A Home of Her Own

At least, that is what Lucky Caldwell's mother always said; but Lucky was neither rich nor lucky. Lucky had left Dundee, Idaho six years ago, ready to be free of her mother's bad reputation and the hatred the citizens of Dundee held for her entire family. She comes back to Dundee in an attempt to find her father, the father she has never known. It doesn't take long for her to run into Mike Hill, her teenage crush - and member of the family who hates her the most. She still has a crush on him, but it's hard to love someone who hates you because of who your mother was.

Mike Hill hated Red Caldwell for marrying his grandfather, Morris. He hated it even more than Morris had left the Victorian house and a substantial amount of money to Lucky, Red's daughter. Now Lucky's all grown up, and he can't help but find himself attracted to her. With his parents hating Lucky with all they have, and most of the town backing up the Hills, Mike knows nothing can ever be allowed to develop between them. Now, if only he could convince his heart of that.

I loved Brenda Novak's "A Family of Her Own," and I was hoping that I would love this book just as much. I wasn't disappointed. I really felt for Lucky - she'd been through so much, and she had enough courage to return to a town where nearly everyone hated her just because of who her mother was. I felt so bad for her sometimes, because behind the tough exterior she was a really nice girl - most people just didn't care to know that. I was just rooting for Lucky the entire book, because with all of the hurt she had been through in her short life, she needed a happy ending in the book. Mike was a pretty good character, too, and you definitely see the struggle he goes through, loving Lucky but loving his family as well. This book definitely doesn't do the typical "small towns are pieces of heaven" routine. This small town was vicious, people were hurtful and held on to grudges long after they should have been let go.

The only thing that I didn't like was - you never find out who Lucky's father is! I suppose that is going to be revealed in the next book set in Dundee ("Stranger in Town," coming out in May 2005). With all of the emphasis placed upon Lucky's search for her father, I really think the author should have revealed who he was in this book. Other than that, this was a great emotional romance that really tugged at the heartstrings.

I've only recently started reading Brenda Novak's books, and while "When Lightning Strikes" didn't move me emotionally, I can't say the same about "A Home of Her Own."

While some readers might feel that Lucky Caldwell is unlikable to the extreme, I found it obvious that the hard-nosed, sometimes bitchy persona Lucky attempted to show the town of Dundee was nothing more than a cover up for hurt and sensitivity, brought about by her late mother's tawdry reputation, which was well-deserved. Lucky didn't deserve the town's hateful treatment.

It took a lot of emotional strength to keep me from crying when neighbor Mike Hill found Lucky curled up against the cold at the bottom of her sleeping bag, in an empty house with no working utilities, in a snow storm. My heart went out to her and from there on I was hooked. The love story which followed has been frustrating to say the least, given Mike's inner battle between loving Lucky Caldwell and staying true to his own family, who because of Mike's grandfather Morris's late-in-life marriage to Lucky's mother, Red, and the fact that Morris gave his house to Lucky rather than to Mike as orginally promised, hates and resents Lucky with a passion.

I haven't quite finished this book yet, but have barely been able to put it down, reading it in the middle of the night because I love it so much, and am waiting for the happy ending I hope comes soon. For once, I'm not thumbing through the pages to find the ending I'm looking for ahead of time!

And after I read this book to the end, I'm going to be eager to read "Stranger in Town," which continues the Dundee series.

OH! Was I suprised to find this series by Brenda Novak ! Harlequin were books I really try not to buy many of, but I am so glad I bought these. I come from a small town and I'm not surprised at all by the way Lucky was treated. Many times as I read that story I felt her hurt and pain. Funny she returned to her home town and so did I but many years later than she did. She searched for her father as I did and believe me hers was a lot nicer than mine. In life, mistakes are made but we should be held accountable for our own not our relatives. I have really enjoyed most of this series . some more than others. I read most of Brenda's books and am waiting for her newest to come out in August. Wonderful author.

I have three words for you that best describe this book: Terrific Tear Jerker.

Keep the box of tissues handy, you'll need them when you read A Home of Her Own. The time the author takes to challenge and develop the main characters allows you the chance to really understand them and feel for them. The relationship develops and ultimately heats a white hot fire that combusts and alters everything for both characters.

The heroine is extraordinary, and she has you rooting for her on page one. The story is poignant, and engaging. The hero is the alpha who makes a series of changes as he evolves, and ultimately wins you over. The author masterfully introduces a wide cast of other characters without overwhelming the reader, overshadowing the Hero and Heroine, or drowning the story in confusion. The past is brought up without talking head back-story.

The heroine has come back to a town that despised her family and treated her with unfounded malice and complete mean spiritedness. That hasn't changed, but she has. She's got a tougher exterior, and she's got a mission: find her real father. The hero is the son of the family that used to own her home, the family that broke to pieces when her mother stole his father away. The townsfolk, with few exceptions, take sides, and continue with the rotten treatment, but the hero, in the midst , is given a front row seat to that treatment and realizes how wrong and misplaced it is. He learns the true woman behind the gossip and falls head over heals. His own family will disown him, but he can't live without her. Her own evolution brings her full circle as well, in a moving and gripping manner that help her to finally heal.

I can't say more without ruining this truly wonderful tale. All I can say is read it and weep!

Sorry, folks...I just didn't like this one as well as the other reviewers did, or as well as the others in this series. Maybe it just evoked too many negative emotions, or maybe I just don't understand small-town life.

The town of Dundee, Idaho is populated with narrow-minded, self-serving individuals with only a few exceptions (one being Booker, who has his own story in this series). I can't understand why a good, kind person like Lucky-who is judged solely on her mother's actions-would waste a minute of her time on any of them, or want any of them to be her father or husband.

She's more forgiving than most people could be (I'd have taken the bribe and got the heck out, myself) and that makes her an admirable character to add to this series.

Great character development here, and a nice flow to the story if you like it...the book is well-researched, and the contemporary references are accurate and realistic. Not a total bummer, it just wasn't for me.

This is a great romance - the heroine comes back to a town where she is hated and judged because of the character of her late mother - it is heart wrenching to read about how cruelly she is treated based on people's mistaken impressions of her. She's home to find out who her father is, but while she's there, she falls in love with the last person she should - the grandson of one of her mother's former husbands. Her mother destroyed his grandfather's marriage, so his mother and father hate her and her whole family. He tells her they can never have a relationship but keeps sneaking around to see her and only realizes how much he needs her when she walks away. This is a real tear jerker - get the kleenex - you'll need it!!

A wonderful entertaining story.

I love Brenday Novak. Her characters are always so rich. This is part of a series that I have really enjoyed so I am quite taken with this book. I love these characters and hope to visit them again

This is definitely one of the best books I ever read! It touched my very soul, not many books do that, because there is too much sex, and the essence of he story gets lost. This book though is pure gold, it has depth, the more you read, the more you understand the main character Lucky. One can instantly connect with her struggle to be brave and to go back to a town where her mother was hated and by extension herself, she was branded by the actions of her mother you see, as a no good "W" word. However her desire to find the truth of her parentage brought her back to the only home she had known in Dundee, and in so doing romance and true love found her.
I generally use this book as a yard stick when purchasing any book, few so far has come to par, none surpass.