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Determined
Divorced, fifty-seven-year-old real estate developer Hollister Grant (Holly) and her older sister Lee, an interior designer, and younger sister Kay, an artist, are determined to use the trust fund their parents set up for them to build a tiny home project for people who've recently been homeless, honoring an aunt who found herself in that situation.
Barrett Armstrong, president of a nearby homeowner association doesn't want "those people" living across from his fifty + neighborhood, and he will do anything to prevent the land's development. Anything. Even murder.
Dan Morgan, Holly's long-time friend and lawyer, wants to continue to work with Holly on this project which he believes in as he serves on the board of the Homeless Coalition, but he realizes his feelings for the woman are moving past friendship. Dan fears because of her past experiences as an abused spouse she isn't ready for a change in their relationship. And she might not ever be. Should he remain silent to maintain their friendship or risk everything for the chance at real love? When danger strikes, will he be able to keep her safe?
Barrett Armstrong, president of a nearby homeowner association doesn't want "those people" living across from his fifty + neighborhood, and he will do anything to prevent the land's development. Anything. Even murder.
Dan Morgan, Holly's long-time friend and lawyer, wants to continue to work with Holly on this project which he believes in as he serves on the board of the Homeless Coalition, but he realizes his feelings for the woman are moving past friendship. Dan fears because of her past experiences as an abused spouse she isn't ready for a change in their relationship. And she might not ever be. Should he remain silent to maintain their friendship or risk everything for the chance at real love? When danger strikes, will he be able to keep her safe?
243 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 18, 2024
2 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 25, 2024
Holly and her sisters are determined to get their housing for the homeless project off the ground, but someone vows to stop it at all costs. Can she succeed without harm coming to her? She leans on her friend Dan for support but is she ready to take their relationship to the next level? Determined is a poignant romantic suspense with themes relevant today, later in life characters, and a second chance romance vibes.
I can always count on Marsha R. West to write a deeply emotional story dealing with situations that are prevalent today. She’s not afraid to write about serious topics such as the homeless, abuse, family, and politics. I applaud Holly’s mission to build houses for the homeless.
The characters are what make Determined so captivating. There’s Holly, a real estate developer. She wants to help those less fortunate. She’s also a victim of domestic abuse (from her ex-husband). She’s unsure about relationships but trusts Dan. Her character development over the course of the novel touched me deeply.
Then there’s Dan, a friend to Holly who realizes he’s in love with her. He’s conflicted because he doesn’t know if Holly is ready to trust herself in a relationship. He’s also a lawyer and wants to help Holly with her houses for the homeless project. He’s a hero worthy of Holly. His character development is emotional too. I connected with him right away.
The plot moves at an excellent pace with plenty of suspense to keep a reader turning the pages. There are a few plot twists I didn’t see coming. All in all, an exceptional book.
My Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by: Nancy
This review first appeared: https://www.nnlightsbookheaven.com/po...
I can always count on Marsha R. West to write a deeply emotional story dealing with situations that are prevalent today. She’s not afraid to write about serious topics such as the homeless, abuse, family, and politics. I applaud Holly’s mission to build houses for the homeless.
The characters are what make Determined so captivating. There’s Holly, a real estate developer. She wants to help those less fortunate. She’s also a victim of domestic abuse (from her ex-husband). She’s unsure about relationships but trusts Dan. Her character development over the course of the novel touched me deeply.
Then there’s Dan, a friend to Holly who realizes he’s in love with her. He’s conflicted because he doesn’t know if Holly is ready to trust herself in a relationship. He’s also a lawyer and wants to help Holly with her houses for the homeless project. He’s a hero worthy of Holly. His character development is emotional too. I connected with him right away.
The plot moves at an excellent pace with plenty of suspense to keep a reader turning the pages. There are a few plot twists I didn’t see coming. All in all, an exceptional book.
My Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by: Nancy
This review first appeared: https://www.nnlightsbookheaven.com/po...
October 29, 2024
DETERMINED is what Molly and her sisters, Lee and Kay were, when building tiny homes for the homeless to improve the quality of the people's lives. The project for the homeless was to honor the memory of the sister's parents.
Molly needed to get the approval of The Neighborhood Association. Not everyone wanted having the homeless living across the street from their neighborhood including Barret Anderson, the president of the association and his cohort, Maxine Krause. Dan Morgan, Molly's lawyer and eventual love interest in the story helps the project come to fruition.
DETERMINED by Marsha R. West is a romantic suspense thriller involving murder attempts, sabotage, family, and love that wins out in the end. Check out DETERMINED and this author's other romantic suspense novels.
Molly needed to get the approval of The Neighborhood Association. Not everyone wanted having the homeless living across the street from their neighborhood including Barret Anderson, the president of the association and his cohort, Maxine Krause. Dan Morgan, Molly's lawyer and eventual love interest in the story helps the project come to fruition.
DETERMINED by Marsha R. West is a romantic suspense thriller involving murder attempts, sabotage, family, and love that wins out in the end. Check out DETERMINED and this author's other romantic suspense novels.
November 11, 2024
I always enjoy Ms. West's second-chance stories. I usually read them because I like figuring out the who-dun-it part of her romantic suspense novels. However, Determined, one of the books in the Second Chance series, was different. I enjoyed the sweet romance within the pages. The emotional aspect of the love story drew me in because West writes engaging characters who the reader really cares about. That happened to me as I followed the history of Holly and her lawyer friend, Dan. What did their future look like? As I continued reading, I appreciated how well West developed the "bad guy." I did not like him at all! I recommend picking up Determined if you love romance and suspense in your reading choices.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews