After reading that Ms. Brenna won the 2011 RITA for contemporary series romance, I knew that I wanted to read one of her books. As luck would have it, Her Sure Thing was available for review.

Sean Griffin has just had the shock of his life. And old girlfriend contacted him, telling him that he has a sixteen-year-old son. After their engagement ended she wanted to move on with her life, especially since she had fallen in love with someone else. Sean had also been quite vocal about not being interested in kids. Now she is getting a divorce, and their son, Austin, has gotten into trouble. She is having trouble dealing with his rebellion, and needs to spend time with her younger children helping them adjust. She requests that Sean take custody of Austin for three months to give her a needed break from his teenage disobedience.

Grace Kahill left Mirabelle Island when she was only seventeen, moving to Los Angeles. Within a year she was discovered, her modeling career launched, and soon she lived in luxury hotels in Paris, London, Milan, and Tokyo. Working 24/7 for years made her health start to suffer. Jeremy, the man who discovered her, moves her back to L.A. and they marry. Her life of privilege changes after a car accident inflicted third degree burns over the left side of her body. Her months in the hospital hammered home the fact that she has few friends. Only two people visit her – one friend and her personal assistant. Jeremy filed for divorce right after he discovered that the damage was permanent. Now Grace’s medical treatment is almost complete. Her mother died recently and her father is not handling her death well so Grace decides to move back to Mirabella, bringing her one prized procession, Louie, her Friesian horse.

Sean and Grace immediately clash. She made arrangement with the former owner of the stables to board her horse. However, Sean is now the new owner and he doesn’t feel obligated to do Grace any favors since the horses stabled there work for a living in his livery operation. The sparks flying between them are not just generated by anger; both obviously feel the pull of sexual attraction.

Grace makes an appointment with the local doctor and when she fills out the paperwork for a new patient, she gives them authorization to request her past medical records. Then she discovers that Sean is also the new doctor in town. Attracted to him, she’s not ready to show him her scars in any capacity whether it be as a lover or doctor. After Grace abruptly leaves his office, Sean doesn’t feel comfortable requesting the files but after he sees her naked at the local cove during her midnight swim he decides that it would be negligent if he didn’t know her history.

The author handles multiple threads with ease, from Sean’s troubled relationship with his son to Grace’s distanced relationship with her brother. Characters appear from other stories, but seemed well integrated to the plot. This is the first book I have read in the Mirabelle Island stories, but I didn’t feel lost.

Grace is a likeable character who has had a lot to accept. Not only did she lose her career but almost all of her so-called friends. Any type of bitterness or lack of confidence in picking a new lover and friends seems to fade away once she arrives on Mirabelle. Indeed, the heroine didn’t spend a lot of time obsessing over her lost looks and her emotional recovery seemed rapid once she arrives.

Sean is another well drawn character. I found his relationship with his son realistic. However, I disliked the fact that he requested records on Grace. Her leaving his office and telling him that she couldn’t let him treat her in my mind ended the patent/doctor relationship and his need to know her medical history. Grace is perfectly able to fly back to California for treatment or if she does change her mind, reports could have been faxed. His attitude of “I need to know just in case” didn’t seem ethical, and I also found it difficult to believe that he was able to run a clinic part time while handling a livery business.

My qualms over these items were counterbalanced by the notable themes of looks and self-esteem, family and forgiveness, and new beginnings. My grade for the book was in the B- range until the ending which frankly seemed over the top.

While not all aspects worked for me, I still am interested in reading the book that won the RITA and will be watching out for Ms. Brenna’s future books. However, this one doesn’t quite get a recommendation.