An amazing story of the way a family unit is united in both present and past.
Touching upon early onset Alzheimer's within the story makes us all realise to cherish each day as there for the grace of God go any of us.
A truly wonderful read where you shed a tear and wonder if Mandy will feel comfortable in the love of her husband as his history and first marriage unravels into their own.

I'm not writing a review for this book because I did not finish it. Firstly because I found it of no interest. Nothing grabbed me early enough. But more than that there were lots of typos where words mixed into another or there were lots of spaces so found it hard to read.

The Real Thing,  Tina Ann Forkner

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: women’s Fiction

This book turned out to be a very different read from what I expected, still good but a complete surprise! I thought this would be a fun, rodeo themed how the new wife fits in to the family read, with the ex wife being some beautiful, jealous b itch type,  popping up to cause problem's. I do love those characters ;-) they provide so much fun! Well, the ex does pop up but she’s nothing like I expected and the issues her presence causes are totally different. 

I love Manda, though at first she does come off as the teeniest bit spoiled daughter self obsessed. Just saying – she’s not really like that though, her past marriage and problems have really knocked her confidence. Keith's son is very young and happy to have her around, but Peyton, the 14 going on 24 year old daughter (aren’t they all at that age?) really isn’t happy about dad’s new wife. Then there’s Keith, handsome, charming rodeo star, and all the issues that come with that. He’s their dad, her husband but on the circuit it feels like he’s everyone’s property....He’s a great guy though, devoted to his family and adores Manda and her sister and dad. They’ve become one big family, with lots of friends they all know from the town they’ve grown up in and the rodeo world. 
Manda’s trying hard to fit in, difficult when she’s scared to ride, and Peyton makes it clear that she’s Not a substitute for her mum, that she wants Violet's things left alone. Poor Manda, I understood her desire to stamp her own mark on their home, but of course Peyton wants her mum’s things left alone. She’s convinced her mum, who disappeared without trace except to forward divorce papers, will return, so when she gets a call on her phone from her she’s ecstatic. Just when they’re beginning to create a new life, when things are going so well then its all turned around. 

Its a book that shows how issues affect everyone, how that we all make mistakes, that trying to do the right thing can cause so much pain. I liked that Keith was such a wonderful husband to Manda, and a great dad to the kids, but he’d learned too from his past mistakes, he’d done things he regretted.  I liked how Manda had to learn to trust him, to not jump to conclusions because of how her ex was, I loved seeing how Peyton grew, and how they became a family finally, working through all the issues and difficulties to move forward. They were all in a really difficult position, one that’s faced by so many families in one way or another. There a section where someone says “Think about it. Most families don’t fit that conventional bill, whether it’s Grandpa living in the guest room or a single mom working double shifts while Grandma babysits...” and it echoes what I’m always thinking and  saying – there is no such thing as “Normal” – whether that's in families or individuals. Everyone has problems, the perfect life we read about is just a story, in real life we all have things to work past, problems to deal with.

It turned out to be a very different read from what I’d expected, but a very moving and emotional one. Who would know what to do? Which route to choose? And who’s to say which way is best when any decision, any choice can have the potential cause terrible problems. Thankfully, here they all come through but its at times a hard journey.
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Stars: Four, a really interesting and moving read. How many families face a problem similar to this and what would I have done?
 
ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers for review purposes

This is one of those times when I am glad that I did not judge a book by it's cover.
Manda Marshall has not had the best experience with married life, but now she has come out of a divorce and a emotionally painful time in her life and has found herself a real life cowboy!
Marrying a rodeo cowboy at that. Marrying a divorced father of two, one of which is a teenage girl who resents her coming into their home and changing the dynamic.
As she tries to juggle being a new wife and step-mother is enough to deal with one would think, but then the mysterious Ex begins calling her daughter and things get complicated. What does this woman want now? Why now?
What Manda accidentally finds out will either make or break them as a family.

This is not just another cowboy romance book. This is a story of how families deal with the unexpected, with mental illness, with Alzheimer"s disease and blending families.
It is a very human story about everyday people and how we can rise above the pettiness of life and learn to forgive and to give. How things are rarely as they appear on the surface.
I was very moved by this story told so well by Tina Ann Forkner.

A realistic read from Tina Ann Forkner, this is the journey of Manda and Keith. Manda has been hurt in the past by her ex who cheated on her and she takes another plunge of faith, marriage and love with Keith. Keith was also hurt by his wife who left him abruptly and sent him divorce papers without any explanation. Manda and Keith love each other and Manda though a but insecure understands her husband loves her but is stunned to learn he hurt (I don't want to giveaway the story here!) his spouse and that was a possible trigger for her disappearance. Can she trust her husband not to do the same thing her ex did? Also, Keith's wife comes back and is a sweet person. What prompted her disappearance? Can Manda handle her return? What about her newfound family?

We see Manda maturing and trusting herself and her husband in this journey ... Keith's change of heart after he realized he hurt his wife ... and how they handle issues (Manda and Keith) along with Keith's kids as a family is what the book is about.

It was emotional and realistic - life is not a bed of roses ... sometimes things happen whether you intended for it or not ... but how and what one learns from them and how they redeem themselves is more important.

Though there are triggers in this book for some and I felt the book was a little longer in a few instances .. I was able to relate to the characters and felt for them. A real and unexpected twist on the first wife front there by Tina.

**Was kindly provided an ARC by Net Galley.

This book is a stand alone. I received this arc from netgalley for an honest review.
Keith Black , a handsome famous champion bronc rider with 2 children and a new wife Manda. This is supposed to be the happiest time in their lives, and it is, except for a dark cloud of history named Violet. Violet is Keiths ex-wife whom just one day picked up and left. No reason, no goodbye to him or their children, just divorce papers sent by mail a few weeks later. Manda is in love with Keith and sooo in love with his children , Peyton and Stevie. Peyton was a few years old when Violet disappeared so she has memories that prevent her from getting to close to Manda. Peyton does not want a replacement.
Keith loves his new wife, but what happens when Violet suddenly calls and reappears turns everything he thought he knew upside down.
I didn't like the story at all. I thought it was boring. All the women in this story acted like preteen children. Manda had no confidence at all in herself or her marriage. This story was mostly about Violet and what happened to her. There was no chemistry at all between any of the characters.
I would not recommend this book.

A touching story filled with real life characters and situations

Amanda is about to start her life with a family of her own something she has always dreamed of. As she gets ready to walk down the isle she wonders if the fact she's wearing something from her past wedding and her soon to be step daughter will stop this dream before it begins. Once she is safely married and the honeymoon is over she's back home ready to start this new life, however when she finds some secrets are not always best hidden and her step daughter has it set in her head to make sure she knows her place Amanda starts to wonder if she will ever be able to out live the shadow of her husbands ex wife or will it all be just to much?
This book is from the point of view of only Amanda, so at some points it seems rushed and to much is going on, and other times just seems to flow and not rushed at all. The storyline does draw you in and you find yourself turning the pages just to find out whats going to happen. Towards the end it seem to drag out as if they needed the book just a little bit longer. Over all this story was ok, and may be better for the right person.

Review posted.

The Real Thing by Tina Ann Forkner is a drama filled story of a couple, Keith and Amanda, trying to make a second marriage work. There are children to consider and include into this new family unit. It is a messy look at the real life struggles.

The fact that Keith is a famous champion bronc rider adds to the drama of this story as well as give it a cowboy element. If this is not difficult enough, people, some misguided, some intentional are doing their dead level best to sabotage their efforts. A happily ever after is not a given when you first start reading this book. Honestly, I liked that about this story; in my own experience dating was easy the hard part started after the “I Do’s”.

There are secrets and misconceptions but still deep love. I wish Amanda had been stronger in her confidence in her abilities and her marriage, but honestly I’m not sure I would have reacted differently. Definitely a book that keeps you reading to see what else will happen or be revealed.

The publisher through Net Galley provided a copy.