Customer Reviews

Restore My Heart: Book One in the Mustang Sally Series

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

REVIEWER'S OPINON:

The story was good, an unfolding mystery with murder and secrets, and of course, there was a developing romance. I loved the following characters: Sally, Joe, Grandma, Justin and Ellen. One of the characters had a surprising redemption during the story. There were a couple of other interesting plot surprises.

One part bothered me. I have never liked it when the heroine says to herself, I expect him to leave later and I don't want to get hurt so I'm not going to let myself get involved. Sally was thinking this early on, and then Joe was doing something similar later in the story. Joe's version was that he had to return to his job in another city, and he didn't want to hurt Sally so he refused her advances. This wasn't a big deal to me, but it was somewhat annoying. In some stories, this might work, but usually I prefer heroes and heroines who follow their hearts instead of their (inaccurate) fears.

STORY BRIEF:

Leo is dead. The police believe it is suicide. Joe (Leo's son) believes it is murder and is looking for evidence of who and why. Something is going on related to selling fraudulent antique classic cars. Joe takes one of the classic cars to Sally who runs an auto repair and restoration service. She discovers something fraudulent about the car. Someone tries to kill Sally, Joe and others. A subplot involves Sally being injured nine years earlier and walking with a limp. She and her father are having problems related to her injury.

DATA:

Story length: 442 pages. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: 2. Length of sex scenes: 4 and 4.5 pages. Setting: current day Louisville area in Kentucky. Copyright: 2007. Genre: romantic mystery with some suspense.

OTHER BOOKS:

To date, I've read one other book by Cheryl Norman. My 4.5 star review of "Reclaim My Life" Copyright 2009 was posted 8-31-09.

What an entertaining ride! (pun intended) This very unusual heroine takes you into an area where you learn about vintage cars without even realizing it. Sally is today's woman who can dare to take care of herself even in her condition. Restore My Heart keeps you guessing right to the very end when you are surprised and yet it all makes sense. This is a great summer read and you're going to miss Sally when it's all over.

Joe Desalvo is at Mustang Sally's to have one of his late father's cars appraised. Leo Desalvo was co-owner of Bloom Desalvo Motors. Expecting a man, Joe is surprised to find the boss to be a woman. Sally Clay feels she has to fight for respect because she is a woman and the survivor of a terrible accident that left her with a lifelong injury.

When Sally discovers that the engine in Leo's car is not the original, Joe and Sally soon find themselves investigating the motor, then Leo's death. What they uncover puts their lives in danger.

Restore My Heart has suspense, mystery and a sweet romance. Joe is a great guy and Sally has a lot of heart and her talent with cars is very impressive as well. Restore My Heart is a good story with a very romantic ending.

Nannette reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

this book! It has all the classic characters of the books I grew up on and loved so very much....and somehow the reader knows the ending but it truly doesn't matter because all the "stuff" in between is so very good to read.

Thank you, Ms. Norman, for a wonderful read. I have ordered Running Scared, Full Moon Lullaby and Full Moon Honeymoon since I so enjoyed Restore my Heart. I look forward to more new titles from you.

The books which become available for free on Kindle are a mixed lot, but I have found some real gems among them, and this is one of those gems - so grab it fast while you still can. Most of the romances that I start reading never get finished, but I really enjoyed this book and stayed at my computer reading until the last page - and then went looking for sequels. (There is a related book, involving one of the minor characters in this one, but I really wanted to spend some more time with Sally.)

I love old cars, so this book was right up my alley. The heroine is unique. You'll cheer for her. The mystery is good, too, with a surprising cast of suspects and villains.

Omg I love the book all the characters and everything in it. The ending had me in tears and happiness at the end of it. This is one of the best books I have read in a long time. I am so getting ready to get the other two and start reading them right away! I couldn't lay it down and I was amazed because some of the other "free" books on Kindle were awful and extremely hard to read. I praise Cheryl Norman for a great book!

Good characters, sensibly sculpted. Nice twist at ending. A little more explanation of rift between father and daughter would have advanced the story. The two weakest parts of the book are when Joe is "suddenly untied" (serious lack of explanation -- we're just supposed to believe a miracle occured!!!) during the fight scene and the absolutely unnecessary sex scene. The book was fun...and thanks to the gratuitous sex scene...it went from decent murder mystery to a step above a bodice ripper.

Loved this book. Great characters, excellent mystery, good romance. I couldn't have asked for more, and it was free! I'm definitely going to have to download some more by this author.

I loved this heroine! I can't stand a sappy,wimpy, female lead in a romance novel. Sally is determined to do so much! Keep her garage open,and up her profits, walk as well as she used to before her accident, fix her relationship with her father, and even get some experience with a beautiful man when the opportunity presents itself. Even when she is certain that she will end up with a broken heart,she says, well,what the heck,and gets everything that she can before she misses the chance. I was rooting for her the whole time,and adding my own "get it girl",(as if she needed it)!!!

Oh,and I learned a little something about cars too.:-)

Major points for originality, fast pace, and overall great storyline!