Tag: The Inn Boonsboro Trilogy

Review: The Perfect Hope by Nora Roberts

Posted February 27, 2013 by Rowena in Reviews | 4 Comments

Review: The Perfect Hope by Nora RobertsReviewer: Rowena
The Perfect Hope (Inn Boonsboro, #3) by Nora Roberts
Series: Inn Boonsboro #3
Publisher: Penguin, Berkley
Publication Date: November 6th 2012
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 337
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#1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts introduces you to the Montgomery brothers - Beckett, Ryder, and Owen - as they bring an intimate bed-and-breakfast to life in their hometown.

Ryder is the hardest Montgomery brother to figure out - with a tough-as-nails outside and possibly nothing too soft underneath. He's surly and unsociable, but when he straps on a toolbelt, no woman can resist his sexy swagger. Except, apparently, Hope Beaumont, the innkeeper of his own Inn BoonsBoro...

As the former manager of a D.C. hotel, Hope is used to excitement and glamour, but that doesn't mean she can't appreciate the joys of small-town living. She's where she wants to be - except for in her love life. Her only interaction with the opposite sex has been sparring with the infuriating Ryder, who always seems to get under her skin. Still, no one can deny the electricity that crackles between them...a spark that ignited with a New Year's Eve kiss.

While the inn is running smoothly, thanks to Hope's experience and unerring instincts, her big-city past is about to make an unwelcome - and embarrassing - appearance. Seeing Hope vulnerable stirs up Ryder's emotions and makes him realize that while Hope may not be perfect, she just might be perfect for him...

This is the last book in the Inn Boonsboro Trilogy and it’s Ryder Montgomery’s book.  His heroine is Hope Beaumont…and of all of the books in this series, this was my favorite.

I’ll admit that the previous books were kind of slow going but it was this book that I was really looking forward to reading.  Ryder and Hope had some pretty intense sexual chemistry in the previous books and I just knew that their story was going to be the best of the bunch and I wasn’t wrong.

Ryder and Hope are opposites.  Ryder is a man’s man and Hope is pretty fancy in his eyes.  She’s Perfect Hope and he wouldn’t mind messing her up a little bit.  Hope is annoyed with herself for noticing Ryder as much as she does because well, he’s mean to her.  When things with the ghost in the inn pushes them together, they both seem to fall in line with the idea of being a couple and I liked that there wasn’t much fuss with the romance between Ryder and Hope.

I’ve been looking forward to reading this book since I first met Ryder and Hope in Beckett and Claire’s book.  These are the characters that brought me back to Owen and Avery’s book and when I finally got around to reading this one, I wasn’t disappointed with the story at all.  This book wraps up everything that we’ve been dealing with in the last two books.  Lizzie’s story is uncovered, the chemistry between Ryder and Hope burns bright and leaves you feeling like rainbows and cotton candy.

I really enjoyed getting to know both Ryder and Hope.  Ryder was everything I hoped he’d be and Hope was great.  Ryder was my favorite character in the entire series (even more than his Mom, who was great herself) and I really liked seeing him, getting to know him through his own thoughts and not through his brothers or his mother.

Of all of the girls, I liked Hope the best and I thought her story pulled out even more of her to like.  I loved the way that she was always there for everyone around her, I liked the way that she ran the hotel and I really liked the way that she came to love Ryder.  She was a great woman and she was perfect for Ryder and really, I just liked this book.

This was the perfect way to end the trilogy and it was an overall great story.  I’m so glad that I read it.

Grade: 4 out of 5

This book is available from Berkley Trade. You can buy it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher for an honest review.


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Guest Review: The Last Boyfriend by Nora Roberts

Posted May 24, 2012 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 5 Comments

Judith’s review of The Last Boyfriend (Inn BoonsBoro #2) by Nora Roberts.

Owen is the organizer of the Montgomery clan, running the family’s construction business with an iron fist – and an even less flexible spreadsheet. And though his brothers bust on his compulsive list-making, the Inn BoonsBoro is about to open right on schedule. The only thing Owen didn’t plan for was Avery McTavish… Avery’s popular pizza place is right across the street from the inn, giving her a first-hand look at its amazing renovation – and a newfound appreciation for Owen. Since he was her first boyfriend when they were kids, Owen has never been far from Avery’s thoughts. But the attraction she’s feeling for him now is far from innocent. As Avery and Owen cautiously take their relationship to another level, the opening of the inn gives the whole town of Boonsboro a reason to celebrate. But Owen’s hard work has only begun. Getting Avery to let down her guard is going to take longer than he expected – and so will getting her to realize that her first boyfriend is going to be her last.

No matter how many authors come and go, when it comes to romance fiction, Nora Roberts still revs the readers’ engines. Her characters are unfailing in their connection to reality, the personalities and situations are always brilliantly crafted and never failing in their call to our imaginations. Most of us can relate with a happening or two out of our own lives that connect us with just about every one of her stories.

This trilogy is based on the brothers Montgomery, a family who have made their mark in the construction business as they have carried on the dream of their now deceased dad and the on-going energy and enthusiasm of their mom. This second book features brother Owen Montgomery, the kind of man who is organized to a fault and the kind of man any construction company needs to keep them on schedule. Owen is good at what he does, even to the point of organizing his own life in exactly the same fashion. The people who form the ensemble in which the Montgomery family functions are unique and each plays an important role in the life of one or more of the brothers. Avery McTavish is a beautiful young woman who has known the family since her earliest days, and Owen was her very first boyfriend, a boy of six she declared she would one day marry and he even gave her a plastic valentine ring out of a gumball machine. Now Owen and Avery are best friends, work together as business colleagues. They also both communicate in their own individual way with the resident ghost in the Inn Boonsboro, and it is through the machinations of that ghost they all call Lizzy or Elizabeth that Owen and Avery now begin to notice each other in a completely adult way.

There are some wonderful heroes in Ms Roberts’ books, but few are as sensible, patient, caring, and sensitive as Owen Montgomery. What a really great guy!! His appreciation of Avery and her business acumen, her wonderful culinary creations, and her openness to just being herself and accepting others as they are sets her apart, and Owen begins to realize that he wants her in his life romantically as well as in his bed. Their affair is fun and romantic and full of the kind of love that most people long to experience. That is not to say that their affair is without it’s difficulties because it has some serious problems. Yet Owen again displays the maturity that characterizes most of his life. He has insecurities like everyone and they get him in trouble just a bit. But both he and Avery are the kind of people who give each other forgiveness for being human.

This is just a wonderful book, full of family, kindness and gentle caring, authentic loving that can withstand some very hefty challenges, and built around the experiences of two people who are not afraid to be very open about their attraction to one another as well as their willingness to be open about their sexual involvement. The interaction among friends and members of the Montgomery family have moments of hilarity that kept me laughing for an extended amount of time. I was deeply touched at the support and sharing the friends and family extended to their older brother and his bride–a widow with three children and a person who was herself a business owner in their town. The Inn Boonsboro sounds like a wonderful place–just the kind of inn filled with history and literary ambiance I would love to experience.

So, when all is said and done, this is a marvelous book and one I think romance fans will not want to miss. It’s a really terrific story and I am looking forward to the final book in the trilogy.

I give it a rating of 4.25 out of 5

The series:

Book Cover Book Cover

You can read more from Judith at Dr J’s Book Place.

This book is available from Berkley. You can buy it here or here in e-format.


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Review: The Last Boyfriend by Nora Roberts.

Posted May 8, 2012 by Rowena in Reviews | 12 Comments

Publisher: Berkley, Penguin


Rowena’s review of The Last Boyfriend (The Inn Boonsboro #2) by Nora Roberts.

Hero: Owen Montgomery
Heroine: Avery McTavish

Owen is the organizer of the Montgomery clan, running the family’s construction business with an iron fist — and an even less flexible spreadsheet. And though his brothers give him grief for his compulsive list making, the Inn BoonsBoro is about to open right on schedule. The only thing Owen didn’t plan for was Avery MacTavish…

Avery’s popular pizza place is right across the street from the inn, giving her a firsthand look at its amazing renovation — and a newfound appreciation for Owen. Since he was her first boyfriend when they were kids, Owen has never been far from Avery’s thoughts. But the attraction she’s feeling for him now is far from innocent.

As Avery and Owen cautiously take their relationship to another level, the opening of the inn gives the whole town of Boonsboro a reason to celebrate. But Owen’s hard work has only begun. Getting Avery to let down her guard is going to take longer than he expected — and so will getting her to realize that her first boyfriend is going to be her last…

This is the second book in the Inns Boonsboro trilogy by Nora Roberts and its another enjoyable read. I was so excited for these books to come out because I adored the Bride Quartet but I seem to be underwhelmed with the first two books in this series. I enjoyed the easy going nature of the books but my overall reading experience left a lot to be desired. It was too easy for me to put this book down and read something else and I was bummed about that.

This book follows the second Montgomery brother to get his happy ending, Owen. Owen is the Captain Save a Hoe in the family. He’s the details guy, the guy that takes care of the little details that nobody wants to take care of. If you need help, Owens your guy. He’s a good guy with a huge heart and he looks pretty sexy in scruffy work boots and well worn jeans.

Avery runs the pizzeria across the street from the Inn. She’s got her hands full running her own restaurant, working in it and still finds time to help her friends out across the street at the Inn. Things are coming together at the Inn and she loves that she’s a part of it all. Her best friends Hope and Claire are around and she loves having them around. She’s fiercely independent but she’s not against getting some help in the form of her first boyfriend, Owen Montgomery.

There wasn’t much to the romance between Owen and Avery because right off the bat, they liked each other. They’re friends. They grew up together and they’re comfortable with each other. They came together as a “Why not?” kind of thing and I thought they made sense but I wish there would have been more to their romance than what we got. The internal conflict was enough to satisfy me but I still liked the overall book.

I spent most of the book anxious for more Ryder and Hope. I like both of their personalities because they’re so different. Ryder is pissy and rough around the edges while Hope is a control freak who is more reserved. I think their book will be an interesting read and I think their book will probably be my favorite since from the jump, they’ve been my favorite characters. I was interested in both of them since Beckett and Claire’s book and I can’t wait to finally read their story.

I can’t say that I’m a huge fan of the ghost story. Her name is Liz and we find out that she’s got a story that we don’t have in its entirety yet but there’s still another book so I’m sure it’ll come together nice and neat. Right now, we think that she’s waiting for her man to come and her, he’s just taking his time about it. The other thing that I wasn’t really a fan of was the relationship that popped up between Owen’s Mom and Avery’s Dad. There isn’t much to it and if it had been more fleshed out, maybe I would have liked it but I felt like they were just thrown together with no real reason.

Overall, this book did a good job of pulling the ghost story along and bringing Owen and Avery together. I liked the little peek we got into the way Avery ran her restaurant. I also liked seeing Owen do his thing when he was at work as well. If there was more of a conflict between Owen and Avery, I probably would have enjoyed their story more but as underwhelmed as I was with this book, I’m still looking forward to reading the last book in this series. I can’t wait for Ryder and Hope’s book. I’m anxious to getting to know them and finding how about their backgrounds and pasts. It should be interesting.

Grade: 3 out of 5

This book is available from Berkley Trade. You can buy it here or here in e-format.


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Review: The Next Always by Nora Roberts.

Posted November 10, 2011 by Rowena in Reviews | 0 Comments

Publisher: Berkley, Penguin


Rowena’s review of The Next Always by Nora Roberts.

Hero: Beckett Montgomery
Heroine: Claire Brewster

“America’s favorite writer” (The New Yorker) begins an all-new trilogy-inspired by the inn she owns and the town she loves.

The historic hotel in BoonsBoro, Maryland, has endured war and peace, changing hands, even rumored hauntings. Now it’s getting a major facelift from the Montgomery brothers and their eccentric mother. As the architect of the family, Beckett’s social life consists mostly of talking shop over pizza and beer. But there’s another project he’s got his eye on: the girl he’s been waiting to kiss since he was fifteen…

I’ve been looking forward to this release since I found out about it and when I went to Holly’s house, this was the only book that I was looking forward to reading. I adored the Bridal Quartet a lot so I thought I would enjoy this one just as much but while the overall story was good, I didn’t quite love this book as much as I hoped I would.

This book follows Claire Brewster and Beckett Montgomery find their way to their happy ending. For Claire, it was her second shot at love since she married young and lost her husband to the war. For Beck, it was for the first time and with his childhood crush. Beckett had always liked Claire, ever since she was fifteen years old but he never got to do anything about it because the timing was always off and then she went off and got married, had kids and she was always out of his reach. When she moves back home after her husband dies, Beckett is baffled as all get out that he still gets all tongue twisted and shy around Claire, like he was a bumbling boy of thirteen. He could talk to any woman on the planet and be cool and confident but not with Claire. He’s had a crush on Claire for as long as he could remember and everyone and their Mom knows, except for Claire.

The romance between Beckett and Claire was like a tall glass of lemonade on a lazy summer day. It was slow, steady and simmered right beneath the surface for most of the beginning of the book. Roberts does a great job of drawing their characters out and making their romance feel real.

Claire has her hands full with her three boys and her business. She’s doing it all on her own with the help of her friends and parents (both sets of grandparents), she’s doing a pretty bang up job trying to juggle all of the roles she’s playing but sometimes it got to be a bit much. It was hard at times to take Claire because she was such a control freak about every little thing where her boys were concerned. She didn’t want to lean on anyone too much (even when they were doing the offering) and so she made things a lot harder for herself when she didn’t have to.

I will say that I adored the way that Beckett bonded with Claire’s boys. He was more than just the guy that was dating their Mom. He was their friend as well and seeing the bond between Beckett and each boy form and then strengthen over the course of the book was something that I enjoyed most about the entire story.

Each character in this book is pretty well fleshed out and I walked away from this book curious about each of the characters, wanting more from each of the characters. I’m anxious to read the other Montgomery brothers books now. Especially Ryder. He’s so surly and cynical that I’m itching to find out why. Owen is the details brother and I’m thinking that it’s going to be interesting to see his heroine try to relax his mind. I’m guessing the pairings are Ryder and Hope then Owen and Avery. I’d be happy with those pairings so I’m looking forward to that.

My least favorite part of this book was the whole thing with Sam Freemont. That whole deal didn’t feel genuinely part of the book, it felt more like it was added in at the end and I didn’t really buy Sam’s whole obsession with Claire. While it didn’t dampen my enjoyment of the overall story much, I wasn’t too interested in that part of the book.

This book shows promise for the rest of this series and I’m very much looking forward to reading the rest of the books but it wasn’t one of my favorites by Nora Roberts.

Grade: 3 out of 5.

This book is available from Berkley Trade. You can buy it here or here in e-format.


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New Nora Roberts Series?

Posted May 29, 2011 by Rowena in Reviews | 8 Comments

So I read on Leslie’s Psyche that Nora Roberts has a new trilogy coming out about three brothers and their crazy mother rebuilding an Inn. Oh man, it sounds like something I would totally enjoy and now that the Bridal Quartet is finished, I’m really looking forward to this new trilogy.

Bring on the hottie Montgomery brothers! The first book comes out on November 1, 2011 in trade and it’s called The Next Always.

Check out the deets:

The historic hotel in BoonsBoro, Maryland, has endured war and peace, changing hands, even rumored hauntings. Now it’s getting a major facelift from the Montgomery brothers and their eccentric mother. As the architect of the family, Beckett’s social life consists mostly of talking shop over pizza and beer. But there’s another project he’s got his eye on: the girl he’s been waiting to kiss since he was fifteen…

Ooh, the cover looks good, it sounds really cute and it’s right up my alley of a good time read so I’ve marked my calendar already! Make sure to mark yours too!

This book is available from Berkley Trade. You can pre-order it here.


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