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Once & Twice #2
Twice upon a Time
Transformed into a sharp-tongued dynamo by a near-fatal accident, Mary Kate McKenzie, who has no memory of her life before the event, finds her life strangely intertwined with that of Gypsy Dugan. Original.
376 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1997
19 people are currently reading
103 people want to read
About the author
Emilie Richards
189 books947 followersI'm the author of seventy-something novels, including romance, women's fiction and mystery. When We Were Sisters debuted in June 2016, a stand alone novel about two foster sisters traveling back into their past together. I loved writing it and love the cover my publisher chose.
I'm also excited about my recent series, Goddesses Anonymous, which started with One Mountain Away and was followed by Somewhere Between Luck and Trust. The third book in the series, A River Too Wide, came out in July 2014. The Color of Light debuted in August 2015. Will there be more? We'll see.
I'm also putting up my newly edited romance backlist and love re-reading and updating them a bit.
Last year my husband and I moved from Virginia, to Osprey, Florida, the state where both of us were raised, met, and married. In the summer we live in Chautauqua, New York. I'm a quilter, knitter, kayaker, and the mother of four children, whom I regard as my greatest creative endeavors. And now there are four wonderful grandchildren to spoil.
Visit me at my web site, emilierichards.com, and my blog, www.emilierichards.com/blog. You can also find me at Twitter and on my Facebook reader page.
I'm also excited about my recent series, Goddesses Anonymous, which started with One Mountain Away and was followed by Somewhere Between Luck and Trust. The third book in the series, A River Too Wide, came out in July 2014. The Color of Light debuted in August 2015. Will there be more? We'll see.
I'm also putting up my newly edited romance backlist and love re-reading and updating them a bit.
Last year my husband and I moved from Virginia, to Osprey, Florida, the state where both of us were raised, met, and married. In the summer we live in Chautauqua, New York. I'm a quilter, knitter, kayaker, and the mother of four children, whom I regard as my greatest creative endeavors. And now there are four wonderful grandchildren to spoil.
Visit me at my web site, emilierichards.com, and my blog, www.emilierichards.com/blog. You can also find me at Twitter and on my Facebook reader page.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 31, 2010
From the back cover:
A brave new world?
Mary Kate McKenzie loves her work with wayward teens, but her youthful idealism isn't very effective--until a hard knock on the head turns the naive, rosy-viewed woman into a clear-eyed, no-nonsense dynamo whose new attitude makes everyone sit up and take notice. The problem is, Mary Kate has absolutely no memory of her former self. She only knows that she's pregnant--and has no memory of how she got that way!
When sexy journalist Charles Casey arrives to do an article on the center and on Mary Kate, his questions finally begin to unlock some memories--but they seem to be of someone else's life, not her own. And since Casey claims never to have met her before, why does his touch feel so familiar, so right? As the new Mary Kate continues to unfold, she finds herself faced with a choice: should she move toward the excitingly different life her new self can grab, or could she be happy in her former quiet world, with the troubled kids she's learned to love--and Casey by her side?
And my review:
First off, I should state that while TWICE UPON A TIME, is a sequel to ONCE MORE WITH FEELING, both books work just fine as stand-alones. However, if you're planning on reading both books, read ONCE MORE WITH FEELING first, as TWICE does give away much of the plot.
I really enjoyed ONCE MORE WITH FEELING, and TWICE UPON A TIME didn't let me down in the least. While many of the themes in this book are not new, (amnesia, waking up in another person's body), the way the author ties them together is. She has an enjoyable writing style that has an easy flow to it (with no head-hopping!), with a good plot and wonderful characters. While there's no intrigue to this book, and the mystery surrounding the heroine is pretty thin, it doesn't detract from the book at all. The story is about people, not about mile-a-minute action. It's a great human-interest story.
Emilie Richards did a good job of putting burning questions in my mind that kept me turning the pages. I was constantly wondering who Mary Kate really was. Was she another person trapped in someone else's body? Was she Gypsy, the woman the hero had loved and lost? Or was she Mary Kate with a few scrambled brain pathways? Or perhaps a hybrid of the two women? Would she regain her memory, and if she did, whose memory would it be?
I also really liked that the romance wasn't rushed in this book. Too many authors have their characters kissing and/or falling into bed mere minutes after the first hellos. That didn't happen here--thank goodness. When the hero and heroine finally kissed, I wanted it happen almost as badly as they did. The mark of a good author is one who can engage the reader's emotions, and Richards certainly managed to do that here.
The characters grew and developed over the course of the book. I loved watching Mary Kate go from a confused woman ready to run away to a strong woman who grew to love her life. I also loved watching Casey go from being a commit-o-phobic to being a family man.
You can always count on Emilie Richards for an enjoyable read.
A brave new world?
Mary Kate McKenzie loves her work with wayward teens, but her youthful idealism isn't very effective--until a hard knock on the head turns the naive, rosy-viewed woman into a clear-eyed, no-nonsense dynamo whose new attitude makes everyone sit up and take notice. The problem is, Mary Kate has absolutely no memory of her former self. She only knows that she's pregnant--and has no memory of how she got that way!
When sexy journalist Charles Casey arrives to do an article on the center and on Mary Kate, his questions finally begin to unlock some memories--but they seem to be of someone else's life, not her own. And since Casey claims never to have met her before, why does his touch feel so familiar, so right? As the new Mary Kate continues to unfold, she finds herself faced with a choice: should she move toward the excitingly different life her new self can grab, or could she be happy in her former quiet world, with the troubled kids she's learned to love--and Casey by her side?
And my review:
First off, I should state that while TWICE UPON A TIME, is a sequel to ONCE MORE WITH FEELING, both books work just fine as stand-alones. However, if you're planning on reading both books, read ONCE MORE WITH FEELING first, as TWICE does give away much of the plot.
I really enjoyed ONCE MORE WITH FEELING, and TWICE UPON A TIME didn't let me down in the least. While many of the themes in this book are not new, (amnesia, waking up in another person's body), the way the author ties them together is. She has an enjoyable writing style that has an easy flow to it (with no head-hopping!), with a good plot and wonderful characters. While there's no intrigue to this book, and the mystery surrounding the heroine is pretty thin, it doesn't detract from the book at all. The story is about people, not about mile-a-minute action. It's a great human-interest story.
Emilie Richards did a good job of putting burning questions in my mind that kept me turning the pages. I was constantly wondering who Mary Kate really was. Was she another person trapped in someone else's body? Was she Gypsy, the woman the hero had loved and lost? Or was she Mary Kate with a few scrambled brain pathways? Or perhaps a hybrid of the two women? Would she regain her memory, and if she did, whose memory would it be?
I also really liked that the romance wasn't rushed in this book. Too many authors have their characters kissing and/or falling into bed mere minutes after the first hellos. That didn't happen here--thank goodness. When the hero and heroine finally kissed, I wanted it happen almost as badly as they did. The mark of a good author is one who can engage the reader's emotions, and Richards certainly managed to do that here.
The characters grew and developed over the course of the book. I loved watching Mary Kate go from a confused woman ready to run away to a strong woman who grew to love her life. I also loved watching Casey go from being a commit-o-phobic to being a family man.
You can always count on Emilie Richards for an enjoyable read.
September 29, 2008
This book is sort of a sequel to Once More With Feeling. A young idealistic nun wannabe is hit on the head with a shovel by a juvenile delinquint with whom she was working. She recovers physically, but mentally she has no memory of who she was, what she did, what she liked, who she liked etc. The nuns take her home to the center where she had lived before the attack and nurse her back to health. She hates everything about the life--the prayers, the garden, the teens. The temporary editor of the local paper comes in to do a story and the attraction is there. He is the love interest of the TV reporter from Once More with Feeling. He has pulled away from life in the fast lane to try to discover what he really wants out of life. As the two of them work out their lives, complications arise. The most obvious is that she is pregnant, and has no idea who the father is. I enjoyed the book seeing her resolve the "who am I" question.
January 9, 2019
Avon publication
376 pages
Mary Kate Mc Kenzie was accidently knocked hard on the head with a shovel by one of her teens. She lost some of her memory, even her previous naive attitude ~ into a new self. She is pregnant but haven't any clue how she got that way!
She felt trapped in her own body. Frighten of the sudden flashbacks ~ claustrophobia they said. she slowly figure out how she ended up in Sisters of Redemption, where nuns provide safe shelter for juvenile teenagers. Being more confused of her own decision becoming a nun but never feels like one.
Meeting a journalist, Charles Casey who came around with questions for an article about the place..... and especially about her incident while doing charity work.
My favorite part reading this, is when she always feels that she tells her own story as a third person. Angered, confused and she started to feels her previous life had nothing to do with her.
A perfect twist...
About two young couple supporting each other, while trembling with the thoughts of losing another with an expecting cause of death...and about a man, who misses someone he used to loved and found her similarity in Mary Kate.
Knewing all the flashback memories aren't Mary Kates' but someone else. She lives another souls in someone else body!
376 pages
Mary Kate Mc Kenzie was accidently knocked hard on the head with a shovel by one of her teens. She lost some of her memory, even her previous naive attitude ~ into a new self. She is pregnant but haven't any clue how she got that way!
She felt trapped in her own body. Frighten of the sudden flashbacks ~ claustrophobia they said. she slowly figure out how she ended up in Sisters of Redemption, where nuns provide safe shelter for juvenile teenagers. Being more confused of her own decision becoming a nun but never feels like one.
Meeting a journalist, Charles Casey who came around with questions for an article about the place..... and especially about her incident while doing charity work.
My favorite part reading this, is when she always feels that she tells her own story as a third person. Angered, confused and she started to feels her previous life had nothing to do with her.
A perfect twist...
About two young couple supporting each other, while trembling with the thoughts of losing another with an expecting cause of death...and about a man, who misses someone he used to loved and found her similarity in Mary Kate.
Knewing all the flashback memories aren't Mary Kates' but someone else. She lives another souls in someone else body!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 3, 2018
Re-read this book after remembering how I enjoyed this and the companion (Once Again with Feeling).
March 13, 2019
This was really different, but extremely riviting. Truly enjoyed it. Would definitely recommend it.
April 25, 2021
It was a lot different from the typical romances, with its concepts of soul transference. The h realizes that in the last chapter only as she kept thinking she was suffering from amnesia and that she was pregnant with a stranger's baby. Considering everyone thought she was about to become a nun, it was definitely a surprise when she 'wakes' up from the coma. Its the sequel of the previous book. Both H and h are really interesting characters, their motivations, the way they come together is really very well written. Despite the unlikely soul transference the rest of the book felt real and something that is relatable.
March 31, 2010
Another from the 25-cent bin at the local used book store. Hope this one is better than the last one!
February 17, 2014
Fun, light hearted, a good rainy day book.
July 7, 2014
Good. Really like this author.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews