Blog Tour: Midsummer Sweetheart (Heart Of Montana #2) by Katy Regnery {Review}

Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance

Publication Date: February 11th 2014

Series: Heart Of Montana #2

Pages: 240

Format: PDF

Source: provided by publisher for tour

Erik Lindstrom never had much faith in love. He saw his parents’ marriage collapse and vowed to avoid the same anguish himself. His fiercely protective nature drew him to a career in law enforcement, but he’s managed to keep himself and his heart safe…until now. Katrin Svenson is in danger. After leaving her home in secret, her only hope for safety seems to lie in the hands of her handsome but aloof protector, who's steeled himself against her deep blue eyes and sunny smile. Sparks fly between the officer and the nurse, and those sparks turn to fire as Katrin melts the ice surrounding Erik’s heart. Yet a dark force, determined to tear the young lovers apart, must be vanquished before their sweet midsummer nights can turn into a sweet forever.

My Review:

Nobody loves an epilogue more than I do. Epilogues can make or break a story for me and what I found with the Heart Of Montana series is that the author ends hers with a look ahead at the next character's story. When I finished by Proxy and discovered this book would be about the half Swede half Norwegian hottie Erik Lindstrom I was actually ecstatic. His character intrigued me the most in the closing of the first book when we discover he doesn't believe in love. Erik Lindstrom and Katrin Svenson are thrown together on an impromptu road trip after her drunken ex fiance breaks into her house and tries to kill her. Her family freaks out and arranges for Erik to drive Katrin up north to help a friend of her brothers build a small town clinic. Because Erik is on his way up to train with the Montana narcotics force he agrees to take her to get her away from her ex.

 These two had such tough circumstances to overcome in order to be together. Erik being the baby of the family always wanted a love like he saw his parents had. He wanted to be the kind of husband and father his dad was until he watched helplessly as his mother lay dying, calling out for his father only to see him never show up. The stars in his eyes he had for his father died out when he believed his father had stopped loving his mother leaving a young Erik to think love didn't exist. He's made sure to guard his heart against love having kept women at arms length with casual flings never lasting long. He always thought he would end up just like his dad, hurting the woman he was supposed to love so he thought it best to just never get involved. Erik's story broke my heart but at the same time filled it with so much love for him. He was such a sweet guy to begin with. He had such a big heart when it came to his family and helping someone in need when it came to getting Katrin out of a bad situation. I freaking LOVED Erik! He was sweet, sexy and strong and although he was a tough guy to rope down he had a gentle side to him. He was more brains than brawn even though he wasn't lacking in the hottie department. he wasn't just window dressing basically, he actually had intelligence to go with those muscles and those are the guys that can melt a woman's drawers with the quickness!

Katrin's story wasn't hard to sympathize with at all. She's a small town nurse who has been engaged to Wade, her high school sweetheart for a few years until he stood her up on their wedding day. When she tried to break things off with him he gets violent and tries to break into her house threatening to kill her. Katrin wasn't a damaged character who couldn't break the cycle of abuse because of any past tragedy. She was just a woman who thought Wade would change but gradually his behaviour worsened leaving her no choice but to leave. She wasn't a particularly strong character and she wasn't too soft either. Katrin was a great mixture of both because it took guts to uproot the life she had to start fresh and put distance between her and Wade. I admired her for that reason alone but her quiet spirit and soft spoken demeanor were traits I liked about her too. She knew when to put her foot down with Erik and when to let him sweat a little and I absolutely enjoyed watching her tease him a little bit. 

One of the main things I enjoy about this author's writing style is her closed door policy on bedroom scenes. Not every author can pull off the "Fade To Black" but Regnery did such a great job developing the relationship between Erik and Katrin I didn't miss it with them. Call me voyeuristic but I normally like to get in on the action and see the passion and romance between a couple but with these two I enjoyed the "After Dinner Mint" pillow talk and that was satisfying enough for me. The build up of the slow and steady relationship between Erik and Katrin was another pleasant selling point for me. It wasn't instant although their attraction was the two characters were both trying to take things slowly. They took their time to get to know each other over dates and calling while they were apart. I thought I was going to melt to floor at how adorable they were together when they would talk to each other in their mixture of Swedish and Norwegian native languages. LOVED IT! 

 I can't forget to mention two of my favorite supporting characters, Jose and Gabrielle. Jose is Katrin's boss, the ex Marine Dr who is starting up the clinic and also ends up getting under Erik's skin after making eyes at Katrin. That was really fun to see because it was obvious that Jose had eyes only for Gabrielle. She was from the Caribbean and her accent alone was hilarious and sweet but her friendship with Katrin made my heart happy. Katrin needed someone to confide in and Gabrielle's unique way of handling things kept everyone on their toes. I would love to get a novella or a book about Jose and Gabrielle because their back story piqued my interest throughout this book. 

Midsummer Sweetheart was the kind of story that made me believe in love again. The romance was very sweet and I greatly enjoyed seeing my favorite characters from the other books. I'm excited to see Erik's brother Lars get his book next because this guy is a huge jokester so it will be highly entertaining to watch a woman bring HIM to his knees I'm sure of it! This was the kind of book that sticks with you long after you read it. I have been thinking about Katrin and Erik for days and how their story turned out. It was a hard fought road for them both but it was very worth it in the end. I really loved this one and felt like the entire book was a breath of fresh air. It was exactly what I needed when I needed it with mild drama and plenty of endearing romance. 

Quotes:

His heart slammed in his chest and his eyes closed, like an untried schoolboy, like someone who had never been kissed before. Her touch was no more than a breeze against his skin, a feather, a petal, but he felt the imprint of her lips, the heat of her breath, even after she moved away. PDF 20%

He was as confusing as hail in the summertime. Icy, but hot. Frightened, but strong. Physically available, but emotionally closed off. Full of contradictions. PDF 35%

He felt thoroughly like the jackass she said he was. Because the bottom line was that being an "us" with Katrin was better than being nothing without Katrin. PDF 64%

About The Author:

KATY REGNERY, winner of the 2013 NECRWA First Kiss and 2013 Maine RWA Everything But the Kitchen Sink contests, has always loved telling a good story and credits her mother with making funny, heartwarming tales come alive throughout her childhood. A lifelong devotee of all romance writing from Edwardian to present-day, it was just a matter of time before Katy tried her hand at writing a love story of her own. As it turned out, one love story turned into a series of five Heart of Montana romances, following the love lives of the Yellowstone-based Lindstrom siblings. In addition to small-town contemporary romance, Katy is presently writing a paranormal romance that takes place in northern New England and the forests north of Quebec. Speaking of forests, Katy lives in the relative-wilds of northern Fairfield County, Connecticut where her writing room looks out at the woods and her husband, two young children and two dogs create just enough cheerful chaos to remind her that the very best love stories of all are the messy and unexpected ones. 

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