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Murphy’s Law gets a turn with Happily Ever After Reviews!

My thanks to Kris McConville for such a beautiful write up of the “book of my heart.” 5 cups rating!!

A new review for Murphy’s Law from Bobby at BookWenches! A huge “THANKS!” for the fantastic rating and beautiful write-up!

Here’s what Bobby had to say:

To say that playboy Seth Remington is spoiled rotten would be an understatement. At twenty-nine, he hasn’t worked a day in his life but has instead spent his time playing hard with his equally spoiled friends and driving and wrecking expensive cars almost as fast as his father can buy them. He is heir to the Remington fortune, but he doesn’t let that worry him. That is, until his father, Sterling Remington, suddenly passes away, leaving a new and very unwelcome will behind.

According to the will, Seth must spend nine months working in the stables of horse trainer Katie Murphy. He will have no money except that he earns as a groom and will work under an assumed identity. If he succeeds and works hard during the harness racing season, then he will inherit and can then do as he pleases. If not, he loses everything.

Quite unexpectedly, Seth finds that his new life suits him, and he begins to transform from an enfant terrible to a thoughtful and hard-working man. He bonds with the horses, and harness racing seems to come naturally to him. And most wonderful – or perhaps most horrible – of all, he also falls in love with the beautiful, hot-tempered Katie. At the end of his time, Seth will most definitely have earned his inheritance, but he will also have to leave Katie behind if he doesn’t want to forfeit the money all over again. Now Seth is faced with making the most difficult choice of all: love or money? It’s not as easy a decision as one might think.

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Murphy’s Law is the first book in Sandy James’ “Damaged Heroes” series, which currently runs four books long. Somehow, I’ve managed to read these books out of order, so while I can attest to the fact that it is not necessary to read them sequentially to enjoy and appreciate these stories, readers will probably get the fullest effect if they read them in order. I reviewed book 2 of the series, Free Falling, in May of 2009 and book 4, Faith of the Heart, in July 2009, and they were both excellent. Murphy’s Law is, however, truly outstanding. This is probably one of the best traditional romances that I have read in a very long while. Not only is Ms. James’ writing style polished and easy to follow, but her characters are exceptional, her pacing is brisk enough to keep the plot moving at a satisfying pace, and her setting is unique and fascinating.

The premise of the plot of Murphy’s Law is standard romantic fare: a spoiled rich boy must prove himself, a nasty woman throws a wrench into the works, and romantic misunderstandings abound. However, Ms. James takes what could be a formula and transforms it into something distinctive and entertaining. She has created characters that live and breathe for the reader and who interact in a manner that is believable and frequently just plain fun. And she has given them a dilemma that could possibly break our hearts. No, this novel won’t make you turn on the waterworks, but don’t be surprised if it doesn’t make you just a tiny bit misty-eyed a time or two. I found myself frequently grinning at the repartee between Seth and Katie, and I’ll admit to indulging in a sniffle or two during their time of romantic crisis.

It is plain to see that Ms. James is comfortable with the world of harness racing, because she includes details that are not only truly interesting but also lend a lot of realism to the story. As I read, I frequently found myself part of the crowd, surrounded by horses dressed in harness and pulling jog carts or sulkies and drivers in their colorful silks. It is a brilliant, colorful, exciting world, and Ms. James brings it alive for us.

Next time you’re in the mood for a good old-fashioned romance, emphasis on the good, I definitely recommend that you pick up Murphy’s Law. And then don’t be surprised if you find yourself reaching for Free Falling soon after you finish it, because you’re going to want Ross to have his happy ending as well. Sandy James is a very talented author; definitely one to follow if you enjoy well-written and involving romance.

I’ve got guest blogs busting out all over!

Please come visit me at Writers’ Digest blog to discuss how I came to be represented by my wonderful agent Maureen Walters, then pop over to the EPIC blog where I talk about my two EPIC finalist books.

Classic Romance Revival, a group I greatly admire, posted a new review for Turning Thirty-Twelve!

My thanks to Renee Wildes for such a beautiful write-up! I can think of no higher compliment for my book than to have it called a “keeper”!

Here’s what Renee had to say:

A birthday lament… What exactly is middle age? Heroine Jackie Delgado is a high school biology teacher with grown sons, the youngest just entering college. Dealing with empty-nest syndrome and an ex-husband who not only threw her over for the younger-trophy-wife but FLAUNTS her at all family gatherings is enough to depress anyone, but Jackie Delgado has a biting, witty sense of humor that immediately captures a reader.

She meets the hero, police officer Mark Brennan, at OfficeMax. Both getting ready for the new school year, buying supplies. His youngest daughter’s in Jackie’s Biology class. Sparks fly, but it’s not until she’s set up by a fellow teacher on a blind date that they actually go out.

Turning Thirty-Twelve is told in first-person from Jackie’s POV. It is laugh-out-loud funny. Seriously, filled with all the real life ups and downs that readers experience in their lives and make it easy to relate to the characters. Mark’s a widower, whose wife passed away from breast cancer. His oldest daughter is classmates with Jackie’s youngest son and they end up dating. Jackie can’t cook, with hilarious results at Thanksgiving.

These are not perfect people. They do not have perfect, grandiose lives. They are real people doing the best that they can. Meeting and falling in love when they both believed “this is it – my life is set” took them both by surprise. The underlying theme in this book is you’re never too old to love, and life is a constant adventure you should embrace. I guarantee you’ll laugh a lot, weep a bit, want to holler at a hard-headed cop a time or two, and walk away completely changed.

You have GOT to grab this book by Sandy James. It’s a total keeper.

I am thrilled and very, very proud to announce that Murphy’s Law was awarded the 2010 HOLT Medallion as the Best Long Contemporary Romance!

As if that news wasn’t wonderful enough, Turning Thirty-Twelve was awarded a 2010 HOLT Medallion Award of Merit as Best First Book.

My mentor, Judie Aitken, is a past HOLT Medallion winner. Since Murphy’s Law was the first book she helped me work on, I find it very pleasing that story won the HOLT. I can never thank her enough for all she’s done for me!!

I was thrilled to be one of the first authors reviewed by a great new website — Happily Ever After Reviews! My thanks to Kris McConville for a beautiful write-up of Turning Thirty-Twelve and the 5 cup/recommended read rating!!

When a writer enters a contest, she has high hopes of being named a finalist. That phone call or email sets her pulse racing, and the “pat on the back” of a job well done helps ease the angst that goes hand in hand with the waiting game of publishing. This weekend, I was extraordinarily lucky to have received one of those emails from the Lories Published coordinator. This email, however, held some highly surprising news…

My Damaged Heroes ALL won or placed in their categories! Murphy’s Law was the Mainstream winner. Free Falling took first place in Romantic Suspense. Faith of the Heart placed second in Paranormal. And All the Right Reasons came in third in Single Title.

Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined such a wonderful showing!! I defeated books from Grand Central, Sourcebooks, Dorchester, and even NAL.

So when will New York see fit to give me a chance to show I can run with the big girls?

I’m very, very proud to announce that All the Right Reasons won the Single Title division of More than Magic contest! On to the finals with the other category winners!

I’m very happy to announce that Free Falling is a romantic suspense finalist for the Greater Detroit RWA’s Booksellers’ Best Award!!