Maid for Love is the first book of Marie Force’s Gansett Island series and the first book I’ve read by her. I’ve heard many good things about her writing and had taken a book marketing class she taught a while back, which gave me a good feeling about her as well. I had high hopes going into reading this book and I’m happy to say that I wasn’t disappointed. The series features the McCarthy family who are the well-respected owners of a resort hotel and marina on the island. Mac, the oldest of the McCarthy siblings, returns to Gansett for a much-needed sabbatical after pushing himself too hard in his business in Miami. He’s barely been back for a few minutes when he accidentally steps into the path of Maddie Chester’s bicycle, causing her to crash and end up badly hurt. As a single mother, she desperately needs her job as a maid at the McCarthy’s hotel, but after her spill, she can barely walk, much less do her work. Feeling terrible that his carelessness caused her injuries, Mac steps up, insisting on taking over her duties at the hotel, as well as spending his nights at her apartment to help care for her nine-month-old son. Maddie isn’t happy about it at first, but realizing she has few other options, she finally relents. Mac ends up falling head over heels in love at first sight, and while it takes Maddie just a bit longer to warm up, his charm and protective care win her over quickly. However, family conflicts and Mac’s need to fix things from Maddie’s past place their fast-moving relationship in some jeopardy.

Feeling stifled by the time high school was over, Mac couldn’t wait to get off the island, so he went away to college, then started a business in Miami that has kept him so busy he rarely comes back. However, burning the candle at both ends, keeping the business running smoothly for years, leads to a health scare. When the doctor prescribes rest and relaxation, Mac heads home to Gansett where he intends to take it easy for a while, but after his unfortunate encounter with Maddie, the protector in him simply can’t leave the poor woman high and dry. He insists that he will take on all her duties as both a maid and a daycare provider, as well as move in with her to care for her infant son. She’s a bit prickly about it at first, but once he wins her over, he’s totally smitten by both her and her son, Thomas. He knows everything is moving fast, but in all his years of dating, he’s never before felt anything like what he feels for Maddie after only knowing her for a few days. When he finds out how hard things have been for her in the small-town environment of the island, he also feels compelled to set things right for her in that respect, too, which is where he runs into a little conflict with her that nearly ends their budding relationship. I absolutely adored Mac. He’s a protective caretaker and a total sweetheart who apparently takes after his father. I love how he tenderly cares for Maddie and he’s a natural at fatherhood with little Thomas. He also doesn’t stand for his mother’s snobbishness and doesn’t care one bit about the island rumor-mill, instinctively knowing that Maddie isn’t who the town thinks she is. He’s also not afraid to get his hands dirty performing the unconventional job of being a hotel maid. I personally found all of his actions to be sweet and romantic even though Maddie had issues with his biggest gesture.

Maddie has lived on the island all her life with her mother and sister, but her father left when she was a child and never came back. Her body developed faster than the other girls, and once she had breasts – and rather large ones, too – all the boys around her wanted to either ogle her or try to cop a feel. She was always a good girl, and just because she didn’t give in to one boy’s pressure for sex, he spread a rumor around town that she’d slept with him and all his friends, which included Mac’s younger brother. Between that and her having a child out of wedlock, she’s been branded the town slut, but nothing could be further from the truth. Now as a single mom, she desperately needs her job at McCarthy’s Inn and she also cleans the elder McCarthys’ house, but she’s always been treated poorly at both jobs. After having such bad experiences with the McCarthys, she doesn’t want to have anything to do with them on a personal level. When Mac knocks her off her bike and she finds out who he is, Maddie just wants him to go away, but when he really steps up to the plate, she can’t help but slowly warm up to him. She’s surprised to discover how comfortable she feels with him and ends up falling for him almost as fast as he falls for her. But family troubles and Mac taking one of his gestures a little farther than she would have liked without telling her is nearly a deal-breaker. Maddie is a very sympathetic character, a hard worker and a wonderful mother, who needs a self-confidence boost after all she’s been through, and Mac is more than ready and willing to provide it.

With Maid for Love being the start of a long-running, small-town romance series, there are supporting characters aplenty that I’m sure will be seen in future installments. Mac’s old friend, Joe, who is the ferry operator has been sweet on Mac’s sister, Janey, for years, but she’s engaged to someone else she doesn’t get to see often. Clearly that relationship is doomed, because Joe and Janey become the hero and heroine of the next book, Fool for Love. Maddie’s sister, Tiffany, isn’t too keen on the idea of Maddie taking up with Mac, and she seems somewhat unhappy in general. It’s hinted that her marriage might be on the rocks, and I’m guessing it probably ends at some point since she’s the heroine of the seventh book, Longing for Love. We’re briefly introduced to Luke, who works at the McCarthy Marina and who becomes the hero of the third book, Ready for Love. Then there’s Mac’s brother, Evan, a musician who grovels very nicely, which made me much more open to him as the hero of the fifth book, Hoping for Love. Then there’s Mac’s parents, Linda and Big Mac. Big Mac is a gentle giant who seems to be kind, loving, and patient with everyone, but Linda rubbed me the wrong way with her bad attitude toward Maddie and her meddlesome opposition to Mac and Maddie being together. She does come around by the end, but she’ll have some work to do to fully win me over to her side. Luckily there are plenty more books in which she’ll have the opportunity to prove herself a genuinely good person.

Maid for Love is something of a take on the classic Cinderella story. Maddie is the beleaguered maid who’s been done wrong, while Mac is the proverbial prince who saves the day. Being a sucker for these kinds of romances, I ended up enjoying it a lot, but there were a few minor quibbles I had with it. Mac’s big gesture almost ruined the good thing he had going with Maddie and I have to admit that I didn’t entirely understand where she was coming from. I got that after her impressive breasts causing such a stir for most of her life, that she didn’t want to be the center of attention, but she mostly dinged Mac for lying to her and keeping secrets. She did have one major incident in her past of someone lying to her, but perhaps she just wasn’t shown struggling enough with trust issues for me to get it. Also, since what Mac did was for a good reason and not a bad one, it just didn’t quite ring true to me. If anything, I got a bit teary eyed over the protectiveness and sweetness of Mac’s efforts. Ultimately I accepted that it was what it was, but because it did cause trouble between them, I felt like the reconciliation and the ending was perhaps a teensy bit rushed. Not that it was a bad ending or anything, but the final page just crept up on me without me realizing it was coming so quickly. Overall, though, these things didn’t detract much from my enjoyment of the story. Love-at-first-sight romances can be hit and miss with me. This one ended up being a hit, because the author established a strong emotional connection between Mac and Maddie almost from the moment they meet, making it a squishy, feel-good story. I adored Mac and Maddie and there are lots of other great characters I can’t wait to see more of in the books yet to come, so I very much looking forward to continuing the series soon. ( )

On the whole I liked it. There was a heaping helping of insta love. But it was a little more believable here somehow I didn't mind as much as normal. The hero's mother sure was a piece of work. I didn't particularly care for the heroine's reaction at the end of the book. I thought it was unrealistically extreme. But hey, it's fiction.

I think I will try others in the series but probably only if the storylines appeal to me. ( )

Sweet book about Maddie, the town tramp, and Mac, one of the town's 'golden boys'.

Mac is suffering from burn out when he returns home to his little island jail (that's how he came to think of it as a kid) to help his dad get the business ready to be sold. A freak accident with a bicycle puts him in Maddie's path. Maddie is shy, not one for wanting attention and so gun shy of men it isn't funny. A single mom who works hard to try and give her son, Thomas, the world.

Mac quickly realizes he's in love and is set to win her heart. He wants to take away all her hurts, troubles and stresses....if only that could happen. In high school a boy ruined her reputation by saying he and his friends "had" Maddie when in fact she reached the ripe old age of 28 with her virginity intact. But folks would rather believe the bad about a person, especially when one of the town's favorite families---a younger son---backs up the jerks claims. Add to that Miss Maddie was an early bloomer who bloomed quite abundantly and folks eat it up. So of course his mommy dearest doesn't want him to have anything to do with her. Since she works as a maid in the families hotel the 'tramp' gets all the crappy rooms and jobs to handle.

She tells him the truth of how she got the nickname Maddie Mattress and Mac feels rage on her behalf, he silently vows to do something about it. You remember what they say about the best of intentions, even our neck deep in love hero isn't immune to all the wrong things happening.

It's a sweet love story and acceptance, healing, and coming together to get over life's little bumps in the road. Oh yes, Thomas--the baby--- he has a jerk of a biological father. So glad he's only in a couple of spots and not much time and effort is wasted on him. ( )

Maid for Love is the first book of Marie Force’s Gansett Island series and the first book I’ve read by her. I’ve heard many good things about her writing and had taken a book marketing class she taught a while back, which gave me a good feeling about her as well. I had high hopes going into reading this book and I’m happy to say that I wasn’t disappointed. The series features the McCarthy family who are the well-respected owners of a resort hotel and marina on the island. Mac, the oldest of the McCarthy siblings, returns to Gansett for a much-needed sabbatical after pushing himself too hard in his business in Miami. He’s barely been back for a few minutes when he accidentally steps into the path of Maddie Chester’s bicycle, causing her to crash and end up badly hurt. As a single mother, she desperately needs her job as a maid at the McCarthy’s hotel, but after her spill, she can barely walk, much less do her work. Feeling terrible that his carelessness caused her injuries, Mac steps up, insisting on taking over her duties at the hotel, as well as spending his nights at her apartment to help care for her nine-month-old son. Maddie isn’t happy about it at first, but realizing she has few other options, she finally relents. Mac ends up falling head over heels in love at first sight, and while it takes Maddie just a bit longer to warm up, his charm and protective care win her over quickly. However, family conflicts and Mac’s need to fix things from Maddie’s past place their fast-moving relationship in some jeopardy.

Feeling stifled by the time high school was over, Mac couldn’t wait to get off the island, so he went away to college, then started a business in Miami that has kept him so busy he rarely comes back. However, burning the candle at both ends, keeping the business running smoothly for years, leads to a health scare. When the doctor prescribes rest and relaxation, Mac heads home to Gansett where he intends to take it easy for a while, but after his unfortunate encounter with Maddie, the protector in him simply can’t leave the poor woman high and dry. He insists that he will take on all her duties as both a maid and a daycare provider, as well as move in with her to care for her infant son. She’s a bit prickly about it at first, but once he wins her over, he’s totally smitten by both her and her son, Thomas. He knows everything is moving fast, but in all his years of dating, he’s never before felt anything like what he feels for Maddie after only knowing her for a few days. When he finds out how hard things have been for her in the small-town environment of the island, he also feels compelled to set things right for her in that respect, too, which is where he runs into a little conflict with her that nearly ends their budding relationship. I absolutely adored Mac. He’s a protective caretaker and a total sweetheart who apparently takes after his father. I love how he tenderly cares for Maddie and he’s a natural at fatherhood with little Thomas. He also doesn’t stand for his mother’s snobbishness and doesn’t care one bit about the island rumor-mill, instinctively knowing that Maddie isn’t who the town thinks she is. He’s also not afraid to get his hands dirty performing the unconventional job of being a hotel maid. I personally found all of his actions to be sweet and romantic even though Maddie had issues with his biggest gesture.

Maddie has lived on the island all her life with her mother and sister, but her father left when she was a child and never came back. Her body developed faster than the other girls, and once she had breasts – and rather large ones, too – all the boys around her wanted to either ogle her or try to cop a feel. She was always a good girl, and just because she didn’t give in to one boy’s pressure for sex, he spread a rumor around town that she’d slept with him and all his friends, which included Mac’s younger brother. Between that and her having a child out of wedlock, she’s been branded the town slut, but nothing could be further from the truth. Now as a single mom, she desperately needs her job at McCarthy’s Inn and she also cleans the elder McCarthys’ house, but she’s always been treated poorly at both jobs. After having such bad experiences with the McCarthys, she doesn’t want to have anything to do with them on a personal level. When Mac knocks her off her bike and she finds out who he is, Maddie just wants him to go away, but when he really steps up to the plate, she can’t help but slowly warm up to him. She’s surprised to discover how comfortable she feels with him and ends up falling for him almost as fast as he falls for her. But family troubles and Mac taking one of his gestures a little farther than she would have liked without telling her is nearly a deal-breaker. Maddie is a very sympathetic character, a hard worker and a wonderful mother, who needs a self-confidence boost after all she’s been through, and Mac is more than ready and willing to provide it.

With Maid for Love being the start of a long-running, small-town romance series, there are supporting characters aplenty that I’m sure will be seen in future installments. Mac’s old friend, Joe, who is the ferry operator has been sweet on Mac’s sister, Janey, for years, but she’s engaged to someone else she doesn’t get to see often. Clearly that relationship is doomed, because Joe and Janey become the hero and heroine of the next book, Fool for Love. Maddie’s sister, Tiffany, isn’t too keen on the idea of Maddie taking up with Mac, and she seems somewhat unhappy in general. It’s hinted that her marriage might be on the rocks, and I’m guessing it probably ends at some point since she’s the heroine of the seventh book, Longing for Love. We’re briefly introduced to Luke, who works at the McCarthy Marina and who becomes the hero of the third book, Ready for Love. Then there’s Mac’s brother, Evan, a musician who grovels very nicely, which made me much more open to him as the hero of the fifth book, Hoping for Love. Then there’s Mac’s parents, Linda and Big Mac. Big Mac is a gentle giant who seems to be kind, loving, and patient with everyone, but Linda rubbed me the wrong way with her bad attitude toward Maddie and her meddlesome opposition to Mac and Maddie being together. She does come around by the end, but she’ll have some work to do to fully win me over to her side. Luckily there are plenty more books in which she’ll have the opportunity to prove herself a genuinely good person.

Maid for Love is something of a take on the classic Cinderella story. Maddie is the beleaguered maid who’s been done wrong, while Mac is the proverbial prince who saves the day. Being a sucker for these kinds of romances, I ended up enjoying it a lot, but there were a few minor quibbles I had with it. Mac’s big gesture almost ruined the good thing he had going with Maddie and I have to admit that I didn’t entirely understand where she was coming from. I got that after her impressive breasts causing such a stir for most of her life, that she didn’t want to be the center of attention, but she mostly dinged Mac for lying to her and keeping secrets. She did have one major incident in her past of someone lying to her, but perhaps she just wasn’t shown struggling enough with trust issues for me to get it. Also, since what Mac did was for a good reason and not a bad one, it just didn’t quite ring true to me. If anything, I got a bit teary eyed over the protectiveness and sweetness of Mac’s efforts. Ultimately I accepted that it was what it was, but because it did cause trouble between them, I felt like the reconciliation and the ending was perhaps a teensy bit rushed. Not that it was a bad ending or anything, but the final page just crept up on me without me realizing it was coming so quickly. Overall, though, these things didn’t detract much from my enjoyment of the story. Love-at-first-sight romances can be hit and miss with me. This one ended up being a hit, because the author established a strong emotional connection between Mac and Maddie almost from the moment they meet, making it a squishy, feel-good story. I adored Mac and Maddie and there are lots of other great characters I can’t wait to see more of in the books yet to come, so I very much looking forward to continuing the series soon. ( )

Full review posted at Reader's Edyn on 02/01/20

Maddie is jaded – given a bad reputation for no reason other than refusing to have sex with a guy in high school, and left alone and pregnant by someone she thought loved her, she’s a tough single mom busting her butt to make ends meet for her and her son. When Mac plows into her life, quite literally, she wants him gone as soon as possible. She doesn’t need him despite their sizzling attraction. But he’s got a way of not taking no for an answer and in no time flat it’s as if he’s been there all along. Mac makes Maddie believe a future could be possible with him, but in her experience, men can’t be trusted. Mac isn’t any different despite his smooth-talking words, ridiculously kind actions, and super-hot body.

Mac had been away from home for quite some time. Back to check on his Dad and relax after a health scare, he literally runs into Maddie as soon as he gets on he island. He’s not the type to even slightly entertain settling down, but something in Maddie knocks the breath out of him and he instantly wants to be a part of her life. He refuses to believe that she doesn’t need him or care about him, especially given their attraction. He can’t get his fill of her and realizes he never will. Breaking through her defenses is a challenge he’s accepted and he won’t stop until he makes her his permanently.

If I had to pick something to complain about, I would point out Mac’s background. Mac didn’t really have much of a back story other than he was basically a rich playboy who put all of his energy into his business and very little effort into women because they were never meant to be permanent. Pretty shallow actually – much to the contradiction of his actions with Maddie and her son. But beyond that, I enjoyed everything else about this story. Maddie is completely relatable and before too long you just want her to find happiness after the curve balls life has thrown at her. I had a friend growing up that went through similar rumors, so in some respects I had lived part of Maddie’s strife. While Mac could come off as too strong for some and maybe just a bit over the top for me at times also, he was exactly what Maddie needed. After being on her own for so long and having such bad experiences with men, any other type of personality was never going to break through her carefully constructed walls of protection. In this case, when Mac knew, he knew, and he was intelligent enough to realize that if he couldn’t win Maddie over, he’d never find anyone like her again.

I don’t recall if I have read a book by Ms. Force before. I know I have come across her name several times, but this may have been the first one I had the opportunity to read. And dang. I am so glad that I did! This book is a fantastic introduction to a massive series. I believe I saw there were 21 books comprising it, so if you enjoy this one as much as I did, there will be many more to continue with. I experienced several ranges of emotions while reading this story: from annoyance at Mac’s high-handedness, disbelief at his willingness to go above and beyond, sympathy for Maddie’s struggles, outrage at the unfair way she was treated, disgust with her baby daddy, happiness when wrongs were righted as best they could … seriously a spectrum of feelings. Not to mention several instances where I was cracking up at the banter between siblings Mac and Janey as well as Mac and Maddie themselves. I truly enjoyed getting to know Janey and was thrilled to see that hers is the next book in the series. An author that elicits such reaction from readers is one that is worth reading time and again. Ms. Force made a believer out of me both for future reads and definitely for the McCarthys of Garnett Island series. I will be back soon!

Kindle version purchased for my personal library. ( )