A Home of Her Own (Dundee, Idaho) [Kindle Edition]

Brenda Novak (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Cold Feet is "one of the best suspense novels, romantic or otherwise, I've ever read."

Product Description

When Lucky Caldwell was ten, her mother, Red--the best-known hooker in Dundee, Idaho--married Morris Caldwell, a wealthy and much older man. It didn't last, of course, but Morris's kindness was the highlight of Lucky's life.

Mike Hill, Morris's grandson, doesn't feel too well-disposed toward Red or her kids. He believes they alienated Morris from his family. Even Morris's Victorian mansion, on the property next to the Hill ranch, wasn't inherited by one of his grandchildren. Instead the house went to Lucky, who left it sitting empty for years.

Now that Red and Morris are both dead, Lucky has finally come back to Dundee. She plans to restore the derelict place--and to look for her real father, who has to be one of three men named in her mother's diary.

That means Mike has a new neighbor.

One he doesn't want to like...

Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 287 KB
• Print Length: 304 pages
• Publisher: Harlequin Superromance (May 18, 2009)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0028OLE10
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #52,979 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

More About the Author

Brenda Novak Bio

It was a shocking experience that jump-started Brenda Novak's career as a bestselling author--she caught her day-care provider drugging her children with cough syrup to get them to sleep all day. That was when Brenda decided she needed to quit her job as a loan officer and help make a living from home.

"When I first got the idea to become a novelist, it took me five years to teach myself the craft and finish my first book," Brenda says. But she sold that book, and the rest is history. Her novels have made the New York Times, USA Today and Borders/Waldenbooks bestseller lists and won many awards, including two Rita nominations, the Book Buyer's Best, the Book Seller's Best and the National Reader's Choice Award.

Brenda and her husband, Ted, live in Sacramento and are proud parents of five children--three girls and two boys. When she's not spending time with her family or writing, Brenda is usually working on her annual fund-raiser for diabetes research--an online auction held on her Web site (www.brendanovak.com) every May. Brenda has raised over $1 million to date.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you can't be rich, you'd better be lucky, December 20, 2004

By 

Anza Carrillo "heavenlyanza" (Ohio, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Home of Her Own (Harlequin Superromance, No. 1242) (Mass Market Paperback)

At least, that is what Lucky Caldwell's mother always said; but Lucky was neither rich nor lucky. Lucky had left Dundee, Idaho six years ago, ready to be free of her mother's bad reputation and the hatred the citizens of Dundee held for her entire family. She comes back to Dundee in an attempt to find her father, the father she has never known. It doesn't take long for her to run into Mike Hill, her teenage crush - and member of the family who hates her the most. She still has a crush on him, but it's hard to love someone who hates you because of who your mother was.

Mike Hill hated Red Caldwell for marrying his grandfather, Morris. He hated it even more than Morris had left the Victorian house and a substantial amount of money to Lucky, Red's daughter. Now Lucky's all grown up, and he can't help but find himself attracted to her. With his parents hating Lucky with all they have, and most of the town backing up the Hills, Mike knows nothing can ever be allowed to develop between them. Now, if only he could convince his heart of that.

I loved Brenda Novak's "A Family of Her Own," and I was hoping that I would love this book just as much. I wasn't disappointed. I really felt for Lucky - she'd been through so much, and she had enough courage to return to a town where nearly everyone hated her just because of who her mother was. I felt so bad for her sometimes, because behind the tough exterior she was a really nice girl - most people just didn't care to know that. I was just rooting for Lucky the entire book, because with all of the hurt she had been through in her short life, she needed a happy ending in the book. Mike was a pretty good character, too, and you definitely see the struggle he goes through, loving Lucky but loving his family as well. This book definitely doesn't do the typical "small towns are pieces of heaven" routine. This small town was vicious, people were hurtful and held on to grudges long after they should have been let go.

The only thing that I didn't like was - you never find out who Lucky's father is! I suppose that is going to be revealed in the next book set in Dundee ("Stranger in Town," coming out in May 2005). With all of the emphasis placed upon Lucky's search for her father, I really think the author should have revealed who he was in this book. Other than that, this was a great emotional romance that really tugged at the heartstrings.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars terrific contemporary relationship drama, November 13, 2004

By 

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

This review is from: A Home of Her Own (Harlequin Superromance, No. 1242) (Mass Market Paperback)

When Lucky Caldwell was ten, her mother Red a hooker married wealthy Morris Caldwell though his family went ballistic. Red walked out of his life not long after the "I do" was exchanged. Still Morris liked Lucky and bequeathed to her a fixer upper Victorian house that has left his kin outraged.

Like his family, Morris' grandson Mike Hill detests the fact that Lucky owns the house next door to him due to his grandfather's will. He thinks she is just like her mother, an avaricious whore. Now six years after inheriting the house, Lucky has moved in to renovate it and find out who is her biological father, one of three men listed by her late mother in her diary. As Lucky goes about town, Mike finds to his chagrin that he is attracted to her and worse as he gets to know her he likes her. Still there is no hope for anything beyond a short fling as his mother loathes Lucky due to her gene pool.

A HOUSE OF HER OWN is a terrific contemporary relationship drama that stars a solid cast of individuals who feel authentic especially when old grudges continue to fester. Lucky is a wonderful protagonist who gains reader empathy as she constantly has to prove that she is not a chip off the old block. Mike is quickly pulled in two directions; wanting to remain loyal to his family especially his mother, but desperately wants to sleep with the enemy who he loves. Lucky's family tree search adds a reason for her to return to town but that still remains a diversion from a fabulous family feuding spectacle.

Harriet Klausner

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, nor people either!, December 30, 2004

By 

K. Emanuel "Romance Enthusiast" (TEXAS) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Home of Her Own (Harlequin Superromance, No. 1242) (Mass Market Paperback)

Brenda Novak is a Superb Writer. I couldn't put this book down. She gets all your emotions running as you read this book. You get to know the characters and understand from their point of view about the situation. Not many writers can pull that off. When you can make the reader root for the underdog and also understand the suppossed villain's point of view, then you can write. That is precisely what Ms. Novak is able to do. I think anyone who buys this book will definately like Ms. Novak's style and story.