Chasing Christmas

“Once again, Ms. Shanna Hatfield has taken the reader on an emotional roller coaster ride with all the ups and downs of two special people, Bull Rider, Chase Jarrett, and Graphic Artist, Jessie Pierce. While this story is part of a series and does have many characters from the previous four books, it will easily read as a stand-alone novel. Ride this ride with Chase and Jessie, and you won’t regret it.

I went through so many emotions, from having times that I was laughing out loud so hard at some of the antics, to moments where I sighed from the sweetness to audible groans and shuttered from the unbelievable foot-in-mouth syndrome. The story is a clean contemporary that covers the rodeo circuit along with the stressful schedule and hazards of being a bull rider. Then to throw in an unexpected surprise of a marriage that was supposed to be fake, but in fact, is real.

The plot will begin with Ashley Jarrett, Chare’s cousin who handles his publicity, concocting a plan to have a contest where Chase will marry for a day, a lucky contestant, in Las Vegas the last day of the Championship Rodeo event. She assures him, this is all in fun, and just to lure in interest, endorsers, sponsors, and how the fans will love it. It is all to be pretend. Jessie’s best friend Stacy enters Jessie to become the pretend bride to Chase Jarrett, and when she wins, it will have the two girls traveling to Las Vegas. Jessie doesn’t even meet Chase until she walks down the aisle at the venue. Shy, unpretentious, she feels a spark when he takes her hand, but this is all for the show.

The story is full of various twists and turns, but what was supposed to be a fake marriage, comes with a major shock, a real preacher, a legal license, and now a predicament for both of them. Get it annulled, or to stay married in name only and pretend to be the happy newlywed couple for the adoring fans. For Chase, it will come with untold endorsements, new sponsors, and not only help him in his rodeo career but benefit him and his ranch financially. But what about Jessie and what is in it for her? Jessie will have the joys of being on a ranch again, and she will gain new clients for her business.

Besides laughing out loud, wanting to shake the living daylights out of these two, I was cheering them on hoping for both of them to come to their senses. Martyrdom doesn’t suit either one, and if there were two people who understood each other, especially with their childhood and families they had been dealt in life, it would be these two. Now if they could only be honest with themselves and each other.

The story will have the reader feeling like they are on the bull ride with all the angst between these two. Life would be so much sweeter, like all the yummy treats Jessie bakes, if they would just be honest and open with their feelings. Jessie is one of the calmest people, not exploding when most people would, she is an amazing lady, but she has had too many years keeping her emotions bottled up. “Still waters running the deepest.” Life is so short, and when you find that one, the person who makes your heart beat faster, you better grab on and not let go. BTW, you will get that HEA ending.”

Amazon Reviewer