Whirlwind

Welcome to Tyler #1

by Nancy Martin

Welcome to Tyler, America's Favorite Hometown. A town filled with memorable friends and unforgettable lovers. Share the passions, the hopes and dreams of America's favorite small town. — WHERE ROMANCE BLOOMS — When lively, brash Liza Baron arrives home unexpectedly, she moves into the old family lodge -- where silent, mysterious Cliff Forrester has been living in seclusion for years....

WHERE THE FUTURE IS ABOUT TO COLLIDE WITH THE PAST

When a body is uncovered on the lodge grounds, the community begins to piece together the truth about Tyler's first family, and a secret hidden for forty years threatens to tear the town apart.

Each book set in Tyler is a self-contained story; together, they stitch the fabric of a community.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Harlequin, Contemporary, Fiction, Literature, Romantic Suspense

298 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 1, 1992

About the author

Winner of the 2009 Lifetime Achievement award for mystery writing from Romantic Times magazine, Nancy Martin announces the release of the 8th book in her popular Blackbird Sisters mystery series, NO WAY TO KILL A LADY. Set in Philadelphia, the story features three heiresses whose parents have run off with their trust funds. Now thay have a chance to regain their wealth when their aunt, "Madcap Maddy" Blackbird dies in a volcano and leaves her estate to the sisters. But Nora Blackbird soon discovers all the treasures in Aunt Maddy's house have disappeared...information that leads her to believe maybe Maddy didn't die the way everybody thinks.

Author of 48 pop fiction novels in mystery, suspense, historical and romance genres, Nancy created The Blackbird Sisters in 2002--- mysteries about three impoverished heiresses who adventure in couture and crime --as if “Agatha Christie had wandered onto the set of Sex and The City.” Nominated for the Agatha Award for Best First Mystery of 2002, HOW TO MURDER A MILLIONAIRE won the RT award for Best First Mystery and was a finalist for the Daphne DuMaurier Award. Currently, she is at work on the Roxy Abruzzo mystery series for St. Martin’s Minotaur. In 2009 she received the Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award for mystery writing.

Nancy lives in Pittsburgh, serves on the board of Sisters in Crime and is a founding member of Pennwriters. Find her on Pinterest and Facebook.

Reviews

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this entire series a few weeks back after having it identified for me. One of my high school friends shared (some) of these with me back in the day and I remember them years later from the covers. I am pretty sure I didn't read all of them, but am not wholly sure. The relationship in this one isn't my favorite dynamic but the book is notable for 1) the impeccably drawn small town and how damn WISCONSIN it correctly is and 2) the hero who is in the lineage of Vietnam vet heroes but isn't one. It's also super interesting and superior world building that the word Hmong appears in this book considering the population in Wisconsin at this time. Really fascinating and I'm looking forward to continuing on with this reread.

[Micha]

So this is a romance novel I read when I was eight. We were at the library booksale and my sister Erin saw these Tyler books and said Michaela, don't you have a friend named Tyler? and I said YEAH! because I sat next to him all year and I was in grade three so that makes it '98 since I remember it was summer. Anyhow, we got about ten of the novels in this Tyler series because you could fill up this cloth bag with books for $10 and we stuffed that bag full (my sisters got books too, of course). So I read this here first book and I thought the really interesting part was that they found a dead body in the lake! But they didn't know whose it was right away or how it got there. Oh boy. There was lots of stuff I didn't understand but I was really curious about this mystery element especially because by the end they hadn't solved that. That was fine, though, because after all this was part of a series and I had the next nine books.

So I started reading the second book, "Book B" (they are lettered, not numbered), but it was about two different people entirely and they didn't even mention the dead body! What a disappointment. I was pretty unimpressed by this move, but opening up "C" I saw that some of the characters from the first book were back. Awesome! Unfortunately, they only touched lightly over the body in the lake. Meanwhile I was getting super confused by all the real touching going on none too lightly and why this man "tasted" the lady in front of the fireplace. I got to the end really hoping something a bit more dynamic would have happened and I cracked open book "D" but saw that it was again about someone else entirely. I had the pattern figured out now, and I wasn't going to stick around for this drawn out back-and-forth without any actual mystery solving! What a disappointing series.

Appendix A
One day my mom saw this novel on our bookshelf and picked it up and opened it up, getting the gist of it right away, and said, Michaela! Did you READ this? And I told her only till the fourth book because it wasn't a very good mystery.

Appendix B
Turned out my grandmother was quite a fan of this series so we gave all the books to her. She was so excited that we shared a taste in literature and asked me which was my favourite (hers was "Book I" or maybe "J").

[Tatevik · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found 3 books I didn't remember about and decided to read without checking the genre. I only read friend reviews (not that many). Going blind into I don't know what!

The first one turned out to be a romance from the early 90s. Nothing changed from then on. Still the same lousy characters, simple plot not to DNF but just to keep you going till the last page, and me getting annoyed at the dialogues, actions, stupidity, you name it (surprise, surprise!).

I don't actually know what will happen with the second - Crazy in Alabama. It's promising, as there are 2 reviews from friends that are above 4. We shall see.

The last one is magical realism from the author I actually heard of but never read - Of Love and Shadows. I knew about this book before deciding not to check... This one is the most promising so far.

I like this new challenge. Maybe I should try that for all my shelves - read all before buying new ones.
Can you believe I can do that?



Ha, I don't!

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome story...so many new faces...love the way the story builds to climaxes...can't wait to find out what happens to each family...totally enjoyed the way she has people interacting...almost felt like I was "living" in the area...

[Rhonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story pulled me in from the beginning. I was not able to put this book down. I loved the story. The story flowed well. The characters were intriguing and the was a bit of mystery with the romance.

[Jeff Lyon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book in the Tyler series brings feisty Liza back to her hometown after a multi-year estrangement and throws her together with older, reclusive and damaged Cliff in the abandoned hunting lodge built by her grandfather in the Wisconsin wilderness. The unlikely pair are a decade apart and exactly opposite in emotional needs.
Liza's families' sordid past and secrets come to light while she attempts to save Cliff from himself and resurrect the dilapidated lodge. This is a strange love story with lots of surprises and an introduction to the seemingly idyllic town of Tyler that left me wanting more.

[Manda · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, this was (I think) the first romance novel I ever read. Flippin' hilarious. For a long time, the title evaded me, but now I have found it!

[Melissa Zuckerman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I actually loved the romance part of the story, but I gave it a low score because the ending left me hanging. It ended very abruptly and never really explained itself.

[Elena · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like reading series about families. Read most of the Tyler books ages ago but now I have the opportunity to read them in order. There's Cliff with some post traumatic stress disorder and Liza with her 'devil may care' attitude. Turns out Liza was what Cliff needed. Their love story was about trust, courage and of course love. I liked it.

But these books are more than love stories. A body was found in Judson Ingalls property. Is it Liza's grandmother, the infamous Margaret, who all presumed had left her family because of a lover? Why is Alyssa, Liza's mother, refusing to talk about her mother Margaret? What happened at Timberlake resort? Can't wait to visit Tyler again, meet more of its inhabitants and maybe get some answers.

[Chuck · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a Harlequin Book published back in 1992! It is also the first book in a series of twelve, written by several different authors about the same town.

The story is a pleasant, slightly cheesy, romance with a little mystery thrown in. Warning, the mystery is apparently solved in one of the later books!

The plot revolved around an impetuous, exasperating young woman coming home from the big city who butts heads with a slightly older PTSD suffering man hiding from the world. She is beautiful, he is a hunk! They drive each other crazy mentally and sexually!

It's a nice, fluffy story of a small town without much substance!

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

My mom volunteered at a used book store when I was growing up. When I was in middle school someone donated the whole Tyler series. I convinced her to buy them for me, never read them, and ended up selling them at a yard sale. For years I was curious to what those books about small town life with quilts on them were. I finally cracked the mystery and ordered this book. It's still meh. I probably won't pursue the rest of the series, even though I think it's interesting that they are each written by a different author.

[Mps · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a quick romance novel with a little mystery thrown in, although it sounds like the mystery will continue into the next book in the series. I found Liza to be very unlikable from the beginning, which was unfortunate, but I was intrigued enough to keep reading. Some of the dialogue is weird - and not this is a book from the 90's weird, just genuinely not how people actually talk - although I guess that comes with the genre. An okay romance novel overall. I have a box that I think has the whole series in it, so I'll keep reading along.

[Phylisha Stone · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story is about a really emotionally and psychologically messed up guy who becomes involved with a selfish, spoiled, self absorbed, really get on your nerves young woman who intrudes on his privacy at a secluded lodge her family owns. the writing of her character make her a really awful person, in my opinion. I finished the book, because I generally finish books, even if they turn out to be not so great.

[Kshydog · Rating 3 out of 5]

First book in series. Not as good as 3rd in series. Gives explanation about Cliff with his previous desire to want to be alone and why Lisa is so willing to get involved with him. Glad was for their best interests and not rebellion against family. Lisa starts to realize family behaviors were not all due to her, that they had issues she just did not understand as a child. Not much add info except actual body found when checking underground pipes at lodge.

[Jenifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short story with a headstrong woman and a man with a tragic backstory.

Overall, it was okay. However there are many times the heroine, Liza, was annoying and I couldn’t really get behind her and her thought process. She seemed super spoiled to me rather than someone I can relate to.

I am intrigued by the mystery that is started in this book and want to see if I get more answers as it goes on.

[Cassandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whirlwind is just that a Whirlwind. From beginning to end it was a little bit of a roller-coaster. It does feel like a product of it's time. From how quickly they fall in love to how she seems to know how to fix his problems. I liked the characters but I wish they would have been more in depth and fleshed out.

[Michele · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this was a quilt and mystery series since each book is named after a quilt block. Well, there’s no quilt in the book and the mystery isn’t that difficult. On top of that it is a Harlequin romance and that’s not my thing. I bought the entire series online cheap, but I’ll be giving it away.

[Happytalista · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book in a small town book shop and just grab it by feeling to then realize is a whole series that I would love to read now. What impressed me is that putting aside the war details, it would perfectly be a modern 2024 book. At least the love story part of it, how is written, the tension between characters, etc. Really enjoyed this one!

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

To me, Liza is just a pushy woman that won't keep her nose out of stuff. How Cliff puts up with it, I don't know! Somehow, he does,though.

This book had romance, angst, mystery, and a cliffhanger. The story was NOT resolved in the first book, you apparently HAVE to read the whole series.

I'm invested now.

[Boosmummy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I first read this series many years ago, after finding them in a box I thought I'd re-read. Now I can't figure out why I enjoyed them, the heroine is not likeable at all and I just want to slap her silly. I'm not bothering with the rest, off to the charity shop.

[Cathy Savage · Rating 1 out of 5]

Found the box of this series from decades ago so decided to read. Yikes! Soooo dated and unrealistic. Good for a laugh but that is about all. Not sure I will bother with the rest of the series. Into the book sale donation box... if they will have it!

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even better the second time.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book in a great series.

[Mande Garrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book. The only thing that was a little unnerving was how Cliff acted throughout the majority of the book and how Liza's grandfather acts.

[Kaitlyn Vaden · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick and easy read. I wish the mystery would have been solved but overall a pretty good book.

[Amanda Kendall · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember really liking this when I was much younger (12ish?) but now it just makes me cringe. Sign of the times, maybe

[Holly]

I read this in MIDDLE SCHOOL and I remember reading my first ever sex scene in the middle of science class. I'm dying thinking about it bahaha.

[Peggy Haufle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd love to find the rest of this series but with all the different authors, this may be tough.

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this series, wish I had them all!

[Janine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cheesy lame romance novel from the 90s. I’m going to read a few I found in a box I found in my garage. The only thing I would like is the interconnectedness of the characters.