Release Day Review: A Family for Keeps by Rheland Richmond

Book Title: A Family for Keeps
Author's name: Rheland Richmond
Release date: Aug 12th

Buy links — TBA

Blurb:

Tristan was devastated when his sister died. His only consolation was her newborn daughter. He promised to take care of her like she was his own, but now he’s broken that promise.

After growing up in foster care, Nathaniel's finally built the life he’s always wanted. Now one case of human error could tear it all apart.

An unthinkable mistake that could never be rectified. Two men. Absolute strangers until tragedy and unforeseen circumstances bind them together. They must now find a way to co-parent and make the best of a bad situation. With no shared history to help them and two little girls caught in the middle, they now have no choice but to make it work. What could possibly go wrong?

Can two men put their differences aside for the sake of their children? They both have difficult choices to make, or what they love most will be taken away.

Are there bonds stronger than blood?

Excerpt:

“You cannot be Emma’s biological father.” He felt like that statement was on repeat in his head, and he couldn’t turn it off.

Blood Type B and Type O cannot equal A was all Nathaniel remembered the doctor saying.

No matter how many ways he turned it around in his mind, the facts remained the same. It all added up to his baby girl not being his biological child. How was that even possible? Was there a mix-up at the lab, did the wrong eggs get implanted, did the surrogate get pregnant while on the hormones? These were just some of the thoughts that raced through his mind over the last nearly two and a half weeks since he’d been given the life-changing information. Seemed like a lifetime, he thought wearily.

3.5 Stars!

When Tristan got the heartbreaking phone call that his sister Shannon had been in an accident, he wasn’t prepared for the gift she left behind. Now, he’s become the best father he can be and loves Sammy as his own. What he isn’t prepared for is the possibility that he could lose her because someone at the hospital made a mistake.

Nathaniel has it all. A successful business, a beautiful home and two wonderful children. His daughter Emma is a precious gift and when he learns she is sick, it’s only the beginning of the nightmare. How could this beautiful little girl not share his DNA? What does this mean for their little family?

What I Loved: I adore the idea of this story. The premise was great and I had to prepare myself for what I was sure would be an emotional rollercoaster. I love books that feature guys with kids and building families. I’m not quite sure why but it always melts my heart.

Usually, I’m not a huge fan of slow-burn but in cases like this, it really makes sense. Learning about one another and developing a friendship is very important and I loved seeing that. I also loved the evolution of this family Tristan and Nathaniel make with Emma, Sammy and Wyatt.

What I Liked: I liked the characters, both Tristan and Nathaniel. They both seemed to be a great balance for the other. I also liked that both seemed very realistic, they had flaws and insecurities that I really understood.

I really liked the ending. I was happy that it was done in a way that things weren’t perfect in a fairytale way but more like real life. It was sweet and cute but not overly so.

What I Didn’t Like: not enough dialogue and too much inner dialogue and descriptive writing. There were many times throughout the story that I just wanted the characters to speak to one another and carry on conversations but instead, there were paragraphs after paragraphs, sometimes pages of the MCs going over every detail of how they felt or describing what and why they were thinking something. It literally drove me nuts.

Overall, I think this was a good debut book by Rheland Richmond and I’m looking forward to what else will be coming in the future.

***Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie by the author/publisher for my reading pleasure in hopes of an unbiased opinion, a review was not a requirement.***


Author Bio:

Since she was a little girl, Rheland Richmond entertained herself with any book she could get her hands on. She has written as long as she can remember, and now she finally gets to share some of those stories with other people.

She loves a good happily ever after. Because she believes love and light should touch everything. She is an obsessive reader and would never have considered writing if it wasn’t for all the authors that inspired her and the thousands of books she has devoured along the way.

When she’s not reading she’s caught up in all her guilty pleasure TV Shows. Or catching up with her sibs wherever they are in the world, which usually involves long distance calling. She’s an introvert that will take a night in before anything else.

Made in Nigeria and raised in the UK she’s an interesting mix of both cultures and appreciates both equally.

Author links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RhelandRichmond

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RhelandRichmondAuthor

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/608099549573199/