Book: High Country Hero

Summary: Having brokered a fragile peace with his demons at last, ex-Afghan War pilot Mitch Stuart isn't in the market for redemption. But when he steps outside his comfort zone to help a stranger in a country pub, he inadvertently opens the door to the ghosts of a woman and a white dog he thought he'd left behind him long ago.

Veterinary specialist Lennie O'Donnell and her beloved dog, Pesh, are taking a break from big-city life to help Lennie's grandfather sell his old-fashioned rural clinic. Lennie has dedicated her career to healing those unable to tell her what's wrong, but Mitch is a puzzle even she struggles to solve - or completely let go.

Meanwhile, back in Lennie's old home town, another man of mixed messages, her high school crush Benji Cooper, is all grown up and looking at Lennie the way she always dreamed he would. Can Mitch find the courage to let Lennie into his life? And with gorgeous, sunny, funny Benji waiting in the wings, is it a threshold Lennie wants to cross? There's also the matter of her grandparents' unexpectedly fractured marriage to mend, and Lennie's growing suspicion there might be more to the sale of her grandfather's clinic than meets the eye.


What I Thought: Enjoyed revisiting some of these characters and places. Nice to read a NZ rural romance.

Book: The Last McAdam

Summary: What Tess hasn't counted on is coming up against the station's handsome and charismatic head stockman, Nate McAdam, whose family owned the property for generations...
Passed down through the same family for over a century, the remote sheep and cattle station of Broken Creek has recently been taken over by global agribusiness company Carnarvon Holdings. Now Carnarvon has sent its best troubleshooting manager, Tess Drummond, to turn the property's failing fortunes around fast.
When Tess arrives to take the reins of Broken Creek she's faced with a couple of nasty surprises. For starters, her head stockman, Nate McAdam, happens to be the same gorgeous stranger she hooked up with and ran out on a few weeks before.
As if that wasn't bad enough, Nate was supposed to inherit Broken Creek until his stepfather ran it into the ground. Now the last McAdam on the station leads a team of men whose bonds have been forged through hell and high water and whose mission is to see off Carnarvon and Tess so he can take his rightful place.
A genius with farm work and women but a disaster in the office, Nate is everything Tess believes a farmer shouldn't be. Determined not to give in to her growing attraction to him, Tess sets out to do her job, but she soon finds herself caught up in the battle of her career.


What I Thought: I really enjoyed this one. Nice to have a NZ rural romance for a change.

Book: Storms Over Blackpeak

Summary: In the shadow of Black Peak, Carr Fergusson's grand old homestead is in need of a housekeeper. When shy, city-bred Cally Jones arrives at Glencairn Station to take the reins, she discovers not only a new way of life, but a house packed to the rafters with romantic intrigue.
Carr's son, Ash, has finally seen fit to return to the family farm, and it's not just Cally's head he's turning. But what has really brought Ash home? And what ghosts lurk in his past? Is Cally the girl to heal his heart, or will her own heart be broken?
Just up the hall, beautiful, independent Ella Harrington is playing with fire as she tries to juggle the demands of her new career with her love for her gorgeous bad-boy boyfriend. Where will the sparks fall? And who will get burnt?
Meanwhile, intent on everyone else’s problems, will Ella’s mother, Lizzie, be too slow to see the clouds looming over her own horizon? Can Lizzie’s relationship with the newfound love of her life weather the coming storms, or will the differences between them tear them apart?


What I Thought: Enjoyed this book and revisiting characters. A bit slow paced for me though.

Book: Blackpeak Vines

Summary: Longing for a new life in the country, former television executive Lizzie Harrington settles on the vineyard south of Blackpeak Station, bringing with her some glamorous guests – none more so than the dazzling actor Richard Bourne, with whom Lizzie has had a secret love affair for years. But in the hills beyond Lizzie's boundary fence lives a very different sort of man. Could one unforgettable encounter be about to change the course of Lizzie's life in more ways than she had expected?

Meanwhile, a visit from Lizzie's beautiful daughter, Ella, puts other hearts in danger. At Blackpeak Station, Charlotte Black and the love of her life are busy not only with sheep but also a fashion shoot featuring Italian male models. Of all the men at Blackpeak, will Ella fall for the one she can't have? And what of the striking man whom Lizzie unwittingly ushers back into Charlotte's life?


What I thought: This was ok. No where near as good as the first book in the series. It was a little repetitive and aloof and jumped around a bit too much. But I will read book 3 due in October...

Book: Blackpeak Station

Summary: Four generations of the Black family have farmed Blackpeak Station. Next in line, or so she believes, is Charlotte Black, stubborn as rock and unbiddable as the weather. But standing in her way are 150 years of tradition, an older brother, and a father who believes that daughters run families, not farms.

To make her childhood dream of owning the family property come true, she'll have to be as tough as the mountains themselves. There can be no room for romance in Charlotte's life. Or so she thinks, until it arrives at her door. Can she have both love and land, or must she choose? Can Charlotte learn to trust her heart?


What I thought: A new rural romance author to add to my collection but this time from New Zealand. Loved it. Hooked from page 1 :)