Customer Reviews

Fall From Grace (Harlequin Everlasting Love #2)

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

 

 

Fall from Grace by Kristi Gold is a fabulous way to launch this new line by Harlequin.

Everlasting is a line which showcases stories spanning a lifetime. Fall from Grace is masterfully woven so it gives the reader the background of one couple's journey into and out of love by clearly transitioning from present to past.

This is a tale of two intriguing people who fell in love, thought they had a bright and propserous future, only to let it all go. It takes a stroke to the male protagonist to make them both rethink their divorce and their daughter's help to re-assess their choices.

Ms. Gold, who's Desire tales are wonderful, has transitioned to this larger book line with style and grace. She gives us a full bodied tale which is not only a page turner, but full of deep emotions - happy, sad, concern, humor - the full gambit.

Don't miss this one!

Jack and Anne Morgan divorced one another though they remained friends. They were especially careful when they split so that their beloved offspring would not be harmed.

When Jack suffers a stroke, Anne knows he will need nurturing until he fully recovers. She insists he move into the home he used to live in when they were married so that she can help him recuperate. Anne rationalizes her good natured offer as her daughter needs her father and besides she and Jack are friends. As he heals under the watchful eyes of the two females he loves, Jack wonders how to regain what he lost when he and Anne divorced.

This is a fascinating second chance at love tale starring a likable lead couple and a worried child concerned for the health of her daddy. The story line focuses more on the relationships than on dealing with a family health issue. Based on first hand accounts from my husband and his two brothers (aside to Stephen -happy birthday) involving their dad's stroke on Jets Superbowl Sunday, the tale misses a graceful opportunity to go deep into the struggles of the victim and his loved ones with a debilitating illness. Still this is a fine everlasting tale of the healing power of love.

Harriet Klausner

When renowned heart surgeon, Dr. Jack Morgan, is partially paralyzed by a stroke, the last person he wants help from is his ex-wife. Anne is equally unenthusiastic about the prospect of having Jack temporarily back in her home. But the alternative is for Jack to return to his lonely apartment with only hired help to oversee his care.

Jack struggles with depression as he fights to regain his mobility. Anne knows that helping Jack recover also means helping him to return to the very thing that destroyed their marriage - his career.

Will Jack regain the use of his hand and be able perform surgery again? And, if he does, will things be different this time? Can he find a way to balance to his demanding career and still have time for his family? Can Anne find a way to forgive Jack for past mistakes?

Don't miss FALL FROM GRACE! A heart-warming, wonderful story of renewal and hope.

Ms. Gold's snappy and sexy releases for Desire are so much fun, and I love them. But I think she may have given us a glimpse into her heart with this book for Everlasting's new imprint.

I was captivated from the first page and remained in her spell until the end. I closed the book with a satisfied sigh and searched the web for more.

Write fast, Kristi Gold. I want more.

A stroke is the instrument that reunites Dr. Jack Morgan and his ex-wife, Anne. Telling herself that he is still a friend and that their daughter needs him, Anne insists on Jack moving in with her, into the home they once shared, for his recovery. The only problem is, neither of them ever really fell out of love. In the coming months, Jack will have a double recovery to work on; regaining his health and regaining his real life.

**** Though Jack's experience does seem to be a little bit softened and less severe than reality, this is still a moving, emotional story that will speak to anyone who has watched a loved one go through a protracted illness. Despite the serious subject matter, the story is far from depressing and is full of grace. ****

Amanda Killgore

Fall from Grace by Kristi Gold
Harlequin Everlasting #2 ~ Feb 2007
Audio ~ Narrated by Suzanne Toren

The narrator did an awesome job reading this story. The shift between the past and present was done very well, which is a credit to both the author and the narrator. Not once is there a doubt that Jack and Annie love each other deeply and really should be together. The break down of their marriage had been devastating to both of them. Pride and stubbornness are powerful things and often get in the way of honest communication. Ms. Gold created two characters that are far from perfect, and has wrought their journey to a HEA with many obstacles. This heartfelt lovestory is a testimony of the endurance of love.

Between 2 and 3 stars because what he did was with malice. I've read books with cheating in them before but this one, this hero, admitted he did it with malice.

The book flipped so much between past and present that it was hard to follow. In the past right after the incident he admitted that he did it to hurt Annie as badly as he believed that she hurt him. She took his daughter away from him. Actually Jack, that was you. He was hardly ever home or spent very little time with his wife and child as he was throwing himself full throttle into his career as a doctor. He continually made promises to her and frequently broke them. She couldn't handle it. She was a child of a doctor who wasn't ever there either. So she would walk away. It was like she knew in the beginning when they were dating how it would be and she ran then too. Yeah she ran when the going got tough and he wasn't always there to slug it through but for him to blatantly turn to another and to do so intentionally was pretty unforgiveable.

Up until that point, which is near the end of the book and of course took place in the past, I was with their relationship all the way. I could understand his one track mind and his need to excel at his career. He needed to learn to work in both aspects of his life though: family and work. To devote some time to each not all his time to one. But once his infidelity was revealed and why he did it the story went down hill pretty fast. Yeah they should have communicted more and worked things out better and of course he should have realized what he had when it was there but to do something so destructive so unforgiveable and then think that she should over look it because it didn't mean anything and he still loved her . . . yeah NOT!

FALL FROM GRACE by Kristi Gold

February 11, 2007

Rating 3.5 Stars

The new EVERLASTING LOVE series published by Harlequin will feature love stories that span a lifetime. This is the second book in the series so far. FALL FROM GRACE depicts the love story of surgeon Jack Morgan and his ex-wife Anne. The tale starts in the present (2007), in which they have been divorced for two years. The opening scene has Jack coming out of surgery and suddenly suffers a serious stroke. He is not even fifty years old. His last thoughts before he blacks out are of his dear Annie, and while they have been divorced for two years, there has been no other woman in his life since.

Anne, a registered nurse, is at his side on the day she learns about his stroke. On that day she sees herself not as an R.N. but as his ex-wife. Jack's good friend Hank Steinberg, also Jack's internist, tells her that there seems to be some paralysis, but in time he may make a partial recovery, if not complete. It's too hard to tell at the moment if he will ever return to his life as a surgeon.

Anne reluctantly asks Jack to move in with her and Katie while he recuperates from the stroke. Jack has never stopped loving her, and as the three become a family again, he feels hopeful that maybe they can make it official. But Anne, while she seems to enjoy Jack's presence on some level, is also trying her best to resist his charms. The reason she left him in the first place was the fact that as a surgeon he left little time for her and Katie, but with his stroke, in the back of her mind she is hoping he will not be able to return to surgery again. Jack, however, is anxious to regain his ability to use his right hand, and the first few months are frustrating for him. It's a long uphill climb for Jack and Anne. But as he gets stronger, Anne begins to worry about the day he'll be strong enough to move out. If Jack returns to surgery, she vows she will walk away and let him have the life he chose, that of a dedicated surgeon.

This reviewer initially had a hard time getting into FALL FROM GRACE. The shifting between present and past time lines was a bit awkward to begin with, but as one gets into the story, things begin to click. By the time the book was over, ending twenty years into the future, the tissues will be needed. If you are a sucker for these romances that span decades, you will enjoy the EVERLASTING LOVE series. The conclusions are always happy, of course, but the reader will also enjoy the journey getting there.

Portrayal of life-life characters of course help make this book successful. Besides the two main characters, who are portrayed as realistically as possible, there is young Katie who in her own way helps her father recuperate from his stroke. She doesn't quite understand what had happened to her father, but she knows daddy is ill and does her best to help him. She comes across as a believable character, with dialogue and actions to match the age.

Anne's mother Delia is a strong presence in their lives. Delia has been a widow for a number of years, and her story has her meeting a new YOUNGER man who may eventually replace the love of HER life, Anne's father. Delia also is there to support Anne, hoping that her daughter will lose her stubborn streak and return to the arms of Jack, where she belongs. As Anne's mother, she comes across as realistic and three dimensional, as all the other characters do as well. This reviewer bought the mother-daughter relationship with Anne, which was drawn effectively and realistically.

FALL FROM GRACE had an awkward start, but what will reel the reader in will be the journey that Jack and Anne take together, as they unite to help Jack recover from his devastating stroke, as well as the characters that populate this story. Scenes such as little Katie teaching her father how to read again will warm the reader's heart, as will that final page that may cause some to shed a few happy tears. This is an auspicious start to Harlequin's brand new series of books. - Courtesy of Love Romances and More - M. Lofton