Customer Reviews

After All

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have become a huge fan of Jill Marie Landis and this book is a big reason why. Eva Eberhart is working as a dance hall girl in order to fulfill her dream of opening her own theater (her parents are performers and she's been on stage since she was a child). She realizes, after constantly fighting off the advances of drunken patrons, that what she really wants is a home and a family. She answers an ad for a housekeeper thas has been placed by Chase Cassidy - a man struggling to raise his teenage nephew and run a cattle ranch in Last Chance Montana. Chase also is trying to escape his past - he did time in prison for aiding in a bank robbery. You get to know Chase's nephew Lance, the schoolteacher Rachel and the other ranch hands as well as the sherrif and the townspeople who aren't happy with having the former prisoner in their town. There are also bad guys still out to get Chase for getting them sent to prison for involvement in his sisters murder. Due to their pasts, both Eva and Chase feel unworthy of love and happiness. The events and people that bring them together make for a wonderful love story. I really liked all the characters and cried when things didn't work out for them ( though, of course, they do in the end) I would definetly recommend this book to anyone.

I didn't really find anything outstanding about this book. This was just another run-of-the-mill historical western romance. Nothing special. While the characters were fairly well fleshed out, the plot felt pretty recycled: the man with a past, the fallen woman trying to make a new life for herself, gun fights, old debts and deaths to be avenged. I was left feeling like I'd read this all before in many slightly different forms.

Also, the secondary storyline about Lane was left unfinished/unresolved, which was really annoying. If I'd known that this was only part of a series, I probably wouldn't have bought it in the first place. Many authors can create linked books that still manage to work as stand-alones, but that wasn't the case with AFTER ALL. If you don't read the sequel or can't get ahold of a copy, you're going to be left feeling like you only got half of the story. I want to read a complete book, not just a part of it.

One other minor complaint: this book needed better proofreading! There were some really annoying errors (the kind of thing that gets missed by spell checker). Examples: the heroine had to "make due" instead of "make do" with what little she had, or Lane set the wagon's "break" instead of "brake". (No, I don't think destroying the wagon was what the author had in mind!) Not a huge complaint, but still annoying, as little things like that draw the reader out of the story.

Oh well, fans of western romances, as well as fans of Joan Johnston and Jill Gregory will probably enjoy this. But just beware that you aren't going to get anything very memorable out of AFTER ALL.

Jill Marie Landis is an absolute master of the western romances. She captures you from the first paragraph and does not let you go till the last sentence. "After All" was no exception. I absolutely loved this book, although I have to admit that it almost felt that I read it somewhere before; nevertheless, the story is entertaining and fun to read. The chemistry between the hero and the heroine is wonderful; their love scenes are very tastefully written and touching. The plot is quite predictable, however; picking up a historical western romance this is exactly what I have expected and wanted-the admirable hero, gorgeous heroine and the ultimate happy ending. If you enjoyed Jill Marie's other novels you won't be disappointed. There is a sequel to this novel "Lance Chance" the story of Lane Cassidy. Make sure to read it too an absolute must!

A terrific read that has it all! You must follow with the sequel, Last Chance. Don't miss these books!