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Riverside Inn #1
Forever Again
A sweet romance about a second chance at love...
As teenagers, Gena Taylor and Travis Ryan were forced into a marriage neither wanted, the price they paid after one night of passion. But what he believed to be a lie forced Travis to walk out of her life shortly thereafter, crushing Gena's dreams of a happily ever after with the boy she loved. Now it’s fifteen years later and Travis is back. Only now, Gena owns the inn he's considering for his upcoming wedding.
Despite their resolve to keep things impersonal, the past comes rushing back and feelings Gena thought long dead rise from the ashes. But there are other lives at stake now, including that of the child Travis once thought was a lie.
As teenagers, Gena Taylor and Travis Ryan were forced into a marriage neither wanted, the price they paid after one night of passion. But what he believed to be a lie forced Travis to walk out of her life shortly thereafter, crushing Gena's dreams of a happily ever after with the boy she loved. Now it’s fifteen years later and Travis is back. Only now, Gena owns the inn he's considering for his upcoming wedding.
Despite their resolve to keep things impersonal, the past comes rushing back and feelings Gena thought long dead rise from the ashes. But there are other lives at stake now, including that of the child Travis once thought was a lie.
190 pages, Paperback
First published January 3, 2006
128 people are currently reading
644 people want to read
About the author
Shannon Stacey
145 books2,640 followersNew York Times and USA Today bestselling author Shannon Stacey lives with her husband and two sons in New England, where her favorite activities are writing romance and really random tweets when she’s not riding her ATV. She loves mud, books, football & watching way too much TV.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
May 14, 2025
2.25*
What a lousy guy. Add stupid, insensitive and inconsistent to it.
Always, it's someone else's fault and never his (or mostly the h's) - whether he dumps his young wife or cheats on his fiancée. Of course, with the present situation - an ex-wife's sudden reappearance, a newly discovered teenage daughter and a haughty high maintenance fiancee - it cannot be neat or easy for the guy.
But it's clear he wants his cake and to eat it too.
What a lousy guy. Add stupid, insensitive and inconsistent to it.
Always, it's someone else's fault and never his (or mostly the h's) - whether he dumps his young wife or cheats on his fiancée. Of course, with the present situation - an ex-wife's sudden reappearance, a newly discovered teenage daughter and a haughty high maintenance fiancee - it cannot be neat or easy for the guy.
But it's clear he wants his cake and to eat it too.
January 17, 2012
I NEVER ever give an author 1 star and i'm sorry Ms, Stacey, but this story was AWFUL! Travis was an asshole who could not make up his mind; he left Gena because he thought she had tricked him into marrying him (when in reality she was still pregnant and had only been spotting) and then 15 years later when he came back to get married at the B & B that Gena ran, he blamed everything on her. He couldn't decide if he wanted Gena or Kristen (the woman that he was supposed to marry), and Gena was just a spineless woman who should have told Travis to go to hell and stay there! ARGH!!! I still love Ms Stacey's writing; if you are interested in reading her books, DO NOT PICK THIS ONE UP!! My advice is to read her Kowalski's series. They are definitely 5 star reads!
October 31, 2024
🗡️🔪Don’t do me any favours, arshole:
“The years had been very kind to her—there was no doubt about that. Fifteen years ago she had been homely and shy, with no real future prospects. No doubt faking a pregnancy to catch herself a husband who did have prospects had seemed like a good idea at the time.
She’d have no trouble now. His ex-wife [the h] would turn any man’s head. She had thinned out a little over the years, and while she wasn’t nearly as lean as Kristen [the ow], her generous curves gave her a voluptuous appeal. Her simple white blouse and cotton twill pants suited her, showing off hips slightly widened by approaching middle age.
[APPROACHING MIDDLE AGE? APPROACHING MIDDLE AGE???? SHE’S IN HER THIRTIES, FOR GOD’S SAKE!]
Gone were the sloppy ponytails, replaced by a thick, glossy braid. Without the braces and teenaged acne, her face had matured into that of a beautiful woman.”
“Just being honest. You were too shy, and to tell you the truth, you weren’t much to look at…then.”
* severe case of unrequited love by the h
* severe case of “wth are you to even look at me, you troll” H
* severe case of body betraying syndrome: literally her throughout the book:
“She knew she was staring—maybe even ogling—but couldn’t tear her eyes away from him.”
* severe case of push/pull mixed messages/ leading her on then rejecting her. This shithead is giving me whiplash:
“You don’t want to hurt Kristen, and you don’t want to hurt Mia. How come you have never once cared if you hurt me?”….. He looked confused and she got the impression he’d never really thought about it. That infuriated her….. “Of the three women in your life right now, I seem to be the only one you don’t care about hurting—……and I’m the one who has loved you the longest.”
NTS: ‼️POSSIBLE SPOILERS‼️
Travis - hero/asshole
Mia - Hxh daughter
Gena - heroine
Gena and Mia:
“Travis and I got married because I was pregnant with you.”
“We had sex one time, and I got pregnant. Our parents pressured us to get married. So we did.
“About two weeks later he found a pair of my panties in the laundry. I’d had some spotting,”
“jumped to the conclusion that I was having my period, and that I faked the pregnancy to make him marry me. He threw the panties on the table and walked out. Today was the first day I’ve seen him since.”
“Why didn’t you tell him he was wrong? Why did you just let him leave?”
“you wouldn’t be any better off being raised by two parents who were so miserable.”
“You could have gotten divorced and I could have lived with you and visited him on weekends and holidays like all the other kids do. ”
“I was just a kid and I did what I thought was right.”
“You haven’t been a kid for a long time and you could have told me. You just didn’t want to share, so I lost my dad.”
Asshole:
“She was the last person he ever thought he’d sit at a dining room table and have a conversation with. Once he relaxed he had actually enjoyed her company for a few minutes.
And that disgusted him. She had almost ruined his life and there was no way he would forgive her for that just because he felt comfortable in her dining room—fifteen years later or not. ”
50%:
“It’s not fair to marry Kristen while I have these…thoughts about you. But I will marry her, because I love her—and whatever I feel for you, it’s not that. It’s just some kind of mixed up attraction—maybe because you’re the mother of my child. I don’t know.”
85%:
“He looped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him, resting his chin on her head. Several of his tears fell to rest on her hair. “I’m going to miss you, Kristen. I’ve loved you for a long time. And I have loved you.”
“The years had been very kind to her—there was no doubt about that. Fifteen years ago she had been homely and shy, with no real future prospects. No doubt faking a pregnancy to catch herself a husband who did have prospects had seemed like a good idea at the time.
She’d have no trouble now. His ex-wife [the h] would turn any man’s head. She had thinned out a little over the years, and while she wasn’t nearly as lean as Kristen [the ow], her generous curves gave her a voluptuous appeal. Her simple white blouse and cotton twill pants suited her, showing off hips slightly widened by approaching middle age.
[APPROACHING MIDDLE AGE? APPROACHING MIDDLE AGE???? SHE’S IN HER THIRTIES, FOR GOD’S SAKE!]
Gone were the sloppy ponytails, replaced by a thick, glossy braid. Without the braces and teenaged acne, her face had matured into that of a beautiful woman.”
“Just being honest. You were too shy, and to tell you the truth, you weren’t much to look at…then.”
* severe case of unrequited love by the h
* severe case of “wth are you to even look at me, you troll” H
* severe case of body betraying syndrome: literally her throughout the book:
“She knew she was staring—maybe even ogling—but couldn’t tear her eyes away from him.”
* severe case of push/pull mixed messages/ leading her on then rejecting her. This shithead is giving me whiplash:
“You don’t want to hurt Kristen, and you don’t want to hurt Mia. How come you have never once cared if you hurt me?”….. He looked confused and she got the impression he’d never really thought about it. That infuriated her….. “Of the three women in your life right now, I seem to be the only one you don’t care about hurting—……and I’m the one who has loved you the longest.”
NTS: ‼️POSSIBLE SPOILERS‼️
Travis - hero/asshole
Mia - Hxh daughter
Gena - heroine
Gena and Mia:
“Travis and I got married because I was pregnant with you.”
“We had sex one time, and I got pregnant. Our parents pressured us to get married. So we did.
“About two weeks later he found a pair of my panties in the laundry. I’d had some spotting,”
“jumped to the conclusion that I was having my period, and that I faked the pregnancy to make him marry me. He threw the panties on the table and walked out. Today was the first day I’ve seen him since.”
“Why didn’t you tell him he was wrong? Why did you just let him leave?”
“you wouldn’t be any better off being raised by two parents who were so miserable.”
“You could have gotten divorced and I could have lived with you and visited him on weekends and holidays like all the other kids do. ”
“I was just a kid and I did what I thought was right.”
“You haven’t been a kid for a long time and you could have told me. You just didn’t want to share, so I lost my dad.”
Asshole:
“She was the last person he ever thought he’d sit at a dining room table and have a conversation with. Once he relaxed he had actually enjoyed her company for a few minutes.
And that disgusted him. She had almost ruined his life and there was no way he would forgive her for that just because he felt comfortable in her dining room—fifteen years later or not. ”
50%:
“It’s not fair to marry Kristen while I have these…thoughts about you. But I will marry her, because I love her—and whatever I feel for you, it’s not that. It’s just some kind of mixed up attraction—maybe because you’re the mother of my child. I don’t know.”
85%:
“He looped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him, resting his chin on her head. Several of his tears fell to rest on her hair. “I’m going to miss you, Kristen. I’ve loved you for a long time. And I have loved you.”
January 7, 2013
The hero is selfish, moronic, stupid ... and nor imagine why the heroine fall in love with him.
June 17, 2011
The story was good but really hated Travis for the way he treated Gena whom he supposedly admits to love till the end i was not convinced he loves Gena from the heart cause through the book he is really concerned is of his finacee's feelings and how she might be hurt but he never thinks for once how his taunts,remarks and mixed signals hurted Gena and gave false hope to his daughter Mia
I really failed to understand how can Gena still love the jerk and there no grovelling at all which i hated the most,he was taken off the hook so easily
this could have been a great story if the dialogues were less crude and Travis could have been shown to have a sensitive bone when it came to Gena and i also think he should have called off the engagement much before but he kept fiancee to his side and kept exploring his still hidden feelings for Gena gave her hopes and crushed so it badly the next minute god in one scene i really wanted to smack him(he kisses Gena but all he says is he just can't do this to his fiancee can;t cheat on her and hurt her feeling,i respect him for this least he had this decency left but i was really mad at him cause not even for one moment he considered Gena's feelings how he keeps hurting her)
Mia is great girl wanted her family together and her bonding with Travis and Gena is good to read
The HEA is really hard to digest for me given the fact almost till the end Travis is all concerned for fiance's feelings and everything changes in last 10 pages he calls off his engagement,goes to Gena with flowers and he is accepted back by her,it was rushed and i was left disappointed by the end
Okay read
I really failed to understand how can Gena still love the jerk and there no grovelling at all which i hated the most,he was taken off the hook so easily
this could have been a great story if the dialogues were less crude and Travis could have been shown to have a sensitive bone when it came to Gena and i also think he should have called off the engagement much before but he kept fiancee to his side and kept exploring his still hidden feelings for Gena gave her hopes and crushed so it badly the next minute god in one scene i really wanted to smack him(he kisses Gena but all he says is he just can't do this to his fiancee can;t cheat on her and hurt her feeling,i respect him for this least he had this decency left but i was really mad at him cause not even for one moment he considered Gena's feelings how he keeps hurting her)
Mia is great girl wanted her family together and her bonding with Travis and Gena is good to read
The HEA is really hard to digest for me given the fact almost till the end Travis is all concerned for fiance's feelings and everything changes in last 10 pages he calls off his engagement,goes to Gena with flowers and he is accepted back by her,it was rushed and i was left disappointed by the end
Okay read
June 16, 2019
It is described as a sweet romance but I don't class it as that.
The Hero hurts the heroine and is cruel with his accusations and taunts. That's not sweet. It is a second chance though.
He's engaged but kissing his ex wife.
More redemption was needed.
The Hero hurts the heroine and is cruel with his accusations and taunts. That's not sweet. It is a second chance though.
He's engaged but kissing his ex wife.
More redemption was needed.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 16, 2017
This story had potential. The heroine kept day dreaming of the hero falling in love with her and her 15 yr old daughter was just not a teenager. The hero didnt have any proper reason the fall in love with the heroine so it was more like lust & forbidden attraction. What i really liked was the portrayal of the other women. In this case the H's fiance.
2.5 Stars
2.5 Stars
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 15, 2015
Hmmmm? I wonder.......Was this a Mills & Boon? I know how M&B like to carry out stealth attacks on members of the unsuspecting public when they're not looking, usually under the guise of one of their other imprints....
I mean, honestly - where should I start? Stacey's writing portrays a depth and emotion that bring her characters to life, so that's good, ( she deserved a second star for that) but bad when the main characters are such horrors to beginning with.
Forget the fact that Travis is an utter jackass, forget the fact that Gena is a pathetic, rather stunted woman who needs to outgrow her high school fantasies forget the fact that Jackass is engaged to someone else until the bitter end of this book, all that stuff is kinda irrelevant because the premise of this novel is just plain daft. And I understand that reading is escaping reality blah, blah, blah, but if I wanted to go that far into the twilight zone I'd picked a Sci-FI/Fantasy book from my TBR.
Jackass spent 3/4 of the book saying he hated Gena, told himself that he only wanted her to scratch an itch, told Gena he had no feelings for her other than wanting to sleep with her. And during this 3/4 of the book, he worried about hurting his fiancee with his lust for Gena, but he never once thought of how Gena might be feeling. When our lovely doormat Gena pointed this out, Jackass was surprised that he should even think such a thing... then just carried merrily on hurting her; touching and lusting even when she tried to maintain a distance for her sanity. And her sanity is questionable in the first place - in love with a guy who treats you as kaka beneath his feet? Right, like that is believable.
Then, in the last 3 pages of the novel (Ok, I'm exaggerating there) Jackass comes back, brings a ring, tells Gena he loves her and she falls at his feet and they have an HEA. This is one book where a realistic ending would have been for the heroine to kick the hero to the curb and tell 'em to sling 'is hook, because their actions throughout the novel makes the inevitable HEA unlikely, without both of them suffering from a disassociative personality disorder.
I mean, honestly - where should I start? Stacey's writing portrays a depth and emotion that bring her characters to life, so that's good, ( she deserved a second star for that) but bad when the main characters are such horrors to beginning with.
Forget the fact that Travis is an utter jackass, forget the fact that Gena is a pathetic, rather stunted woman who needs to outgrow her high school fantasies forget the fact that Jackass is engaged to someone else until the bitter end of this book, all that stuff is kinda irrelevant because the premise of this novel is just plain daft. And I understand that reading is escaping reality blah, blah, blah, but if I wanted to go that far into the twilight zone I'd picked a Sci-FI/Fantasy book from my TBR.
Jackass spent 3/4 of the book saying he hated Gena, told himself that he only wanted her to scratch an itch, told Gena he had no feelings for her other than wanting to sleep with her. And during this 3/4 of the book, he worried about hurting his fiancee with his lust for Gena, but he never once thought of how Gena might be feeling. When our lovely doormat Gena pointed this out, Jackass was surprised that he should even think such a thing... then just carried merrily on hurting her; touching and lusting even when she tried to maintain a distance for her sanity. And her sanity is questionable in the first place - in love with a guy who treats you as kaka beneath his feet? Right, like that is believable.
Then, in the last 3 pages of the novel (Ok, I'm exaggerating there) Jackass comes back, brings a ring, tells Gena he loves her and she falls at his feet and they have an HEA. This is one book where a realistic ending would have been for the heroine to kick the hero to the curb and tell 'em to sling 'is hook, because their actions throughout the novel makes the inevitable HEA unlikely, without both of them suffering from a disassociative personality disorder.
July 1, 2021
Wow what an emotional ride!
Travis is the one of the biggest romance jerks seriously... I hated him so much for the way he treated Gena.
They got married and divorced 15 years ago, he left because he thought she trapped him into marriage by faking a pregnancy just because he saw some spotting and all he wanted to do was swarming into college parties and cheerleaders -_-
And when he found out the truth about his daughter, he continues to blame her because she kept his child from him. Yeah I get it but Travis you are not blameless either.
He finally realizes what an ass he iss half in the story, but the full story up until the last two or three chapters was him hurting Gena, again and again!
Travis has a fiancée, Kristen, who I couldn't hate because she wasn't your typical evil and dishonest other woman. She was just a woman who spents the last 4 years with her man and wanting him to sort out things before their wedding, and didn't want to give up on him that easily.
Knowning he has a fiancée he is not ready to give up, Travis is still acting possessive of Gena. Touching her as if he had the right to, Being jealous, Kissing her... but the worst was how he was always reminding her of his upcoming wedding -_-
At one point Gena even tells him he is concerned about hurting Kristen or their daughter Mia, but he doesn't care about hurting her :'(
I felt bad for Gena, she kept getting her hopes crushed until she finally decided to stop being Travis' emotional punchbag! The 180 she did around the end made me proud, she went from doormat to backboned and that was all I was waiting for...
I had to rate it a 5 because I seriously couldn't put this book down even for lunch or dinner :P
It was so realistic and perfectly written. And Travis managed to redeem himself somehow at the end so Bravo author!
Travis is the one of the biggest romance jerks seriously... I hated him so much for the way he treated Gena.
They got married and divorced 15 years ago, he left because he thought she trapped him into marriage by faking a pregnancy just because he saw some spotting and all he wanted to do was swarming into college parties and cheerleaders -_-
And when he found out the truth about his daughter, he continues to blame her because she kept his child from him. Yeah I get it but Travis you are not blameless either.
He finally realizes what an ass he iss half in the story, but the full story up until the last two or three chapters was him hurting Gena, again and again!
Travis has a fiancée, Kristen, who I couldn't hate because she wasn't your typical evil and dishonest other woman. She was just a woman who spents the last 4 years with her man and wanting him to sort out things before their wedding, and didn't want to give up on him that easily.
Knowning he has a fiancée he is not ready to give up, Travis is still acting possessive of Gena. Touching her as if he had the right to, Being jealous, Kissing her... but the worst was how he was always reminding her of his upcoming wedding -_-
At one point Gena even tells him he is concerned about hurting Kristen or their daughter Mia, but he doesn't care about hurting her :'(
I felt bad for Gena, she kept getting her hopes crushed until she finally decided to stop being Travis' emotional punchbag! The 180 she did around the end made me proud, she went from doormat to backboned and that was all I was waiting for...
I had to rate it a 5 because I seriously couldn't put this book down even for lunch or dinner :P
It was so realistic and perfectly written. And Travis managed to redeem himself somehow at the end so Bravo author!
angsty-pass-for-me
May 26, 2025DNF 50%
I’m just bored out of my fucking mind.
I wish I’d realized this was on my angsty-pass-for-me shelf before I read it.
Note to self…
START BELIEVING THE REVIEWERS YOU TRUST.
I’m just bored out of my fucking mind.
I wish I’d realized this was on my angsty-pass-for-me shelf before I read it.
Note to self…
START BELIEVING THE REVIEWERS YOU TRUST.
Read
June 16, 2019I don't believe a hero has pissed me off so much as Travis. How was it Gena's fault ... he was the one who walked out! Those poor women. I love it because the other woman wasn't caricature evil. This would have been a perfect angsty read if there had been a matching grovel! Gahhhh!
June 9, 2021
This hero is such a freaking loser! Heroine has NO reason to love him since he ignored her all his life but does and has since kindergarten. The hero blames the heroine for EVERYTHING: how he is feeling? What he does? His past choices? His current circumstances? Yup it's that lying bitch's fault. No, sir. It's yours ALL YOURS. Have you ever read about another hero so self absorbed, without any ability for introspection, and lack of awareness for other's feelings? Cause he didn't just treat the heroine like shit since the day he met her up till....probably still does, but his fiancé who he claims to love(dude you've never loved anyone more than yourself), and his daughter with all his flip flopping and mixed messages. I know we had only one scene, but I believe the hero is a narcissist because his mother made him one. Just a theory. Think the heroine could have done better, and there was no solid evidence that she should love him, ever. So for the badness read, but if you want a cute reunion romance SKIP. Wish the author would write an alternative universe, where everything is the same but the heroine has a backbone and see the hero for the entitled judgmental prick he is and to get her he has to admit how awful he was/is and get a personality transplant, since that’s the only way he could ever hope to earn her.
June 25, 2013
I didn't like it, the idea for the story was good, I mean it has been used before. Many times I might add, but with the difference of the marriage when they were younger and then he leaving her, I think if she would have had a little more pride it'd have been better, I mean the guy constantly rejected her and she kept letting him kiss her again, and then crying in front of him, if you are going to let a guy stomp on your feelings like that at least don't let him know how much it hurts over and over. And then when he finally asks her to marry him she tells him no for like a second. And it was especially pathetic when she says she can't avoid falling in love with him now that she knows him better, I mean come on the guy only hurts her, he doesn't do anything to make her fall in love with him. And it wasn't just her, the fiancee didn't seem to have pride either, if a guy lies to you and doesn't tell you he was married and then he tells you he kissed his ex wife you don't just accept it.
At least that is my opinion.
At least that is my opinion.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 26, 2018
Okay, I haven't written a review in a looooooooooong while and I haven't rated anything below a 3 in a log while as well. But I'm doing both for this book.
I've read about this a Facebook group I'm in and it got me interested. I 1-clicked even after seeing the rating and reading just a couple of reviews. I thought this will be something that I'll be in the minority, it's not the first time.
Lo and behold, I was wrong. I really wanted to like this but it just fell short. I felt like had it been longer, the characters and story will have the chance to develop because it was like a rushed Hallmark movie. It has a lot of potential for angst, groveling, and development of the H and h's relationship.
I've read about this a Facebook group I'm in and it got me interested. I 1-clicked even after seeing the rating and reading just a couple of reviews. I thought this will be something that I'll be in the minority, it's not the first time.
Lo and behold, I was wrong. I really wanted to like this but it just fell short. I felt like had it been longer, the characters and story will have the chance to develop because it was like a rushed Hallmark movie. It has a lot of potential for angst, groveling, and development of the H and h's relationship.
June 9, 2024
Travis, get f—ked. Gena, find a shred of self respect.
Plot - high school boy randomly picks up girl walking on the side of the road and convinces her to have sex in his truck, but she’s always loooooved him from afar. She gets pregnant, but she trapped(?) him. Their parents make them marry. He treats her like $hit and finds blood in her underwear, so he bails on her without a word other than to call her a liar, convinced she was never pregnant, divorces her, and doesn’t see her again for 15 years. Surprise, she was still pregnant… but him not knowing she gave birth is *HER* fault. She spends the whole book pining for him and hoping he picks her over his fiancé. Yeah, he’s in a relationship while she begs to get picked. Don’t worry, he does, and without a shred of personal responsibility in all of this. No doubt this clown cheats on her and leaves her a year later.
Plot - high school boy randomly picks up girl walking on the side of the road and convinces her to have sex in his truck, but she’s always loooooved him from afar. She gets pregnant, but she trapped(?) him. Their parents make them marry. He treats her like $hit and finds blood in her underwear, so he bails on her without a word other than to call her a liar, convinced she was never pregnant, divorces her, and doesn’t see her again for 15 years. Surprise, she was still pregnant… but him not knowing she gave birth is *HER* fault. She spends the whole book pining for him and hoping he picks her over his fiancé. Yeah, he’s in a relationship while she begs to get picked. Don’t worry, he does, and without a shred of personal responsibility in all of this. No doubt this clown cheats on her and leaves her a year later.
July 24, 2018
This was just not good. So, she loved him since they were 5, but the first time he talked to her, he's drunk, has sex with her and never calls again. Only to be forced into marrying her, and for the 2 weeks they're married, she cries and he yells at her. He leaves, thinking she lied, and yet thir parents are suddenly ok with them getting divorced when two weeks prior they forced them to get married? Give me a break.
FF 15 years and he shows up, is incredibly cruel to her, and yet she still loves him? Are you kidding me? She doesn't know a thing about him, other than he's a jerk. And come to find, a cheating jerk. And so she cries, and cries some more, and he realizes he loves her, even though she's a pushover and has no self esteem and cries all the frigging time.
So bad.
FF 15 years and he shows up, is incredibly cruel to her, and yet she still loves him? Are you kidding me? She doesn't know a thing about him, other than he's a jerk. And come to find, a cheating jerk. And so she cries, and cries some more, and he realizes he loves her, even though she's a pushover and has no self esteem and cries all the frigging time.
So bad.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 1, 2013
Travis is such a complete jerk. He knew Gena was pregnant. Had the wrong idea about it being faked. Doesn't confirm it. Walks out on her. But it's her fault he doesn't find out he has a daughter till 15 years later? Hello. She never moved from the town they grew up in. I couldn't buy in on him falling for her or why she was in love with him given how he treats her. Can we say psychological abuse?
This appears to be a very early work of the author's and not a good example of her current work, which has much more empathetic characters.
This appears to be a very early work of the author's and not a good example of her current work, which has much more empathetic characters.
January 12, 2023
It was ok, but my main impression is that H just wouldn't accept responsibility for supposedly "not knowing" he had a kid. He walked out on his wife and never spoke to her again. They divorced through lawyers, and he made sure to never speak to her again. But he thinks it's all her fault for him not knowing she was telling the truth about being pregnant. She had never denied being pregnant, but he still blames her on and on and on and tells her how he'll never forgive her for "what she did." Um, excuse me?
August 24, 2025
2⭐️⭐️
In all about unrequited love. This story promised that, with the guy leaving and then coming back with a new fiancée. But it just didn’t work out.
Th le daughter was terribly childish and never supportive of her mother.
The H was a coward, blaming everyone around him. He never went out of his way to grovel, which sucks.
And the h had zero backbone and the times she defended herself, she was gaslighted and always apologized. Those times she deserved better. No one cared.
In all about unrequited love. This story promised that, with the guy leaving and then coming back with a new fiancée. But it just didn’t work out.
Th le daughter was terribly childish and never supportive of her mother.
The H was a coward, blaming everyone around him. He never went out of his way to grovel, which sucks.
And the h had zero backbone and the times she defended herself, she was gaslighted and always apologized. Those times she deserved better. No one cared.
November 7, 2010
The author said everyone thought this hero was an a$$hole, which made me realize I'd never bought and read this book. The writing is as great as it always is for Shannon, but...yeah, the hero's an a$$hole. :) Still an enjoyable read, and I never had the urge to switch to a different book.
December 17, 2015
I forced myself to finish this..agh! Hero is the biggest ahole ever! Literally!! He doesn't take any responsibility, blames everything on heroine, acts like he hates her one minute, loves her the next.. She isa push over too though... Then he is constantly throwing his fiancee in her face. WTF?
April 30, 2012
Read it ages ago and never marked it off. This book was actually really emotional and dealt with a lot of past issues, future issues such as their daughter and the dumping of the fiance. Excellent read.
June 2, 2025
Sweet
This second chance romance got me good. I enjoyed reading the very real
emotions of each character in this book. I didn't much enjoy the cheating aspect, but I can totally understand it and commend the author on the authenticity of the situation. Beautiful read
This second chance romance got me good. I enjoyed reading the very real
emotions of each character in this book. I didn't much enjoy the cheating aspect, but I can totally understand it and commend the author on the authenticity of the situation. Beautiful read
July 7, 2011
I love Shannon Stacey...Her Kowalski's and her Devlin group. This book has so many reviews about the hero being a jerk I have to try it.
September 21, 2022
Cute,albeit predictable second chance Romance.
December 25, 2022
Travis can choke. He pisses me off
March 26, 2024
Never again.
Fifteen years have passed since they last met and it was not good, they were teenager, had sex, he got her pregnant and it was all her fault so the bitch hero was always angry and grumpy. He basically abandoned her the first night and when he thought she wasn’t pregnant he left her and divorced her.
The heroine was pathetic to the point I felt second hand embarrassment all the time, she was the usual loser who pines for someone who doesn’t even see her. Please, don’t. So when he was drunk and frustrated because the chick he liked didn’t give it to him he shagged the at the time quite not attractive heroine and got her preggar. When he left and the heroine was pregnant she never told him she was, since she was quite happy to be ridden of that nasty lil bitch that did the opposite of fairy tales and turned himself into a toad. Worse than that.
So she raise her daughter by herself and when fifteen years later he and his fiancee are back to get married at her b&b she has the shock of her life.
The hero is still a queer lil bitch and is still thinking she almost ruined his life. I wish. When he finds out he really has a daughter he is still angry as the mean lil man he is, honestly this hero is very low in my scale of appealing males, he has nothing for himself. Maybe the looks? But it’s not enough, not enough at all. He decides he will be a father and his fiancee is quite pissed because he will stay at the heroine four days a week for all the summer leave. It turns out he’s really attracted by the heroine and proceeds to repeatedly kiss her and then reject her telling he loves his fiancee, the awful cheater that he is. He also tells his fiancee he is very attracted by the heroine and better stop their marriage plans.
But he still plans to marry her. I wouldn’t have him plated in gold.
The daughter is playing matchmaker and the heroine, pathetic loser that she is, realizes she’s in love with him. I wonder why. He was nasty, mean, immature when she got pregnant and is nasty, mean and dishonest now that he’s what, 35? I just can’t.
He rejects her, tells her he doesn’t want her, that he will marry his fiancee and loves her, but until the 85% of the book. Ah the romanticism.
Eventually he goes back to her when even the fiancee, poor woman, gave up on him and fell out of love with him.
He even tells her that he wish he never went back to his town so he could have married her anyway. Just the kind of things one expects from a romance. In the book he did nothing but being kind to everyone except the heroine. He’s a passive aggressive, he is the first to let people down but blames it all on the heroine. How can anyone love a pathetic human being like him.
Oh, that is not all! Because he lost his chance to become the new football star because apparently it was toooo pressing, read he was not talented enough ahem…, and he became a sport counselor. Really? I just can’t. It’s ludicrous. No at all the book, the only cute character was the daughter, a really scheming teenager who wanted her parents to be a couple. Ow was not nasty, poor woman, she was cheated on after four years with the hero.
Fifteen years have passed since they last met and it was not good, they were teenager, had sex, he got her pregnant and it was all her fault so the bitch hero was always angry and grumpy. He basically abandoned her the first night and when he thought she wasn’t pregnant he left her and divorced her.
The heroine was pathetic to the point I felt second hand embarrassment all the time, she was the usual loser who pines for someone who doesn’t even see her. Please, don’t. So when he was drunk and frustrated because the chick he liked didn’t give it to him he shagged the at the time quite not attractive heroine and got her preggar. When he left and the heroine was pregnant she never told him she was, since she was quite happy to be ridden of that nasty lil bitch that did the opposite of fairy tales and turned himself into a toad. Worse than that.
So she raise her daughter by herself and when fifteen years later he and his fiancee are back to get married at her b&b she has the shock of her life.
The hero is still a queer lil bitch and is still thinking she almost ruined his life. I wish. When he finds out he really has a daughter he is still angry as the mean lil man he is, honestly this hero is very low in my scale of appealing males, he has nothing for himself. Maybe the looks? But it’s not enough, not enough at all. He decides he will be a father and his fiancee is quite pissed because he will stay at the heroine four days a week for all the summer leave. It turns out he’s really attracted by the heroine and proceeds to repeatedly kiss her and then reject her telling he loves his fiancee, the awful cheater that he is. He also tells his fiancee he is very attracted by the heroine and better stop their marriage plans.
But he still plans to marry her. I wouldn’t have him plated in gold.
The daughter is playing matchmaker and the heroine, pathetic loser that she is, realizes she’s in love with him. I wonder why. He was nasty, mean, immature when she got pregnant and is nasty, mean and dishonest now that he’s what, 35? I just can’t.
He rejects her, tells her he doesn’t want her, that he will marry his fiancee and loves her, but until the 85% of the book. Ah the romanticism.
Eventually he goes back to her when even the fiancee, poor woman, gave up on him and fell out of love with him.
He even tells her that he wish he never went back to his town so he could have married her anyway. Just the kind of things one expects from a romance. In the book he did nothing but being kind to everyone except the heroine. He’s a passive aggressive, he is the first to let people down but blames it all on the heroine. How can anyone love a pathetic human being like him.
Oh, that is not all! Because he lost his chance to become the new football star because apparently it was toooo pressing, read he was not talented enough ahem…, and he became a sport counselor. Really? I just can’t. It’s ludicrous. No at all the book, the only cute character was the daughter, a really scheming teenager who wanted her parents to be a couple. Ow was not nasty, poor woman, she was cheated on after four years with the hero.
May 18, 2025
The setup for the story is a great hook for the angst lover, however the execution was lacking. Gena Taylor and Travis Ryan had a shotgun wedding over 15 years ago, only to become divorced 2 weeks later when Travis left in a fit of rage thinking Gena was a liar trying to baby trap him. Well, the joke’s on him because she did in fact have a baby, but Travis never got to find out, until now, when he presents himself at Gena’s inn in their hometown with his new fiancé in tow because she’s considering the inn for their wedding.
My issue with this book was that Travis was a jerk in every way. And I don’t mind jerks, but he was lacking in redeeming qualities. He said really harsh things to Gena and while some of it might be justifiable in the heat of anger, especially upon discovering he had a teenage daughter, he wasn’t exactly charming in the first go around and now that he was older and wiser, he’s still an overgrown man toddler throwing a tantrum. His POV mainly centered around how he couldn’t forgive Gena and yet he was at odds with all of his lustful thoughts about her and couldn’t control himself. This bothered me because he really didn’t seem to notice what kind of person Gena was beyond his caveman behavior that he tried to deny. So I couldn’t see where the substance for a relationship could form with his lack of appreciation for her as a woman rather than someone he wanted to be alone in bed with. As for Gena, I don’t mind females who are perceived as doormats because they have a quiet strength of their own, but the depth of love she felt for him seemed out of proportion to reality. She didn’t actually know him, it was this long time unrequited love or infatuation that she called love and she still kept waiting for crumbs to be thrown her way.
Does Travis have a believable arc in terms of character development? I didn’t think so, or at least I wasn’t convinced by his change of heart. It was lackluster at best and I still thought he hadn’t really matured much in the relationship department but despite so many horrid actions on his behalf, he doesn’t shy away from honesty and that’s at least something. He also did proactively step up to his responsibility as a father. Otherwise, I was indifferent to him getting a happy ending.
My issue with this book was that Travis was a jerk in every way. And I don’t mind jerks, but he was lacking in redeeming qualities. He said really harsh things to Gena and while some of it might be justifiable in the heat of anger, especially upon discovering he had a teenage daughter, he wasn’t exactly charming in the first go around and now that he was older and wiser, he’s still an overgrown man toddler throwing a tantrum. His POV mainly centered around how he couldn’t forgive Gena and yet he was at odds with all of his lustful thoughts about her and couldn’t control himself. This bothered me because he really didn’t seem to notice what kind of person Gena was beyond his caveman behavior that he tried to deny. So I couldn’t see where the substance for a relationship could form with his lack of appreciation for her as a woman rather than someone he wanted to be alone in bed with. As for Gena, I don’t mind females who are perceived as doormats because they have a quiet strength of their own, but the depth of love she felt for him seemed out of proportion to reality. She didn’t actually know him, it was this long time unrequited love or infatuation that she called love and she still kept waiting for crumbs to be thrown her way.
Does Travis have a believable arc in terms of character development? I didn’t think so, or at least I wasn’t convinced by his change of heart. It was lackluster at best and I still thought he hadn’t really matured much in the relationship department but despite so many horrid actions on his behalf, he doesn’t shy away from honesty and that’s at least something. He also did proactively step up to his responsibility as a father. Otherwise, I was indifferent to him getting a happy ending.
October 3, 2025
Don’t recommend
This was actually a really disappointing read… I wish I had read the reviews before purchasing…There was no actual romance and the main portion of the entire plot was that the FL was the villain and got blamed for literally everything. When she wasnt at all. The story follows two teenagers who were forced to get married after a random one night stand and unexpected pregnancy . The marriage lasted less than a month with the ML behaving like a toddler throwing a tantrum and blaming the FL for “ruining his life and baby trapping him”. When he found her stained underwear-she was spotting - he literally put it on their kitchen table and walked out the door. Then had his parents send a divorce decree to her family without one word to her and disappeared. Like he was just looking for a reason to abandon his responsibility… Now 16 years later they coincidentally meet again after she has raised their child and started her own business by her self; he’s now getting married and finds out that she was indeed pregnant with a daughter. Instead of reflecting on his actions and realizing that he was wrong; he triples down on blaming the FL but now she’s “ kept his child away from him and made him miss most of his daughters life” when he was the one who literally walked out without so much as a bye…. On the other hand now, the daughter is accusing the mother of keeping her from her father and blaming her for her “incomplete” life. So the FL is getting blamed and bashed from multiple sides and just sits there crying. - Typical case of a child blaming the parent that stayed instead of the parent that left-
I think that is what really disappointed me with the storyline. The FL was a complete doormat to her daughter and her ex. She never defended herself, let the ML basically jerk her around by the chain and say such cruel things to her unprovoked. But yet in the end, with ZERO resolution to their problems or even an apology from the ML, she agreed to marry him and “they lived happily ever after”. No character development or acknowledgment of anything…Smh this book felt like it was written by either a very bitter man or a pick-me woman. Either way, wouldn’t recommend.
This was actually a really disappointing read… I wish I had read the reviews before purchasing…There was no actual romance and the main portion of the entire plot was that the FL was the villain and got blamed for literally everything. When she wasnt at all. The story follows two teenagers who were forced to get married after a random one night stand and unexpected pregnancy . The marriage lasted less than a month with the ML behaving like a toddler throwing a tantrum and blaming the FL for “ruining his life and baby trapping him”. When he found her stained underwear-she was spotting - he literally put it on their kitchen table and walked out the door. Then had his parents send a divorce decree to her family without one word to her and disappeared. Like he was just looking for a reason to abandon his responsibility… Now 16 years later they coincidentally meet again after she has raised their child and started her own business by her self; he’s now getting married and finds out that she was indeed pregnant with a daughter. Instead of reflecting on his actions and realizing that he was wrong; he triples down on blaming the FL but now she’s “ kept his child away from him and made him miss most of his daughters life” when he was the one who literally walked out without so much as a bye…. On the other hand now, the daughter is accusing the mother of keeping her from her father and blaming her for her “incomplete” life. So the FL is getting blamed and bashed from multiple sides and just sits there crying. - Typical case of a child blaming the parent that stayed instead of the parent that left-
I think that is what really disappointed me with the storyline. The FL was a complete doormat to her daughter and her ex. She never defended herself, let the ML basically jerk her around by the chain and say such cruel things to her unprovoked. But yet in the end, with ZERO resolution to their problems or even an apology from the ML, she agreed to marry him and “they lived happily ever after”. No character development or acknowledgment of anything…Smh this book felt like it was written by either a very bitter man or a pick-me woman. Either way, wouldn’t recommend.
July 28, 2018
Travis Ryan and Gena Taylor. And their daughter Mia Dawn.
I was not a fan of this book. I finished it in about a day, but it was not my cup of tea. I've read reviews that this author has other books that are AMAZING, so I'm not writing her off based on this book alone, and I implore you to consider that as well.
It had so much potential, and I loved the basis of the story. I think there just wasn't enough time to execute the plot line, in a way that could do the characters justice. Not enough time was spent telling the back story to allow the characters and foundation to develop. And the same is true for their present-day emotions.
Travis came off as nothing more than an ass who has no interest in shouldering any blame. And poor Gena somehow got stuck with the emotional mindset of a high school girl who thinks her needs/wants/desires somehow matter less than those around her. I think that could have ended up very differently if they weren't limited to 162 pages.
I wanted to love this story. I just didn't. I wanted them to be hurting apart, and allowed to heal together. In the end, I felt they were selfish and impulsive children, even as adults.
This book, this story, and these characters fully belongs to Ms. Stacey to do with as she likes, and I hope that my review is respectful. I just feel the need to share what would have made this a better read FOR ME.
In my opinion, a longer story, with less "near-cheating experiences", more sexual tension, and mutual respect would have made a world of difference. Being ANGRY is ok, being hurt, pissed off, or resentful are all perfectly normal, but I had a hard time being in his corner when I felt like Travis was constantly using Gena. It made him seem emotionally underdeveloped and narcissistic, and that is not attractive (to me).
I believe in second chances when they're deserved, but mostly I thought he deserved a fat lip.
On the other hand, I did feel a lot while reading this book, so there is that. I felt pissed off. I felt like cussing them both out. I felt sorry for their daughter. I felt some serious stuff, just not what you'd expect from a romance. LOL
I was not a fan of this book. I finished it in about a day, but it was not my cup of tea. I've read reviews that this author has other books that are AMAZING, so I'm not writing her off based on this book alone, and I implore you to consider that as well.
It had so much potential, and I loved the basis of the story. I think there just wasn't enough time to execute the plot line, in a way that could do the characters justice. Not enough time was spent telling the back story to allow the characters and foundation to develop. And the same is true for their present-day emotions.
Travis came off as nothing more than an ass who has no interest in shouldering any blame. And poor Gena somehow got stuck with the emotional mindset of a high school girl who thinks her needs/wants/desires somehow matter less than those around her. I think that could have ended up very differently if they weren't limited to 162 pages.
I wanted to love this story. I just didn't. I wanted them to be hurting apart, and allowed to heal together. In the end, I felt they were selfish and impulsive children, even as adults.
This book, this story, and these characters fully belongs to Ms. Stacey to do with as she likes, and I hope that my review is respectful. I just feel the need to share what would have made this a better read FOR ME.
In my opinion, a longer story, with less "near-cheating experiences", more sexual tension, and mutual respect would have made a world of difference. Being ANGRY is ok, being hurt, pissed off, or resentful are all perfectly normal, but I had a hard time being in his corner when I felt like Travis was constantly using Gena. It made him seem emotionally underdeveloped and narcissistic, and that is not attractive (to me).
I believe in second chances when they're deserved, but mostly I thought he deserved a fat lip.
On the other hand, I did feel a lot while reading this book, so there is that. I felt pissed off. I felt like cussing them both out. I felt sorry for their daughter. I felt some serious stuff, just not what you'd expect from a romance. LOL
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