Review of For Love or Money (Family Secrets #1) by Tara Taylor Quinn w/a rafflecopter giveaway! #HarlequinMyRewards @PrismBookTours @HarlequinBooks @tarataylorquinn #FreeBook

Aug 11, 2016

For Love or Money
(Family Secrets #1)
by Tara Taylor Quinn
Adult Contemporary Romance
Mass Market Paperback & ebook, 384 pages
August 1st 2016 by Harlequin Heartwarming

She can’t afford to lose this…or him

There’s no way that struggling single mom Janie Young is going to lose Family Secrets. Not even to Dr. Burke Carter. The prize money and media exposure from the cooking-competition show will secure the future for her and her son, who has special needs. Sure, Burke is a talented chef with his own reasons to win, but he already has so much: wealth, a beautiful daughter, great looks…and definitely her attention. As their families become closer, Janie is beginning to care too much about him. But she can’t afford to get involved. Not when everything is riding on beating him.

Harlie here…I know, I’m at Pink’s blog.  Let me explain why.  Sometimes when I pick a book to review from Harlequin, I need to put it over here on the “sweet” blog.  I know, I have the Harlequin/category spotlight on Harlie’s Books but sometimes either the author/publisher/tour company would rather it be featured over here.  No biggie to me or my readers.  Pink is doing…I honestly don’t know so that’s why I’m here.  The review will be a bit shorter but no worries.  No spoilers…

I really liked this story.  It had all the feels that a typical Heartwarming story has.  Emotions, family dynamics, a slow build romance and a tightly paced story that anyone could read.

Janie and Burke are trying to win a cooking contest.  Each has a different reason to win it and I liked that aspect of the book.  Janie needed the money and Burke didn’t want to disappoint his daughter Kelsey.  I won’t spoil how it turns out but in a way, I was kinda surprised.

Janie and her son Dawson will forever hold a special place in my heart.  Dawson has Down Syndrome and Janie needs to prize money for his therapies and school.  Naturally, she has an ex-husband that hasn’t even met his son.  Of course, once she is on television he comes sniffing around.  I hate fathers that do that.  I have a cousin that has cerebral palsy and my uncle is the best father.  Janie never gives up and with the help of her friends Cor and Joe, she has a great support system.

Burke and Kelsey have some big secrets that they have kept from each other.  I really felt for Kelsey.  Growing up without a mother and having to go to therapy AND being 13!  No wonder at times, Burke was at his wit’s end.

I really enjoyed how the contest and romance built up until the end of the book.  Unfortunately, I did have some issues that weren’t addressed.  Burke never really totally interacted with Dawson; at least not like Kelsey.  Kelsey has a dream with Dawson.  They bonded instantly and they helped each other in ways that no adult could ever do.  Also, I felt like the thread with Janie’s ex was left hanging.  There is some resolution but I felt like it was undone.  Also, the ending felt a bit rushed.  I would have liked an epilogue but then I had to remember that this is the first book in the series and it centers around the contest and some of the contestants.  I’m patient…I can wait.

Overall, I loved the book and the characters.  Ms. Taylor Quinn is one of my all time favorite Harlequin authors and she never misses with me.

FREE BOOK ALERT

 

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The author of more than 70 original novels, in twenty languages, Tara Taylor Quinn is a USA Today bestseller with over six million copies sold. A 2015 RITA finalist Tara appears frequently on bestseller lists, including #1 placement on Amazon lists, and multiple showings on the Publisher’s Weekly Bestseller list. She has appeared on national and local TV across the country, including CBS Sunday Morning.

Tara is a supporter of the National Domestic Violence Hotline. If you or someone you know might be a victim of domestic violence in the United States, please contact 1-800-799-7233.

Website│Goodreads│Amazon│Facebook│Twitter│Pinterest│Instagram│Wattpad

Check out the other releases and events part of this promotion HERE!

Tour Schedule

August 7th: Launch
August 8th:
Lady Amber’s Reviews
Katie’s Clean Book Collection
deal sharing aunt
Ali Williams
August 9th:
underneath the covers
Becky on Books
To Read or Not to Read
August 10th:
EskieMama Reads
Mel’s Shelves
Brooke Blogs
Books & Spoons
August 11th:
Beck Valley Books
Thoughts of a Blonde
Getting Your Read On
Love, Laughter, Friendship
Book Reviews & More by Kathy
Maya’s Musings
August 12th: Grand Finale
August 13th: Harlequin Junkie

Heart Stopping Tara Taylor Quinn Giveaways

FOR LOVE OR MONEY TOUR GIVEAWAY

$10 VISA gift card and winner’s ebook choice of one of TTQ’s Superromance Where Secrets Are Safe Series
US only
Ends August 17th

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TTQ PRE-ORDER/PURCHASE KINDLE FIRE GIVEAWAY

ENTER HERE

Kindle Fire with Six Pre-loaded TTQ Books (books 1-6 from Where Secrets are Safe series)
US only
Ends August 31st

To Enter: Submit your receipt online for your pre-order or purchase the soon-to-be-released Heartwarming compilation: A Heartwarming Holiday: 15 Connected Sweet Holiday Romances and/or of any of Tara Taylor Quinn’s six releases being promoted on her Heart Stopping Tour (Love By Association, His First Choice, The Promise He Made Her, Strangers in Paradise: Sheltered In His Arms, Sheltered In His Arms Audiobook, and For Love Or Money). Enter as many times as you purchase. One book purchase equals one entry (one receipt or invoice/order number per entry and must be entered at time of entry).

TTQ HARLEQUIN MY REWARDS POINTS GIVEAWAY

1st Place: 25,000 Harlequin My Rewards Points – equivalent of 5 free books, reader’s choice of any book published by Harlequin/MIRA/Carina Press.
2nd Place: 15,000 Harlequin My Rewards Points – equivalent of 3 free books, reader’s choice
3rd Place: 10,000 Harlequin My Rewards Points – equivalent of 2 free books, readers choice
Open internationally
Ends August 31st

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Blog Stop for Tara Nikkel and the Dream Mage (Tara Nikkel #1) by R.A. Sapp #freebook w/a Rafflecopter Giveaway!

Feb 20, 2015

This is my stop during the book blitz for Tara Nikkel and the Dream Mage (Tara Nikkel #1) by R.A. Sapp. This book blitz is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours. The book blitz runs from 15 till 21 february, you can view the complete blitz schedule on the website of Lola’s Blog Tours.
On 20 and 21 February this book will be free on amazon!

Tara Nikkel and the Dream Mage (Tara Nikkel #1)
by R.A. Sapp
Genre: Fantasy
Age category: Young Adult
Release Date: January 13, 2015

Blurb:
Meet a teenager with some serious issues. Tara Nikkel is a girl with a whole host of ailments: cerebral palsy, asthma, and a severe peanut allergy (just to name a few). And if all that wasn’t enough, Tara’s also an orphan with two clueless foster-parents who are hoarders as well as being professional couch potatoes. But everything changes for Tara when she ventures into a storm to find her missing beagle, Pudgy. Through an unexpected series of events, Tara finds herself in a magical realm known only as the “really real world”. Come join Tara on an adventure filled with magic, goblins, zombies, dragons—and more! Ages 13 and up.

You can find Tara Nikkel and the Dream Mage on Goodreads

You can buy Tara Nikkel and the Dream Mage here:
– Amazon

Want to know the story behind this story? Check out this post about the real Tara on the author’s website.

Excerpt:
Tara could feel Billy’s eyes looking down at the metal braces on her legs, examining them, exploring their mechanics. It took all of her strength to resist slapping his curious booger-dripping mug.
“Yes?” Tara snapped at him. Billy smiled at her, stupidly. Tara fired at him again: “Didn’t your folks tell you it’s not polite to stare, nimrod?”
“What’s wrong with your legs?” he asked. A tiny green caterpillar crawled out his nostril. He sniffed and the green goo disappeared back up into the space where his brain should have been.
“You are disgusting,” Tara huffed at him.
“Were you in a car accident or something? I saw you walking on your crutches in the quad. Joe McKenna says you look like a baby giraffe the way you walk.”
Tara wanted to cry. She bit her lip, doing her best to avoid giving Billy Higgins the pleasure of seeing her melt into a puddle of tears. In her mind she pretended she was a powerful sorcerer and that with a tap of her pencil she could transform Billy Higgins into a toad—and a really ugly one too. A little smile crept on her face when she imagined Billy Higgins trying to croak at Mrs. Ross for help.
Evil, yes, but funny.
It was Friday, the end of a miserable first week of seventh grade at Tevis Jr. High. Tara had been home-schooled her whole life, so this was the first time she had actually gone to class with other students. She was already regretting this decision. Being the new kid is hard enough when you’re thirteen, but having to be the new kid with cerebral palsy—well, that’s an entirely unique form of difficult. And if all that wasn’t bad enough, the Bakersfield air was so toxic on her asthma that Tara had to wear a special filtration mask if she went outside for more than fifteen minutes.
Billy Higgins’ lower lip hung a little too far from his gums. He watched her with great interest. His brown eyes waited with pleasure for her to entertain him.
“Will you stop staring at me please?” she said under her breath so the other students would not hear.
“Like a baby giraffe,” he repeated, snickering, as if the words themselves were packed with an endless supply of comedy.
The bell rang.
Mrs. Ross was so startled that she accidentally tossed her red pen and it popped Billy Higgins right in the center of his face. The class erupted in laughter.
“Oh ma dose,” Billy moaned, covering his face with his hand.
Tara crackled a smile. She imagined for a split-second that she had summoned that red pen from Mrs. Ross’ hand and had directed it telepathically at Billy Higgins’ dumb face. A squeaky giggle escaped her mouth. That was almost as good as turning him into a toad.

About the Author:
R.A. Sapp lives in beautiful Orange County, California. He is married to Rebecca and together they have two children–Abigail (The Healer) and Christian (The Wizard). In addition to reading and writing, Mr. Sapp enjoys running and mountain biking. He has run several half-marathons (including completing the Beach Cities Challenge in 2014) and hopes to complete a triathlon someday.

You can find and contact R.A. Sapp here:
– Website
– Facebook
– Twitter
– Goodreads

There is a tour wide giveaway for the book blitz of Tara Nikkel and the Dream Mage. These are the prizes you can win:
– 3 signed paperback copies of Tara Nikkel and the Dream Mage by R.A. Sapp (US, UK and Canada only)

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
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