"SEALed with a Ring" by Mary Margret Daughtridge

The sensuous book cover caught my eye, the blurb on the back pulled me in and the intriguing story held my attention until the end.

Bewitching J.J. Caruthers is a smart, successful businesswoman who has it all and is about to lose everything.

Sexy Davy Graziano is a Navy SEAL medic who has a way with the ladies and lives in the moment until his world is turned upside down.

When these two collide at a wedding, one thing leads to another. After a night of mind-blowing sex, J.J. wakes realizing what she’s done and quickly leaves despite protest from Davy. She knows only his first name, but he knows nothing about her.

Back to facing reality, J.J. has one year to marry or lose what she holds most dear - Caruthers Car Dealership. She has no desire to marry, but is forced to pick one of the four husband candidates her grandfather has selected for her. Always the responsible one, she will do what she has to protect her business and her employees.

Meanwhile, Davy returns for another tour in Afghanistan and is seriously injured in a raid. His brain injury results in some memory loss. He comes home to recuperate, finds his mother has died and he is now responsible for his three siblings on top of trying to regain his memory and return to the career he loves.

Just as J.J.’s time is running out, fate brings her and Davy together again. She remembers him, but he has no memory of her. J.J. realizes marriage to a military man would solve her problems. Her new husband would be away on missions and not underfoot. She could meet her grandfather‘s requirement, save her business and still be on her own. She quickly proposes and Davy has his own reasons for accepting.

As their attraction grows, each begins to learn more about their own self as well. Trying to do the right thing, even for the wrong reasons, can sometimes take you in unexpected directions. The story also points out you don’t always know what you think you know.

This is a funny, romantic adventure with plenty of twists and turns. Author Mary Margret Daughtridge gives readers a delightful new look at a macho Navy SEAL and a sassy businesswoman.

The story flows fluently and draws the reader in. You feel J.J.’s loneliness and helplessness, while understanding Davy’s loyalty and frustration. This book is not just about romance, but compassion, caring, understanding, and commitment. From the first page to the last you will be cheering for these two tantalizing characters. "SEALed with a Ring" is a wonderful must-read book.

SEALed with a Ring * Sourcebooks * @2010 * ISBN: 978-1-4022-3698-3 * Paperback * 416 pages

FTC Full Disclosure - This book was sent to me by the publisher in hopes I would review it. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review.

*****

(Kathy Cano-Murillo, author of "Waking Up in the Land of Glitter," was scheduled to guest blog here today, but was unable to. We will try to reschedule her post for a later date.)

Guest Blogger, Mary Margret Daughtridge

Join me today as I welcome author Mary Margret Daughtridge as the special guest blogger here at Thoughts in Progress.

Mary Margret’s latest release, “SEALed with a Ring,” is the third in her “SEALed series.” This story features a Navy SEAL medic and a smart and successful businesswoman.

Mary Margret and Danielle at Sourcebooks are graciously giving away copies of this March release to two lucky readers of this post. Just comment on Mary Margaret’s post between now and 8 p.m. on Wednesday, March 17, for a chance to win a copy.

Writing about a Navy SEAL as a romantic interest seems like it could be difficult so Mary Margret is here to explain.
 
Thanks for inviting me over today, Mason.

First of all, let me tell your readers, Mason asked me: How hard is it to create a tough “macho” hero, who also has a romantic side?

Truthfully? It’s not hard at all.

That might be because I’m not attempting to write romantic suspense—in which case I think it would be hard indeed. But it’s also because, for models of alpha male behavior, I’m using Navy SEALs. Of course, SEALs are real men and my characters are fictional; I never lose sight of that and wouldn’t want my readers to either. Still, several SEALs have been kind enough to help with my research, and so far, I don’t see any contradiction between being tough and romantic because they don’t see any.

SEALs naturally score high on a characteristic usually thought of as feminine: nurturance, a fact I used to craft the character of Davy, my hero of SEALed with a Ring.

It’s Davy’s nature to take care of people. He likes to feed them, to protect and encourage them, bind their wounds and, when appropriate, kiss their boo-boos. He goes all squishy for little girls. When I first met him in SEALed with a

Promise, I thought “What an arrogant, cocky jerk!” And I also thought, “Oh! What a sweetie! If only I could find the right woman for you.”

SEALs have so much self-assurance, so much self-respect, and their training and work have taken them so far beyond what most people dream is possible, they have no fear at all of the “softer” emotions. Nobody is going to call them a sissy if they admit they like pretty things, or they tear up over babies and kittens, or cry when they’re hurt.

Which is not to say they don’t tease me about writing “mush.” They tease me, and then they go on to answer my questions, which probably seem stupidly inconsequential to them, with perfect, gentle respect.

Having exploded out the top of manliness, SEALs have nothing to lose by taking on women’s work. And they understand teamwork—a concept that’s quite difficult for most testosterone-heavy men. They have actually trained to have a number of “feminine” characteristics. They can multi-task, listen to two conversations simultaneously, see a wide angle, and take in lots of detail in a glance. Can you imagine—a man who can see the dirty laundry and will tackle it just because someone needs to! I’m not saying it ever happens but—at least theoretically—it could.

If you want to know the truth, it’s harder to write a heroine who is a match for them. My readership is mainly female and that’s who I need to please. Women are hard on themselves. They’re not as tolerant of heroines as they are of heroes and are less likely to think their virtues compensate for their faults. I try to write the kind of woman I admire enough to have compassion for, even when I perceive she is wrong, and enjoy enough to want her for a friend. I’m happy to say I’ve found readers who agree with me.

What are your favorite types of heroes? Heroines? I’ll be by the blog today to check in and see what all your answers are!

Here’s a brief synopsis of “SEALed with a Ring:”

She’s got it all…except the one thing she needs most. Smart, successful businesswoman JJ Caruthers has a year to land a husband or lose the empire she’s worked so hard to build. With time running out, romance is not an option, and a military husband who is always on the road begins to look like the perfect solution…

He’s a wounded hero with an agenda of his own. Even with the scars of battle, Navy SEAL medic Davy Graziano is gorgeous enough to land any woman he wants, and he’s never wanted to be tied down. Now Davy has ulterior motives for accepting JJ’s outrageous proposal of marriage, but he only has so long to figure out what JJ doesn’t want him to know…

Thanks for showing us both sides of a SEAL - the touch macho that gets the job done and the romantic side that doesn’t mind exposing his “soft” side.

A little background on Mary Margret. She has been a grade school teacher, speech therapist, family educator, biofeedback therapist, and Transpersonal Hypnotherapist. She is a member of Heart of Carolina Romance Writers, Romance Writers of America, and Romancing the Military Soul, and is a sought-after judge in writing contests.

Mary Margret resides in Greensboro, North Carolina. For more information on her and her books, visit her website at http://marymargretdaughtridge.com/. She is also a contributing blogger at Casablanca Authors.

Remember to comment for a chance to win “SEALed with a Ring.”