Montana Wishes: A Clean Romance

This is a Clean Romance. I have to say I know what was going to happen in this book within a few chapters of this book. I found the characters ok. Overall, I just found this book ok and kindof boring. I had high hopes for this book, and I felt the book could have been so much better. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Harlequin Heartwarming) or author (Amy Vastine) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review about how I feel about this book, and I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley for an honest review and I want to thank them for allowing me to give my honest opinion. When I read the blurb, I had high hopes that the Hero was fake engaged or some such plot, but nope.<br /><br />My review &amp; rating is based on my own personal tastes and has nothing to do with the writing or story in itself. I just don't enjoy stories in which one (or both) mcs are in relationships with OP. When I pick up a fictional romance, I want the fantasy of having the couple I am reading about be about them and no one else! I don't want to have my mind wander about the OW and what Hero is doing with her, what "first" experiences he is sharing with her, how he is in love with someone else, is sleeping with them and going through all the emotions that should be reserved for heroine. Nope. It ruins it for me right from the start if my mind has to wonder or read about it. <br /><br />In this story, while there are many things that annoyed me, I especially didn't like the fact Hero is trying to force the heroine &amp; his fiancee whom he dated for 2 months to be BFFs. I didn't like how he tried to make them think they were so much a like, etc.<br /><br />For me personally, that type of trope/theme is a turnoff and I just couldn't enjoy the story once it started this way. I struggled to finish and unfortunately it didn't make me enjoy it any better.<br /><br />Again, this is my personal view. For folks who don't mind that sort of thing, you may enjoy it.

One of my favorite tropes is best friends who fall in love, so I was definitely eager for this second book in the Blackwell sisters series. Blake and Amanda had me in their corner from the flashback opener to their childhood, and I cheered them on through the rest of the story. The author does a great job of making their friendship believable in every way Their friendship (romantic feelings notwithstanding) is the kind everyone wishes for, and it's made that much more intense by the fact that they've each long been secretly in love with the other. Because, why would you want to ruin the perfect friendship with possibly unrequited romance?<br /><br />Combine those repressed feelings with the fact that Amanda's life has been upended in more ways than one lately... and you have a pressure cooker reaction waiting to happen. Blake is part clueless guy and part the-best-friend-ever, and you'll be torn between hugging him (or just staring dreamily) and knocking some sense into him. I felt the same way about Amanda. Most of the time I just wanted to hug her but there were times when i wanted to shake her a bit and tell her to let in the people who love her. Blake included. Ok, especially Blake, because kisses fix a lot ;) It's also fun to watch these two California kids adjust to a Montana ranch, and the added antics of Amanda's quirky Irish wolfhound were icing on the cake.<br /><br />But after all this build-up of pressure and emotion and romantical tension, the ending was too abrupt for me. I wanted more after the declarations, after the pent-up feelings didn't have to be pent up anymore. I would have loved at least one more chapter to explore that chemistry, that deep affection set on fire, between them once all was out in the open. <br /><br />Bottom Line: Montana Wishes is a sweet story of family, friendships, and the love right in front of you. While I wished there had been more to the ending, I loved spending time with these characters and getting to know the Harrison/Blackwell sisters better. The author handled some painful issues for Amanda with much-appreciated grace &amp; sensitivity, and she also did a marvelous job of continuing the story arcs begun in Montana Welcome by a different author. You will probably want to read book 1 first but it's not absolutely necessary if you can't. <br /><br />(I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book which I bought for my own collection.)

While Montana Wishes can be read as a stand alone, it will mean so much more if the reader has also read book one in the series, Montana Welcome by Melinda Curtis. Book one sets the stage for this book.<br /><br />It was clear to me that these two main characters were in love with each other, even though they kept themselves in the friend zone. Neither one wanted to lose the friendship of the other one.<br /><br />However, both Blake and Amanda battled their own heartache and confusion in different ways and for different reasons throughout the story. I felt for both of them and was happy when a necessary conversation happened between the two of them. Having that conversation was the catalyst to actually working things out for them. The ending felt very abrupt to me. I would have enjoyed getting to read about Amanda and Blake growing from friends to more for at least a chapter or two before the rest of the story was tied up. I’m hoping to see more of them in future books.<br /><br />(4.5 stars)<br /><br />I received a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions are my own.<br /><br />You can read this review on my blog:<br /><a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://brittreadsfiction.wordpress.com/2020/08/31/review-montana-wishes-by-amy-vastine/">https://brittreadsfiction.wordpress.c...</a>

I…..LOVED…..THIS….BOOK!! Do you hear me? I LOVED it!! Montana Wishes has just become one of my absolute favorite Heartwarming books!!, and I’ve read A LOT of them. Amy Vastine knows how to write a sweet romance story. But this was even more than that. This book was full of surprises that were perfectly timed to provoke every emotion imaginable within me!! I was happy, sad, hopeful, mad, glad….it was like an emotional medley of feelings. If time had permitted, I could have read the entire book in one or two sittings. That’s how invested I was in the characters and their outcome, especially since I knew it would be a good one. Heartwarming books always result in a happily- ever-after. My imagination ran wild as I envisioned the various scenes—the road trip, the Blackwell ranch, the animals (including Amanda’s Irish Wolfhound, Clancy), the cowboys, the romantic tension, and finally, the unveiling of secrets…. it was creative and realistic and entertaining, and it made me want to jump on an airplane to Montana to meet each and every character ?. They’ll all be alive in my memory where I’ll be hoping to revisit them in the next Blackwell Sisters installment, Montana Dreams, by Anna J. Stewart. Highly recommended!!

I loved Montana Wishes by Amy Vastine! It is the second book in The Blackwell Sisters series and definitely worth reading if you love contemporary clean romances set in small towns revolving around family. <br />Blake Collins has loved Amanda Harrison most of his life, but a few months ago after he kissed her Amanda put him in the friend zone and makes it absolutely clear that their relationship will never be more than that. <br />When Blake gets engaged and Amanda's sister moves away Amanda realizes that her feelings matter and that includes her feelings for Blake that she has kept hidden for years. <br />I'm looking forward to reading more books in this wonderful series! <br /><br />I was given an ARC from the author/publisher. All conclusions are mine and mine alone.

A new series known as the Blackwell Sister’s. This is book 2 in a 5 books series by different authors. You will want to read them all. I can’t wait to read them, because I have read the other series by these authors. All were awesome. The series prior to this is Return of the Blackwell Brothers which is written by the same authors who have written this series. All are amazing authors. Look up Ms. Vastine’s book in that series. So good. The Ranchers Fake Fiancée. <br /><br />This book was both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Amanda Harrison is confused to say the least. She and her sisters have found out there last name is really Blackwell. Now Her sister is in Montana and has fallen in love so quick is it real? She thought her sister was in love before, but when she walked away from Danny her childhood on there wedding day...well maybe love was not really in the cards for them. But to move and get married to someone she barley knows so fast? She wants to know more about this man. Her best friend Blake is ready to take the plunge and has asked his current girlfriend to marry him. She thought it was to fast just like her sister. She’s bound and determined to head to Montana and bring her sister home. <br /><br />Blake has no intention of letting Amanda drive herself all the way to Montana. She’s his best friend. He hopes she and his fiancée can be friends. If matters so much to him. When he overhears something she tells one of the Blackwell’s he’s upset that she hasn’t told him. She hasn’t even told her sister. Well he wants to know what she’s been hiding. <br />She’s been through a lot. Finding out she’s related to this family, and so much more the one thing he promises her he’ll be by her side. Preorder this book now. Release date September. <br /><br />In closing I accepted a copy of this book from Netgalley and Harlequin. All thoughts are my own. <br /><br />Also want to mention that the first book is called Montana Welcome by Melinda Curtis which is Lily’s book...Amanda’s sister It’s a must read.

Amanda Harrison's life is falling apart. She needs her best friend more than ever. Blake Collins has just gotten engaged. He's planning to marry and start the family that he's always wanted but he does want to loose his best friend, Amanda. However, she knows that she can't give him what he desires most. However, she decides to keep her problem a secret. I asked myself why Amanda wouldn't trust those she love to support her. I could see that Amanda and Blake loved each other, but we're afraid to open up. I wanted them to tell each other what was in their heart. I was drawn to this couple. They deserved to be happy. This story made me realize the importance of communication. Amy Vastine wrote a romantic story that had both heartbreak and hope. I'm enjoying seeing how The Blackwell Sisters deal with their new family and the changes in their lives.<br />I received a copy of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed.

Deeply emotional best-friends-to-lovers romance!<br /><br />Quick content warning: this story focuses on a woman’s infertility issues, without any magic answers. <br /><br />Amanda and Blake have been best friends since high school, but knowing she can’t give him the family he’s always wanted keeps her from letting their relationship advance. Preferring to be the one who helps fix everyone else’s problems, she refuses to let anyone know about her secret. As much as he might want more, Blake has resigned himself to accepting whatever level of friendship he can from Amanda, and is trying to move on with Nadia. <br /><br />They agree to drive to Montana to help her sister, Lily, move permanently to the Blackwell Ranch. This time together doesn’t hold a lot of surprises, but even though we know what has to happen to secure their HEA, there’s a quiet beauty in how it is executed. This is not a story of a couple falling in love; rather, it’s a story of a couple who have been in love forever but they need a little help sorting through a mountain of obstacles that life has dealt them. <br /><br />There’s enough humor here to lighten the mood and keep the story from too much despair, but the strong emotional interplay between Amanda and Blake is coupled with a heartwarming focus on expanding one’s definition of family as Amanda adds a whole slew of cousins and their spouses and children to her own family tree. <br /><br />The all-secrets-revealed scene was well worth waiting for, and so beautifully done it nearly brought me to tears. I loved the subsequent family conference call and how her sisters rallied around her and Blake, offering support and suggestions in equal measure. All in all, this was a terrific book that could easily be read on its own but it’s infinitely better as part of the overall series. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

Couldn't put this book down! I really love the characters in this story. Amanda has a secret that is keeping her from accepting the love of her best friend. Then he gets engaged to someone else, and she is devastated. Blake decides to drive with Amanda to Montana and they discover that love does conquer all of you are willing to take a risk.