Title: Tangled up in Christmas
Author:  Lisa Renee Jones
Publisher/Year:  Entangled Publishing 10/29/19
Length:  308 Pages
Series:  Texas Heat #2

Overview

I might be a country girl from the same small town of Sweetwater, Texas, as horse wrangler Roarke Frost, the girl next door who knows him like few know him, but I didn’t know enough to save my heart.

He’s the reason why I left Sweetwater behind.

But now fate proves she loves a wicked twist and sends me back to Sweetwater to pull together a Christmas festival—and I run smack into the man again, quite literally. His body is pressed to mine, his hands on my arms, and I’m melting like chocolate in the sizzling Texas sunshine. And I run.

I know it’s not exactly respectable, but it works, just not for long. No matter how much I try to get tangled up in Christmas, I end up tangled up in Roarke instead—and the man has me feeling the heat of our attraction and the warmth of our past friendship. He feels like Mr. Right, but history says he’s Mr. Wrong.

But if he wants a second chance, Roarke Frost is going to have to work for it. He’ll need to prove to me that this holiday is a season of new beginnings, the kind that last forever.

My Thought

Well, we were recently wrapped up in the Sweetwater lovestory that belonged to Jessica and Jason, so it’s only fitting that we get to delve deeper into Roarke – the sexy Horse Wrangler/Whisperer who lives next door, is like a brother to Jason and who provided much needed counsel when Jessica and Jason were imploding.

In this second book of the series, we get to watch how the past that Roarke can’t move on from comes fast and furious into his present, all with the help of a lady named Hannah. the girl that he grew up with, loved and never got over.

The journey in this story is quite different than that of the first book. We see a couple, who were so deeply in love that they didn’t think anything could tear them apart until something did. Then years go by and every time they tried to move on, they kept coming full circle to the memory of what they shared and what’s lost and no one compared.

Hannah, our leading lady was young when she and Rourke finally got together, but she’s grown up, made a name for herself in LA as a fashion photographer, but when her boss gets caught up in the #MeToo movement, her world crumbles and she’s forced to go home to Dallas/Sweetwater.

Roarke has always been the man that we know and love. His skill and ability matched by no one and even through the years, he’s still managed to maintain that and build. He’s pined for Hannah but couldn’t fight for her since what broke them up was tied to such a web of secrets that it would not only end them, but other friendships in town.

Back in present day when Hannah has come home and literally the moment she’s stepped for in the airport she slams into Roarke, we know that their lives are changed yet again. The heat and chemistry that they shared years ago is still there but it’s really a question on whether they can forgive AND forget what happened to make things work. That’s a huge pill to swallow and one that’s not easy.

They continue to cross paths in unexpected places and then when Hannah’s friend (a girl who’s helping her get a new business started) hurts herself, Hannah fills in on a job and is thrown right in between Jason and Roarke, two men that she has no chance with.

The story from here is quite like a dance – seeing who steps where, who avoids whom and what that means for everyone involved. We live under the pretense of a job that has to get done in town to make the community thrive, but at the same time we see this as an opportunity for conversation, for love to be rekindled and for secrets to come out. Although no one wants those secrets to come out. Least of all her parents.

In true form of our author, we have a story that pulls you in with Hope (no pun intended and when you read the end you’ll understand what i mean) breaks your faith in true love, and makes you want to see the best in people, even when it’s impossible.

We spend so much time in this second book wondering if they have a chance, and who’s help is it going to take to make love a reality. Will it be a grandmother, a friend, an animal? no one really knows, and no one knows if there’s even a chance, but everyone in this lovely town won’t give up. So on that note, read this, have faith, know that there’s love and know that when happy endings aren’t possible, there’s always something that can come out of it. Enjoy!