Yes—These Are Your Grandma’s Romances
by Nancy Fraser
GENRE: Historical Romance Anthology (Vintage (1950s)
BLURB:
A time of innocence, and the not so innocent. From “I Love Lucy” and “Willy” to “Private Secretary”, “Father Knows Best” and “Bachelor Father”, television and music from the fifties gave us inspiration. Come take a trip down memory lane with these five vintage reads!
Get your romance on, and make grandma proud!
Ed Loves Marnie ~ 1955 - Can this handsome military man convince the single mother to take another chance at love? Or, will their shared memory put a wall between them?
Willa Thomas, Attorney-in-Love ~ 1956 - Will these co-workers be able to tow the company line and forego a chance at love? Or, will they risk everything for love?
Professor Knows Best ~ 1957 - Will this freaky trip back in time to 1957 give her the answers she seeks? Or, only more confusion? How difficult will she find it to navigate being best friends with the college-age version of her own mother?
His Private Secretary ~ 1958 - Can she run interference between her handsome boss, his needy family, and the scores of women trying to bed him and wed him and still remain unaffected by his many charms?
The Bachelor Father ~ 1959 - Will Nanny #5 be the one to finally ace the job, and coax him out of his shell and back into life? And, will a family vacation to Paris fulfill their wildest dreams?
Excerpt:
Willa Thomas, Attorney-in-Love ~ 1956
The shrill ringing of her bedside phone woke Willa from a deep sleep. Reaching for the receiver, she glanced quickly at the alarm clock. Eight-ten—in the morning, no less.
“Hello?”
“I didn’t wake you, did I?” Aaron’s voice crackled through the phone line, sounding not only wide awake but as if he’d never slept late on a weekend morning in his life.
“Well—” she began, only to be interrupted by Aaron’s enthusiasm.
“I had a thought.”
A thought. Who actually had thoughts at eight on a Sunday morning? “About what?” she asked.“
Mostly about Herschel Williams. Between Julie Jamison’s press agent, her manager, and what she’s told us herself, we have a clear picture of our client. But no matter how often we brought up Mr. Williams, they avoided answering other than to say, he was a ‘nice man.’ We need to dig into the husband’s background.”
Willa pushed herself to a sitting position, dangling her feet off her huge four-poster bed, and swept her hair from her face.
“Agreed. But other than portraying him as Julie Jamison’s latest male acquisition, there’s been very little press on the victim. Not even after his death.”
“That’s where my good friend Darrin comes in,” he explained, excitement evident in his tone.
Willa frowned. “Darrin?”
“He’s a private investigator. I say we hire him to dig into Herschel Williams’ background and see if there are any skeletons in his closet. He should be able to tell us what Miss Jamison and the others are keeping from us.”
Willa gave his suggestion a second thought. She’d never been a fan of using outside investigators. However, if Aaron trusted him, what harm could it do? “Okay, that sounds logical.”
“I thought I’d pick up something for breakfast and come over to your place? I can be there in an hour. We can put together all our notes and I’ll drop them off at Darrin’s house afterward.”
“Today? Now?” Although she believed herself to be a quick thinker, Aaron’s brisk decisiveness caught her off guard.
“Oh, I’m sorry. You probably had plans.”
Willa noted the unmistakable halt in his voice. She could almost see him putting the brakes on his thoughts, stilling his enthusiasm.
“No, not really. It’s just that—”
“Good. What kind of pastries do you like? Never mind. I’ll get an assortment.”
So much for the brakes. The whirlwind that was Aaron was back up and racing. After they said their goodbyes, Willa set the receiver in its cradle and rolled out of bed.
An hour. Barely enough time for a shower and makeup. How in heaven’s name would she ever tame her unruly hair into an acceptable style in less than an hour? Sparing one quick glance in the mirror, she took a swipe at the mass of bright red curls hanging haphazardly around her face and grimaced. She prided herself on her neat, business-like appearance. Yet, here she was a full-grown woman, controlled by something as silly as a head of hair.
As much as she grumbled, she knew she’d never get it cut. As unruly and troublesome as her long hair could be, she’d feel half naked with one of those short, pixie cuts so often touted in the advertisements.
The doorbell rang forty-five minutes later, catching Willa by surprise. Showered, dressed in casual black slacks and a soft grey silk blouse, she’d not even attempted makeup and her hair still hung in curly disarray around her face.
The doorbell rang again and Willa spared one last glance at herself in the mirror. “Okay, Aaron Baker,” she said in resignation, “you’re about to see me at my worst.” The thought of being seen as less than her usual perfect self should have been more worrisome than it was. Maybe she felt more comfortable with Aaron than she realized.
If she hadn’t known better, she could swear her reflection was laughing at her.
My Review:
Willa Thomas, Attorney-in-Love ~ 1956
Willa and Aaron are both co-workers in the same firm. They are working on a case where their client has been accused of murdering her husband.
Willa is becoming very attractive to Aaron as he is her but it goes against the rules of their firm. Working together and having a relationship is frowned upon at their firm.
Willa tries so very hard not to fall for Aaron but will she be able to stop what the heart wants? Aaron is having the same feelings for Willa as well. Both are trying very hard not to let the other see how they feel about each other.
Will Willa and Aaron be able to keep their feelings a secret from their selves as well as others for the sake of their jobs? Can they hide their feelings long enough to prove their client innocent or guilty?
Willa Thomas, Attorney-in-Love ~ 1956 follows Willa and Aaron as they try to prove their clients innocent. Willa Thomas, Attorney-in-Love ~ 1956 holds its secrets close keeping the reader in suspense from the very beginning. It had me racing to the end so I could find out if their client was guilty or innocent as it kept me guessing the whole way.
I would recommend Yes--These Are Your Grandma's Romances to anyone who loves a good romance. Be sure and check out the rest of the stories as well. I sure plan to. One-click your copy of Yes--These Are Your Grandma's Romances today for a great romance!
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
NANCY FRASER—Jumping Across Romance Genres with Gleeful Abandon—is an Amazon Top 100 and Award-Winning author who can’t seem to decide which romance genre suits her best. So, she writes them all.
Like most authors, Nancy began writing at an early age, usually on the walls and with crayons or, heaven forbid, permanent markers. Her love of writing often made her the English teacher’s pet which, of course, resulted in a whole lot of teasing. Still, it was worth it.
Nancy has published over thirty-five books in full-length, novella, and short format.
When not writing (which is almost never), Nancy dotes on her five wonderful grandchildren and looks forward to traveling and reading when time permits. Nancy lives in Atlantic Canada where she enjoys the relaxed pace and colorful people.
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The book is on sale for $0.99 during the tour.
Book Links:
4 comments:
Thanks for hosting!
Thank you for hosting this stop on the tour and for taking the time to read and review Willa's story. I'll be sure to check back later for comments.
This looks fun! Love the puzzle!
Thanks for another wonderful excerpt!
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