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Furever Yours #8
More Than a Temporary Family
Time to get back in the saddle?
A visit with family in Spring Forest, North Carolina, was just what Josie Whitaker needed to put her marriage behind her. Horseback riding lessons were an added bonus. But her instructor, Declan Hoyt, was somewhat distracted, dealing with his moody teenage niece. The divorced single mom knew just how to help and offered to teach Declan a thing or two about parenting—never expecting a romance to spark with the younger rancher! Dare Josie take the reins on this exciting new adventure?
A visit with family in Spring Forest, North Carolina, was just what Josie Whitaker needed to put her marriage behind her. Horseback riding lessons were an added bonus. But her instructor, Declan Hoyt, was somewhat distracted, dealing with his moody teenage niece. The divorced single mom knew just how to help and offered to teach Declan a thing or two about parenting—never expecting a romance to spark with the younger rancher! Dare Josie take the reins on this exciting new adventure?
- GenresRomance
242 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 3, 2022
About the author
Marie Ferrarella
1,251 books275 followersMarie Rydzynski-Ferrarella
aka Marie Charles, Marie Michael, Marie Nicole, Marie Ferrarella
Marie Rydzynski was born on March 28 in West Germany to Polish parents. She moved to America at the age of four. For an entire year, Marie and her family explored the eastern half of the country before finally settling in New York.
Marie swears she was born writing, "which must have made the delivery especially hard for my mother." From an early age, Marie's parents would find her watching television or tucked away in some private place, writing at a furious pace. "Initially, I began writing myself into my favourite shows. I was a detective on '77 Sunset Strip,' the missing Cartwright sibling they never talked about on 'Bonanza' and the 'Girl from U.N.C.L.E.' before there was a 'Girl from U.N.C.L.E.,' not to mention an active participant in the serialized stories of 'The Mickey Mouse Club.'" Marie began to write her first romance novel when she was 11 years old, although she claims that, at the time, she didn't even realize it was a romance! She scribbled off and on, while dreaming of a career as an actress.
Marie was only 14 when she first laid eyes on the man she would marry, truly her first love, Charles Ferrarella. During her days at Queens College, New York, acting started to lose its glamour as Marie spent more and more time writing. After receiving her English degree, specialising in Shakespearean comedy, Marie and her family moved to Southern California, where she still resides today.
After an interminable seven weeks apart, Charles decided he couldn't live without her and came out to California to marry his childhood sweetheart. Ever practical, Marie was married in a wash-and-wear wedding dress that she sewed herself, appliqués and all. "'Be prepared' has always been my motto,"the author jokes. This motto has been stretched considerably by her two children, Nikky and Jessi, "but basically, it still applies," she says.
In November of 1981, she sold her first novel for Harlequin. Marie, who now has written over 150 novels, has one goal: to entertain, to make people laugh and feel good. "That's what makes me happy," she confesses. "That, and a really good romantic evening with my husband." She's keeping her fingers crossed that her reader's enjoy reading her books as much as she enjoyed writing them.
aka Marie Charles, Marie Michael, Marie Nicole, Marie Ferrarella
Marie Rydzynski was born on March 28 in West Germany to Polish parents. She moved to America at the age of four. For an entire year, Marie and her family explored the eastern half of the country before finally settling in New York.
Marie swears she was born writing, "which must have made the delivery especially hard for my mother." From an early age, Marie's parents would find her watching television or tucked away in some private place, writing at a furious pace. "Initially, I began writing myself into my favourite shows. I was a detective on '77 Sunset Strip,' the missing Cartwright sibling they never talked about on 'Bonanza' and the 'Girl from U.N.C.L.E.' before there was a 'Girl from U.N.C.L.E.,' not to mention an active participant in the serialized stories of 'The Mickey Mouse Club.'" Marie began to write her first romance novel when she was 11 years old, although she claims that, at the time, she didn't even realize it was a romance! She scribbled off and on, while dreaming of a career as an actress.
Marie was only 14 when she first laid eyes on the man she would marry, truly her first love, Charles Ferrarella. During her days at Queens College, New York, acting started to lose its glamour as Marie spent more and more time writing. After receiving her English degree, specialising in Shakespearean comedy, Marie and her family moved to Southern California, where she still resides today.
After an interminable seven weeks apart, Charles decided he couldn't live without her and came out to California to marry his childhood sweetheart. Ever practical, Marie was married in a wash-and-wear wedding dress that she sewed herself, appliqués and all. "'Be prepared' has always been my motto,"the author jokes. This motto has been stretched considerably by her two children, Nikky and Jessi, "but basically, it still applies," she says.
In November of 1981, she sold her first novel for Harlequin. Marie, who now has written over 150 novels, has one goal: to entertain, to make people laugh and feel good. "That's what makes me happy," she confesses. "That, and a really good romantic evening with my husband." She's keeping her fingers crossed that her reader's enjoy reading her books as much as she enjoyed writing them.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
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March 31, 2022
Trigger & Content Warnings
Divorce
Sibling with a substance addiction
Death of a father mentioned
Divorce
Sibling with a substance addiction
Death of a father mentioned
December 18, 2023
Less than 2.5 stars
I decided to read this book because it was written by Marie Ferrarella. This author's main character is often truly a good person, which makes you feel more optimistic about the world. Josie Whitaker starts off that way, a nice person helping her younger brother and his wife, and then helping Declan Hoyt's niece. And then she became too much.... She helped everybody. She was completely selfless. She didn't take offense even when Hoyt was being mean-spirited. She knew how to help everybody. She seemed to be an expert with babies, even though she didn't get too spend much time with her own. She had a lot of wisdom that she spread around, but somehow she couldn't get past her own insecurity. Not even a little bit.
Declan, on the other hand, was quite an a$$ at the beginning, and then he miraculously became a really nice guy. Right. Same with Shannon. She went from an extremely annoying teenager to a very nice kid after only a few minutes with Josie.
How in the world did Josie afford to live in Spring Forest? She didn't appear to have any paying job, only volunteering at the shelter and helping with the twins. Even if she got free room and board, how did she pay for gasoline and other expenses? What happened to her house in Florida? Was she still paying a mortgage there?
This book contains some storylines that don't go anywhere, such as the bookstore owner with the pregnant dog, Bunny's return, the single dad with twins, and the shelter's financial trouble. I am guessing that there may be latter books written with these characters, but they don't serve any purpose in this book.
The catering storyline is too unrealistic. This lady, who knew nothing about Josie, engaged her on the spot, because she was apparently desperate, but she also kept threatening Josie if things didn't go well. She somehow managed to do a thorough background check on Josie within a few hours. Josie herself managed to plan and cook for over 100 people within a couple of days. And Declan, a bachelor who was extremely busy with his horse breeding project, somehow loved to cook enough that he had a big kitchen with a lot of pots and pans sufficient for feeding over 100 people. Oh, and Josie prepared an "impromptu" dish for 100 people in one hour!
Speaking of horse breeding, we never really read anything about Declan's horse breeding efforts.
The ending/resolution was too quick, too easy. Josie's uneasiness of their age difference was barely discussed. She somehow believed that he would not leave her just because he said he loved her. Well, her husband had probably loved her, too, at the beginning of their relationship. I don't know how Declan saying he loved her would mean anything to his staying power later.
In conclusion, I found this book very disappointing. Character development is almost non-existent.
The story is unrealistic and the plot is disjointed. The ending is too easy. It's surprising how highly this book is rated.
I decided to read this book because it was written by Marie Ferrarella. This author's main character is often truly a good person, which makes you feel more optimistic about the world. Josie Whitaker starts off that way, a nice person helping her younger brother and his wife, and then helping Declan Hoyt's niece. And then she became too much.... She helped everybody. She was completely selfless. She didn't take offense even when Hoyt was being mean-spirited. She knew how to help everybody. She seemed to be an expert with babies, even though she didn't get too spend much time with her own. She had a lot of wisdom that she spread around, but somehow she couldn't get past her own insecurity. Not even a little bit.
Declan, on the other hand, was quite an a$$ at the beginning, and then he miraculously became a really nice guy. Right. Same with Shannon. She went from an extremely annoying teenager to a very nice kid after only a few minutes with Josie.
How in the world did Josie afford to live in Spring Forest? She didn't appear to have any paying job, only volunteering at the shelter and helping with the twins. Even if she got free room and board, how did she pay for gasoline and other expenses? What happened to her house in Florida? Was she still paying a mortgage there?
This book contains some storylines that don't go anywhere, such as the bookstore owner with the pregnant dog, Bunny's return, the single dad with twins, and the shelter's financial trouble. I am guessing that there may be latter books written with these characters, but they don't serve any purpose in this book.
The catering storyline is too unrealistic. This lady, who knew nothing about Josie, engaged her on the spot, because she was apparently desperate, but she also kept threatening Josie if things didn't go well. She somehow managed to do a thorough background check on Josie within a few hours. Josie herself managed to plan and cook for over 100 people within a couple of days. And Declan, a bachelor who was extremely busy with his horse breeding project, somehow loved to cook enough that he had a big kitchen with a lot of pots and pans sufficient for feeding over 100 people. Oh, and Josie prepared an "impromptu" dish for 100 people in one hour!
Speaking of horse breeding, we never really read anything about Declan's horse breeding efforts.
The ending/resolution was too quick, too easy. Josie's uneasiness of their age difference was barely discussed. She somehow believed that he would not leave her just because he said he loved her. Well, her husband had probably loved her, too, at the beginning of their relationship. I don't know how Declan saying he loved her would mean anything to his staying power later.
In conclusion, I found this book very disappointing. Character development is almost non-existent.
The story is unrealistic and the plot is disjointed. The ending is too easy. It's surprising how highly this book is rated.
February 4, 2023
Josie was glad to go to North Carolina to help her brother, Grant and sister-in-law, Rebekah, with their baby twins, so they could get some rest. If nothing else, it would take her mind off the end of her marriage. Grant and Rebekah gifted Josie with riding lessons to thank her for her help.
Josie was excited to learn to ride but was not very pleased with her instructor. Being quite gruff, Declan was not an easy man to talk to or to learn from. When Josie found out that one of the man's problems was caring for his teenage niece, Shannon, she offered to work with her and give Declan some pointers on how to deal with teenagers.
Shannon and Josie got along really well, especially once Shannon joined Josie at the animal shelter.
I was amazed at how well Josie handled Shannon's behaviour. It takes a special kind of person to deal successfully with a teen.
I liked the attraction between Josie and Declan. Josie's hesitation to act on her feelings was understandable. She was bothered by the age difference and being older than Declan.
If you like animals, family drama and romance then you will want to read More Than a Temporary Family.
Josie was excited to learn to ride but was not very pleased with her instructor. Being quite gruff, Declan was not an easy man to talk to or to learn from. When Josie found out that one of the man's problems was caring for his teenage niece, Shannon, she offered to work with her and give Declan some pointers on how to deal with teenagers.
Shannon and Josie got along really well, especially once Shannon joined Josie at the animal shelter.
I was amazed at how well Josie handled Shannon's behaviour. It takes a special kind of person to deal successfully with a teen.
I liked the attraction between Josie and Declan. Josie's hesitation to act on her feelings was understandable. She was bothered by the age difference and being older than Declan.
If you like animals, family drama and romance then you will want to read More Than a Temporary Family.
June 26, 2022
3.25 stars
This was pretty cute. I enjoyed all the characters - and there were quite a few. I also liked writing style - how there weren’t really strict delineations between points of view. It just kind of roved between whichever head seemed relevant. Which sounds weird, I know, but it worked somehow. I would read this author again.
This is a continuation of a series about an animal rescue shelter, which is such a cute topic. We adopted our cat Felix from a shelter and he’s the best (swipe to see his cute face)! I highly recommend adopting a pet if you are able. They make great family members! 🐶🐱
Spice level: high PG-13 🌶🌶
A couple scenes of medium spice. Not ridiculously descriptive, but more descriptive than I’d prefer. 70% of the book was very chaste and then just the last section got a little spicy.
This was pretty cute. I enjoyed all the characters - and there were quite a few. I also liked writing style - how there weren’t really strict delineations between points of view. It just kind of roved between whichever head seemed relevant. Which sounds weird, I know, but it worked somehow. I would read this author again.
This is a continuation of a series about an animal rescue shelter, which is such a cute topic. We adopted our cat Felix from a shelter and he’s the best (swipe to see his cute face)! I highly recommend adopting a pet if you are able. They make great family members! 🐶🐱
Spice level: high PG-13 🌶🌶
A couple scenes of medium spice. Not ridiculously descriptive, but more descriptive than I’d prefer. 70% of the book was very chaste and then just the last section got a little spicy.
October 18, 2022
I really enjoyed this romance. I bought this special edition at a local store and I voluntarily chose to review this. I've given this a 4.5* rating. This is a second chance for her and is wrapped around rescue dogs and horses. There is a lot to enjoy with this story.
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March 1, 2022Animal Fiction, Contemporary Romance
Miniseries
Furever Yours (Book #8)
Miniseries
Furever Yours (Book #8)
September 19, 2022
The book was really good until it got to the end. The whole dating/breakup/dating was pretty pointless and just dragged on for too long, ruining the ending of the book
July 23, 2023
Well written installment in this series, I enjoyed reading a romance with an over 40 female lead.
May 30, 2026
Had this book on my shelf for a while. I needed a quick one off story. Its nice the usual formula harlequin story writers tend to do. Its a nice clean story if you just want a quick romance novel.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews