Nora Roberts Land: A Dare Valley Novel (Dare Valley Series)

I bought this book a long time ago. The title intrigued me and I fully intended to read it at the time, but ARCs and work and life got in the way and before I knew it, it was buried in the back pages of my Kindle and I sort of forgot it was there. I recently stumbled upon it again during a clean-up of more than 200 e-books and decided it had sat, neglected, for long enough so I opened it up and started reading. Am I ever glad I did. As the title and the book's dedication suggests, Nora Roberts Land is a loving tribute to one of the most well-known and prolific authors in the romance genre today. The heroine is a life-long Nora Roberts junkie who admits that prior to her divorce she'd read pretty much everything Roberts and her alter-ego J.D. Robb ever published - and then, her x-husband informed her, in the midst of their divorce that Roberts, and her novels' steadfast belief in smart, sassy heroines, strong, honourable heroes and happily ever-after endings was what was wrong with their marriages because it didn't exist in real life. Now divorced and determined to rebuild her life and her self-confidence, Meredith Hale sets out to prove him wrong. What follows is a novel that I'm sure must have pleased Roberts immensely. Ava Miles pulls out every one of the book themes that Roberts and contemporary romance writers go back to over and over again. It's a divorcee looking for love story, a family dynasty story, an investigative reporter story with a couple of suspicious deaths and some pretty nasty characters to investigate, a political intrigue story and a small town romance that proves you CAN go home again. There even good cops and bad cops and an armed forces in Afghanistan subplot for those of you who like that kind of thing. With all of that, Nora Roberts Land ran the risk of being contrived and "over the top". It's not. Instead, it's a sweet, sassy, funny, intriguing and sometimes a little frightening, in the way good suspense stories should be. The growing attraction between Meredith and Turner produces loads of tension and eventually some very hot love scenes but they are tasteful and never gratuitous. When all is said and done, Nora Roberts Land is a classic contemporary romance and one that should have a spot on the shelf of every romance reader. Ava Miles may have taken her inspiration from Roberts, but she's produced a novel can proudly take its place beside the best of the contemporary romance genre.

As many have commented, I think that this is best enjoyed by those who have read a lot of Nora Roberts and at least are familiar with Roarke and Eve of the In Death series. There are so many inside references that really help explain the mindset of the main character. Fun story, good characters, appropriately evil bad guys, and sassy gal pals, not to mention the hot, too-good-to-be-believed main man... all typical of a good Roberts romp. I plan to check out the rest of the series and other books she may write. Why not five stars? Simply because I try to save those for truly outstanding works. I don't understand the reviewers complaints that it wasn't by Nora.. that is clear from the author's name. I know that it is too easy to buy online and be surprised by what you get, but that is not the author's fault and it seems unfair to dock stars for that reason. I also have issues with the complaints and reduction of stars from those who were offended by the language and sex scenes. It is important to remember that NR has written in several different styles: 1) the very light romances made famous by Harlequin; 2) her romantic suspense books with the oxymoron titles (Carnal Innocence, Honest Betrayal, etc.) and other similar, darker, tales; 3) the"sagas", usually a trilogy, such as the Quinn brothers and, 4) the J.D.Robb series. Each has a unique style and feel. I think those reviewers have probably not delved into Nora's "darker" side. The language, descriptions of physical reactions to one another and general steadiness don't come close to those in the Eve & Roarke adventures! I look forward to the rest of the series. As prolific as Ms. Roberts is, I grow impatient waiting for new releases. This new series and author should help me press the time till a new release! And what a great title!

WOW! WOW! WOW! I am also a major fan of all of Nora Roberts books, as well as her J.D. Rob series, so when I heard that Ava Miles had her stamp of approval on this book, I knew I had to check this book out. I was however; amazed by how good this book turned out. I will admit that it far out exceded all my expectations by a mile, and then some. I could clearly see that this book was well researched, and well written. There was no spelling or grammatical errors in this book, at least none that I found anyway. In fact; this book had a very nice flow to it, making it a very enjoyable read. Now onto this particular book.....Having read almost every book Nora Roberts ever wrote, I could easily relate to all the references about all of the past romantic characters in Nora Roberts books, very well. It actually brought back many happy memories for me. As far as the book itself goes....it had it all: friendship, family, romance, suspense and a little bit of a mystery thrown in there, as well. Having read several of her books in the last month or so, Ava Miles is fast becoming one of my favorite authors. I love her style of writing, and her characters, as well as the premises of all her books, all seem to be so realistic. I loved the slow building love affair between Tanner & Mere, and I also loved all the secondary characters involved in this story....with the exception of Rick-the-dick! Let's just say there was a good reason he earned that nick name. There are so many things going on at the same time during this book, that makes this story one heck of an amazing read. Just to name a few....there's 2 murders, betrayal, romance, and lots of laughter. If you like romance with lots of unexpected twists and turns, then you will love this book.

Nora Roberts Land é o primeiro livro da série Dare Valley de Ava Miles. Country Heaven foi o primeiro livro que li por Ava Miles, e eu me apaixonei completamente por ele. Então, quando eu decidi começar esta série com ela, eu sabia que iria gostar. Se você é um fã de Nora Roberts, você apreciará este livro com suas freqüentes referências aos muitos livros escritos por Nora Roberts e os personagens dentro. Mas se você nunca leu um livro de Nora Roberts, você ainda vai gostar disso. Os personagens de Ava são cheios de vida, complexos e fáceis de relacionar. Seu estilo de escrita é ótimo e fácil de entender. Adorei a configuração do livro, amei os personagens, tanto que fiquei triste e feliz quando o livro acabou.

I had heard great things about this book but read it expecting not to like it.....omg how wrong was I ?!?!? This was a GREAT story. Funny, sexy, full of friendships,family and love. I was thoroughly entertained and impressed, can’t wait to read book 2 and 3. Some real laugh out loud moments, and some heart stopping moments. Loved it. So so so good.

Excellent book great characters and story. Will appeal to many readers for all the best reasons. Would definitely recommend , very Nora Roberts .

I was pleasantly surprised to actually really like this book. It’s definitely a romance, so the sex scenes were a little steamy and other exciting parts weren’t described as well as them. A pretty important character drops dead and you could almost miss reading about their death because it was just so short. In later parts of the book, when the best friend says “oh don’t you know how hurt I’ve been over the death?” And in my head I thought ...”mmm no not really because i barely remember you ever mentioning it affecting you” But I loved the book and it was exciting. The characters were strongly developed and Arthur Hale was my favourite. A fiercely proud grandpa who was married all his life and worked hard to build an extremely successful career. I also loveddd the symbolism that was woven through; it’s always my favourite part of a story. Merediths la Perla lingerie and alter ego were the best because it was so absurd but consistent that it eventually made her relatable and real; especially when she realized for her it was lingerie but for someone else it was a gun. You just needed something as a woman to make you feel strong and powerful, whatever it was. Buttttt Tanner is abusive and so that part of his character should be worked on. When he bullies Meredith and grabs her, it’s abuse and shouldn’t be glorified. It kinda took away from his dreamy image and made him a bit douchey. Overall though; murder, love, lust, betrayal, cheating, divorce, money, blackmail, drugs, crime, and even an avalanche. This book makes for a great weekend read.

I love the way the writer works the suspence in her books gosh loved the book can't wait to read the next series book ..I finished this book in two nights ..fabulous novel and writer