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This Time For Keeps

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Love was the death of her.

Tracy Hill has lived eight lives-- all of them disastrous-- beginning in 1320 when her own knight in shining armor charged over her with his horse in the dark. Since then, it has been one freak accident after another. Now after the indignity of dying in a bowling ball accident while on a date with a cute new lawyer in her firm, Tracy Hill has had enough.

However, Heaven's "Resettlement Committee" has other plans. For her ninth life, she is promised health, wealth, and absolutely no chance at love, this time around. But they leave out one tiny, little she's being sent to live in Montana, on a cattle ranch in 1875. At least they got the No More Love part right. Seth Murdoch is dangerously attractive-- if you like the rugged cowboy type. Thankfully, Tracy doesn't.

It's soon clear, though, that this thoroughly modern woman and this nineteenth-century cowboy share more than growing desire, spitfire backtalk, and nights of sleepless longing. They share a star-crossed eternity. And maybe-- just maybe-- this time around, love... and Tracy, are here to stay.

313 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 15, 1998

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119 people want to read

About the author

Kathleen Kane

20 books11 followers
Maureen Child was born 28 September 1951 in California, USA. She and her husband enjoy traveling, usually taking road trips with her parents. When she’s at home, she is kept busy with her two grown children and a somewhat confused golden retriever named Abbey. She is busy writing her next book.

Under her own name, Maureen Child writes short contemporary novels—books she loves to write because of their fast pace and condensed story telling, she is also writing funny, contemporary paranormal romances. Over the years, she’s written under lots of different names and she prefers the term ‘pseudonym’ to ‘alias’. As Ann Carberry, she wrote western historical romances. As Kathleen Kane, she wrote not only Americana romances, but western paranormal romances as well. As Sarah Hart, she wrote one really spectacular western paranormal that is still one of her favorites. And once, Ann Carberry even wrote a Victorian historical which she absolutely loved doing. She writes paranormal romance novels under the pesudonym of Regan Hastings. Now, a USA Today best selling author of more than ninety romance novels and novellas, she is a five time nominee for the prestigious Rita award from Romance Writers of America. One of her novels, A Pocketful Of Paradise, was made into a CBS-TV movie called The Soul Collector, starring Melissa Gilbert, Bruce Greenwood and Ossie Davis.

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5 stars
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44 (33%)
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26 (20%)
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
Profile Image for Paranormal Romance.
1,317 reviews47 followers
July 22, 2025
Considering how her other 8 lives have ended in a terrible tragedy, it's understandable that the heroine does not want to reincarnated again. So, she throws a temper tantrum in front of the reassignment board demanding she not be put into another body unless her terms are met. One, she wants to remember her previous lives. Two, she wants to be rich and healthy. Three, she does not want to fall in love. The board members hum and haw over her stern demands but soon relent and accept. They send her back, into the body of a woman in the 1800's. This woman whose body the heroine now inhabits was apparently a sickly creature with no backbone or true personality for her own. Those around her look stunned she is even alive. But the heroine has a lot more surprises in store for those who knew this woman.

The heroine is not the shrinking violet and she certainly is not the type to mince words. She refuses to relent to their treating her as an invalid and the first day in this new body is spent confusing those around her. Apparently this woman never ate or really spoke to anyone besides her fathers widow or her brother. The hero, this farm boss in charge of the heroine's vast country estate isn't the type of man the heroine usually looks to as attractive but she has to admit this rugged man is quite the specimen. Too bad he's obnoxious and stubborn and arrogant. He fights with her constantly, seeming to think he knows her better than she knows herself. But the heroine secretly enjoys their arguments and as her fiancé is the sort of sneaky little man who has alternative motives, the hero is looking even better. But the heroine is stubborn herself and arrogant. She demands that the hero accompany her on a tour of her land to understand the stability and worth of the cattle she owns. It's on this trip that the hero and heroine grow closer.

The hero refuses to succumb to the temptation of this woman, knowing he can not offer her marriage. He's confused by her complete personality transformation and even more disturbed by the sexual feelings he's now developed for her. She is brash and stubborn and she is magnificent. And he sees her in his dreams. Looking deep into his eyes, she realizes the hero is the man she's loved and lost 8 times now. But she is determined that this time, this man will be different and that they will finally have their happily ever after.

Well, this was great. I loved so much about it and what I loved outweighed what I didn't by a large margin. I loved the time travel/ reincarnation theme. I loved the historical old west cattle ranch setting. I loved the hero who was a rugged cowboy with loyalty to his employer - both the sickly fragile one and this new vibrant creature. He could argue with the heroine easily and knew how to push her buttons but for sure, she usually got the best of him. He was confused by her manner of speech and her unladylike behavior but horribly turned on by her lust for life and her bold intentions towards him. What I didn't like was the heroine. I found her to be far too stupid and arrogant for her one good. She stormed into her new life determined to ignore every piece of advise given to her and to completely disregard any attempt to 'fit in'. She thought she knew it all and nobody could tell her anything she didn't already know herself. She was frustrating and very unlikeable as a person for the most of the book and now that I think of it, I never really got to the point where I forgave her. The problem is, overall the book was lovely. However, when you really really dislike a major character it's hard to justify a 5 star rating. 4 Stars is sufficient and I believe fair. This author is quite talented and I haven't encountered a book yet that I didn't like so that's a major plus. If the heroine was more humble and patient I would have loved this book a whole lot better but as it stands it was still a very nice story.
28 reviews
September 2, 2022
I loved it. The woman had enough sass for me to enjoy. It was a good lost lovers and reuniting kind of story. I don't like to discuss it only with people who've read it. But my summary, re-encarnation goes awry too many times but the fates get it right in the end. What happens in the middle is funny, serious, gets a little suspicious and a great happy ending. I LOVED IT!
55 reviews
August 6, 2021
Laughter a plenty

This a thoroughly entertaining love story written by a talented author. The main character is refreshingly confident and funny while she meets the challenges of living in the past.
2 reviews
September 1, 2021
Woman finally Comes of Age in her 8th Life!

I enjoyed watching “Nora” learn how to live and love. The last portion of the book was most enjoyable as she finally understood the meaning of her serial lives.

Perfect book to unwind from Pandemic stress!

Explicit consensual love scenes.
Profile Image for Terri.
2,359 reviews45 followers
May 25, 2020
Enjoy these books by Kathleen Kane, romance, set in the West in the late 1800's, with a touch of magic.
Profile Image for Lauren.
35 reviews1 follower
July 18, 2014
Nora gets reincarnated after her accidental death. She meets Seth and discovers he was responsible for all her previous deaths, and all the love as well.

Quirky storyline, satisfied.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews

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