Falling for Hope

Four Winds #3

by Anne Conley

Hope is an eccentric librarian who lives with her five cats and loves to spend her time fantasizing about living in a world of shapeshifters, vampires, and fairies. Although the existence of a paranormal world is far from Hope's reality, she can't help but sense there's something different about the mysterious man lurking in her library.

Gabriel is God's Strength, the Messenger, who's been tasked with delivering the Word for millennia. His most recent assignment will be his last, to fall in love and become human. But he can't quite figure out what he's done to displease the Boss. Gabriel's latest assignment might be the hardest, but this gorgeous rubenesque quirk of a woman definitely has him intrigued.

Genres: Paranormal Romance, Romance

ebook

First published March 5, 2014

About the author

Anne has written her entire life and has the boxes of angst-filled journals and poetry to prove it. She’s been writing for public consumption for the past several years. She lives in rural East Texas with her husband and children in her own private oasis, where she prides herself in her complete lack of social skills, choosing instead to live with the people inside her head.

Currently, she has five romance series. Playing with Fire explores the trials and tribulations of a small team of fire fighters in the fictional mountain town of Pamona Gulch. In Pierce Securities, she gives us Ryan, Evan, Miriam, Zack, Quinten, Jordan, Hollerman, and Simon. Her favorite series, Book B!tches, is all about a group of women in Mystic, Texas who get into all sorts of shenanigans. In Stories of Serendipity, she explores real people living real lives in small town Texas in a contemporary romance setting. In The Four Winds, she chronicles God’s four closest archangels, Uriel, Gabriel, Raphael, and Michael, falling in love and becoming human.

Reviews

[Tami czenkus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gabriel and Hope's story shows so much strength and A WHOLE LOT of impatience when it come to wanting what you want but not exactly sure how to go about getting it.
Damien is up to his old tricks and he is getting more and more desperate to achieve what his brothers have been given freely.
Each and every book within the Four Winds Series gets even more intense and I love every minute of it.

[Brenda Franklin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short story is a fast read.

Let’s talk about the bad. A few things that got to me was pace in which your two main characters ‘hooked up’ if you will. One moment Gabe is sending thoughts into Hope’s head, the next she is completely accepting it like it’s a normal occurrence. I understand that she is a librarian who lives with her head in the clouds (and this is a work of fiction), but if some sexy man came up to me and pushed a thought into my mind I would have to reevaluate my sanity. And after a very, very short exchange of words she’s going out on a lunch date with him. No name, no real arguing, and no wondering if he is a stalker (no matter how sexy I ain’t going on a date with some random man I just met.). Granted, after all is said and done with, and Gabe shows up the next day, Hope wises up and wants to learn more about him. So I’ll let those slid. J

Now, on to the good stuff!

I think the best thing about Hope is that I can kind of see myself. All the cats, the life style-to some degree. Is that scary? But that’s as far as the similarities go. Hope is stuck in a rough place after having lost her sister some time ago and in the course of, her relationship isn’t the best with her parents. I mean it’s good, but not what it should be when it comes to talking about her sister. Then Gabe comes in and begins to mend things. He really is a saving Grace and makes her content life become truly happy.

I’m a sucker for a sexy guy and Gabe is right up there. He’s an angel having been sent on a heck of a mission, fall for Hope. And what I love most is as you read Gabe begins to change. He starts to feel things we are used to, but they are not at all familiar to him and you can see that by his reactions. When his muscles start to get sore in the library he actually has to get up and walk around. Totally new to him. J So I definitely love what the author has done with him and the overall concept to this story.

My favorite lines:

“…One: I’m wooing you, and as the wooer, I should meet the wooee’s parents. Two: If your mother sees you being wooed, she might leave you alone about the rest. And three: I think you’re beautiful as you are, and I just might tell your mother that.”

Gabe continues to say:

“I’m making a humorous play on the word woo, which you seem to enjoy so much, but I’m deadly serious about the actual plan of action.”


This is a very interesting story and being that it was so easy and fast I just might have to get to know the other men and their stories with Falling for Heaven and Falling for Grace.

[Desiree · Rating 4 out of 5]

How cynical and jaded has the world made you? Do you still believe in things unseen? Do you have faith? Hope hides from the unforgiving world in her very own fantasy world of books. She loves the escapism that the paranormal world provides her. She isn’t Barbie doll figure that society would like her to be. She’s also past her 20’s, unmarried, and the proverbial cat lady.
Gabriel is God’s messenger angel. That’s right, the archangel Gabriel, that’s the one. God has given him a new mission, one he is unsure of. How is an angel that has existed since the dawn of man, supposed to learn how to fall in love and become human? To no longer be an angel? He has no idea why he has been put on this path. But he is soon to find out.
While working at the library in the children’s section, Hope begins to become suspicious of the extremely handsome man that continues to show up and stare at her all day. What does he want? She soon gets the gist of his intentions with his very forward approach. He informs her that he is there to pursue her, although she isn’t sure why.
As Hope and Gabriel begin to chat and spend time together, things start to seem stranger and stranger to her. Even so, she finds him lovely to be around, and she loves his old fashioned manners and charm. Therefore she allows more time to pass with him.
Gabriel is quite unsure of his emotions and what they mean to him, so how can he tell if he is heading towards success in his last mission from his boss. Then when things start to get complicated and other intrusions become a problem for them both, they start to realize they’re budding romance could be put to an end.
I really enjoyed this blossoming, exploring relationship as it progressed. I like how this story has its uniqueness, which sets it apart from any other paranormal romance of its kind. I wonder what might be in store for the rest of Anne’s Four Winds series.

[Tnt Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Hope is a children’s librarian that lives alone with her 5 cats and her books. She would prefer to spend her time with her books than socialize. Gabriel is on a mission. He’s following a feeling in his gut that leads him to Hope. Gabriel and his brothers have been forced by the Boss to become human. They need to find the women meant for them and fall in love to become human. Gabriel is confused. He doesn’t know what he did to displease the Boss. Hope has read so much paranormal romance that she just knows that Gabriel is something else. She just hasn’t figured out what he is yet. Will Gabriel figure out his feelings? Will Hope figure out what Gabriel is? Or will the devil get in the way of their happiness?

I loved this book. I could really relate to Hope. Sometimes I just want to disappear in my books. This book was fast-paced and easy-to-read. I finished in just a few hours. I loved Gabe. I loved how Hope helped Gabe to learn about his feelings and to enjoy life. My heart broke at Gabe’s uncertainty. I loved the ending and how Gabe and his brothers came together to fight evil. This book is part of a series but can be read as a stand alone, I wasn’t lost at all. I’m definitely planning to read the rest of the series.

4-Bombs
Reviewed by Tracy

[Mary Lou Hoffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Series: Four Winds #3
Category /Genre: Paranormal Romance
Received from: Anne Conley (in exchange for an honest review)
Tour by: My Family's Heart Book Tours
Recommended for: 18+ due to sexual content
Grammar/editing: book received as an unedited ARC / errors excused

This is the third book in the Four Winds series. While each can stand alone, it is my opinion that you will prefer to read them in order.

It is my experience that all of us who like to read consider ourselves to be a little outside of the norm. Therefore it is easy to identify with Hope in this story. Her favorite genre is paranormal romance, and she fantasizes constantly about being swept off her feet by a vampire, a shifter, an angel, or a fairy. Because of this, she is able to guess Gabriel’s secret. Damien is more aggressive in his pursuit of Hope than he has been previously. His jealousy seems to be limitless.

I don’t know how she did it, considering the first one was so well done, but each book in the series has been better than the one before! I am looking forward to the final book in this series (or maybe we’ll be surprised and there will be more than the four originally planned). The final archangel of God’s Four Winds is Michael. As surly as he was in this book, she’ll have her work cut out for her! I will not miss it when it releases!!

[Deborah Hickey · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.

Can a fallen angel and a librarian who lives in a world of fantasy be a true match?
Hope lives in a world of books and cats while Gabriel has been a faithful servant to his boss for his entire existence. For Gabriel there is no doubt, but experiencing human emotions for the first time in many years might just be more than he bargained for.
Hope has escaped the reality of her own world through books and experienced love through her cats, but when Gabriel lands in her reality it may be more than she bargained for.
"Falling for Hope" is a sweet and spicy romance about two people who only truly find themselves when they find each other. Gabriel is kind and curious while Hope has lived an introverted life in the shadow of her dead sister. Their lives crash into each other and nothing will ever be the same.
I love how Conley writes characters with depth. Gabriel and Hope are complex and each interaction reveals a new level of depth. Can true love survive family and jealousy or will Gabriel fail his most important mission?

This review originally posted at www.dowiesplace.blogspot.com

[Kelly Mccurdy · Rating 5 out of 5]

~~I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review~~

This book is full of love, happiness, and the devil. Hope works at the library, and loves what she does. She also loves living without her parents always hounding at her. It is just her and her cats, and the faires that live in her plants.
Gabirel is a mystrious man. He has a distinct smell about him that Hope notices right off. He doesn't know why he is here, or why God is mad. But something about Hope has him intrigued.

Anne has done it again! I couldn't put this book down. From start to finish this book had me wanting more. I cried, and I laughed. I was even scared a little bit. Anne writes with grace. This book is the third in the Four Winds series, no you do not have to read the other two before you read this one. I love that I have found a series about angles. Not only are they angles, but God has decided that they need to fall in love. This is a great book. You will not be disappointed!

[Audi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 3 in the Four Winds series brings us Gabriel and Hope. I really like this series, Ms. Conley brings to life characters with depth and feeling. Gabriel is the messenger archangel and Hope is a nerdy librarian with 5 cats. I liked that Hope wasn't a typical tall gorgeous bombshell heroine, instead she was as imperfect as 90% of the female population in existence. I got this vision of a slightly frumpy, kind hearted, normal average woman who has a beauty all her own. I liked that Ms. Conley made her the perfect woman for Gabriel. This is another wonderfully enjoyable addition to the series giving readers everything they look for in a romance and adding some paranormal to round it off nicely. I look forward to reading more of Ms. Conley's paranormal romances, not limited to the next installment of the Four Winds series.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really wasn't sure what I was going to be reading. Just knew the name of the book and thought it sounded interesting I sometimes go by the title and not the synopsis. I have to say I was surprised by it just cause I thought it would be something different. I really enjoyed this book and found it to be a quick read. I would like to read the other books in this series even though they can be stand alone. Anne Conley I found kept me interested in the book,well written and made me wonder on a couple of things though out the book.

[Wanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good story. I could not put it down. This is the third book in the series but it can stand alone. It intrigued me to read the other stories in the series. I think everyone can relate to Hope. Who doesn't want to believe in a little magic. Gabriel doesn't understand why God would punish him by sending him to earth to fall in love but I think God is rewarding him for doing such a great job because love is the greatest gift!! I will be checking out the other books in the series!

[Fabie Gutierrez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gabriel, The Messenger, not only has a beautiful way of making the taciturn, serious demeanor look attarctive and sexy, but the fact that he can see a quirky voluptuous woman beautiful for more than her figure, speaks of his Guileless intentions. Helping along the road to a woman's happiness, past her insecurities and helping her find her self worth, just helps HIM find his Forever. Beautifully written, great story!!

[Marie Vasquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite, so far, in this series. I loved the connection between Gabriel and Hope. Hope's quirkiness added some real-ness and Gabe's uncertainty worked well in the story.

Damien's deceiving ways are becoming more intrusive and he's working hard and harder to intervene.

Full review to follow.

[Tanya Vought · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this short story and will have my review on the 27th while on the book tour

[Terrie's Just Another Book B*tch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review will post on during Blog tour & Takeover

[Wendy *Sebella Blue* Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review posted at http://ragesexandteddybears.blogspot....

[PelicanFreak · Rating 5 out of 5]

The reader is treated to third person POVs, alternating between Gabriel and Hope. Hope’s voice is laugh-out-loud witty, so I’m hooked in pretty early on.

Gabe is adorable! I watched Uri adjust to human stuff, and Rafe a bit, but Conley manages to mix it up a bit with Gabe and it’s endearing.

Hope is REAL. She is a real girl - she’s not a waif, she’s insecure, she’s a slob. She’s honest with herself and the reader. She is nothing like any other romance novel character I’ve ever ‘met’ and she’s my favorite thing ever. It’s SO NICE to read something that feels so real.
This alone makes the book 5-star worthy to me.

There’s action, there are cats with their own personalities and we get a peek into hell in this one. We also get a look at Michael and I’ve already got a thing for him, so I’m off to indulge in his story.

5 stars.

[Itsy Bitsy Book Bits · Rating 5 out of 5]

The four winds series, book 3. Hope is content with her seemingly simple life. While she misses her sister Melissa who passed away, she still tries to maintain her relationship with her parents even though they push her to get in a serious committed relationship and produce grandchildren. She works at the local library and does reading and craft time with the younger kids once a week. She has 5 cats all named after Greek gods. While working at the library one day she meets the sexiest man she has ever seen. After beginning to wonder why he had been sitting in the quiet children’s section so long she notices a note falling out a book...a note asking her out to dinner. But surely this note couldn’t be for her, she’s curvy, hair and makeup are always blah and basic and she was covered in the cat hair from them laying on her semi dirty clothes pile.
Gabe (Gabriel) spends a lot of spare time at the hospital helping those in need of relaxation and peaceful dreams. After hanging around the library for a couple days he talks Hope into a date, they hit it off and end up spending a lot of time together. After one night of getting to know each other very well they have an argument about their feelings and Gabe leaves while Hope is in the shower. That evening while sitting outside a butterfly lands on Hopes are and starts speaking to her, voicing her fears about her body type and doubts as to why Gabe would want her when he could have other girls who were skinnier and prettier then she is. This butterfly appears more times playing on her insecurities and creating distance between Hope and Gabe. After some very serious attacks against Hope from the butterfly, who is also Damian (the deceiver).
Will Damian get his wish and use Hopes insecurities to his advantage to destroy her relationship with Gabe or will love prevail over evil. Who will win the battle of wills Hope with her insecurities and self-doubt or Gabe with his negative way of wording stuff so that he doesn’t offend or hurt Hopes feelings more. Can Gabe help her move on and begin to heal from the loss of her sister Melissa or will she always mourn her in a negative way where she can only have bad memories vs all the good times they had together.

[Patti K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another excellent entry in this series. I adored Gabe and his dorkiness. Hope's immediate recognition of his 'otherness' was a nice twist on the formula, and it altered the trajectory of the entire plot when there was no point at which Hope wasn't on board. Loved these two dynamic characters, so very different from any of the others in the series. I flew through this book, too, because the pacing tugged me along at a fast clip. With the escalation of Damien (aka, The Devil)'s machinations, the stakes changed. Lots of twists and turns, leaving you at the edge of your seat. Basically, for me, it felt as if that was the name of the real game once we left Uri and Heather, and each book after the first really steps it up a notch from the last one. Book 3 is no different. Definitely a recommended read, and this is further proof that a reader needs to devour the whole series, even if they are someone who didn't jump on board the train eagerly at book 1.

If you are paying attention, you will heed the author's warnings with this series. Do not assume that, because it's about angels, it will be clean fiction. It's not. I'm happy with that, but some people won't be. Should you choose to read this series, and ignore the warning, then you have no right to complain that the story is something other than what you'd hoped it would be. Angels, graphic sex, and some fascinating conceptions of Christianity (and God). I definitely enjoyed it. I will be including this disclaimer in each of my individual reviews when they appear on Amazon and Goodreads.

[Andrew Hess · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third book in the Four Winds Series. I had high expectations for this one after reading the first two books and this did not disappoint. The book starts out in a library setting with Gabe (The Archangel Gabriel) scouting the focal point of his assignment Hope. She was not the typical woman (physically or personality) compared to the other two women Heaven and Grace. This made the story more interesting to me. I loved seeing a dynamic where the female character wasn't some perfect, petite, overly fit looking woman that needed a man to rescue her from something. Hope was the one pursuing Gabe while dealing with the struggles of her own life. I loved the story and how the characters interacted from each other, and even more that Gabe's brothers were brought back to tie in the previous books.
This was a quick read and aside from a few spelling errors, this book was amazing from beginning to end. It can easily be read from a stand alone book or as the continuation from the series.

[Stephanie (Between the Coverz) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I normally do not read books that are paranormal however this book/series captured me.
This is Hope and Gabriel’s story. Hope is a librarian that works in the children’s section. Gabe is one of God’s archangels – the Archangel of Strength. Gabe sits in the corner of the children’s library watching Hope. When he finally won her over to go on a date with him, Hope starts dreaming of him. Hope doesn’t want Gabe to meet her family as they have never gotten over the death of her sister. Like the others the Deceiver has decided to take Hope as his own, after all why should his brothers fall in love and not him?
This book was well written – smooth and flowed well. Even though it was a short read, it didn’t feel that way. Unlike some books that create a romance quickly, this one takes time to grow.