Heart of Gold

This is the first book I've read by this author and I couldn't put it down! I just finished ordering all the rest of her books I could find and am looking forward to reading them. I was hesitant to read Heart of Gold since I had never heard anything about the author before, so needless to say I was very pleasantly surprised at the quality of read. I think it's safe to say Ms.Bird will undoubtedly gain the recognition and great reviews she deserves and hopefully will be writing lots more books in the future.

Carter Wessex arrives home from an archaeologist dig with only two things on her mind--cleaning all the dirt from under her finger nails and killing whatever is growing in her dirty laundry. Then best friend Grace Hall calls to coerce her into solving the Winship mystery surrounding Farrell Mountain. Carter knows this is a once in a lifetime chance to uncover the truth behind a 200 year old legend of buried gold, betrayal, and death. But Carter knows it's futile to even dream about digging on that mountain. Nick Farrell has no respect for "gold diggers" and loves nothing more than to kick them off his property. Cater makes the trip anyway and meets with Mr. Farrell. Three words pop into her head at her first look--intelligent, attractive, and powerful. Until he opens his mouth, then it's rude, arrogant, and insulting. After meeting Carter, Nick realizes this woman is the estranged daughter of William Wessex. The very man Nick is involved in making a billion dollar deal with. He begins to wonder what it would be worth to Wessex for a chance to reconcile with the daughter who hasn't spoken to him in two years. Only after Nick falls for Carter does he find out how deep the bitter misunderstanding is between her and her father. His premeditated plans will drive Carter out of his life unless her love for him is stronger that her hurt. As soon as I finished, my first thought was her next book can't be released soon enough for me. Everyone who read Jessica Bird's Leaping Hearts, Carter's cousin's story, knows what to expect and will not be disappointed with Heart of Gold. Very, very well written. The dialoge, the sub characters, plot, and sensuality were outstanding. My favortie part was Carter's discovery of Nick's secret. It took place far enough from the ending that there was plenty of time for the couple to resolve their issues.

"Jessica Bird continues to soar with her second heartwarming contemporary, HEART OF GOLD for Ballantine/Ivy in April 2003. Archeologist/professor Carter Wessex is determined to get permission to dig in the mountains of billionaire, Nick Farrell's property in upstate NY to unravel a mystery and hopefully discover gold lost during the American Revolution. At first arrogant entrepreneur, Nick refuses the feisty Carter's request but he quickly changes his mind when he realizes who Carter's father is and that it could be advantageous to his latest business deal. This arrangement might be a deal maker for Nick's corporation but it could prove a heart breaker to his growing relationship with Carter when she finds out about his deal with her estranged father. With a delightful secondary love story between Nick's diabetic teenage nephew and Carter's dig partner's teenage daughter added to the highly combustible chemistry between the headstrong main couple, readers will enjoy one winning romance! HEART OF GOLD proves Jessica Bird's writing is golden with her inherent ability to pen terrific, touching, unique contemporaries that will guarantee romance readers will be her fans for life!"Patricia Rouse, Rouse's Romance Readers Groups

Last year with her first book "Leaping Hearts" I was truly enthralled with that story and this wonderful new author to hit the book stores. I eagerly waited for the release of "Heart of Gold" and I was not disappointed. The story of Carter & Nick will be one I will remember for a long time and will revisit often. These are two people who have been scarred in the past leaving them weary to trust and to give their hearts away, the attraction is instant, but that trust issue comes up again and again. Carter has not spoken to her father in a long time and that is the basis of her problems. Nick lost his sister and her husband and is left to raise her son on his own. Nick and Cort have a hard time communicating and also the fact that Cort has diabeties makes Nick a little overbearing and over protective. All the relationships between all the characters are realistically played out and makes for a wonderful emotional story. I can't wait for Jessica's next book !

Archeologist Carter Wessex has been given a grant to unlock Revolutionary War secrets, buried with a doomed party of minutemen, on Farrell Mountain. That is, if she can convince Nick Farrell, the mountain's owner, a.k.a., tycoon and corporate raider, to let her dig there. Nick reluctantly agrees to let her do so, but also establishes ground rules that Carter is less than happy with. Carter's name seems familiar, and when Nick realizes who she is related to, his cool business façade tells him he may stand to benefit all around from this decision. Little does he realize what lies in store for his heart!Arrogant, with a temper to boot, Nick's life starts to change the minute Carter walks on to his mountain. Using the excuse of keeping an eye on her work, soon Nick can't keep his eyes off Carter, and fireworks fly between these two. As the dig progresses, interesting artifacts and skeletons turn up, along with an unsavory associate of Carter's, showing more interest than what seems appropriate in her findings. Carter's dad also makes an appearance, shattering the protective shell she has conveniently built around herself, and questioning Nick's business motives with her dad. Is he just using her to conveniently close another deal, breaking her heart in the process? The associates that Carter bring on the dig, and other members of Nick's family, provide some great moments, adding nice secondary features and slices of humor along the way. I really liked the different archeological story line, and the many bits of history were very interesting, and not overdone. I must add, that this Farrell reminds me of another, that being Matt Farrell from Judith McNaught's "Paradise", who is one of my favorite leading men. Needless to say, I loved this book and look forward to more from this incredible author!