Three Alarm Tenant

Arden FD #1

by Charlotte McClain, Christa Maurice

Katherine lost one hero in the line of duty — can she risk loving another?

Katherine Pelham’s fiance was a police officer, shot and killed during a robbery. Left with a house she can’t afford, she must rent out the first floor to solve her money woes. Before she can finishing putting up the For Rent sign, along comes a man who seems interested in more than just the apartment.Fireman Jack Connelly is in a bind: he’s rescued a dog, and his lease doesn’t allow pets. The new apartment would be great. The new landlady, even better…

206 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 4, 2009

About the author

Charlotte McClain is a pseudonym of Christa Maurice, and her books have been re-published under that name.

Born in a small town in Ohio (not actually in the town, in a hospital near the town, but I grew up in the town), I moved west (a little bit) to a smallish town in Ohio for college. Then I moved a little further west to a small city still in Ohio.

Then things got hairy.

I moved to an Asian Megacity, then to a small South American city and now have appeared to settle for a while in a medium sized Middle Eastern city. Recently upon seeing my passport some friends remarked, "You don't have any space left!"

All along (since I was about 12) I have been writing. When not writing, I am devoted to my other love, teaching kindergarten here in the Middle East. I write about what I know so my romances are generally well traveled or not and seen through snarky rose colored glasses.

Reviews

[Sabine Priestley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a soft spot for hero stories and this was a nice one. Christa has a knack for writing the awkward stilted dialogue of a young woman who doesn’t know how to have a conversation with a male. I thought it was brilliant. I wanted to smack Katherine a few times for taking so long to come around, but her motivations were clear. I prefer more ‘door wide open’ action but Christa wove an engaging story here. Loved the ending POV. Very nice touch. Highly recommend.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

I completely fell in love with this book. Being married to a firefighter myself, I wanted to read about a similar situation. I was not disappointed at all. There are parts of this book that are sad but there are also parts that are funny. It is a book about moving forward and finding love again.
Katherine is a high school teacher who lost her fiancé in a horrible accident. She has sworn off falling in love with anyone who can be claimed as a “hero”. She is completely afraid that she will end up alone again if that happens. I do understand what she is thinking about being alone, but I think that she could be happy if she opens up her heart again.
Jack is a firefighter who is looking for someone to love. He has had relationships in the past but they were never right for him. He became Katherine’s new tenant after his old apartment told him he couldn’t have pets. He is also a handyman. There is nothing around her house that he cannot fix.
All throughout the book, they are thrown together because of things that he is fixing in the house. The whole leaky faucet in her sink was so funny. It made me picture it in my head. Their first kiss was definitely one for the books. I do understand why Katherine ran away from him afterwards. She was completely afraid of opening her heart again, especially for a “hero”.
The rest of the book was mostly about Katherine trying to stay friends with Jack and him trying to be more with her. The first time they made love, was the turning point in the book. Katherine started realizing that if she did not change, she will be alone forever.
I love how Katherine told Jack that she loved him. I never thought that that was the way that she would tell him. I found I very romantic and sweet when I read it. It did help that the dog was there as well.
The proposal was definitely one for the record books. It was funny, sweet and romantic all rolled into one. I am happy that Katherine was able to move on. I am also happy that Jack was the one she was able to move on with.
I was laughing when I read the epilogue. I love the point of view that was given. It was completely unexpected but yet extremely entertaining. It was the best ending to an extremely good read.

[Jolie Mason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christa has a knack for characters. These two are some of my favorites from her books. There's a vulnerability and something utterly believable about both of them. They became as real as fictional characters are allowed to in your imagination.

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, it quickly grabbed my attention and kept me turning the pages. The characters are wll deawn out and I fell in love the Archer, the dog. It's a very nice story I would recommend!

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Tracy's Place · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 out of 5 stars

Merged review:

3.5 out of 5