Risky Return

Harrington Airfield #2

by Nicole Helm

Blackmail never felt so right.

Celia Grant has spent the last ten years keeping her past at bay, building her Hollywood reputation as America's Sweetheart. When ex Ryan Harrington threatens to reveal her darkest secrets, she has no choice but to return to Demo, Kansas, and the people she left behind. In exchange for Ryan's silence, she will appear in a reality television show that promises to save his family's legacy.

Ryan Harrington knows an opportunity when he sees one, and using Celia to save his family is one he can’t ignore. But he didn’t count on the pull they still have on each other.

Celia reminds herself that she and Ryan were never destined to have a happily ever after ending like in the movies she stars in. But even as the ghosts of her past refuse to be suppressed any longer, she finds herself tempted by the hopes of a love she never thought she could have.
Between secrets, fame, and love, Celia’s made the riskiest return of all.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance

146 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 6, 2014

About the author

Nicole Helm is the national bestselling author of fast-paced romantic suspense for Harlequin Intrigue and down-to-earth contemporary romance. Her Intrigues routinely land on the Publishers Weekly Bestseller list, and she’s received starred PW reviews for her contemporary romances. She’s written over 75 books, known for their emotional depth and happily ever afters.

Nicole also writes with Megan Crane/Caitlin Crews as Hazel Beck writing the Witchlore series, which began with SMALL TOWN, BIG MAGIC in 2022.

In her spare time, Nicole loves losing herself in genealogy research, watching Cardinals baseball, and hiking with her family. She lives in Missouri with her husband and two sons.

You can contact her via email: Nicole@nicolehelm.com
You can sign up for Nicole’s monthly newsletter at http://eepurl.com/V973n

Reviews

[Tory Michaels · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the concept behind this book - guy blackmailing his wife into coming back to help him out so he can get a reality show off the ground. I mean...a reality show?! You can't get much more "the current world" than a reality show.

I really enjoyed Celia. She'd had a lousy childhood and done a lot to overcome her bad beginnings. She was wrong to leave Ryan the way she did, and I can't blame Ryan for being bitter and using their marriage to blackmail her into coming home to help him (no one in Hollywood knew she was married and she had the "wholesome and fresh" vibe going for her). I also admire her for having the guts to do everything she did, leave her home and not wallow in self-pity for her poor start (her dad was a horrible person and her mother...wow. Her mother was/is a piece of work).
Ryan - Smart, enterprising, and cute. He's a lawyer who's come home to keep the family business (an airfield) running now that his grandfather has retired and the business is on the skids. A genuinely nice guy with major hurt over having been abandoned the way Celia did right after they got married.

These two played nicely off each other and really learned how to love again over the course of the book. I'm glad they started talking gradually, not all right at the end or all right at the beginning. It felt really real to me, the relationship as it grew back into love.

There were some great secondary characters in the book and I definitely want to find other books in this series. Definitely a 4-star book and a great new author (to me) in Nicole Helm. Thank you, Entangled, Ms. Helm, and NetGalley for providing me with this book to review.

Book provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Nicola · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this time last year, having put Seven Night Stand down, I do believe my words were ”I hope that Ryan gets his own book”

Risky Return is that book.

Once again, Nicole Helm surprised me with the personalities of our couple. I wasn’t expecting Ryan to be as kind and warm-hearted as he was and neither was I expecting Celia to come across as cold-hearted as she initially did. She is the Oscar winning actress who, ten years previously, discovered her 3 day marriage was null & void and left her life and her ‘husband’ behind to pursue her Hollywood dream. Ryan was that man and when he discovers they appear to be still married chooses to use it to his advantage…

It didn’t take long to love them and although the lines have become blurred for Celia between the real her and her public persona, Ryan see’s through it all. You can’t not want them to find their way back to one another.

If, like me, you are a sucker for a good escape-from-reality romance, it doesn’t disappoint and I definitely recommend.

I received this as an ARC courtesy of Entangled Publishing for an honest and unbiased opinion.

[Jena · Rating 3 out of 5]

The center of the United States and LA clash in this adorable romance. Risky Return has a whole lot of fighting, a whole lot is a secrets, and a whole lot of adorable moments.

Celia and Ryan are all headstrong to start, both trying to escape a past that hurt them in one form or another. It was fun to watch them rekindle their spark and see that maybe not all good things end. I liked seeing that regardless of time a relationship can sometimes still survive. Plus, I really liked Ryan and his hunky self!

That being said, I unfortunately felt it was a lot of Ryan and Celia yelling at each other over and over about the same things. It doesn't mean it was a bad story, I just felt I was doing a lot of flipping to get to the juicer parts of the story. Also, even though I was happy with how they ended up, I think I personally was hoping for a different end.

Overall it was a cute fairy tale story with all the horrors of being famous. Risky Return is a story about being able to bend for the people who mean the most to you but also not letting yourself be stepped on. All around... cute story.

Find this review at Shortie Says

[Rosemary K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicole Helm has written a powerful and emotional novel. Celia Grant (formerly CeeCee McAvoy) is Hollywood's golden girl, but she has terrible secrets in her past. She was abused by her father and her mother protected him. She married Ryan Harrington, her first love, and then ran away to achieve her acting dream without telling him. Now she is blackmailed into coming back and helping her husband with a reality TV show. She learns that through a technicality they are still married. What happens next? Child abuse and how it changes the lives of the victim is such a difficult topic, but Nicole Helm did a terrific job. She captured the emotions of her characters perfectly. We see behind their public persona and can feel their pain. The romance between Celia and Ryan was very romantic and sensual. I wanted them to overcome all the obstacles and find happiness. This is a story of love, forgiveness and healing.

[Evelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book ended up being so much deeper than the usual Indulgence read. Ceecee had a horrible upbringing. Not only did she had 1 abusive parent, she also had another who let it happen which to me is just as bad if not worse. Growing up the only person she had in her corner was Ryan. They married young, and then she ran off to become a new person. 10 years have passed, and once Ryan finds out they're still married he sees it as an opportunity to get Ceecee (or Celia as she's now known) back to help get their new reality show off the ground and maybe a little payback and answers. He blackmails her by threatening to tell the world her secret. When she returns, things start off a little cold, but things quickly heat up plot wise. Like I said, it deals with heavier stuff than the usual Indulgence regarding her childhood, but it made it a really good read! I haven't read the first book, but I've already picked it up from Amazon.

[Gloria Herrera for As You Wish Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

You can really pity Celia for not having the strength to stand up to her mother. After all the abuse she took from her father growing up, any mother would have protected her child. Not Cathy. She took the easy way out. Celia had to defend herself and the only person she could count on was Ryan and his grandad Millard.

Now with Cathy blackmailing her own daughter, Celia is a nervous wreck. Ryan also wants on last favor before agreeing to annul their marriage and all is caving in.

I enjoyed this story's plotline. It is after all a story of succeeding and following your dreams. It also touches on priorities and making certain you follow your heart in seeking happiness.

One concern was the length of the story. I must admit I did skip around a bit when the story was re-telling what we already knew... sorry! All in all it is a good book to read.

[Bookbeauty · Rating 3 out of 5]

*** I have received an ARC via NetGalley ***

It didn't sit right with me that the story started with the hero Ryan blackmailing our heroine Celia, America's Sweetheart of the moment, but after a while, I was intrigued: there was a nice mix of family drama, ex-lovers who were still attracted to each other after years apart (despite the rocky past & present) and enough romance to keep me turning the pages.

I wished that Celia had shown some backbone when her mother blackmailed her too; I mean the people close to her (Ryan, her mother) kept dumping their stuff on her and she just took it (okay, like a champ, but still!).

But eventually, the characters -especially Ryan- grew on me and it was an enjoyable story.

[She Hearts Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Celia left everything behind to become America's Sweetheart including Ryan. They share a secret that he threatens to expose if she doesn't help him by using her celebrity to get his family's reality show off the ground. With her public persona all she has to hold onto, she comes agrees to come home and faces her past - not only with Ryan, but secrets that her own mother uses against her.

I loved that Ryan challenges Celia to let down her mask and be her real self. I admired the strength of Celia who went through something so horrible and came out the other side still able to love. I adored the sweetness of this couple.

I give Risky Return 4 hearts!

[Irene · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 to 4 stars

Risky Return was a really enjoyable read.

I really enjoy reading second chance love stories and Risky Return didn't disappoint.
Risky Return was a story about forgiveness and finding a way to respect and trust the feelings and wants of your other half.
Learning to compromising can bring so much happiness into your life as both Celia/CeeCee and Ryan both learn.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Entangled Indulgence for the advance copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

[Melody · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wish I was able to connect with any character in this. I felt nothing for them and couldn't get into any part of this story. Unfortunately, I was unable to finish very shortly after starting. I am disappointed I couldn't get into it. I loved the cover and the idea but to me the characters had no pull. And I was really appalled by Celia from the very start.

ARC provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

[Zarith dol · Rating 2 out of 5]

ARC given by netgalley for an honest review. 2.5 stars

I so want to like this story, but the writing style and characters just does not work for me. I like the characters as individual but, the chemistry btw the hero and heroine seems forced. Something is missing but don't know what is it. The plot also weak, not enough backbone to hold the story together. Good effort by the writer but just not goo enough for my taste. Hope can do better next time.

[Lynda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Usually I like the light fluffies from entangled. That not so much. I skimmed a lot and Celia just didn't sit well with me. It all seemed forced to me.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 1/2 stars