The Widow's Protector

Fitzgerald Bay #4

by Stephanie Newton

Someone is trying to take everything from widowed mother Fiona Fitzgerald Cobb. Their method? Fires, like the one that left her little boy fatherless—and destroyed Fiona's dreams—two years earlier. Could the attacks be linked? Fitzgerald Bay firefighter Hunter Reece vows to keep Fiona and her son safe. He wasn't able to save her husband—his best friend. This time, he won't let Fiona down. Especially since the handsome man she's known all her life has a secret…one that will make him risk everything to save her.

Genres: Romance, Love Inspired, Christian, Love Inspired Suspense, Christian Fiction, Romantic Suspense, Harlequin

288 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Award-winning author Stephanie Newton lives in Alabama with her pastor husband and three children, aged 23 months to 21 years. A Southern girl through and through, she loves sweet tea, SEC football, corn on the cob and air conditioning. She’s written eight books for Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense line.

Reviews

[Janell · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the 4th in the Fitzgerald Bay series, this next book convinced me I wouldn't want to live in Fitzgerald Bay! It would be a little like knowing Jessica Fletcher. :-)

This simple story was actually not too bad if it was to stand on its own. The suspense was pretty good and the romance was low-key - a plus in this kind of book. Its biggest problem probably came from having a similar bad guy to book 3. I mean, how many secret murderers can you have in one small community, especially hiding out as a policeman or fireman? :-) The main mystery was solved but the second underlying mystery is still ongoing, although there was little reference to it in this book.

This line of suspense/romance books from Steeple Hill are very simple, Christian and clean which is a plus. Ok for a quick, simple read but not a lot different from other books in this genre.

[Delitealex · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

Fiona Cobb is still trying to get over her husband's tragic death but incidents keep happening that bring back bad memories of that time. Hunter is Fiona's best friend and also a firefighter has to deal with all the suspicious fires being set around town. I really liked the chemistry between Fiona and Hunter and how easily they were able to deal with their friendship becoming something more. The mystery was a little predictable but I still enjoyed the action. I haven't read any of the other books in the Fitzgerald Bay series but plan to continue with the next book.

[Rachelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

He has been in love with her for a long time but has never told her as she wound up going out then getting married to his best friend. Hunter has been trying to protect Fiona and her son, Sean since her husband was killed in a fire. Mysterious fires have started, again, close to Fee and Sean. Some of the other firemen think Hunter could be behind them. They are keeping watch and have found him to close to Fee after the fires so they think he is the arsonist. Will Fiona ever think of Hunter as more than a friend. She is afraid of losing someone close to her after losing her husband. You will have to read this book to find out what happens.

The writing is excellent. There are clues to be found before the end. Will they wind up together: It is a Harlequin Love Inspired book so it is suitable for young adults.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was definitely action-packed, and though the romance was definitely there, it did not take first place, and I liked that. Though I had my suspicions about what was happening with the fires, the way the clues fit together was a bit chilling.
Since this novel was focused on the fire department of Fitzgerald Bay, rather than the police department, the murder investigation was only hinted at. Yet, I do feel like we were given another piece of the puzzle, and I'm excited to see what happens next!

[Judine Brey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the type of book I want to write. Hunter's abiding love for Fiona and her belated realization of it make for an engaging read. Also, Fiona's son Sean is cute without taking over the entire story.

[Jean · Rating 2 out of 5]

Religious. Some stilted dialogue. The book is in the middle of a series, so there's a continuing storyline from an earlier book that continues through this, but doesn't end in this one, but I don't care enough about the characters to go back or continue with this series.

[Jo|Ruth Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really good. Somehow even with there being so much action I had moments where it wasn't pulling me in AS much as I would have liked. That said, "that" spontaneous romantic scene mid story was worth highlighting. (You'll have to read it to find it) Sweet story , can't wait to read more.

[Patrizia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anche questo mi è piaciuto, sebbene abbia capito chi fosse il colpevole non appena è apparso sulla scena. Mi ha colpito il rapporto fra i due protagonisti e come, alla fine, lascino vincere l'amore.

[D · Rating 5 out of 5]

With this story concerning an arsonist, it is extremely exciting and suspenseful. A gruesome twist at the end of the story could make a happy ending doubtful.

[Lydia Stoner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing!

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for a hero

[Bernie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Widow's Protector review

The Widow's Protector is the fourth fast-paced romantic suspense book in the Fitzgerald Bay series written by author Stephanie Newton.

[Chrissy · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was really good!! Maybe this is my favourite of the series so far... We'll have to see how the other 2 books are :)

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspirational romantic suspense.

[Vera Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fiona's husband died in a terrible fire a couple years ago. Now all of a sudden fires starting again. Seems she and her young son in danger. Hunter best friends to both her husband and Fiona and someone is trying to put the blame for the fires on him.

Fiona knows Hunter couldn't be doing things like this, but is there a way to prove it? The book keeps the reader wondering who could be this cruel and why they would want Hunter to be arrested for this?

Would recommend to others, that like both romance and suspense.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Widow’s Protector by Stephanie Newton
Fitzgerald Bay Series Book 4
Fiona Fitzgerald Cobb has faith and family to help her through the tough times. Through the past two years after her husband Jimmy was killed in an arsonists fire. Helping her to heal while being a mom to Sean and running her store, The Reading Nook. And then there was always her best friend, Hunter Reece. He was always there for her too, when tough times hit Fiona realizes how much she has depended on Hunter.

Hunter has always cared for Fiona. After Jimmy died he promised to always watch over her and protect her. Always telling himself they were only good friends and that’s all they’d ever be, maybe someday he’d believe it. When the arson attacks start up again and they seem to be aimed at Fiona, Hunter is more determined than ever to find the culprit.

The series continues with more excitement, suspense and romance. And suspects. Always plenty of suspects. Olivia’s murder still isn’t solved and with all these side incidents going on they aren’t making much progress towards finding the person. One point that really stood out to me while reading this book is that it’s so easy for us to accuse and hang someone from a little bit of information and yet without knowing the whole story. We do that too often in real life as well. An excellent addition to the series. Book five is The Black Sheep’s Redemption by Lynette Eason.
http://justjudysjumbles.blogspot.com/...#

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

For some reason I did not care for The Widow's Protector as much as I thought I would. While I really enjoyed the first and third book in the Fitzgerald Bay series the second and fourth book were both let downs for me. Since the overall plot is pretty close to the same for all four and the theme of figuring out who killed Olivia is key in all the books I believe the writing is what turned me off. Each book is written by a different author.

Fiona was an interesting character, it was nice to see a female lead know what she wanted and do what she could to make it happen. Despite her husband dying she embraced God and moved on with her life and with raising her son Sean all the while with her best friend Hunter supporting her. I enjoyed how she came to realization of how she felt about Hunter.

Hunter was a pretty generic character but despite that I wanted to smack him at times for upsetting Fiona. Just because he could not get over the guilt of Jimmy, Fiona's deceased husband, dying in a fire he had to continue to push Fiona away and hurt her.

The clues about the mystery with Olivia were a bit more subtle then suddenly shoved in your face. I just did not care for the execution of it at all.

I saw a few typos and bag grammar in The Widow's Protector but the writing style just was not cutting it for me overall.

[John Hanscom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps as good as 3 3/4. Ms. Newton writes very well and is a good storyteller. The book was exciting. She did not, as many do, introduce a character at the end to resolve the issues. She was so descriptive that at times the book was "laugh-out-loud" funny. There was one thing which kept it from getting a higher rating - there were many "supporting actors," any of whom could have been the "bad guy." However, only one was was described so thoroughly it was obvious it had to be the villain. Were I ever to speak to Ms. Newton, which will not happen, I would suggest she develop more than one of the "supporting actors" with equal thoroughness to throw the reader off track. Nevertheless, though I knew who the "bad guy" was, the book was an exciting read to see how the mystery would be resolved positively.

[Cathy Beckett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fourth book of the Fitzgerald series. Newton is a new author to me and I think she just became a must buy author for me. She writes a very compelling story for Fiona, the oldest Fitzgerald daughter. She is a widow of a fire fighter that died in the line of duty.

The arsonist that set the fire that killed her husband has started setting fires again. He has added a new trick to his arson capabilities--bombs. The arsonist is targeting Fiona's friends and family and the arsonist has been framing Hunter Reece. Fiona, her husband and Reece had been best friends all through school and throughout their lives.

Reece is a fire fighter too. He has conflicting emotions about his feelings for Fiona. After all she is his best friend's widow. He has always had a thing for her but always kept his feeling buried because Fiona and Jimmy were his best friends. Friendship was more important.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fitzgerald Bay
Book 4

This was an excellent book! I loved the drama the author put into the Fitzgerald family accusing Fiona's best friend of murder and arson. I loved that the author did not take this down the road of doubt like happens so many times! The relationship Hunter had with his late-best friend and his wife, and now being a father figure to their son was absolutely wonderful! The author also did great on both the romance (LOVED the first kiss!!!) and the suspense. The climax was done so well. I didn't know who the bad guy was until a few pages before it became obvious...

[Kim]

This is a wonderful book in a series. About a sister Fiona who own a bookstore called The Reading Nook in Fitzgerald Bay were her entire family lives. Several ago her husband was killed on the job he was a firefighter and the roof collapsed on some of the firefighter. Hunter was her husband best friend and a firefighter in the company as her husband unit. Hunter was promote and given the job that Fiona husband done and she was happy for him and he help her with Sean her son. They small fires and things were happening around town and Hunter got the blame.

[Nina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t remember reading many books by this author, but if she writes them half as good as this one, I want to find more by her. This book was so good, I was woken up at night at about 2 am and finished the book. If you like stories about firefighters and loads of action, then you will want to read this book. Great suspense, great characters. Unbelievable fire scene, it was like being there. This book is the forth in the series, next up is The Back Sheep’s Redemption. Can’t wait.

[Judine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the type of book I want to write. Hunter's abiding love for Fiona and her belated realization of it make for an engaging read (and Fiona's son Sean is cute without taking over the story).

Disclaimer: I read this because I was impressed with the two previous books I read by Stephanie Newton. Then I discovered I had jumped right into the middle of a series. While this works well as a stand-alone novel, I'd recommend starting at the beginning of the series instead.

[Jill Twigg · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Best in the Fitzgerald Bay series of yet. The hunt for the arsonist who killed Fiona's husband is on! I love the best friend story intertwined. The protectiveness of the "best friend" and Fiona's son by Hunter Reese, a firefighter who feels guilty not being able to protect Jimmy when he died at the hands of an arsonist. Two years later the arsonist strikes again trying to take out Fiona and her son. Why did it take two years for him to strike again? And why is he after Fiona and Sean?

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Widow's Protector

Another excellent book in the Fitzgerald Bay mini-series. Fiona "Fee" Fitzgerald lost her husband two years ago in a warehouse arson. Hunter Reese, best friend of Fee and her husband, has been looking out for Fee And her son, Sean, ever since. Then more fires started being set.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

This 4th installment in the Fitzgerald Bay series was very good. There was an arsonist loose and he is coming after Hunter, Fiona and her little boy Sean. He had already killed her husband Jimmy. Lots of ups and downs throughout the story. Can't wait to read the next adventure in Fitzgerald Bay.

[Mistyblue · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite of all the Fitzgerald Bay books. I fell in love with the characters, and enjoyed the other side of the family that you meet in this book. Spending some time away from the PD and with the firefighters was a nice change of pace.

[Stasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet little story which I liked alot. I had a feeling of who the bad guy was at the beginning and I was glad to discover that my suspicions were confirmed eventually as I read on. Very happy for the two lovebirds at the end!

[Harlequin Books]

Miniseries: Fitzgerald Bay
Category: Inspirational Romance

[Harlequin Books]

Miniseries: Fitzgerald Bay
Category: Inspirational Romance