Lightning Crashes Marla Holt Publication date: January 18th 2022 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance The Tower Card: Upheaval, Crumbling Foundations, Chaos, Awakening The Sun Card: Enlightenment, Joy, Success, Vitality Rachel Ferrer fled the church when she was eighteen, burying her trauma to chase her dreams, only to have them thwarted when her husband died shortly after their son was born. Now she and her tarot-reading roommate do their best to get by. Nicolas Rivera should be happy. He answered his call to the ministry and has held a position in the church he grew up in for more than a decade. He’s married and he loves his kids, but something in him has shifted and the life he thought he wanted doesn’t feel like it fits anymore. When his childhood best friend’s widow reappears in his life, Nicolas tells himself that his desire to be near Rachel is altruistic. Until it isn’t. Rachel and Nicolas have been on the periphery of each other’s lives for years, but when their...

Absolution Marla Holt (Lightning Crashes #2) Publication date: April 20th 2021 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance Lightning crashes. The tower falls. Rachel Ferrer thinks she’s already hit rock bottom, but then the ground crumbles beneath her feet. Alone, she is finally forced to face the darkness she’s been avoiding. Rachel doesn’t dare hope the spark of light in the distance might include Nicolas, even when she can’t forget the feel of his lips on hers. Nicolas Rivera has always been the stable one. He is who others come to when their worlds shatter, but suddenly his life is the one in ruins. He doesn’t hope to connect with Rachel in the aftermath, but he discovers her in the last place he expected to. Uninhibited at last, the electricity between them finally ignites. Is their flame enough for Rachel and Nicolas sift through the rubble, rebuild, and finally emerge, together, into the light? Absolution is Volume 2 of the Lightning Crashes Duet and should be read afte...

Temptation Marla Holt (Lightning Crashes #1) Publication date: March 23rd 2021 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance Broke and widowed, Rachel Ferrer has already lost so much that when her tarot reading roommate pulls The Tower card, Rachel isn’t phased. What are upheaval and chaos when the worst had already happened? When Rachel’s late husband’s childhood best friend, Nicolas, reappears in her life and brings a handsome friend along with him, Rachel forgets the cards. She takes a chance on Blake even though she can’t stop thinking about Nicolas. It isn’t settling if the person you want is married, right? Nicolas Rivera has always been a man of faith. His marriage and his job at the church have been his pillars, but when the foundations of both begin to crumble, doubt and a forbidden attraction tempt him to seek comfort in the one woman he shouldn’t go anywhere near. Nicolas and Rachel have been on the periphery of each other’s lives for years, but as circumstances push them ...

Temptation Marla Holt (The Lightning Crashes Duet, #1) Publication date: March 23rd 2021 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance Broke and widowed, Rachel Ferrer has already lost so much that when her tarot reading roommate pulls The Tower card, Rachel isn’t phased. What are upheaval and chaos when the worst had already happened? When Rachel’s late husband’s childhood best friend, Nicolas, reappears in her life and brings a handsome friend along with him, Rachel forgets the cards. She takes a chance on Blake even though she can’t stop thinking about Nicolas. It isn’t settling if the person you want is married, right? Nicolas Rivera has always been a man of faith. His marriage and his job at the church have been his pillars, but when the foundations of both begin to crumble, doubt and a forbidden attraction tempt him to seek comfort in the one woman he shouldn’t go anywhere near. Nicolas and Rachel have been on the periphery of each other’s lives for years, but as circumstances ...

The Betrayal Incident Marla Holt (The Incident Series, #3) Publication date: September 14th 2020 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance Because of his betrayal, Phoenix walks away from the only man she’s ever wanted. Can Robin find the strength to fight for their love? Phoenix Lambert doesn’t have time for men. She’s too busy running pop star Van Birch’s empire. But she can’t get a certain silver fox out of her head. One night together turns into two which turns into sneaking around to be together, because oh yeah, that silver fox is also her best friend’s dad. Twice widowed Robin Birch isn’t in the market for a third wife. He has a busy law practice to run and a bid for Congress to win. But when Phoenix falls into his arms, he can’t make himself let her go–or confess to his daughter that he’s been sleeping with her best friend. When Phoenix refuses to be his dirty little secret, Robin thinks it’s over. But their relationships with Van keep pushing them back together. Can pr...

The Deception Incident Marla Holt (The Incident Series, #2) Publication date: July 21st 2020 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance Her life is stabilizing and his is spiraling while they both keep secrets. Minnie Halvarson moved to Kansas to start over. She wanted to be anonymous, live a simple life, and heal from her past. When Bryant Wilder walks into her bookstore, she thinks she’s hit the boyfriend jackpot. What more could she want than a tall, bookish man who worships her? Until Minnie finds out he’s dating mega pop star, Van Birch and cuts all ties with him. Bryant Wilder is a humble Kansas contractor by day and Van Birch’s fake boyfriend whenever she needs him to be.  At first Bryant is happy to do it, but after five years, he is tired of dodging paparazzi and keeping his hookups on the down low. Bryant wants more. Who he wants is Minnie. But she won’t even look at him. Now Van is back in Wellville, and has adopted Minnie into their friend group, Bryant is jus...

Review: The Van Birch Incident - Incident Series #1 - Marla Holt - May 2020 In the last year or so, I moved away from the Rockstar themed stories as I had gotten a bit bored of them. However, what attracted me to this particular book was the #MeToo and the words "scandal". In The Van Birch Incident, we meet Popstar Van Birch who is a popular singer and often in the limelight. She has been dating secretly her manager Bishop and is ready to come out as a public item, even if it means she must come clean about her fake boyfriend Bryant - her best friend and "partner" for the past five years. However, her plans go awry when one night Bishop takes things way too far and ends up raping her and leaving her with bruises. The next morning, it is all over the web and magazines. Needing to escape Van and her assistant Phoenix head to Van's hometown of Wellwood which has just been hit by a nasty tornado and some of the houses have been left as disaster zones...

The Van Birch Incident: A Rock Star Romance Marla Holt (The Incident Series, #1) Publication date: May 21st 2020 Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance Van Birch: Pop Star. A-list starlet. Off-limits. Clay Noble has spent the better part of a decade avoiding his taboo obsession: His stepsister Van. In love with her since the first time he’d heard her sing, even shipping himself off to the army couldn’t stop thoughts of her. Now that he’s lost everything in a tornado, he’s forced to move back in with the only family he has left, Van and her dad. Sleeping down the hall from her is forcing every unwanted impulse back to the surface. Clay Noble: Gorgeous. Infuriating. Untouchable. Everything Van touches turns to gold with a side of outrageous. When she accuses her manager of sexual assault, the public thinks it’s just another one of her publicity stunts and the backlash is brutal. Wounded, she dashes home to a tornado-devastated Wellville, Kansas to heal and help rebuild, even t...