There is bright and cheery and then there is just plain stupid and that is what this heroine was. I understand pride and not wanting to take charity but preferring to live on the street instead of taking a hand up was just asinine. Here this wonderful guy offers her a place to stay and clothes etc., to help out this desperate girl and what does she do? Well she certainly doesn't bust her butt to get a job, any job. I expected her to start looking for a job and an apartment and for her to of course insist on paying him back etc., but no. She won't take any job that doesn't have meaning to her, that doesn't help someone. She'd rather just be a problem for everyone. It's all well and good to want to do something meaningful with your life. But to lose your home and live on the street because you won't get an ordinary job or even two jobs is ridiculous.

There was no reason for this guy to fall in love with her. And the major portion of this book took place over a week. He fell in love with her and finally got over his wife in just one week. Hmmph. I don't see why. She was an absolute ninny. But I'll accept that I guess. This is romance land after all. But her? Somehow she had some weird psychic ability to take the pain other people feel and absorb it. This was just out of place in this series that nowhere else has eve a touch of paranormal. In addition it was poorly explained so the "power" didn't make any sense really. To top off all the crazy, she eventually left him because she "knew" he was holding things back from her and wouldn't bare his soul to her and allow her to heal him. Thus their relationship was unequal. It's been a WEEK!! Why was she expecting this stranger to bare his soul about his dead wife and unborn baby after a week? Jeeminy Christmas, what a loony and not a good loony.

Maybe all this would have worked if she'd tried to help herself and if the story had taken longer than a week. ( )

This author is able to write really emotional scenes that really tug at your heart strings and reduce you to tears.
This deals with recovering from the loss of a loved one. ( )

After reading the first two books in the series, I was kind of hoping the third book would be about Babs and Katie. The bad news is, it wasn't. The good news is, it was just as wonderful as the first two.

In Light the Lamp we are introduced to Liam Kallen who is one of the players who gets traded from the Islanders at the end of On the Fly. Liam has a heart of gold and always wants to take care of people. This is what he does when he meets Noelle. However, it's not what she wants. I have to admit that for a while, I didn't quite understand Noelle. I think I probably felt just like Liam did!

Noelle is homeless and even though she needs the help to get back on her feet, she hates the idea of Liam taking care of her when she can't offer him anything in return. She is a free spirit, someone who likes to dance in the rain and walk barefooted and who is not attached to material things. Noelle is used to making sacrifices and all she really cares about is serving a greater purpose. (In my opinion though, she was a little bit too stubborn.) Liam goes to great lengths for her and I'm glad he does because ultimately they were perfect for each other.

P.S. I love when he speaks Swedish!

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review* ( )

Light the Lamp by Catherine Gayle
Book #3: Portland Storm Series
Source: Author
Rating: 3/5 stars
Up to this point, I have been a fan of Catherine Gayle’s Portland Storm series but, Light the Lamp really tested my loyalty. To be clear, this is still a solidly written novel with little to no editing, formatting, etc. kinds of issues. My sole issue with Light the Lamp lies with one character and one character only. Here’s the skinny:

Noelle Payne is the very definition of a human disaster. After losing her job and in an effort to preserve the money left to her by her parents for her two younger brother’s educations, Noelle has given up her home and all of the things that were once so much a part of all their lives. Additionally, thanks to a horrible car accident, her home on wheels is now a big ball of smoke and ash and she has no means of replacing it. With no job and no place to live, Noelle accepts the kind offer made to her by Liam Kallen to stay in the spare bedroom in his apartment.

Liam Kallen is a kind and gentle soul who is still absolutely shell-shocked by the death of his wife. Ever since his personal life took a tragic turn, his hockey has suffered and after more than a decade in New York and some most excellent hockey, Liam has been traded to the Portland Storm. As far as Liam is concerned, he can finish out his career with the Storm and then retire to Sweden, his home country and the one place in his life where he was the happiest. Nothing can prepare Liam for his encounter with Noelle and how completely crazy she is going to make him.

Worried that the pretty girl standing beside a stalled car is going to be the victim of an accident, Liam pulls over and convinces Noelle to wait in his vehicle for her overheated car to cool down. As if he were psychic, within minutes of getting her off the side of the rode, Noelle’s car is hit by a reckless driver. Completely helpless, Noelle and Liam watch as Noelle’s car bursts into flames. More intent than ever to see her safe, Liam invites Noelle to use the spare bedroom in his apartment until she can get her life sorted out. It doesn’t take long for Liam to figure out that Noelle’s life if a complete disaster and she has nothing, nowhere to go and, no one to turn to for help. Liam jumps into action and helps Noelle with a place to stay, plenty of food to eat and, a shopping trip to help replace all that she has lost. To Liam these are simple kindnesses that he can easily afford and wants to do for Noelle. Liam immediately sees that Noelle is a good person who is going through a very hard time and he wants to help her get back on her feet. Add to this, Liam’s instant affection for Noelle and you have a man who is willing to do anything for a woman he quickly figures out he loves. To Noelle, Liam’s actions are nice but way too much and something she struggles to accept. Noelle’s heart and mind tell her that she cares deeply for Liam but all that he does for her creates an imbalance in their relationship. Furthermore, Noelle feels that a part of Liam is still hidden behind a wall he is unwilling to tear down and until that breakthrough happens, Liam will never truly be hers.

The Bottom Line: I struggled with this read because of Noelle. For me, she is a completely ridiculous (and not in the cool, hip way) character whose logic and reasoning is completely misguided. While I fully appreciate and respect her intense desire to do something meaningful with her life, I can’t fully appreciate and respect her methods. For Noelle to accomplish what she wants too she has to be stable, she has to have a home, and she has to have enough food to sustain her. She has none of these things on her own and by her reasoning staying in a women’s shelter or on the streets will be just fine. She can still be completely satisfied with her life and her achievements while being homeless. Liam is willing and able to provide all of these things as well as allow Noelle to pursue her dreams no matter what those dreams may be. Liam is always honest with Noelle about his feelings, his wants and desires and for her to outright reject him and all that he is willing to offer her (and NOT just material things; I’m not that shallow) is a betrayal and utterly stupid. On the flip side of this little rant, I adored Liam and was so impressed with his ability to move forward with his life given his tragic past. Liam is the saving grace of Light the Lamp and because of him, I am able to give the read a solid three stars. Does this lower rating mean I am done with the Portland Storm series? Absolutely not! Catherine Gayle writes solid novels that may not having jumping up and down screaming but they do keep my attention and have (mostly!) strong characters that I can get behind and root for. ( )

Light the Lamp is the latest in the Portland Storm series, this time focusing on a newer player for the Portland Storm hockey team. Liam Kallen has recently been traded to the Storm from the Islanders and his game is suffering since the death of his beloved wife Liv. One fateful night, he meets Noelle Payne, a damsel in distress that he is determined to rescue. She is the epitome of a free spirit and is more than a little absent-minded when it comes to the more practical matters of life.

I loved both of these characters, but there were many times when I wanted to reach into my Kindle and slap one or the other of them into reality. Liam was so keen on "saving" Noelle that he was smothering her, treating her like a wayward child. But it was hard to be angry with him because he so obviously cared and had reasons to be the way he was. Noelle seemed to think that he should be able to just magically understand who and what she was without really trying to talk about it and that drove me nuts. But she, too, so obviously cared that it was hard to be against her. In the end, these two are the perfect example of the yin and the yang in romance novels, each one supporting the other in opposite ways.

Things to love...

--The romance. I am not generally a straight-up, romance girl, but I like that the romance in this series comes with all of the issues that love really has, even if it is a little fast.

Things I wanted more/less of...

--More hockey. I love hockey, and there was a little less of it in this book!

My Recommendation: This is a great addition to the Portland Storm series, but it should be read after the first two. The fourth book in the series, Delay of Game, is due out in August! I gave it 4.5 mugs. ( )