| Reviews of Jane Tara's Forecast |
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From MyShelf From The Good, the Bad and the Unread by Sandy Rowena Shakespeare starts her day off every morning by Forecasting the weather for her neighbors. And she is always 100% right. She is descended from a long line of Shakespeare women, beginning with a great aunt of the Bard. For centuries clairvoyance has been a consistent trademark born in those women. Rowie’s gift also includes seeing a man’s future with just one kiss, and of all those futures she’s divined so far, not one has included her. She’s still waiting for that one man she won’t be able to read when she kisses him. That man is her soulmate. Laid up in a Florida hospital, Drew Henderson is nursing a broken leg he sustained while covering a hurricane in the Sunshine state, which means his job as weatherman in Manhattan will go to a stand-in while he heals. Although he did approve the charming and beautiful woman the station wants as his temporary replacement, he can’t believe his eyes as he watches her on television. After all his hard work to get where he is, they’re using a psychic, a gimmick, and turning him and his position into a laughingstock. After her initial flubs and mishaps on the air, Rowie eventually is comfortable in front of the camera and the audience loves her. When it comes time for her to bow out at Drew’s return, she gets the shock of her life when they hit it off and Drew’s kiss leaves her psychic senses absolutely blank. She’s found the one man meant for her, and all is right with their world until a jealous coworker’s machinations tear Drew and Rowie apart. I enjoyed the premise of Forecast and all the fun that went along with it. So much happens in this story, that although I liked the stories revolving around the secondary characters, especially Rowie’s mother and grandmother, I think there was a little too much time spent with them. I wanted more time with the main characters. I loved Drew and Rowie’s scenes together, romantic and teasing, just like a relationship should be. Everything came together and the twists kept me guessing and kept everything lighthearted when it very easily could have become maudlin. I predict a winner for Ms. Tara with this delightful book. From Romance Reviews Today by Terrie Figueroa Rowie Shakespeare is just your average, every day New Yorker, or at least she would like to be. However, red hair and green eyes aren’t the only things that run in the Shakespeare women - so does magic. In Rowie’s case, she has an uncanny ability to predict the weather, and unlike most meteorologists, she is never wrong. She also knows with a single kiss the destiny of the person she’s kissing. Unfortunately, it’s hard to develop a relationship with a man when you know you’re not in his future. Rowie lives with her mother and grandmother in the family home and works in the family business, a metaphysical shop named Second Site. It’s a family tradition that each generation of Shakespeare women takes over running the family business, but Lilia, Rowie’s mother, is more often found with her head in the clouds than dealing with business, and so Gwendolyn, Rowie’s grandmother, still owns and runs the business with Rowie’s help. Rowie’s loves her mother and grandmother, but she wants a life of her own. Jess Walker is one of the producers for the local news channel, and when she gets a call that her star weatherman, Drew Henderson, has been injured while covering a hurricane in Florida, she’s devastated. First, who will she get to replace him, and second, how can she win him back if he’s not even in town? Jess happened to see Rowie at the Second Site. and curiosity about the crowd gathered forced her to stop and see what was going on. When she learned that Rowie predicted the weather every morning, and that she has never been wrong, Jess dismissed it as hocus-pocus. But later in the day when the rain Rowie predicted arrives, Jess realizes she may have a temporary solution to Drew’s absence – a psychic weather person. Rowie is thrilled at the opportunity Jess offers and jumps at the chance to go out on her own. But first Drew Henderson has to approve his temporary replacement, so it’s off to Florida for a face-to-face meeting with the hottest weatherman on the air. Will Rowie be able to use her psychic gifts to deliver the weather in the Big Apple, and what will she do when Drew recovers and wants his job back? And what about Gwendolyn, Lilia, and Second Site? If Rowie makes it big, who will take over after Gwendolyn is gone? Forecast is a contemporary romance with a dash of magic, and a heaping helping of fun. The above is just the tip of the iceberg and in no way introduces the cast of well developed quirky characters that are a part of Rowie’s life. Her grandmother, Gwendolyn, is a stern matriarch who loves her family, puts Post-it notes on her possessions as to who will get what when she dies, and still carries on conversations with her dead husband - and he talks back. Lilia is like a fey creature planted smack in the middle of New York and just doesn’t fit - she seems to float through life, but underneath her beautiful, flighty exterior is a woman strong enough to stand on her own and protect those she loves. Rowie is a delightful blend of pragmatism and magic. She longs for her own life and love, but is beginning to despair of having either. In addition to the three Shakespeare women who are larger than life, the secondary characters add charm and entertainment to the story. From Angel, Rowie’s outspoken, promiscuous and thoroughly loveable best friend to Petey, a man looking for love and reminds me a bit of Icabod Crane in his demeanor. But let’s not forget Drew, the sexiest weatherman on television. He’s charming, flirtatious and a bit leery of trusting his heart to a woman, though he’s no match for Rowie. There are at least a half dozen other characters worthy of mention, but to list them and why they are so memorable would spoil a bit of the fun of meeting them yourself. From the first page to the last, author Jane Tara proves that she knows how to deliver up a lively, fresh story and fill it with characters who come vividly to life. Romance, magic, and loads of fun fill the pages of Forecast, and readers are in for a delightful read. I highly recommend this charming book. From Hearstrings Reviews by Cheryl Jeffries Never without an umbrella when it rains, twenty-eight-year-old Rowie Shakespeare is something of a phenomenon in her New York neighborhood. With a last name like Shakespeare and a family history of exceptionally gifted women, Rowie's weather-predicting talents and other psychic abilities are typical quirks - er, gifts. Her mother, Lilia, and grandmother, Gwendolyn, are also blessed with the infamous Shakespearean foresight. Going mainstream with her gift as the gimmicky "psychic weather girl" for broadcaster USBC is an unexpected development, though, and Rowie's grandmother is quite put out that Rowie would even consider taking the job. New York's favorite weatherman, Drew Henderson, also has his doubts about the gorgeous, flame-haired woman USBC has found to temporarily replace him following his tussle with a hurricane (admittedly, not the highlight of his meteorological career), but his attraction to Rowie is unpredictably - and distractingly - fierce in nature. Good thing his leg is in traction and he's stuck in a Florida hospital bed, otherwise he'd be out making a bloody fool of himself. A fact for which Rowie is equally grateful, because with just one kiss her infatuation with Drew Henderson could end in a flash - of unwanted insight, that is. So for her heart’s sake, it's best if she keeps her distance. Of course, when the winds of change (and destiny) are blowing, all you can really do is hold onto your hat and hope that your heart can weather the storm. If Jane Tara’s whimsical debut, Forecast, is any indication of where this debut author will be going, it is up, up, up - to the very top of a reader’s auto-buy list. The only prerequisite is a love of all things New Age and/or bewitching. Handsome Henderson, as Drew is nicknamed, is a stubborn, hot-headed jerk upon occasion, but overall, Tara’s hero is a likeable kind of guy, especially once you get over the proverbial hump and Rowie and Drew’s relationship shoots off some sizeable sparks. Forecast is a sweet, amusing little love fest, really, because everyone from Rowie’s grandmother to her two best friends fall in love, and the plot is a wonderfully weird medley of cosmically-destined events. While it is mostly fun, fabulous fluff, Jane Tara’s paranormal romance also has darker, weightier issues to balance out the plot, and Rowie and Drew’s relationship isn’t without complications (some of which are blatantly manipulative, but hey, you can’t have everything in a romance). Looking for a sweetly witchy read that will tickle your funny bone and your heart? Then give Jane Tara’s Forecast a shot to see if it will give you a case of the giggles or simply chase your blues away. (Nothing ventured, nothing gained and all of that.) Tara’s characterizations are certainly a weirdly charismatic bunch, and I have the niggling suspicion that we haven’t seen the last of the Shakespeare clan - there is a cousin in London, after all...Gotta love the promise of funnier, sweeter, and even less predictable books to come. |