to the recent incident with Flint Greer and the ranch. Whoever the culprit is, he or she seems really fired up, and Dare can’t let his guard down for a moment, which is a challenge, since right now he’s trying to win the heart of the recently widowed Glynna.
Glynna Greer came west as a mail-order bride and ended up in a bad situation. Now her husband, Flint, is dead, and she’s determined to care for her son and daughter on her own. She wants to believe Dare Riker is as decent as he seems, but she’s terrified to lock herself into another marriage. She plans to support her small family by opening a diner–never mind that cooking is not her greatest talent. The men in Broken Wheel, Texas, are so desperate for home cooking that they seem willing to overlook dried-out beef and blackened biscuits.
Glynna can’t help but notice that danger follows Dare wherever he goes. There’s the avalanche. And then the fire. But things really get out of hand when someone plunges a knife from Glynna’s diner into Dare’s back. Are Flint’s cronies still plotting revenge? Is Glynna’s son engaged in a misguided attempt to protect his mother? Is a shadowy outsider still enraged over past injustices? And can Dare survive long enough to convince Glynna to take another chance on love?
Review
Fired Up picks up right where Swept Away finishes and I found this sequel to be a very good read. Like in her other series, this novel gives you insight to all the characters in the first book, so it was nice to see Ruthy and Luke and the other Regulators.
First off, I really liked Glynna. Sometimes heroines in Ms. Connealy’s book are either too dominating or too weak. Glynna to me was right down the middle. She managed to come across as both strong, but wasn’t afraid if she was in need of something. I also really liked Dare and his desire to heal people. The romance was nicely done in my opinion. I loved how you could see Glynna being drawn to Dare even though she still had two bad marriages hanging over her head. It was really nice not to have instant love here.
However, I think the person that made this book stand out from her other novels was Paul. Having read all of Ms. Connealy’s books, I think Paul is the first son that a main character has had and you can really see the struggle that he was having with his mother considering remarriage and his past with some terrible men. He was my favorite character.
The mystery in this book is not really the focus and to be honest, is fairly obvious from the beginning, but this did bother me as a reader at all.
Spiritually, I love the theme of forgiving people, particularly if they don’t ask for it. This novel isn’t heavy on spiritual things, but this point comes across beautifully.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The pages turned quickly and there were some laugh out loud moments that only Ms. Connealy can deliver. If you’re looking for a light-hearted, fun romance, this is where it’s happening.
Romantic Scale: 8
** I received a copy of this book from Netgalley. My opinion was not affected in any way.**
remaininhislove 