Customer Reviews

From Here To Maternity: A Second Chance\Promoted To Mom\On Angel's Wings (Signature Select)

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

 

 

"A Second Chance" by Tara Taylor Quinn. They were high school sweethearts who went their separate ways though she was pregnant. Now the adult daughter Kylie that Melanie gave up for adoption over three decades ago has contacted her and wants to meet her biological father Denny even as Melanie ponders being pregnant again at forty-eight.

"Prompted to Mom" by Karen Rose Smith. Pregnant April is heading to California as she has a major employment opportunity in the Golden State. The father of her child Braden owns a restaurant in Oklahoma, which he prefers not to leave. There appears no room for compromise between this loving couple.

"On Angel's Wings" by Inglath Cooper. They had the perfect family as Rachel and Clay loved one another and their daughter. However, when their child died, their relationship collapsed too. That is until a Russian angel enters their lives needing both of them and giving them a second chance if they dare to take it.

Though seemingly more like a Next tale, these mature couples struggle with difficult relationship issues made even more complex by children. Fans of family dramas will enjoy this collection.

Harriet Klausner

Pretty much from the beginning, I knew what the ending would be, but the author kept me so intrigued throughout the middle, that I couldn't put the book down. I literally read it in one sitting! This story shows that if you give your love to others, that love will multiply and help you through life's hard times.

Rachel and Clay lost their daughter Emma in a ski accident three years ago. They have since lost each other; they have been living separate lives in the same house but barely crossing paths. Rachel is asked to help a friend out by housing a young orphan girl for two weeks when her host family backs out at the last minute. Clay is against it and wants nothing to do with it leaving Rachel solely responsible for young Sasha. Their marriage is over and Clay finally admits it, all Rachel asks is that he waits until Sasha leaves before doing anything about it. As Sasha helps Rachel heal Rachel's shattered heart can she teach Clay that he can still feel love without betraying Emma and her memory?

"Not a day goes by

That I don't think of you"

- Lonestar --

With this sentiment, Harlequin published three stories about lost love and second chances.

Book 1 -

Tara Taylor Quinn: "A SECOND CHANCE." Rating: 2 stars. Grade: D

Mini Synopsis:

From back cover -- When the daughter she gave up for adoption appears in her life eager to meet both her birth parents, Amelia (??) Copperstone nervously agrees to track down a man she hasn't seen in thirty years. What she finds is rekindled passion -- and, at age forty-eight, a very unexpected pregnancy.

Reviewer's Comments:

"Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" Pretty much sums up Tara Taylor Quinn's, 88 page story, A SECOND CHANCE.

Story run-through: 1): at seventeen Melanie Cooperstone and Denny Walker conceived a child; 2): Melanie gave the baby up, Denny left town; 3): after college Melanie wed her best friend, the man was gay, they divorced; they remained life-long friends; he became her boss; 4): the adopted baby, Kylie, now a lawyer, found Melanie; 5): Kylie wanted a relationship with both her biological parents; 6): 48 years-old Melanie tracked down her long lost love, Denny; 7): Melanie was in the clutches of menopause; 8): six weeks later Melanie discovered she was pregnant; 9): Melanie contacted Denny; 10): Denny was set in his life, but would remain Melanie's friend; 11): meanwhile Kylie went round-two with vitro fertilization; 12): Melanie almost miscarried Denny's baby . . . he returned, hat in hand, heart on sleeve; 13): one month shy of her 49th birthday, Melanie delivered Denny's son; 14): dad was ecstatic, 15): Kylie was six months pregnant; 16): and all was well in Bizarro World.

Whew . . . pass the Tylenol. I don't know what was more bizarre: Tara Taylor Quinn's outlandish story or Harlequin leading with it?

Book 2 -

Karen Rose Smith: "PROMOTED TO MOM." Rating: 4 stars. Grade: B-

Mini Synopsis:

From back cover -- April Renquist is riding the corporate fast track when pregnancy challenges her to sort out her priorities: from the fiancé she broke up with, to the fears that plague her . . . to the dawning realization that perhaps life doesn't stop with motherhood.

Reviewer's Comments:

What to do? For today's women, choosing between part-time or full-time motherhood and/or that CEO position levels tremendous pressure. In PROMOTED TO MOM, author Karen Rose Smith does a good job conveying this difficult situation. Yet, despite Ms. Smith's sincere attempt, her story just didn't win me over completely. Maybe it hit too close to home?

Book 3 -

Inglath Cooper: "ON ANGEL'S WINGS." Rating: 5 stars. Grade: A

Mini Synopsis:

From back cover -- A couple shattered by the loss of their daughter opens their home to an orphaned Russian girl -- unprepared for the emotion she unleashes. As guilt and grief war with the need to love a child again, the remarkable little girl offers healing and hope.

Reviewer's Comments:

In 2006, A GIFT OF GRACE was my first encounter with author Inglath Cooper and to this day, this book remains on my top ten list! Successfully again, Ms. Cooper sweeps me into her poignant world with ON ANGEL'S WINGS. This tale is storytelling at its finest. I simply love it, when an author rips out my heart and then hands it back to me in one satisfied piece!

Overall View:

Unfortunately, when it comes to anthologies we rate the book as a whole. Unfortunate, for nine times out of ten, the stories vary vastly in degree. This is exactly what happened in FROM HERE TO MATERNITY. One story was excellent, one story was plausible, and one story was a complete washout.

MaryGrace Meloche.

In the first story the cover blurb has the heroine named Amelia. In the story itself, she is Melanie throughout.

Inglath Cooper's contribution is a tear-jerker.