After three years running the family ranch, sexy thirty-year-old Dillon Sheenan has a one way plane ticket out of Montana. He’s eager to put small town life, with its emphasis on brides, babies, and families, behind him as he’s certainly not interested in being a dad, or even ready to settle down.
Beautiful single mom, Paige Joffe, juggles a lot, between running Main Street Diner and coping with her money-pit of a Victorian on Bramble Lane. She doesn’t have time for anything but taking care of the loves of her life, Addison and Tyler, and working to pay down bills. But one date–and an incredibly hot kiss–with Dillon Sheenan wakes her up and makes her dream again.
Until she finds out Dillon’s already bought his ticket out of town…
Is Dillon about to break the heart of the only woman he’s ever loved?
Born in Visalia, California, I'm a small town girl at heart. I love central California's golden foothills, oak trees, and the miles of farmland. In my mind, there's nothing sweeter in the world than the heady fragrance of orange blossoms on a sultry summer night.
As a little girl I spent hours on my bed, staring out the window, dreaming of far off places, fearless knights, and happy-ever-after endings. In my imagination I was never the geeky bookworm with the thick coke-bottle glasses, but a princess, a magical fairy, a Joan-of-Arc crusader.
My parents fed my imagination by taking our family to Europe for a year when I was thirteen. The year away changed me (I wasn't a geek for once!) and overseas I discovered a huge and wonderful world with different cultures and customs. I loved everything about Europe, but felt especially passionate about Italy and those gorgeous Italian men (no wonder my first very Presents hero was Italian).
I confess, after that incredible year in Europe, the travel bug bit, and bit hard. I spent much of my high school and college years abroad, studying in South Africa, Japan and Ireland. South Africa remains a country of my heart, the people, the land and politics complex and heart-wrenching.
After my years of traveling and studying I had to settle down and earn a living. With my Bachelors degree from UCLA in American Studies, a program that combines American literature and American history, I've worked in sales and marketing, as well as a director of a non-profit foundation. Later I earned my Masters in Writing from the University of San Francisco and taught jr. high and high school English.
I now live in Seattle and Hawaii with my three sons. I never mind a rainy day, either, because that's when I sit at my desk and write stories about far-away places, fascinating people, and most importantly of all, love. I like a story with a happy ending. We all do.
Review written: July 9, 2015 Star Rating: ★★½☆☆ Heat Rating: ☀☀☼☼☼
An Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book was received free via Netgalley for an honest review.
I've thoroughly enjoyed Porter's Taming of the Sheenans series. Each Sheenan brother I've read so far has had that hidden core of pain that I crave in my heroes. Dillon is the exception. Oh, he has his issues, but he lacks the intensity that his brothers have. Dillon's character is also an anomaly in the overarching series. He doesn't want to be a rancher, though he's been running the ranch. He's an entrepreneur and a biomedical engineer. In short, he isn't coming back to Marietta, he's running away from Marietta.
This is, of course, the crux of the issue between him and Paige. Paige ran to Marietta and she likes it there. But she also loves Dillon and Dillon's been crushing on her for years. It seems like it's in the bag. If it weren't for the fact that they are in different places in their lives and want different things.
For me, this book was so out of the norm from the Montana Born mold, I was taken aback by it, and not in a good way. My expectations and hopes were dashed in the end. There was no triumphant return home on Dillon's part. They all move away. That disappointment trumped the story. It colored every aspect of it for me and the loss of a Sheenan in Marietta seemed too much to bear. That sounds melodramatic, but in a huge series where people are constantly coming together, here in Marietta, it sticks out like a sore thumb.
I found myself consistently disappointed with Dillon as a character and his choices. It felt artificial and forced, like Porter was consciously trying to write something "different". Paige felt like she was written as a foil for Dillon. He is all glass and chrome and she is all worn sofas and wet puppies. This story dragged, not because of the pacing, but because I was so disappointed in the events of the story.
I was not a big fan of this book and honestly found it lacking in several areas. My biggest complaint is the man-whore, commitment-phobe, cowardly hero. I didn’t find him likable in the least. His self-talk and one on one conversations with the heroine were so ridiculously redundant that I wanted to throw my Kindle against the wall. It was wash-rinse-repeat throughout the whole book. Dillon, our hero, (but I use that term loosely) wanted the heroine, Paige, but wouldn’t allow himself to go after her because she was the marrying kind...and he wasn’t. She was a widow and mother of two young kids. He didn’t do kids nor date anyone who had them.
Dillon didn’t have good parents. If he fell in love he would be a bad husband and a terrible father just like his dad. In his self-talk if he said it once he said it what seemed to be a hundred times. I sometimes wonder if authors think their readers are dimwitted or just plain ignorant that they feel the need to tell us the same things over and over. It’s insulting.
I really did like Paige. She was quite the woman and mother but I felt so sad for her that the hero would pull her close then push her away. I got whiplash trying to keep up. He treated her poorly and broke her heart many times. I wish she would have found someone else when he moved away. She deserved better than him and the hell he put her through. The story was also very slow moving but I fought my way through.
Three years ago Paige moves to Marietta after loosing her husband and meets Dillon. Although he is an attractive guy he's 8 years younger then Paige. He doesn't want to get married or have kids and to be with Paige he would have to accept that she has two kids from her previous marriage.
Even though Dillon has had a thing for Paige since she moved to town he tries to keep his distance then one night he kisses her and things heat up but Dillon keeps her at a arms length because he doesn't want to hurt her. He goes to Austin back to his old job and they don't see nor talk to each other in months until Paige shows up to surprise him. They have sex then gives her the speech why they won't work.
My issues with this story was they fell in love after a date and a kiss but they spend months apart then after sleeping with her once he tells her all the reasons why it won't work. Then after thinking he shows up and purposes. They didn't have a relationship to even get to that point. They hardly even spent time with each other to begin with. I just didn't really see how things ended up the way they did. I guess I was just hoping for more from this.
Dillon doesn’t commit; he doesn’t do long-term. Paige needs someone who helps her raise the kids, helps her repair the house, helps her sort her life out.
You don’t wanna hear my feministic point of view? Yeah, don’t read on. Ahm… First, I don’t like that they keep on insisting that two kids just NEED a father; that there is nothing else that could fill the void.
I also don’t like that Paige is somewhat too intent on convincing him that Dillon needs to be with her. I mean, gosh, pathetic much? He doesn’t seem to care? Why would I run after him???
And don’t even get me started on Dillon… Dude… I can’t believe they don’t even talk about moving together? I mean, yeah, he’s leaving so what about the fact that they could move together?
Don’t get me wrong, I love this whole insta-love theme and that’s normally really nice but here it was just utterly ridiculous. I also think it was really disappointing that we only get to know Paige’s son but her daughter? Yeah, not really. I now know she likes pink but that’s it basically…
Beautiful story about a restless spirit finally finding it's way home. Two people that are are on different paths in their lives may have crossed the point of no return. A single mother trying keep her head above water with all life has thrown at her is fascinated by the one person who has finally decided to dive in the pool of life and get his feet wet. The problem? Paige has fallen for Dillon who is on the verge of leaving town. Can Paige get Dillon to rethink his decision? Or are they over before the even began? The Taming of the Bachelor is a story about discovering where you belong. A heartwarming read. I received an ARC for an honest review.
**Copy Provided by Netgalley and Tule publishing for an honest review**
This is an older woman younger guy trope, but it just felt far too rushed. Even the ending was so rushed it just didn't sit right with me and the book struggled to keep me gripped.
The way that Dillon was a man whore, but yet insisted on sitting with Paige to TALK about things grated on me insisting that he could never change when we read his internal thoughts about her being different and someone he could see could be the one. who made him change everything.
Paige fell in love after and and a half almost dates. She is a grown mona of 38 with two kids and a dead husband who was hardly there anyway. She did not act as much of the adult as i would have thought.
After the rest of the books for Marietta i am a little sad that this last one was like this and the ending was really rushed and just felt like the author realised that she needed to finish and it all happened in the last chapter/epilogue.
Will not be reading from this author again in a hurry.
If you ever lost faith in love, this story will bring it back.
When Dillon Sheenan moved back to Marietta to take care of his sick father and help on the ranch, he gave up everything. He gave up his life in Austin along with the company that he worked so hard to build. After weeks of negotiations, his company has finally convinced him to come back.
Paige Joffe moved to Marietta after losing her husband during a mountain climbing accident. She works hard as the owner of Main Street Diner and raising two kids on her own. When she lost her husband, it tested her faith. She wasn’t sure what she believed in anymore.
What started out as simple flirting between Paige and Dillon, while talking at Grey’s Saloon, brings them closer together. But Dillon insists he doesn’t want a relationship. He really doesn’t want one with a woman with kids. Kids are not in his plans. Women in Marietta tended to want to settle down. That was not in Dillon’s plans either. Plus, he’s leaving town in a few days. Maybe once he was back in Austin he could finally let the silly crush on Paige go. The night of the bachelor auction, Dillon drove Paige home. He really wanted to stay. But he fought the urge. He didn’t want to hurt her.
When Dillon left for Austin, Paige couldn’t get him out of her mind. How will she be able to change his mind and make him see they can have a future?
This is another one of those wonderfully written stories that you can’t get out of your head after you finish reading it.
Gorgeous but geeky smart Dillon has always had a crush on Paige, but she's eight years older, widowed with two kids, and seems like the marrying kind. He's convinced he won't marry and doesn't want kids, so he's reluctant to pursue the sparks that fly between the two of them.
Paige is a transplanted California girl, staying in Montana so her kids can grow up near their paternal grandparents. Dillon's been home taking care of his family's ranch for the past three years and she can't help but feel the spark and tells herself she could settle for a short term fling with such a sweet and gorgeous guy.
After the two finally start seeing each other and Dillon finds he enjoys being with Paige and her children, he definitely feels his feet getting colder and hightails it for Texas to reaquire his old business. He's convinced himself that he's happy there, with his company and friends and empty house, but that doesn't explain the leap of joy he feels when Paige shows up unexpectedly and their passion is reignited!
Nice romance about two people with seemingly insurmountable personal obstacles to a relationship, who find that love really can conquer all!
Dillon Sheenan did what was right a few years ago and left his emerging company in order to go home to Montana and run his family's ranch while his father was ill. One of his brothers has stepped up to take over the ranch now, so Dillon is excited to be able to go back to Texas, where he intends to salvage what is left of his company. Paige Joffe is a woman he's greatly admired, and he is determined not to get attached to her right before he leaves. Aside from his move, he doesn't want to be a family man. As Dillon and Paige realize the other is just as strongly attracted, and as their feelings grow, they have to re-evaluate the direction of their lives.
This was a very sweet story. I thought both Dillon and Paige were great, and her children added a great deal to the story. The storyline was interesting, and I enjoyed the way everything was resolved. I thought it was a great contemporary romance! Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in return for an honest review.
A very enjoyable book! The romance blossomed completely based on their friendship growing into something more & it was a refreshing, light summer read.
This was well written and interesting but unsatisfying. It ended RIGHT as the main characters figured it all out. There was no real conclusion written out thoughtfully. Just an epilogue that briefly covered the most important points but not in detail that would be enjoyed.
Dillion Sheenan was the youngest of the Sheenan brothers, and he had returned home when his Dad was found to have cancer. He came to run the ranch and be with his Dad so he could stay at home and not spend his last days in a nursing home. Paige Joffe had moved to town to raise her two children after she lost her husband. She had bought a diner and home here to be close to her in laws so her children could know their Grandparents. Dillion was attracted to Paige right from the start but he had a whole list of reasons not to date her, the biggest was he didn't want to be a Dad.didn't think he could be a good one. This is Dillion and Paige's love story and it had me from the first chapter.And it was wonderful how it had alot of the characters I knew and loved from other Marietta books. I can't even describe how good this book is,its a keeper, don't miss it.
This was not what I expected from this book. Before even getting into it, there were some grammatical mistakes and a few inconsistencies that took me out of the story. On top of that, the story wasn't very interesting. You started strong, but then things just sort of never progressed. You had the male lead being all sweet, charming and restrained like a good boy which was great and well developed, but nothing else was.
It's a super quick read, but didn't leave me with feelings of romance or a well thought out plot. It was just kind of meh and uninteresting.
Dillon and Paige. This story was okay, but it didn't grab me. Paige was, for lack of a better word, a brat. It just kept getting worse as the book went along. Dillon didn't want kids, was moving to another state. They liked each other, but he still moved away. She went to see him, he still told her that he didn't want a relationship. Suddenly he turns up on her doorstep? Another thing that I didn't like was the repeated mention of her being older than him. She may have been chronologically older, but she acted like an immature girl.
I've been waiting for Dillon Sheenan's story and was looking forward to reading The Taming of the Bachelor. I liked Paige and Dillon. The more I read, the more I wanted to see how their relationship was going to develop.
Porter delivers to her readers a sweet, enjoyable romance that will keep the Sheenans at the top of your favorite Marietta families.
2 1/2 stars. This book was slow moving, and pretty boring. The dialog between the H&h was dull, and the ending was rushed and not very believable. I may give this author another read if I find one in the library that sounds interesting, however I'm not ready to shell out money on her based on this book - good thing this book was a free ebook.
The author did not have much regard for proper structure. There was no minor conflict, so the beginning was rather rushed. The major conflict, on the other hand, was so large that the HEA felt false.
Update 2025: The Taming of the Sheenans series has recently had a cover change/update. The story within hasn’t changed, and neither has my opinion of this emotional romance. My original review of The Taming of the Bachelor was in 2015; a decade later, I still enjoyed this story and actually love both covers. *shrugs with a smile*
The Taming of the Bachelor is the fourth title in the Taming of the Sheenans series, featuring Paige and Dillon.
I adored Paige and Dillon’s story. Dillon is the youngest son, the one who came home to care for his father during that life-ending illness. The one who has his company torn out from under him as he was forced to make the choice of family or company, of course, family won out. He is also the man who has had a huge crush on the widow Paige for the last three years. Something that he’d never acted on and shouldn’t now, since he was heading out of Marietta at long last to try to save his company, which floundered without him at the helm. He steered clear of single mommas. He knew that he wasn’t cut out for the daddy thing, not now, not ever. With his own father as a prime example of what a dad shouldn’t be, Dillon was convinced that the only path for him was to avoid Paige at all costs, including his heart.
When Paige sat down next to Dillon at Grey’s bar, she knew he was more than slightly buzzed since he was definitely flirting with her. And she, despite being a single mom with a lot of responsibilities on her plate, was so tempted to flirt back. She settled for some enlightening conversation and left with Dillon definitely on her mind.
The Taming of the Bachelor is such a sweet, charming, engaging story. One moment you’ll be in laughter over some of Dillon’s antics or in tears of frustration at Paige’s difficult path of trying so hard not to fall for Dillon. The moment Dillon stands up for Tyler, Paige’s son, you know that he is hooked forever – it will just take him a frustratingly long time to discover that. Which is fine, since we get an intense love story with tons of feels on just about every page. You can’t help it – these are two people who so obviously belong together. But between their own self-doubts and some friends and townsfolk sticking their noses in where it doesn’t belong, you begin to think that happy ever after isn’t going to happen this time. But then you’d be wrong because the heart will always win in the end.
I would recommend this delightful tale of love hard won to anyone at all. If you enjoy a love story that will grab you and not let go til the last page, then this one is for you. Pick it up, sit back, and enjoy.
*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley, and I sincerely thank the author or publishing house for their trust. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*
It's not billed as a Christian romance. There's no church and there is off screen fornication. But she talks about her faith an awful lot. This book is mildly promising on many fronts and delivering on none. The world is Marietta and more specifically the parts of Marietta that bother me. I hated Taylor and Troy. And I wasn't too wild about Dillion. Paige is alright in some places and atrocious in others. My son is incredibly bright what about instead of fostering that awesomeness I just emphasize that asking questions is pointless. She was a doormat in her marriage and a joke as a single mom. She was a good business owner. Actually thinking back she is pitiful. Dillion repeats the same thing over and over again without illustration or dissection. Dad was a crap father so I'll be a crap dad. She deserves all the things. Yet, you aren't even her friend. So all the things it could be friends to lovers, except they aren't friends. A May- December steamy romance, except there's a decided lack of sizzle. A Christian romance except no church, no expounding of faith, and no outward signs of devotion at all. The friends bit could have been done easily with him fixing stuff for her inept self because she doesn't have "a man of the house", he realizes he wants to be that man and so does she, only for his childhood trauma and a prior commitment make him leave, he stops being a coward and bada boom fixed. The pacing of this book is fascinating to me because how can you get it so wrong. There is no emotional connection because they barely get to know each other before he leaves, there is a giant chunk of time they are apart, and then a day then nothing for a bit then bam the grand finale. So in short, I know too late, this one is a stinker that had no idea what it wanted to be when it grew up.
Dillon Sheenan was celebrating that he had gotten his old company back. The company he started with a friend and then said friend had gotten the board to force him out. But, now they were losing their collective asses, and he couldn't say it didn't please him. He turned down their first offer to return, then their second offer, but when they fired his old friend, and offered total control back to him, and much more money. He said, yes. While he was drinking alone and celebrating, someone sat down next to him on the bar stool to his right.
When he looked it was his crush, Paige Joffe. She is thirty-eight to his thirty and a widow with three kids. She would just always stay his crush. Not that he ever had any intentions of having a relationship or marrying for that matter, so he was safe. There was just something about her cool confidence, sense of humor, and sense of community. Paige wasn’t even there for a drink she was there to get more tickets to sell for a bachelor auction. She just had this giving personality, and it wasn’t like she wasn’t busy.
She had two well-mannered kids, Addison and Tyler. Paige had a large old Victorian house she was always working on, and she owned the town's local diner. The night of the auction the two of them had planned to hook up, but reality caught up with Dillon, and he couldn't. To say that Paige was pissed is an understatement. She was more humiliated, embarrassed, and hurt for being rejected. But then the next morning he came over with a new plunger, and he wanted to talk. She basically slammed the door in his face.
See what the magnetic pull is to each other, but the chemistry is high. One just wanted to be carefree and easy for a night and the other just wanted a farewell one-off. But was that truly all they both wanted or were they fighting something? Read and see.
Love Dillon and Paige. Kind of age gap older woman and maybe second chance?
He has loved her from afar for several years but hasn't realized it was really love. He was never getting attached to a woman and get married or have kids. She was eight years older than him with two kids. Her husband died a few years ago. She was his personal piece of sunshine from California. He was on his way to moving back to Austin and retake the company he lost since his brother is now taking care of the family ranch. They finally have a couple dates before he leaves with a pretty heavy make out session but he stops before it goes too far. What happens when she shows up in Austin a couple months the after he left is hopeful for her then heartbreaking she he explains again why they can never be together and tells her he will never come back to Marietta. Then a few months later he shows of at the science fair for her son. Why did he really come back?
I loved the story and also how the author brings the characters and paced from her previous books in the series into this book as well. I felt as if I was there in the midst of all that was happening and the feeling of continuity gave me a satisfaction as I was reading the book. The characters have been developed well and are realistic and their feelings have been described so well. I loved Paige’s kids and the interactions she has with them and also the interactions between Dillon and Paige and Dillon and the kids. I enjoyed the story and loved the pace at which it flowed. The next one in the series is about the fourth Sheenan boy, Cormac.
Ugh. Man whore, commitment phobic hero who kept breaking the heroine's heart over and over. Even at the end, there was no groveling, no show of change in him. He just showed up, told the h that she loved him, proposed, and it was all good. This has colored my opinion of the author and I don't even want to read any of her other work right now. It's not okay for women to accept bad treatment with minimal growth from the love interest. Seems like down the road, it would be rinse, repeat for them.
Short and sweet romance. Sort of a second chance since the bachelor did desire the older woman for many years before they actually get together. The youngest brother gets his significant other along with two children. He didn't have a normal two parent upbringing, so felt as if he were lacking in the husband/father area. Not sure taming is the proper term, but he does need to expand his talents. This is part of a good series of romances. Thanks to Booksprout for providing a copy. My review is voluntary.
She is getting a second chance at love and he's getting his chance at loving the woman he's admired from afar. He's never wanted to date a woman with children and he wasn't going to do it with Paige. But he's drawn in by her and her sweetness and hopes he can resist. A very sweet story and I'm glad they got together in the end. I just missed the whole confession of why he changed his mind. That would have really clinched it for me.
Sweet story - wealthy rancher who lost his business to take care of his sick father is now asked to come back and save the now-failing business is side-tracked by the older woman (7 years) he's had a crush on for years. He's set on leaving and is trying not to hurt her by ditching her, but she's determined to have a fling to get herself out of single mommy mode. Sweet HEA ending and a nice read.
How can a couple deny their attraction for so long? Dillon has vowed that he'll never marry. Paige has let herself believe that she'd never love another man after her husband dies in a climbing accident and leaves her with two young children. By not talking things out, Paige and Dillon made it nearly impossible for them to find happiness. I especially liked the way author Jane Porter finally let you know how deeply they felt for each other late in the story.