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#Review of The Fixer Upper (Echo Springs #1) by Maggie Mae Gallagher w/a rafflecopter giveaway! #contemporaryromance @magmaegallagher

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Maggie Mae Gallagher will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

 

Abby Callier is more in love with Shakespearean heroes than any real man, and she’s beginning to wonder if there is life for her outside the pages of a book. It doesn’t help that her esteemed parents tend to view her as they would one of their science experiments gone wrong. On the eve of finishing her dissertation, she escapes her staid existence to live in the house she inherited from her Great Aunt Evie in the small town of Echo Springs, Colorado. Because, let’s face it, when a woman starts comparing her life to horror films, it might be time for a break.

Sheriff Nate Barnes believes in law and order and carefully building the life you want. In his spare time, he has been remodeling his house in the hope that one day it will be filled with the family he makes. But Nate doesn’t like drama or complications and tends to avoid them at all costs. And yet, when Miss Abigail Callier, his newest neighbor, beans him with a nine iron, he can’t help but wonder if she might just be the complication he’s been searching for all along. It doesn’t hurt that he discovers a journal hidden away by the previous tenant and decides to use Old Man Turner’s advice to romance Abby into his life.

Abby never expected her next-door neighbor, the newly dubbed Sheriff Stud Muffin, to be just the distraction her world needed. The problem is she doesn’t know whether she should make Echo Springs her home, or if this town is just a stopover point in her life’s trajectory. And she doesn’t want to tell Nate that she might not be sticking around—even though she should because it’s the right thing to do, the honest thing—because then all the scintillatingly hot kisses with the Sheriff will come to an abrupt halt. Did she mention that he’s a really great kisser?

Read an Excerpt

“Stocking up a bit?” Nate asked as they set the cooler down next to the deepfreeze.

Abby shrugged, flipping the lid up to reveal packages of steaks, chicken breasts, pork chops, ground beef, bacon, sausage, turkey. Staring at the mountain of meat, she had to admit she was a little obsessive when it came to being prepared. “Well, I did some research before accepting the position at Echo Springs Community College, and it said that roads can be impassible during the winter.”

“They can, but we do try to stay on top of road clearing. When it snows, the skiers come out in full force and head into the mountain resorts. All those travelers are the life-blood of this town, as they stop at the gas stations, restaurants, and shops. Without that, this town would go belly up in a New York minute. When the snows hit, the Styman boys stop working the appliance store and clear the streets, along with a few more of the locals. They work together to keep the city’s roads as clear as possible.”

“Good to know. But we aren’t in the city.” Which was something that wasn’t lost on her.

“No, we’re not. It can get a bit dicey out here. I tend to stay in town more and sleep at the station, but it’s good that you’re stocking up. Make sure you’ve got yourself some long underwear and some firewood.”

She blushed at the underwear comment and wanted to kick herself. What are you, a teenager? Just because Sheriff Stud Muffin’s topic made her wonder whether he was a boxers or briefs kind of man, and that she’d love to find out which he preferred, was no reason for Abby to act like an unschooled virgin.

Wait a second… “Firewood? Why would I need firewood?”

It wasn’t something she had considered she would even need. Where did she get some? Would she have to cut the wood herself? Abby could see herself trying to heft an ax to chop wood. Coordination was not her strong suit. More likely than not, she’d end up hacking the wood to bits, all while taking off a few of her limbs. It wouldn’t be pretty. Besides, knowing her, she’d leave the ax outside for the psycho killer to find and use to attack her in her home. She could imagine the headline:

Evie Callier’s great-niece hacked to death because she didn’t listen to her parents. Murder weapon apparently belonged to the victim, army of dolls suspected, news at eleven.

Jesus, she needed to get a grip.

Nate regarded her, his modest expression calling her a hundred times a fool for not being better prepared for life in the mountains, and said, “In case you lose power during a storm. It can get mighty cold up in these hills, especially when we are being pummeled with blizzard conditions. It doesn’t happen all the time, but in these older homes, power can get knocked out and be out for days.”

“What about a backup generator? Would that suffice?” Because if so, she’d turn right back around and head back to Gundry’s Bulk Superstore for one. The thought of being without power during a blizzard chilled her, and for a millisecond, she considered hightailing it back East. Until she remembered that back East would mean having to deal with her parents’ disapproval nearly twenty-four seven. She’d already visited that amusement park fun house, thank you very much, and didn’t want to return.

“Yes and no. Most are gas-operated, although there are newer models that are solar but come with a heftier price tag, and if you run out of fuel…”

“You run out of electricity. Does anyone sell firewood in town?” She’d start looking tonight online for a backup generator. The thought of having only a fireplace for warmth made her shudder involuntarily. With her luck, that would be when all the creepy dolls decided to rise up en masse and strike.

“Check with Styman’s. I’m not sure what their stock is this time of year, but if you’d like some help, I’d be happy to get you started.”

She unloaded the last of the meat into the freezer, and shut the lid. “That would be nice, if it’s not too much trouble. Thank you.”

“It’s no problem at all. After you.” He gestured at the wooden stairs.

Nate trailed her up the steps; she could feel his gaze boring into her back as they entered the kitchen. Abby restrained from fanning her face at the jolt of heat that hummed in her system whenever he was near.

This couple is in my top 10 all-time couples.  Yes, top 10.  Jordan and Noah (Shadow Dance-Julie Garwood), Eve and Roarke, Jack and Cathy Ryan (Tom Clancy), Wolf MacKenzie/Mary Elizabeth (MacKenzie’s Mountain-Linda Howard), Drea/Simon (Death Angel by Linda Howard), Jaine/Sam (Mr. Perfect by Linda Howard), Raine/Zack (Sizzle & Burn-Jayne Ann Krentz) and Fallon/Isabella (In To Deep, Linda Howard) and now Abby and Nate.  As you can tell, my favorite couples are from older books and I’m proud of that.  I read a lot of books and let me tell you, I fall in and out of love with couples, but the list above and now Abby and Nate have stayed with me and have captured a piece of my heart that I can never get back.

I’ve enjoyed read Ms. Gallagher under her erotic name so when I was approached to read the first book in a new series under her contemporary name, I jumped on board.  There is something about this book that just resounded with me.  I connected with Abby on a scale that I haven’t done in a long time.  I completely understood why she decided to rebel against her parents.  Families can be tricky and I have a weird relationship with my own mother, so I can see why she was so close to her Great Aunt Evie.  She accepted Abby for who and what she was as a person.  She encouraged her to break free and to let her know that it was okay to do that.  I had a grandmother like Great Aunt Evie.  I miss her still.

Nate is a trip.  Literally a trip.  And Rufus, his dog.  Oh my…the scene where everyone is spooning every one.  I giggled out loud at the pool.  There were so many parts of this book that had me giggling.  Nate and Abby were born to be a couple.  Both had their flaws but they complimented each other, too.  Abby at a crossroads when it came to the rest of her life and Nate finally realizing what was missing from his.  Will they make it?  You need to read it and find out.

The secondary characters are top-notch.  We get to know Evie and Old Man Turner through his journal and it was beautiful, if not heartbreaking at times.  I loved how Ms. Gallagher weaved their romance into Abby and Nate’s.  It made their relationship that much richer and truer.  In fact, I believe in the Fates and they were meant to be together.  I think that’s why Evie willed her house to Abby in the first place.

Nate’s friends are a hoot.  I can’t wait to read their stories.  And the girls that were in the book are the perfect matches for these guys.  Oh yes, Abby’s new friends take no prisoners when it comes to men.  They don’t put up with a lot and give Abby some great advice when it comes to Nate.  I can’t wait to see how it all plays out in Echo Springs.  There is so much more to that town then what I’ve only read.  The break-ins were spot on and when the culprit is caught, I wasn’t shocked.  I kinda figured it out but it still stung.

Ms. Gallagher has written one couple that I’m proud to say is in my top 10.  Does that mean that I didn’t like all the other couples that I have read?  Absolutely not.  On an elemental level, I just connected with Abby and Nate.  Their relationship is funny, sexy, emotional and just spot on realistic.  Plus, the dolls.  Yes, I would be creeped out, too.  She has got to get rid of them.  Yikes!

About the Author:

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Maggie grew up listening to Cardinals baseball and reading anything she could get her hands on. She remembers her mother saying if only she would read the right type of books instead binging her way through the romance aisles at the bookstore, she’d have been a doctor. While Maggie never did get that doctorate, she graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with an M.A. in History.

Maggie is a bestselling and award-winning author published in multiple fiction genres. She also writes erotic romance under the name Anya Summers. A total geek at her core, when she is not writing, she adores attending the latest comic con or spending time with her family. She currently lives in the Midwest with her two furry felines.

Visit her website here: http://www.maggiemaegallagher.com

Visit her on social media here:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MagMaeGallagher/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/magmaegallagher
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7846308.Maggie_Mae_Gallagher
Twitter: https://twitter.com/magmaegallagher
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/maggiegallagher
BookBub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maggie-mae-gallagher

Don’t miss these exciting titles by Maggie Mae Gallagher!

The Mystic Series

REMEMBER ME: https://amzn.to/2GuwEpY
CASKET GIRL: https://amzn.to/2Dmw9MD

The Cantati Chronicles

RUPTURED: https://amzn.to/2GueJ2L
ANOINTED: https://amzn.to/2Gu0Xgm
ASCENDED: https://amzn.to/2VRGSpz

And if you like your romance with a bit of spice and kink be sure to check out Maggie Mae Gallagher writing as Anya Summers on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/Anya-Summers/e/B01EGTVRKC/

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8 thoughts on “#Review of The Fixer Upper (Echo Springs #1) by Maggie Mae Gallagher w/a rafflecopter giveaway! #contemporaryromance @magmaegallagher

  1. Thanks for the review!!! I’ve been telling myself that I wanted to read this story. I am now definitely adding it to my reading list.

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