Review + Giveaway: Alice’s Portrait

I am kicking off the tour for Juliette Harper’s third installment in The Lockwood Legacy. For all of the stops to follow, visit the tour page.

Title: Alice’s Portrait
Author: Juliette Harper
Publisher: Skye House Publishing
Release Date: April 2015
Length: 144 pages
Series?: The Lockwood Legacy #3
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Mystery

Find the book: Goodreads | Amazon 

A year after Kate, Jenny, and Mandy Lockwood inherit The Rocking L, the sisters try to concentrate on their collective and individual futures. In the previous book in The Lockwood Legacy series, Baxter’s Draw, the women made startling discoveries about their father’s secrets, but are mistaken in their belief that everything has now come to light. In Alice’s Portrait, the ghosts of Langston Lockwood’s past once again confront his daughters, forcing them to re-evaluate their understanding of their father and of what it means to be a Lockwood.

***** Review *****

If she finds that out, then she’s going to find out what Irene had on Langston.

Small towns can be welcoming havens to out-of-towners. The townspeople can be what saves a complete stranger. That was how young Irene Lockwood survived her marriage to Langston. But small towns can also be a coven of corruption and confidants, which is exactly what Kate and Jenny come face-to-face with when Jenny starts digging into the past of her parents’ marriage.

The Lockwood girls are left reeling after their discovery of their father’s hidden retreat in Baxter’s Draw. The girls are again struggling to understand why their father retreated to the draw and created a world only he was privy to after a trove of beautiful drawings are revealed. As bad as their dad was to everyone around him, he had to be living in his own personal hell in his man-made retreat.

Now that the Institute has been set up for Jake to continue his research and to protect the Rocking L and Baxter’s Draw from outside prying eyes over the discovery of an ancient civilization’s artifacts, the relationships of all the main characters continue to grow. Josh is on board with helping Kate run the ranch, and they have formed a strong alliance, as have Jenny and Jake.

“I just know that sometimes you get it in your head that you’re all alone, and you’re not. I knew you wouldn’t let Josh come up here with you. He doesn’t know you the way I do. Asking permission is just an invitation to be told no. I don’t need permission to take a walk with my sister. “

I enjoyed seeing the support and strength of the sisters, particularly Kate and Jenny, as they work to unravel Langston’s mysteries, and their mother’s. They know each other better than anyone else, and they are fully supportive of one another. I also liked the descriptions and the humor throughout the book…and the old ladies. You gotta get the book to find out about the old ladies. 🙂

***** About the Author *****

Juliette Harper is the pen name used by the writing team of Patricia Pauletti and Rana K. Williamson. Like the characters of their debut series, The Lockwood Legacy, Juliette is a merging of their creative energies.

Pauletti, an Easterner of Italian descent, is an accomplished musician with an eye for art and design. Williamson, a Texan from a long line of hardheaded Scots, knows the world of the Lockwoods like the back of her hand.

“We decided to write under a pen name because neither one of us by ourselves could have created Kate, Jenny, Mandy, and their world,” says Pauletti. “Juliette is a little bit of us both. We want to be her when we grow up.”

“Patti teases me that I just don’t want to own up to writing a book with romance in it,” Williamson adds, “but that’s not true. I like the Lockwood women and the way they tackle everything life throws at them. And before we’re done, they’ll be ducking a lot. I imagine coming into the office every day and saying, ‘Okay Juliette, what’s going to happen now?’ She tells us, and we get it down on paper.”

Find the author: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

***** Giveaway *****

$100 Amazon Gift Card (INT). Contest ends May 27th.

Click here to enter the giveaway!

This event was organized by CBB Book Promotions.