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Holt #3
The Morning Side of Dawn
DESTINY CAN BE DANGEROUS
A brief, fated moment at a wedding, and Cassie Cameron was hooked. She'd been unable to forget Dar Cordell, though months had passed. Who could explain it? She was surrounded by handsome, glamorous men every day, and yet somehow Dar had touched her soul...in a once-in-a-lifetime way.
MEANWHILE, SOMEONE WAS WATCHING
Someone else had his eye on Cassie, and time was running out when fate cruelly chose to reunite her with Dar. Suddenly the obstacles they faced were greater than ever - their very lives were on the line. Would one moment of passion have to last them a lifetime?
A brief, fated moment at a wedding, and Cassie Cameron was hooked. She'd been unable to forget Dar Cordell, though months had passed. Who could explain it? She was surrounded by handsome, glamorous men every day, and yet somehow Dar had touched her soul...in a once-in-a-lifetime way.
MEANWHILE, SOMEONE WAS WATCHING
Someone else had his eye on Cassie, and time was running out when fate cruelly chose to reunite her with Dar. Suddenly the obstacles they faced were greater than ever - their very lives were on the line. Would one moment of passion have to last them a lifetime?
256 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 1, 1995
8 people are currently reading
250 people want to read
About the author
Justine Davis
252 books216 followersAuthor biographies are supposed to give you all those statistics, books written, awards won, etc. and I will, I promise...but first let me tell you about this ornery little tomboy (back then, the boys had all the fun...) who was always the one to make up the stories the neighborhood kids would "play". For those who came of age in the computer game era, this is something that was done usually in the backyard, by any number of summer-bored children, with props where appropriate. (Did you know a 55 gallon drum tied to a picnic bench makes a very cool horse?) It wasn't until much later that this tomboy realized two things: A) not everyone made up stories in their heads all the time, and B) in real life, the boys that had already had all the fun now seemed to always be winning.
But I digress. I was born on a farm down in Iowa....well, not quite, but close; Boone, Iowa is in the middle of farm country, but I arrived at a hospital. In a snow storm. Make that a blizzard. My sister tells me she knew my destiny when I was very young, because when I first saw the Disney classic Old Yeller, I was apparently so upset that I promptly went home and rewrote the story. In my version, the dog lived, of course. Should have been a clue.
Possibly in response to that blizzard I was born in, I've been a West Coaster since before I was a year old, and intend to stay that way. I have a history of staying. I started my first full time job right out of school (well, there was a very brief sojourn at a place where they made, among other things, burial vaults, but I prefer not to recall that one...) and stayed for twenty-one years. I've been married to the same wonderful guy for going on two decades now. We lived in our last house for seventeen years. (I won't even mention how many dumpsters we filled moving after that long....)
Readers seem as fascinated by my first career as they are with my writing. My time in law enforcement was many things, exciting, nerve wracking, and irritating, but most importantly never, ever boring. It was fascinating enough that I didn't think about writing seriously for several years. I kept a journal, and wrote long letters, collected quotes, mentally rewrote movies, and still made up those stories in my head, but never dreamed of actually writing for publication. I was having too much fun helping to catch bad guys, and being continually amazed at the situations people get themselves into. And eventually I walked away with a wealth of background and story ideas, and knowing some truly great people who work very hard to keep all of us safe. I'm proud to have been one of them, and I'm very aware that I have had the great good fortune of having had two jobs in my life that I love. Many people don't get even one.
But now that I'm in the delicious position of being able to make a living telling those stories in my head, I promise my readers two things: A) I'm staying--I'll keep writing as long as you keep reading, and B) in my stories, the girl--tomboy or not--always wins!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
And now, the official stats:
Justine Dare Davis sold her first book in 1989, and followed that up with the sale of nineteen novels in less than two years. Her first four books were published in 1991, and she saw all reach the finals for either the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award or the Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA Award. She has since won the RITA award four times, along with several Reviewer's Choice awards and three Career Achievement awards from Romantic Times. At the 1998 national conference, Justine was inducted into the RWA Hall of Fame, making her one of a very select group of just eight writers. She also had four titles on the Romantic Times "Top 200 of All Time" list. Her sales now total more than 45, and her books have appeared regularly on best seller lists, including the USA Today list. She has been featured in several local newspapers and nationwide by Associated Press, has appeared on CN
But I digress. I was born on a farm down in Iowa....well, not quite, but close; Boone, Iowa is in the middle of farm country, but I arrived at a hospital. In a snow storm. Make that a blizzard. My sister tells me she knew my destiny when I was very young, because when I first saw the Disney classic Old Yeller, I was apparently so upset that I promptly went home and rewrote the story. In my version, the dog lived, of course. Should have been a clue.
Possibly in response to that blizzard I was born in, I've been a West Coaster since before I was a year old, and intend to stay that way. I have a history of staying. I started my first full time job right out of school (well, there was a very brief sojourn at a place where they made, among other things, burial vaults, but I prefer not to recall that one...) and stayed for twenty-one years. I've been married to the same wonderful guy for going on two decades now. We lived in our last house for seventeen years. (I won't even mention how many dumpsters we filled moving after that long....)
Readers seem as fascinated by my first career as they are with my writing. My time in law enforcement was many things, exciting, nerve wracking, and irritating, but most importantly never, ever boring. It was fascinating enough that I didn't think about writing seriously for several years. I kept a journal, and wrote long letters, collected quotes, mentally rewrote movies, and still made up those stories in my head, but never dreamed of actually writing for publication. I was having too much fun helping to catch bad guys, and being continually amazed at the situations people get themselves into. And eventually I walked away with a wealth of background and story ideas, and knowing some truly great people who work very hard to keep all of us safe. I'm proud to have been one of them, and I'm very aware that I have had the great good fortune of having had two jobs in my life that I love. Many people don't get even one.
But now that I'm in the delicious position of being able to make a living telling those stories in my head, I promise my readers two things: A) I'm staying--I'll keep writing as long as you keep reading, and B) in my stories, the girl--tomboy or not--always wins!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
And now, the official stats:
Justine Dare Davis sold her first book in 1989, and followed that up with the sale of nineteen novels in less than two years. Her first four books were published in 1991, and she saw all reach the finals for either the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award or the Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA Award. She has since won the RITA award four times, along with several Reviewer's Choice awards and three Career Achievement awards from Romantic Times. At the 1998 national conference, Justine was inducted into the RWA Hall of Fame, making her one of a very select group of just eight writers. She also had four titles on the Romantic Times "Top 200 of All Time" list. Her sales now total more than 45, and her books have appeared regularly on best seller lists, including the USA Today list. She has been featured in several local newspapers and nationwide by Associated Press, has appeared on CN
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
November 5, 2016
Just reread this gem, the cover might be getting worse with age but I enjoyed the story just as much and stand by my previous review.
Opening line: "She was the most beautful thing he'd ever seen."
I have no idea where I picked this book up but what a fabulous find especially if you’re anything like me and have a soft spot for the wounded heroes. Written in 96 and the last in a trilogy (which I’m now actively searching for) TMSOD contains one of the most seriously shut-off and tortured heroes I’ve come across since JR Ward’s Zsadist.
Dar Cordell is bitter, standoffish, intimidating and often just downright mean. Allowing precious few into his inner circle, and even those he manages to keep at arms length. Dar is also impossibly handsome, a superior athlete and a double leg amputee, preferring a wheelchair to his seldom used prosthetics. This is one hero with a serious chip on his shoulder, belittling and biting out at everyone while using his missing legs as an excuse to shut himself off from the world.
Still, Dar would have to be up there with my top tortured heroes of all time because given the right circumstances (as is the case here) this unlikely romantic lead quickly gains your sympathy. So that despite his attitude he becomes desirable as you gain understanding as to why he is the way he is. And as it turns out Dar’s issues have very little to do with his legs.
The actual story here is pretty standard Harlequin romance; following supermodel Cassie “Cassandra” Cameron as she grows tired of the superficial world of modeling and escapes to her brothers for a much needed vacation. Of course then we have her stalker, and when he catches up with Cassie the only place she has left to turn is to her brother’s friend Dar. Forcing this reluctant couple together while the police investigate.
I really liked Cassie, despite her supermodel status she reads like a real person, managing to call Dar on his crap, which is just what he needs. As it turns out she‘s just as stubborn as he is and faces some of the same issues too, with the public just assuming she’s nothing more then her looks.
The sparks really fly between this couple with a palpable level of sexual tension throughout, despite the fact that Dar continually pushes Cassie away because he just can’t believe she would ‘want’ him. However when they finally make it into bed lookout, its smoking hot and sweetly intimate.
You can definitely tell that Davis has done her research here as we learn about the different types of wheelchairs (Dar designs racing chairs) hand controlled driving, and what it feels like to be looked down on or just looked through. And because Cassie moves in with Dar we also learn about modified kitchens and bathrooms, wheelchair ramps and accessibility issues in general.
All in all I loved this story and if it wasn’t for the authors annoying overuse of the word “Chagrin” this would have been a 5 star read. Cheers people!
Opening line: "She was the most beautful thing he'd ever seen."
I have no idea where I picked this book up but what a fabulous find especially if you’re anything like me and have a soft spot for the wounded heroes. Written in 96 and the last in a trilogy (which I’m now actively searching for) TMSOD contains one of the most seriously shut-off and tortured heroes I’ve come across since JR Ward’s Zsadist.
Dar Cordell is bitter, standoffish, intimidating and often just downright mean. Allowing precious few into his inner circle, and even those he manages to keep at arms length. Dar is also impossibly handsome, a superior athlete and a double leg amputee, preferring a wheelchair to his seldom used prosthetics. This is one hero with a serious chip on his shoulder, belittling and biting out at everyone while using his missing legs as an excuse to shut himself off from the world.
Still, Dar would have to be up there with my top tortured heroes of all time because given the right circumstances (as is the case here) this unlikely romantic lead quickly gains your sympathy. So that despite his attitude he becomes desirable as you gain understanding as to why he is the way he is. And as it turns out Dar’s issues have very little to do with his legs.
The actual story here is pretty standard Harlequin romance; following supermodel Cassie “Cassandra” Cameron as she grows tired of the superficial world of modeling and escapes to her brothers for a much needed vacation. Of course then we have her stalker, and when he catches up with Cassie the only place she has left to turn is to her brother’s friend Dar. Forcing this reluctant couple together while the police investigate.
I really liked Cassie, despite her supermodel status she reads like a real person, managing to call Dar on his crap, which is just what he needs. As it turns out she‘s just as stubborn as he is and faces some of the same issues too, with the public just assuming she’s nothing more then her looks.
The sparks really fly between this couple with a palpable level of sexual tension throughout, despite the fact that Dar continually pushes Cassie away because he just can’t believe she would ‘want’ him. However when they finally make it into bed lookout, its smoking hot and sweetly intimate.
You can definitely tell that Davis has done her research here as we learn about the different types of wheelchairs (Dar designs racing chairs) hand controlled driving, and what it feels like to be looked down on or just looked through. And because Cassie moves in with Dar we also learn about modified kitchens and bathrooms, wheelchair ramps and accessibility issues in general.
All in all I loved this story and if it wasn’t for the authors annoying overuse of the word “Chagrin” this would have been a 5 star read. Cheers people!
October 23, 2011
So, I think I've learned my lesson: any disability-themed romance novel readers gush over as "heartwarming" or a "tear-jerker" invariably plays up a number of insulting stereotypes of disabled people that insult me as they generate cheap angst. This book is no exception.
The book opens with supermodel Cassandra Cameron walking out of her agent's office after declaring she's taking an impromptu sabbatical. Worn out from reconciling her public image with her private life, she takes off to housesit for her vacationing brother. Unfortunately for her, she's attracted the unwelcome attention of a creepy dude who's determined to make contact with her. Unwillingly, family friend Dar Cordell finds himself drawn into her predicament. Though he'd rather hole up and make racing wheelchairs in solitude, he eventually agrees to help Cassie out by letting her hide out in his remote home.
The story Davis wanted to tell and the book she actually wrote do not match up. She clearly wanted to tell a story of love transcending superficial appearances and overcoming differences. What she actually wrote, however, was a pitying tale of a sad cripple and the condescending woman determined to show him how he should live his life instead. It wasn't a story about a disabled man finding the love he deserves. It was a story about readers being able to imagine themselves a charitable good girl who magnanimously befriends the downtrodden. The hero's disability is merely a means to an end.
The problem lies in the stark morality of the novel. There's little nuance or grey area to the novel. The good people unquestionably accept disability as charmingly normal and the bad people callously shun and dehumanize the disabled. It takes something complex and amoral and turns it into a simplistic moral play. This makes me think of a line from Tim O'Brien's "How To Tell a True War Story." Like war, disability is never moral.
And yet, the novel perpetuates patronizing attitudes towards disability, even as it's trying to be the benevolent champion of the poor cripples of the world. The first thing to really throw me was the scene where Cassie watches Dar playing NCAA baseball before his injury. Dar walks in as she's crying at the video and they get into an argument. She goes through amazing mental gymnastics about how they aren't tears of pity then yells at him for being selfish - because he doesn't want to talk about his feelings with people. To begin with, crying at what she terms a tragedy is pity, full stop. You can't spin that. Tears equal an assumption that disability is a negative. Secondly, why does she get to lecture this guy she's known for a week about how he should live his life? Because he's not a happy, grateful, "inspirational" cripple, he's doing it wrong?
Later on, when they finally fall into bed, we get this exchange
In addition to appropriating disability to tell a story about an able bodied character, the book's just not written very well. The narrative is repetitive, rewording and restating simple concepts ad nauseam as if she didn't trust the reader to draw her own conclusions. The dialog is laughably unnatural. The story rests on a cast of characters endlessly psychoanalyzing the hell out of each other using their best daytime TV pop psychology terminology. They didn't talk to each other so much as try to outdo each other's metaphors. Dialog read more like a chain of overwrought monologues than the give and take of conversation. Way too melodramatic for my taste.
In the end, I just resented the novel. It's just another novel that defines the disabled character by what he's lost then uses the angst not to tell his story of acceptance and adjustment but to illustrate the able heroine's generosity and heroism. It does the disabled no favors with how it treats the theme. It's dripping with ableism.
I can't recommend this to anyone looking for disabled characters in romance. It perpetuates the negative attitudes it purportedly rejects.
The book opens with supermodel Cassandra Cameron walking out of her agent's office after declaring she's taking an impromptu sabbatical. Worn out from reconciling her public image with her private life, she takes off to housesit for her vacationing brother. Unfortunately for her, she's attracted the unwelcome attention of a creepy dude who's determined to make contact with her. Unwillingly, family friend Dar Cordell finds himself drawn into her predicament. Though he'd rather hole up and make racing wheelchairs in solitude, he eventually agrees to help Cassie out by letting her hide out in his remote home.
The story Davis wanted to tell and the book she actually wrote do not match up. She clearly wanted to tell a story of love transcending superficial appearances and overcoming differences. What she actually wrote, however, was a pitying tale of a sad cripple and the condescending woman determined to show him how he should live his life instead. It wasn't a story about a disabled man finding the love he deserves. It was a story about readers being able to imagine themselves a charitable good girl who magnanimously befriends the downtrodden. The hero's disability is merely a means to an end.
The problem lies in the stark morality of the novel. There's little nuance or grey area to the novel. The good people unquestionably accept disability as charmingly normal and the bad people callously shun and dehumanize the disabled. It takes something complex and amoral and turns it into a simplistic moral play. This makes me think of a line from Tim O'Brien's "How To Tell a True War Story." Like war, disability is never moral.
"It does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior, nor restrain men from doing the things they have always done. If a story seems moral, do not believe it. If at the end of a war story you feel uplifted, or if you feel that some small bit of rectitude has been salvaged from the larger waste, then you have been made the victim of a very old and terrible lie."Being disabled doesn't make a person stronger, wiser or more heroic and befriending, accepting or loving a disabled person doesn't make the able person kinder, nobler or better than anyone else. Unfortunately, Ms. Davis didn't get the memo on this. Throughout the book, Dar's ability is trotted out to define his father's and fiancee's perfidy and Cassie and her family's goodness. No one ever puzzles through any conflicted feelings, Dar never gets to talk about what disability means to his life, acceptance and rejection are just two stark, binary options. Dar is sad, and Cassie just yells her "acceptance" at him until he adopts an outlook she approves of.
And yet, the novel perpetuates patronizing attitudes towards disability, even as it's trying to be the benevolent champion of the poor cripples of the world. The first thing to really throw me was the scene where Cassie watches Dar playing NCAA baseball before his injury. Dar walks in as she's crying at the video and they get into an argument. She goes through amazing mental gymnastics about how they aren't tears of pity then yells at him for being selfish - because he doesn't want to talk about his feelings with people. To begin with, crying at what she terms a tragedy is pity, full stop. You can't spin that. Tears equal an assumption that disability is a negative. Secondly, why does she get to lecture this guy she's known for a week about how he should live his life? Because he's not a happy, grateful, "inspirational" cripple, he's doing it wrong?
Later on, when they finally fall into bed, we get this exchange
"Dar?" She was looking at him, that hint of doubt back in her eyes, as if she sensed him withdrawing. "Dar, please, don't. I… It doesn't… I don't mind."Oh, she "doesn't mind." How gracious of her. Imagine if this was a hero saying this to an overweight heroine about her curves she's self-conscious of. Would this seem so romantic with the roles reversed?
"My fiancée thought she didn't, either," he said, unable to stop himself, "until one of my stumps touched her."
"Dar, stop." She bit her lip, and shook her head as if in pain. "Oh, please, I don't know what to say. How to tell you … not that it doesn't matter, of course it does, but … Dar, I don't care! Can't you see that?"
In addition to appropriating disability to tell a story about an able bodied character, the book's just not written very well. The narrative is repetitive, rewording and restating simple concepts ad nauseam as if she didn't trust the reader to draw her own conclusions. The dialog is laughably unnatural. The story rests on a cast of characters endlessly psychoanalyzing the hell out of each other using their best daytime TV pop psychology terminology. They didn't talk to each other so much as try to outdo each other's metaphors. Dialog read more like a chain of overwrought monologues than the give and take of conversation. Way too melodramatic for my taste.
In the end, I just resented the novel. It's just another novel that defines the disabled character by what he's lost then uses the angst not to tell his story of acceptance and adjustment but to illustrate the able heroine's generosity and heroism. It does the disabled no favors with how it treats the theme. It's dripping with ableism.
I can't recommend this to anyone looking for disabled characters in romance. It perpetuates the negative attitudes it purportedly rejects.
May 2, 2011
I'd lie awake in the dark, right before dawn, and wonder if I'd ever be glad to see morning again. If I'd ever really come out on the other side.
This is such a beautiful book and this quote kind of sums it up. We met Dar in the previous book, he's an accomplished athlete but intensely private and unlike Sean he lost both his legs while saving two kids but that was not all he lost, he lost a fiancee and a father whose approval he had worked for his entire life and his big contract. While he lay injured in the hospital, suffering , waiting for his father to visit him, his father didn't come not then and not later and died 3 years after. After that Dar closed himself off, not allowing people close, driving them away with his silence or lack of response and only Sean because of shared experiences and Katie(Chase and Stevie's daughter), got close to him and even them he keeps at a distance and to make sure of that he lives in an isolated place. He hates how judgmental people are and to make sure that they know what they are getting he uses a wheel-chair instead of using a prosthesis, to warn people off.
Six months before, Cassie(Chase's gorgeous supermodel sister, flirted outrageously with him at Sean and Rory's wedding. Cassie is highly successful but is tried of the life and because of certain uncomfortable letters she is getting decided to take a break. Cassie and Dar are thrown together in Dar's house because of her stalker situation and what arises out of it is a beautiful relationship. The way people look at handicapped people is so well depicted, their problems, struggle in life and the determination it takes.
Cassie when she finds out about Dar researches about it(her sister-in-law told her at the wedding). She didn't let him wallow in his sullenness and when she tells him she knows how it feels when people judge you by your looks, it was wonderful. The way she treats him as normal but not forgetting his limitations, fights with him is just so amazing. She despite his re-buffs opens him up and when she watches the tape of Dar's last game and the scene that takes place on the couch after-wards is cathartic. She makes him confront what his father did to him and his feeling about the accident and makes him see that it is human to wish things had been different.
Dar had so much pain in life that he pretended not to care and the way Cassie doesn't let him be the way he is, is lovely. I can't tell you how much I loved this book. Cassie makes Dar believe that yes he deserves happiness and not just his friends. She asks him questions about his work and about his accident and when he tries to shut her out of it by ignoring her she sees through him and his attempts to be rude. This book is so well done and shows that love doesn't see when anyone is different, yes there can be some difficulties but they can be over-come.
This is such a beautiful book and this quote kind of sums it up. We met Dar in the previous book, he's an accomplished athlete but intensely private and unlike Sean he lost both his legs while saving two kids but that was not all he lost, he lost a fiancee and a father whose approval he had worked for his entire life and his big contract. While he lay injured in the hospital, suffering , waiting for his father to visit him, his father didn't come not then and not later and died 3 years after. After that Dar closed himself off, not allowing people close, driving them away with his silence or lack of response and only Sean because of shared experiences and Katie(Chase and Stevie's daughter), got close to him and even them he keeps at a distance and to make sure of that he lives in an isolated place. He hates how judgmental people are and to make sure that they know what they are getting he uses a wheel-chair instead of using a prosthesis, to warn people off.
Six months before, Cassie(Chase's gorgeous supermodel sister, flirted outrageously with him at Sean and Rory's wedding. Cassie is highly successful but is tried of the life and because of certain uncomfortable letters she is getting decided to take a break. Cassie and Dar are thrown together in Dar's house because of her stalker situation and what arises out of it is a beautiful relationship. The way people look at handicapped people is so well depicted, their problems, struggle in life and the determination it takes.
Cassie when she finds out about Dar researches about it(her sister-in-law told her at the wedding). She didn't let him wallow in his sullenness and when she tells him she knows how it feels when people judge you by your looks, it was wonderful. The way she treats him as normal but not forgetting his limitations, fights with him is just so amazing. She despite his re-buffs opens him up and when she watches the tape of Dar's last game and the scene that takes place on the couch after-wards is cathartic. She makes him confront what his father did to him and his feeling about the accident and makes him see that it is human to wish things had been different.
Dar had so much pain in life that he pretended not to care and the way Cassie doesn't let him be the way he is, is lovely. I can't tell you how much I loved this book. Cassie makes Dar believe that yes he deserves happiness and not just his friends. She asks him questions about his work and about his accident and when he tries to shut her out of it by ignoring her she sees through him and his attempts to be rude. This book is so well done and shows that love doesn't see when anyone is different, yes there can be some difficulties but they can be over-come.
October 26, 2010
If you're one of the few who hasn't read and re-read this story or, horror of all horrors, are allowing it to collect dust on your To Be Read shelf (like I was) I urge you to read it. ASAP. Yep, it's that good.
It's about learning to see past the surface and finding the true beauty within a person, getting past assumptions and misconceptions and learning to love. The hero is disabled (and that's all I'm going to give away!) and, after being rejected by the people who meant the most to him, has spent the majority of his adult life avoiding people. The heroine is a super-model, who has millions but is unhappy with her life and finds herself envious of those who've found love because she's been unable to. People just don't care to dig deep enrough to see the beauty inside of her.
Whaaaat? How can I sympathize with a rich super-model, right? Well, I didn't think I could. But then I read this book. She's not a self-centered snot and is a surprisingly sympathetic and likable character with a few insecurities of her own. Her dogged attraction to the reluctant hero and her determination to break down his barriers come across realistically and touched me deeply. The hero is one of the most unforgettable I've ever read about in a romance. He's beautiful and wounded, both inside and out, and oh-so-deserving of love. This is a compassionate love story even my shoddy memory won't soon forget.
Read it people!
It's about learning to see past the surface and finding the true beauty within a person, getting past assumptions and misconceptions and learning to love. The hero is disabled (and that's all I'm going to give away!) and, after being rejected by the people who meant the most to him, has spent the majority of his adult life avoiding people. The heroine is a super-model, who has millions but is unhappy with her life and finds herself envious of those who've found love because she's been unable to. People just don't care to dig deep enrough to see the beauty inside of her.
Whaaaat? How can I sympathize with a rich super-model, right? Well, I didn't think I could. But then I read this book. She's not a self-centered snot and is a surprisingly sympathetic and likable character with a few insecurities of her own. Her dogged attraction to the reluctant hero and her determination to break down his barriers come across realistically and touched me deeply. The hero is one of the most unforgettable I've ever read about in a romance. He's beautiful and wounded, both inside and out, and oh-so-deserving of love. This is a compassionate love story even my shoddy memory won't soon forget.
Read it people!
April 17, 2011
Whew! Is it possible that someone might have read this book without shedding a tear? Not bloody likely.
February 8, 2017
Maybe its my English sensibilities but I can't get my head around the name Dar - I keep wanting to finish his name for him and call him Darren.
It was a nice story but as I read this one as a stand alone book I'm left with the feeling I still don't really know what the hell actually happened to our H. Sure we have the bare bones but WTH was he doing did i skip over this part?
Also I'm not feeling my ovaries explode from his pretty boy features on the cover this guy is supposed to be sexier/prettier than the supermodel he eventually pulls but i'm not feeling the love for him.
The whole sub plot seemed unnecessary to me but we had to get to the HEA somehow.
Overall a sacharrine sweet quick read with our grouchy H and obvs gorgeous supermodel h who eventually tames the beast.
It was a nice story but as I read this one as a stand alone book I'm left with the feeling I still don't really know what the hell actually happened to our H. Sure we have the bare bones but WTH was he doing did i skip over this part?
Also I'm not feeling my ovaries explode from his pretty boy features on the cover this guy is supposed to be sexier/prettier than the supermodel he eventually pulls but i'm not feeling the love for him.
The whole sub plot seemed unnecessary to me but we had to get to the HEA somehow.
Overall a sacharrine sweet quick read with our grouchy H and obvs gorgeous supermodel h who eventually tames the beast.
June 17, 2017
Hot! Charming, attractive, sweet, sexy as hell.
Cassie has a sunny personality that breakes down and into Cordell rude fences. She is one of my favorite heroines.
He is sheltering her from a stalker, against his own will, at the request of his only friend, but the moment she pulls up in front of his isolated house, he makes it clear that she's not welcome. Then begins the fight and seduction dance of them two. There's not a single page that is uninteresting or out of time, their approaches are deliciously sexy, the arguments are not annoying, the adventure is captivating, everything is perfect. Great book!
Cassie has a sunny personality that breakes down and into Cordell rude fences. She is one of my favorite heroines.
He is sheltering her from a stalker, against his own will, at the request of his only friend, but the moment she pulls up in front of his isolated house, he makes it clear that she's not welcome. Then begins the fight and seduction dance of them two. There's not a single page that is uninteresting or out of time, their approaches are deliciously sexy, the arguments are not annoying, the adventure is captivating, everything is perfect. Great book!
August 17, 2019
Dar is incredibly bitter, and I loved how Cassie handled it, refusing to allow him to disrespect and demean her with his assumptions.
August 29, 2021
Loved this book all the times I've read it and I just had to get it on ebook format!
July 2, 2015
DNF 25%
Maybe it's just not my day? This is the second book I'm putting down today.. and I can't say there is anything around here that annoys me or anything.. It's a rather relaxed Saturday, nothing special to do, it's cold outside so sitting at home with a book was everything I could wish for.
I don't have any real problem with the book actually. I have nothing against either Cassie or Dar - the main heroes. I just don't feel any "pull" toward them. Cassie is a super model who wants a break especially since there is a stalker who messes with her head and Dar, well, he is our overly tormented hero. What he mainly does is brood. It's not very compelling, it's not even that annoying since I guess he has his reasons - an accident making him cripple for life. Yet he is mostly a busy guy, competing with is wheel chair in races, building hand made chairs for other people. He isn't sitting at home feeling sorry for himself, yet in a way he does. He shuns any social life except for Sean (Stevie's brother) and Chase (Stevie's husband and also Cassie's brother), this is how she met him - on Sean's wedding (taking place in the second installment I haven't read and not planning on..)
I read great review of this one, and since it does talk about a hero in a wheelchair I totally get the appeal of reading something different yet the plot was kind of tired, the conversations sort of dry (even when meant to be funny) and I was just not finding myself attracted to keep on going..
So finally on the 25% mark I decided to put it down and just watch a series or something. No more reading today! I'm giving this one 3 stars rating mostly for dealing with something different which still 20 years after it was written (originally published on 1995) is not that common.
This book is sortof part of a series, the first one "Stevie's Chase" telling us of Stevie and Chase's story, the second "Left at the Alter" is of Sean (Stevie's brother) and Rory (also dealing with a main character with a disability) and this is the third one of Chase's sister. I think it makes sense reading them in the order they were written.. the first one is a good introduction to Sean and a bit of Cassie and I think the second one brings more of Cassie (as she and Dar meet for the first time at Sean and Rory's wedding) but since I haven't read the second one I can't say more..
More Reviews HERE
Maybe it's just not my day? This is the second book I'm putting down today.. and I can't say there is anything around here that annoys me or anything.. It's a rather relaxed Saturday, nothing special to do, it's cold outside so sitting at home with a book was everything I could wish for.
I don't have any real problem with the book actually. I have nothing against either Cassie or Dar - the main heroes. I just don't feel any "pull" toward them. Cassie is a super model who wants a break especially since there is a stalker who messes with her head and Dar, well, he is our overly tormented hero. What he mainly does is brood. It's not very compelling, it's not even that annoying since I guess he has his reasons - an accident making him cripple for life. Yet he is mostly a busy guy, competing with is wheel chair in races, building hand made chairs for other people. He isn't sitting at home feeling sorry for himself, yet in a way he does. He shuns any social life except for Sean (Stevie's brother) and Chase (Stevie's husband and also Cassie's brother), this is how she met him - on Sean's wedding (taking place in the second installment I haven't read and not planning on..)
I read great review of this one, and since it does talk about a hero in a wheelchair I totally get the appeal of reading something different yet the plot was kind of tired, the conversations sort of dry (even when meant to be funny) and I was just not finding myself attracted to keep on going..
So finally on the 25% mark I decided to put it down and just watch a series or something. No more reading today! I'm giving this one 3 stars rating mostly for dealing with something different which still 20 years after it was written (originally published on 1995) is not that common.
This book is sortof part of a series, the first one "Stevie's Chase" telling us of Stevie and Chase's story, the second "Left at the Alter" is of Sean (Stevie's brother) and Rory (also dealing with a main character with a disability) and this is the third one of Chase's sister. I think it makes sense reading them in the order they were written.. the first one is a good introduction to Sean and a bit of Cassie and I think the second one brings more of Cassie (as she and Dar meet for the first time at Sean and Rory's wedding) but since I haven't read the second one I can't say more..
More Reviews HERE
October 26, 2010
This is a romance novel that I can read over and over again, and have done so many times. So many times, in fact, that I had to buy a new copy because my first copy fell apart. The characters are a little TOO perfect and the situation they face is a little too convenient for placing them in the right place together at the right time, but this third in a trilogy by Justine Davis that also includes "Stevie's Chase" and "Left at the Altar" (both of which I also own) is enjoyable nonetheless.
Without giving too many spoilers, the basic setup is this: Cassie Cameron, fed-up supermodel with a stalker, takes a break and heads to her brother's house for a vacation while he's out of town with his family. Unfortunately, this doesn't deter the man who has been showing up at her photo shoots and sending flowers to her for the past few months, and he tracks her down there, and she doesn't know if he aims to hurt her or not, but his actions are escalating and she's starting to fear for her life. Enter Dar Cordell, muscular, handsome, double amputee wheelchair racer and designer extraordinaire, a friend of her brother's, to help her out in her time of need. This is a story of love and friendship and beauty and of families and relationships that have endured trial by fire and made it through to the other side (and that's all before this third novel in the series ever even begins!).
This is the story of Cassie and Dar as they make it through their own trial by fire with the stalker on Cassie's trail. A great contemporary romance that can be read in just a few hours' time. I definitely recommend it.
Without giving too many spoilers, the basic setup is this: Cassie Cameron, fed-up supermodel with a stalker, takes a break and heads to her brother's house for a vacation while he's out of town with his family. Unfortunately, this doesn't deter the man who has been showing up at her photo shoots and sending flowers to her for the past few months, and he tracks her down there, and she doesn't know if he aims to hurt her or not, but his actions are escalating and she's starting to fear for her life. Enter Dar Cordell, muscular, handsome, double amputee wheelchair racer and designer extraordinaire, a friend of her brother's, to help her out in her time of need. This is a story of love and friendship and beauty and of families and relationships that have endured trial by fire and made it through to the other side (and that's all before this third novel in the series ever even begins!).
This is the story of Cassie and Dar as they make it through their own trial by fire with the stalker on Cassie's trail. A great contemporary romance that can be read in just a few hours' time. I definitely recommend it.
April 4, 2019
This is my favorite "Modern Romance". For some reason, maybe because the hero is imperfect and yet perfect, I am partial to this story. Maybe because I know what it's like to be judged all the time. Or maybe I just understood wanting to be away from everybody. Whatever the reason, this book touches me, and I read it often. I will read it again soon, even though I am soooo backed up (about 20 books), but I also make room for a few, and Morning Side of Dawn is one of the few.
February 6, 2014
I'm very happy these have come out in ebook format, so that I could revisit a few of my favorite books from long past. Again, this book is much better than most of the Harlequin genre. POV from both the man and the woman (like Nora Roberts), excellent discussions as they work their way through Dar's walls of hurt over previous rejections due to his disability. Great hurt/comfort (in both directions), and some smoking hot sex scenes. An excellent wrap up of a great series.
September 24, 2011
I really enjoyed this one.
The characters were interesting and their struggles to come together felt plausible. I loved that Dar is not a two-dimensional stereotype. He's running his business, designing wheelchairs for hiking and other sports.
Cassie, as a well-known model, understands him in a way he doesn't expect. They both know about being judged on appearances.
The characters were interesting and their struggles to come together felt plausible. I loved that Dar is not a two-dimensional stereotype. He's running his business, designing wheelchairs for hiking and other sports.
Cassie, as a well-known model, understands him in a way he doesn't expect. They both know about being judged on appearances.
August 22, 2011
I loved this book. It has great well-developed characters, good story, and you'll never get bored with it. I liked both Dar and Cassie, although at first I thought I wouldn't like her 'cause her being a super-model, but instead she turned out a likable character.
A great book, that deserve to be read again and again.
A great book, that deserve to be read again and again.
December 15, 2012
I really liked this story. I love Romance novels that are series so that you can see what the characters from previous books are doing. I really liked Dar's story. I wanted to slap him a few times because he was so stubborn, but I liked the relationship build up between him and Cassie. Overall, a fun and easy read!
June 28, 2011
This story is beautiful, insightful and intimate.
It's about assumptions and seeing past what a person looks like and finding
who they truly are.
The relationship is unhurried and reveals Cassie's patience as she breaks down Dar's walls that were built by
his fear of rejection.
Really good!
It's about assumptions and seeing past what a person looks like and finding
who they truly are.
The relationship is unhurried and reveals Cassie's patience as she breaks down Dar's walls that were built by
his fear of rejection.
Really good!
Read
October 21, 2010clearing out my huge tbr shelves. my tastes have changed
July 1, 2017
This is an older book, but a popular one among readers.
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