FIREFIGHTER'S DOORSTEP BABY

Author: Barbara McMahon ISBN: 9780373176922 11/2010 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: HARLEQUIN

When firefighter Cristiano Casali is injured on duty, there is only one place he can think of to recover—Monta Correnti, his home… Estranged from his feuding family and still wounded, Cristiano finds it difficult to start living again—until he meets pretty, warmhearted Mariella and the adorable baby she cares for, Dante…. As Mariella helps Cristiano recuperate and reunite with his family she realizes that she wants a family, too—with Cristiano!

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

This Harlequin Romance (or Mills & Boon, depending where you live) is part of the Brides of Bella Rosa series, featuring a family that owns a couple of restaurants in a small town in Italy. This book can easily be read as a standalone.

Mariella Holmes is twenty-two, a Roman who went to college in New York. Her best friend in Italy became ill with leukemia and died, leaving her with a two-week old son to raise. Mariella is ever the optimist and changes her career plans to raise the baby. When he’s five months old, she goes on vacation at Lake Clarissa and sees a daredevil out jet skiing on the lake, even though it’s too cold. Firefighter Cristiano Casali is hiding out in his family’s cabin, recovering from the wounds he sustained during a terrorist attack in Rome. Though he suffers from debilitating PTSD, he can’t help falling for the beautiful girl and her adopted son.

Heart-warming, family-oriented romance ensues! Though this book could have used a round of edits, I really enjoyed it. And of course, was jealous of all the vacation time Europeans get compared to Americans!

Heather Hiestand