A Man Worth Loving

Fed up with her snobby Manhattan family and their elite circle of fake friends, Aubrey Rose decides to move to Emmett's Mill, California. With her degree in child psychology, a minor in child development and experience as a nanny, finding a position should not be difficult. Since Aubrey has always preferred to earn her living, the allowance from her father is in a savings account or carefully invested. So Aubrey can get by until she finds a position she likes. During a Quilters Brigade meeting, Aubrey meets Mary Halvorsen. Mary informs Aubrey that her son, Samuel "Sammy", is in need of a nanny. Sammy's wife died six months ago while giving birth to their son. Sammy is still grieving and finds it hard to even look at his new son, Ian, much less care for the baby. When Aubrey goes with Mary to meet Sammy, she is appalled. Sammy is obviously nursing a major hang over. Drinking to oblivion and chasing skirts is almost a nightly ritual of his. Aubrey is about to refuse the nanny position when one of Mary's daughter-in-laws walks in with Ian, after caring for the toddler all night. Aubrey realizes Sammy is a "silly, self-absorbed idiot who didn't know how lucky he was." Unable to bear the thought of leaving Ian with his father, Aubrey accept the position. As she comes to know Sammy, Aubrey finds herself attracted to him. As Aubrey tries to make Sammy snap out of his grief and bond with Ian, she also has the displeasure of finding her mother and sister on her doorstep. Seems Aubrey's father has decided to stop allowances for the three of them. Unlike Aubrey, her mother and sister have saved nothing. Things become worse when Aubrey finally manages to get a return phone call from her father. ***** FIVE STARS! There is so much going on in this story. I left out quite a few problems and sub-plots. I never found myself growing bored at any time. The character of Aubrey is strong willed, yet with a soft heart, especially toward children. I could not help but admire her and cheer her on during rough situations. As usual, all the characters are fully developed and the story is well written. I would like to hear about Aubrey's sister again in the future too. If you are looking for a good and entertaining book, this is it! Kimberly Van Meter's stories always bring out the warm-fuzzies in me. ***** Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

Since his beloved wife's death six months ago Sammy Halvorsen has sunk into a world of self pity that no amount of family interference has been able to crack. He's spending all his free time in a drunken stupor tomcatting with any willing woman; all while leaving his infant son in the care of his sister-in-law rather than bond with the child his wife died to bring into the world. Sammy's aware that what he's doing is wrong but to do otherwise would mean accepting his loss and that's something he's just not prepared to do. Sammy's mother isn't about to let things continue as they have been. She's taken it upon herself to find Sammy a nanny to take care of little Ian and hopes that Sammy will come to his senses and realize that it's not Ian's fault that Dana died. Aubrey Rose is new to the Emmett's Mill area and she met Mary, Sammy's mother, at a Quilters Brigade meeting. Aubrey has previous experience working as an au pair and she loves kids but after meeting Sammy and seeing his lack of emotion for his son she realizes that this situation may very well be more than she can handle. She's suffered her own heartache and is still coming to terms with her disappointment but walking away from Sammy and Ian is simply impossible. Aubrey moved to Emmett's Mill looking for a simpler way of life with real friends. She was raised with all the finer things in life but never felt like she belonged, but here in this little town she's found her niche. Against her better judgment Aubrey agrees to be Ian's nanny and almost immediately ends up butting heads with Sammy. It's bad enough that he refers to Ian as `the kid' but returning home drunk with his conquest for the night is completely unacceptable. Aubrey's horrified by his behavior and takes him to task which only serves to anger Sammy until he realizes that she's absolutely correct. If Aubrey thought Sammy's situation was the biggest problem she'd be facing she's dead wrong. Her mother and sister arrive in town unexpectedly and deliver some startling news that will have her questioning everything about her upbringing. Sammy and Aubrey are hurting in their own individual ways but there's an attraction between them that is becoming increasingly difficult to deny. Kimberly Van Meter adds yet another awesome story to her Emmett's Mill line. I have to admit to a special fondness for this line and the personable natures of the variety of characters I've met through each new book - and love that I had the opportunity to revisit them again. A MAN WORTH LOVING throws the reader head first into the despair and self-destructive behavior that often accompanies the loss of a loved one. There are definitely sparks between Sammy and Aubrey early on but there's some self improvement and acceptance that needs to occur before either of them will be ready for any sort of romance. One of the things I especially loved about this story is how all the characters are realistic - they all have their own person