Betting On Grace (Signature Select) [Mass Market Paperback]

Debra Salonen (Author)

Book Description

Series: Signature Select | Publication Date: November 1, 2005

The prophecy: You will marry a prince—but you will have to save him first.

Las Vegas restaurateur Grace Radonovic is more than a little surprised when her late father's friend proposes marriage. Wanting to be true to her father's memory and burdened by the weight of her close but overbearing Gypsy family, she accepts.

Who is she to turn her back on the dynasty?

But the shady lawyer-turned-casino owner is more wild card than king of hearts. And he's more attracted to Grace's dowry to help pay off his blackmailer than the curvy brunette herself. Even the Radonovic matriarch feels something is amiss. So when long-lost cousin Nikolai Sarna visits the Gypsy compound, Grace can't help but wonder if he's actually her destiny. But there's something Nick isn't telling her. A secret that could land Grace in unexpected danger.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Harlequin (November 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373836775
• ISBN-13: 978-0373836772
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,345,326 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Debra Salonen wrote her first story in crayon on the underside of her mother's coffee table. Her mother was not amused. Subsequent writing efforts included a screenplay for Flipper--in block print on lined paper (you can see why it never got picked up, right?), a spy thriller --okay, a blatant rip-off of James Bond; an Irma Bombeck-esque series of letters to her family, which might have come across as a tad more whiny than amusing, and, eventually, she enjoyed a four-year stint as an award-winning feature writer for a newspaper.

In 2000, her first romance novel was published by Harlequin for its Superromance line. That novel, THAT COWBOY'S KIDS, has recently been re-released, bringing Deb's total number of published books to 30. Her May 2010 release, UNTIL HE MET RACHEL, was honored by RTBook Reviews as the Reviewer's Choice for "Best Superromance of 2010."

In addition to her two current Superromance titles, RETURN TO THE BLACK HILLS and A FATHER'S QUEST, Deb is enjoying a renewed flirtation with short stories. Her first Kindle release, "A Hundred Years or More," looks at that special bond between a pet and his owner, and what happens when a pet--in this case, a parrot--outlives his owner.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Is Nick the Prince Grace is destined for?, December 1, 2006

By 

Babs Ferret "a reading of romance fan" (Northern CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Betting On Grace (Signature Select) (Mass Market Paperback)

I read this book a couple months ago after finding it in my TBR mountain. Boy am I sorry I waited so long.

What a great book! Grace Radonovic and Nikolai Sarna, Nick Lightner, are such good H/h. Grace is a Romani, Gypsy, and has lived as one in Las Vegas her whole life. the Radonovic family has their own little compound and several family members also live there. Grace is the youngest of the Radonovic sisters, Sisters of the Silver Dollar, their deceased father named their dance group. The group is just for family entertainment but the girls loved to dance for their father--he always gave them silver dollars. Yetta, their mother, had given each of her daughter a prophecy Grace's is "You're going to marry an honorable man who doesn't know he is a prince. Your love will help him find his true self." Grace is the youngest and feels she can lead the whole group--she's bossy <G> She and Kate have their own very successful restaurant and Grace wants to open a second so she becomes the partner of Charles Harmon, the shady lawyer-turned-casino owner but Grace doesn't know that he's shady! Yetta calls Nikolai with the hope he can help Grace and the family.Policemen have never been the Romani's friend though.

Nick's from Detroit, he was given to a policeman by his birth father, a Romani. The birth father thought the policeman could do a better job raising Nikolai then he could after his wife's death. His birth father is a close friend of Yetta's.

Very interesting "bad" guy and the local detective that falls for Yetta too. Fun characters and the sisters each have their own book. They are Harlequin American Romance Kate's #1114 ONE DADDY TOO MANY, Liz's #1126 BRINGING BABY HOME & Alexandra's #1139 THE QUIET CHILD.

5.0 out of 5 stars fine police procedural romance, November 5, 2005

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Betting On Grace (Signature Select) (Mass Market Paperback)

In Clarion Heights, Michigan, Yetta Radonovic calls police officer Nick Lightner informing his she is his biological father's cousin and that his blood family who abandoned him as an infant need his help with a matter in Vegas. He was going to ignore his Romani ties until she mentioned the name of attorney Charles "Lucky Chuck" Harmon who looks at her daughter Grace like he rolled a series of sevens. Though not fully understanding the Romany ties, having a chance to nail Lucky Chuck sends Nicolai to Vegas pretending to be an out of work ex con family member.

However, the undercover case takes a twist when Nicolai and Grace meet as both are attracted to one another. Still he tries to stay professional and not lose sight of finding evidence of Lucky Chuck's wrong doing while also protecting Grace from this dangerous man. Adding to the churning in his stomach is his father wants to meet him and finally explain why he was abandoned. Only with Grace at his side can he deal with this, but how will she react when he reveals the truth about who he really is and then again does he want ties with the side that abandoned him.

BETTING ON GRACE is a fine police procedural romance starring two likable characters who see Romani DNA quite differently as Grace grew up in a flood of love while Nick did too but by his adopted parents and their daughter. The story line works on two levels as a family drama and as an undercover cop thriller connected by a warm romance. The eccentric support cast augments a fine contemporary tale.

Harriet Klausner