TROUBLE ME – Laura Moore
A Rosewood Novel
Ballantine Books
ISBN: 978-0-345-48278-5 (Print)
ISBN: 978-0-345-53210-7 (eBook)
April 2012
Contemporary Romance

Rosewood Farms, Warburg , Virginia - Present Day

Jade Radcliff is ready to start a new life. After her wild teen age years, Jade was a success at college, graduating with an education degree and hopes to get a teaching job in the Warburg elementary school. Now returning home from a stint in Florida as a certified hunter/jumper trainer, Jade also plans to teach youngsters to ride at the horse farm that has been in her family for generations. She's determined to walk the straight and narrow so the town will forget her reputation as a wild child. A storm develops on her way, one that results in accidents up ahead forcing Jade to stop overnight. All good intentions aside, a situation arises in which a gallant knight comes to her rescue, and the two of them act on the immediate attraction…wild, wonderful…and anonymous.

Rosewood Farms belongs to Jade and her two half-sisters, Jordan and Margo, as the only remaining Radcliffes. Jade receives a warm and tumultuous welcome from them, her brothers-in-law, their various children, and the farm staff. The family heartily approves her establishing a riding school and they've birthday surprises for her; they've built her a pony barn and refurbished a small house on the grounds for her personal use. To gild the lily, Jade is to teach second grade this fall semester while the regular teacher takes maternity leave. Could life be more perfect?

The most important thing in Rob Cooper's life is his daughter Hayley, almost seven. Of course he loves the rest of his family and his job with the Warburg police department, but the loss of his wife tore a big hole in his heart. The night on the road that ended his five year's celibacy with the chance-met beauty haunts him as no woman has since Becky. Too bad they'll never meet again.

But of course they do, and they finally realize they knew each other. Rob is “Robo Cop”, the nemesis of Jade's rebellious years, and Jade is the person Rob blames for his Becky dying alone. . .

We follow a bumpy trail to a happily-ever-after in TROUBLE ME. We not only have a pair of volatile personalities as hero and heroine, we have a mystery concerning Jade's mother's highly disturbing diary that Jade won't rest until solved. We also have a nasty couple of the town's citizens against her teaching children. But don't be turned off by these problems. They are only part of a story filled with wonderful characters and heartwarming relationships. You will love Jade as a teacher, trainer, and beloved aunt and root for Rob to realize hearts have endless room.

Jade's family will be familiar to readers of the earlier books in the Rosewood Trilogy , REMEMBER ME starring Margot, and Jordan 's tale in BELIEVE IN ME. The whole town comes to life in Ms. Moore's books. Many of the characters are carried over, and you will find yourself caring about more than just the primary and secondary ones. So while the books can stand alone, enjoyment can be maximized by reading them in order.

Then there are the horses. If, like me, you shed tears as a child over BLACK BEAUTY, horses stir something deep down—even if, again like me, you've only been on horseback twice in your life (and slid off the back of one of them and have the scar to prove it).

Don't miss TROUBLE ME or any of these wonderful, deeply emotional books.

Jane Bowers