MEMORY LANE and (new release) ROCKY ROAD by Becky Wade, Reviewed by Rebecca Maney

MEMORY LANE (Sons of Scandal #1) 2023
"God has a soft spot for those of us who feel like we've been thrown on the garage sale pile . . . He's never closer to us than when we've been beaten up, unloved, betrayed."

"The day that Remy Victoria Reed fished a drowning man from the Atlantic Ocean began in the most ordinary way." However, she would have to admit that this particular specimen of the male species was anything but "ordinary", nonetheless he was very beaten, battered, and incoherent after taking an unexpected swim . . . barely surviving what he could not recall. There was no other choice, Remy and her friend Leigh dragged him into Remy's modest cottage on a remote island off the coast of Maine and let him come back to life . . . one day at a time. And named him Jonah.

"Jonah" had quite a life, actually. A very high-profile, famous, extremely wealthy member of an elite family kind of life. While literally stripped down to the clothes on his back and the watch on his wrist, he began to bask in the careful attention shown by the lovely, quirky, always-driving-a-hard-bargain, drinking-store-bought-coffee woodcarver who had not only pulled him out of the ocean but who began filling in the empty spaces around his heart that were easy to miss while always driving in the fast lane. They both knew that his past and present would eventually merge, but when and how?

Now that's a story!
"I've lost my whole world and gained it back again. The most important thing to me out of all of it - everything I've lost and everything I've gained - is you."

. . . with quite an ending!

With its deeply layered characters, traumas, disappointments, lingering questions, complicated family dynamics, minor characters who played major roles, and hopeful moments (because "prioritizing safety and independence over love" wasn't always the right response) . . . yes, please! More, please!
*I purchased this book and was under no obligation to provide a positive review. 4.5 stars

NEW RELEASE

ROCKY ROAD (Sons of Scandal #2) 2024
"To be the object of this particular man's time and focus was a little . . . dazzling."

Despite the fact that "this particular man" who was proposing to "pose" as Gemma Clare's boyfriend was in clear and handsome reality an F. B. I. agent. . . working her into a case against her own cousin . . . who deserved it, by the way . . . but that wasn't the only thing . . . it was who he REALLY was that was a bit dazzling. "Imagine her, Gemma Clare, being in on that secret-ish information. Like Lois Lane knowing Clark Kent was Superman . . ". She was just a simple perfumer, minding her own little business, smelling the world all around her, when Mr. with-nary-a-wrinkle Jude Camden entered her domain. (and wasn't that just the craziest little episode, how embarrassing!)

"Operation Scent-sible . . . the title his superiors had given the investigation into Cedric. His keyboard clicked as he added to his notes about Gemma. Thinking of her reminded him how mortified she'd looked when the bath gel had hit him in the face . . . He'd been breathing in the scent of that gel ever since."

Under no circumstances should Jude Camden be thinking overly much about Gemma Clare. Pure and simple, she was a cooperating witness in an undercover operation. It was not only totally against bureau rules to become personally involved, it could compromise the entire case by adding a layer of emotional attachment that could prove dangerous for everyone involved, including Gemma. Jude was a rule follower. End of story.

"I begged and begged God to get my mom through the stroke. He did, of course. But an unexpected thing happened . . . He graciously carried me . . . He was and is my source of strength. We became pretty close, God and me . . . Does the fact that I am a Christian surprise you?"

One of the finest love-at-first-smell, fake boyfriend tropes that I have ever read!
*I purchased a copy and was under no obligation to provide a positive review.

MEMORY LANE BACK COVER BLURB:

After surviving a trauma several years back, Remy Reed relocated to a cottage on one of Maine’s most remote islands. She’s arranged her life just the way she wants it, spending her time working on her wood sculptures and soaking in the beauty of nature. It’s quiet and solitary—until the day she spots something bobbing in the ocean.

Her binoculars reveal the “something” to be a man, and he’s struggling to keep his head above water. She races out to save him and brings him into her home. He’s injured, which doesn’t detract from his handsomeness nor make him any easier to bear. He acts like a duke who’s misplaced his dukedom . . . expensive tastes, lazy charm, bossy ideas.

Remy would love nothing more than to return him to his people, but he has no recollection of his life prior to the moment she rescued him. Though she’s not interested in relationships other than the safe ones she’s already established, she begins to realize that he’s coming to depend on her.

Who is he? What happened that landed him in the Atlantic Ocean? And why is she drawn to him more and more as time goes by?

There’s no way to discover those answers except to walk beside him down memory lane.

Travel to the rocky coast of Maine for "opposites attract" banter, witty humor, a fascinating mystery, and destiny-changing love. This sweet contemporary romance kicks off Becky Wade's new Sons of Scandal series!

ROCKY ROAD BACK COVER BLURB:

 FBI Agent Jude Camden handles every aspect of his job with by-the-book professionalism. There's no reason why his latest assignment—which calls for him to pose as the boyfriend of perfumer Gemma Clare—should be any different.

Except Gemma is different. She's creative, bold, and feisty. And as soon as she meets Jude, she wants to loosen him up, wrinkle his perfect shirts, and test every ounce of his towering self-control.

The FBI has an iron-clad rule against romances between those working together on operations. Jude's never met a rule he didn't respect. But adhering to this one is going to be tough because, as time goes by, he finds Gemma more and more irresistible.

Buckle up! It's going to be a rocky road.

Escape to Maine for this swoon-worthy "fake romance"! Banter, humor, perfume, and a mystery from the past intertwine in this sweet Sons of Scandal love story.

 

Buy Memory Lane and Rocky Road at Amazon in digital ebook, paperback, or audiobook.