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Light Up the Night: A Protection Romance (Cottonbloom Book 8) Kindle Edition

by Laura Trentham (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 922 ratings
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When a police chief who craves stability meets a free-thinking, colorful college professor, neither anticipate the fireworks that light up the night...

After a mugging in grad school left her with an irrational fear of the night not even her PhD in psychology has helped overcome, Sadie Wren is sure she’s found an idyllic, safe place in Cottonbloom. When a break-in at her house shatters her sense of safety, gruff, protective Thaddeus Preston storms into her life.

On the surface, they have little in common, but a loneliness she’s only too familiar with hides behind his infrequent smiles. But based on her knowledge of the human psyche, Sadie is convinced her infatuation with Thad will burn out as quickly as it flared.

As the Chief of Police of Cottonbloom, Mississippi, Thaddeus Preston maintains a strict control on everything in the small town—himself included. With an older brother serving time for a crime Thad committed when he was just a kid, he lives a life of penance, not allowing anyone to get close. When a reported lurker turns into a real threat, Thad is determined to restore order as quickly as possible and get back to his virtual jail. But Thad’s brother gets out on probation just as Sadie and the town turns to him for protection. His tidy, barren life spins into chaos, and the only thing that makes sense is the one woman who shouldn’t.
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  1. Book 8 of 9
    Cottonbloom
  2. Print length
    112 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    March 7, 2017
  6. File size
    1708 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
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  10. See all details
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01MT1H9XH
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Amazon Digital Services (March 7, 2017)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 7, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1708 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 112 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 922 ratings

About the author

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Laura Trentham

Laura Trentham

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Visit me at www.LauraTrentham.com

An award-winning author, Laura Trentham was born and raised in a small town in Tennessee. Although, she loved English and reading in high school, she was convinced an English degree equated to starvation. She chose the next most logical major—Chemical Engineering—and worked in a hard hat and steel toed boots for several years.

She writes sexy, small town contemporaries and smoking hot Regency historicals. KISS ME THAT WAY, Cottonbloom Book 1, won the Stiletto Contest for Best Long Contemporary and finaled in the National Readers Choice Award. THEN HE KISSED ME, Cottonbloom Book 2, was named an Amazon Best Romance of 2016 and was a finalist for the National Excellence for Romance Fiction. TILL I KISSED YOU, Cottonbloom Book 3, is a finalist in the Maggie contest. LEAVE THE NIGHT ON, the latest Cottonbloom book, was named an iBooks Best Book of the Month and a Recommended Read from NPR.

When not lost in a cozy Southern town or Regency England, she's shuttling kids to soccer, helping with homework, and avoiding the Mt. Everest-sized pile of laundry that is almost as big as the to-be-read pile of books on her nightstand.

Join my newsletter for news and giveaways: http://eepurl.com/bwbOkD. Also, FOLLOW me on Bookbub for new release and sale news: http://smarturl.it/37dtjp

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
922 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Rexanna Ipock-Brown
5.0 out of 5 stars The Police Chief has His Hands Full!
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2024
Verified Purchase
Thad has managed to become the Chief of Police and takes it seriously. When a new professor to town, Sadie gets frightened by a burglar, he brings her home with him to make sure she's safe. She may be safe from the intruder, but who will keep her safe from her desire for Thad? And, the Police Chief has his own problems with a brother who is just home from prison. A sentence he did in connection with a crime of Thad's. There are plenty of plot conflicts and delightful characters in this small town Southern novel to keep a reader curious on how it all will end. With a HEA, of course.
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WishfulMiss
4.0 out of 5 stars The Cottonbloom series is fast becoming one of my favorite comfort reads.
Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2017
Verified Purchase
Light up the Night was another cute romance between two transplants to the quirky small town of Cottonbloom. It was different than the previous books (I’ve read) in the series, in the sense that there is no history between Thad and Sadie. They both moved to Cottonbloom to start over and found each other just at the right time. I wouldn’t say it was a slow burn because these two hit it off right from the start but their relationship was based on mutual trust and a powerful pull that was inevitable.

What I liked about it:
Thad and Sadie develop an instant bond through their instinctive trust and understanding of each others irrational fears. Sadie’s overcoming her fear of the dark after being brutally attacked and robbed while she walked alone at night a few months ago and Thad is dealing with guilt and shame over his role in his brother’s incarceration. They support and encourage each other and ultimately discover between them an unconditional acceptance.

I liked Sadie, she was sweet and funny and had a bit of a wild streak in her. She took a risk on Thad and it paid off for her.

Thad was a great hero, he was a bit rusty with the whole dating/relationship thing. But his rough edges were smoothed out where it counted.

Wish it was a tad bit longer though . . .
I loved revisiting this series because I really enjoy the characters and stories this author shares. I enjoy myself so much so that I was bummed when this when ended so soon. I thought it would be a full length novel like her first three but this one is actually a novella.

I didn’t mind the fast time line of the relationship for Thad and Sadie because I assumed we would have more page time with them. Sadly that was not the case here. I felt the ending was a bit rushed and although we get a nice epilogue of them six months later, now living together and in a solid relationship, I sorely missed the “I love you” from them. I fully believe these two belong together so it was kind of a let down that they didn’t cement their HEA and instead ended it on a HFN ending. I hope we get an update of them in other installments *fingers crossed*

I still love this series and I hope the next in line is a bit lengthier. The sneak peek at the end of this one was really good and I can’t wait to read it next!
2 people found this helpful
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Amy O.
3.0 out of 5 stars More like a novella
Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2019
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The story was sweet and I enjoyed the characters...what we learned about them. The story was over so quickly, I had to double check it wasn't listed as a novella. It is really just a short story. It is nice enough but there really isn't much substance to it. It's nice to be back in Cottonbloom again but was disappointed by the brevity.
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Gatorfan
5.0 out of 5 stars the sexy sheriff and the professor get it on....
Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2017
Verified Purchase
A stand alone read with a HEA. I really enjoyed this story. The local sheriff has a past and he suffers from the guilt and pain of it. He lives in a small town on the Mississippi Louisiana state lines. Cross the river and you are in another state. Everybody in town knows everybody and their business. It is a quiet town with rarely any serious crime. Then one day the new subdivision has a break-in and bored with sitting in his office he joins one of his men to investigate. There have been a few sightings of suspicious goings on but nothing really serious until now.

The house broken into belongs to one of the new professors at the local college. Along with the sheriff's past he gave up women and it has been quite a while since he has really looked twice at a woman. Being the guy he is, he gets quite a few women hitting on him but he doesn't take them up on it. However, this professor is looking pretty good to him and he hopes that his dry spell is about to come to an end.,

The professor is quite taken by the sheriff as well. What is there not to like? He is tall, good-looking, sexy and single. From this moment on things start to happen. This is a good story, loved the hero as well as his brother. Makes you sad for the childhood they had and the things they endured and then had to pay for but the story is about hope and rebirth. I really enjoyed it and I would definitely recommend it. On the sexy scale I would give it a 4 out of 10. Personally I think it would be appropriate for YA as well as older teens. Nothing happening that they don't either know about or have done! But some readers may not like it so be warned. I think it is a good story and the sex fit right where it was suppose to.

I was not paid for this review. I am not an author nor do I know one. I am not kin to this writer. I am a reader and this is my opinion, nothing more, nothing less. 9/4/17.
One person found this helpful
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Texanne
4.0 out of 5 stars A NOVELLA WRITTEN BY A VERY TALENTED AUTHOR
Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2021
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Sheriff Thaddeus (Thad) Preston is a very buttoned up sheriff in a small town. He is called to a break-in. That is where he meets Professor Sadie Wren. Her back door has been pried open and it is evident that someone wanted very badly to get inside.

Sadie was mugged years ago and she has a fear which prevents her from going out at night. Her terror is very large in her personal makeup.

Thad and Sadie apparently have little in common. She is a professor of psychology. When she meets Thad’s brother and learns about their family history, she gives Thad some insights.

The two of them very quickly begin a relationship.

This is a well written story, and the characters are terrific. Sadie and Thad are interesting people who are quite well developed. The plot moves along quickly.

I am a huge fan of Ms Trentham’s writing, but this story seemed to go from zero to sixty very quickly.

I have a feeling that the two people would have taken a little longer to become so close. He is supposed to be someone who holds himself very tightly. She is supposed to be someone who is unsure of relationships and men. I just felt that the speed was not exactly in character.

But it is a terrific novella.
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Top reviews from other countries

Elizabeth English
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 3, 2017
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A new author to me and glad I found her. Such good writing and great story. What lovely characters finding each other in an interesting way. Sadie has just moved to Cottonbloom and is a psych professor at the local college and Thad the police chief investigating a break in at her house. Romantic and sexy and with a twist you will not see coming. Like I say great read and most certainly worth 5 stars.
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Leigh S.
4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable quick read
Reviewed in Australia on August 14, 2018
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Thoroughly enjoyed this novella - great character development, suitably steamy and a HEA. I look forward to reading more books by this author
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May Canterbury
3.0 out of 5 stars Short and Sweet
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 30, 2017
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A good quick read to pass a couple of hours. Uptight chief of police Thad meets messy college professor Sadie when her house is broken into. His brother is just out of jail and life is changing for all of them.
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Robyn C Rye,
4.0 out of 5 stars I enjoyed the story but felt that the plot was a ...
Reviewed in Australia on October 16, 2017
Verified Purchase
I enjoyed the story but felt that the plot was a little light on and the problem, such as it was, was resolved too quickly.
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Susan Lister
5.0 out of 5 stars Reading for pleasure
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 14, 2018
Verified Purchase
Good book
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