Category: B reviews (Page 73 of 74)

One Small Thing by Piper Vaughn and M.J. O’Shea

June 12, 2012 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: My friend Chris recommended this one on Goodreads and when I saw it on NetGalley, I snapped it up.

What it’s about: Rue is a hairdressing student working part time in a bar who takes a walk on the wild side and tried the hetero sex one night. Surprise surprise Natalie turns up pregnant. She doesn’t want the baby and Rue, having been abandoned by his own parents, cannot bring himself to reject his child, so agrees to take her. After baby Alice is born, Natalie signs over her parental rights to Rue and bows out of the picture altogether.

Desperate for help with child care, Rue approaches his neighbour, Erik, a sci-fi writer who rarely leaves his house. Told in the alternating 1st person POV of both Erik and Rue, this is the story of how, the cobble together a kind of family, together with Rue (and soon Erik’s) BFF, Dusty (totally non sexual with Dusty, BTW).

What worked for me (and what didn’t): Once I got over the hurdle of believing that Rue would actually leave his newborn daughter with a virtual stranger, references or no, with no childcare experience, the story was actually delightful. I occasionally had some difficulty in identifying which POV I was in, but otherwise, the story flowed easily. The relationship between Erik and Rue grows over time and the camaraderie and friendship of Rue, Erik and Dusty and their gradual realisation of the depth of feeling between them (in terms of family) as well as the more romantic relationship between Rue and Erik was both believable and enjoyable. Erik is full of anxiety and uses Star Wars as therapy – there are some funny lines in the book (which I understood only thanks to my husband’s own love of the movies and therefore his insistence that I watch them all. Over and over.) In Rue’s case, it is Dusty that showed him the joy that is Star Wars and he’s not always happy about it.

I’d do anything to keep her out of that place, even subject her to the evil machinations of Emperor Palpati—oh, seriously. I’m gonna kill Dusty. I should not know that.

As for Erik, he might be somewhere on the autism scale but it’s never explicitly made clear. He doesn’t like to be touched by anyone – except, as it turns out, by baby Alice, Rue or Dusty. He has strict routines which he feels he must adhere to – although, as his relationship with Rue develops, he is able to let some of this go. He also has a slight stutter which is more prevalent when he’s upset. So, not your usual hero material I guess. But he’s kind and sweet and initially baffled by the whirlwind that is Rue coming into his life. Erik had never identified as gay – he’s never had a girlfriend or a boyfriend before – before Rue, relationships of any sort were a very alien concept

I’d always been able to recognize beauty, but I’d never been moved by it.

Not until Rue.

In Erik, Rue finds a safe place to fall and the partner he’d never realised he’d been desperate for. Much to his surprise he takes to fatherhood like a duck to water and falls instantly and deeply in love with his daughter. He finds nothing makes him happier than spending time with his little family and the realisation that Erik is a large part of that sparks the more romantic aspects of the book. I suppose I would have loved an epilogue to check in with them in a year or so as the events toward the end of the book could threaten the status quo – would Rue’s new environment lead him to want something else? Erik, while having come out of his shell a great deal, would always be on the anti-social side of the things and would the new environment suit them both? I choose to believe they’ll be fine, but would have loved a short epilogue to seal the deal. Having said that, I gobbled the story up. Sweet, fun and sexy, this one hit the right spot for me.

Grade: B+

Her Best Worst Mistake by Sarah Mayberry

May 28, 2012 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: This book is Ms. Mayberry’s first foray into self publishing and all those on her mailing list (of which I am one) received it free as a thank you for subscribing. Of course, the reason I’m a subscriber is I’m a fan of her work.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) She thinks he’s stuffy. He thinks she’s spoilt. Then the gloves come off and so do their clothes!

For six years Violet Sutcliffe has known that Martin St Clair is the wrong man for her best friend. He’s stuffy, old before his time, conservative. He drives Violet nuts – and the feeling is entirely mutual. Then, out of nowhere, her friend walks out just weeks before her wedding to Martin, flying to Australia on a mission of self-discovery. Back in London, Violet finds herself feeling sorry for suddenly-single Martin. At least, she tells herself it’s pity she feels. Then he comes calling one dark, stormy night and they discover that beneath their mutual dislike there lies a fiery sexual chemistry.

It’s crazy and all-consuming – and utterly wrong. Because not only are they chalk and cheese, oil and water, but Martin once belonged to her best friend. A friend Violet is terrified of losing. What future can there be for a relationship with so many strikes against it?

This book is a spin off from Sarah Mayberry’s Blaze novel, Hot Island Nights. Both stories can be read in isolation and still make perfect sense.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): In case readers here haven’t noticed before, I tend to be long winded. Never say in 10 words what you can say in 100!! 😀 It is with something like awe then that I look upon category length or short books or novellas which tell a complete and engaging story in so few words. Her Worst Best Mistake was just about 140 pages on my reader, so fairly short, but that just meant that there were no wasted words. I can’t say that I thought it needed to be any longer – the story was complete and fulfilling just as it was.

Violet and Martin get together fairly quickly in the book (something I’m a fan of) and there is very little conflict in their relationship when it’s just themselves. The main conflict was Violet’s fear that she was not good enough for Martin and he would leave her when he realised that and, of course, Violet’s guilt that she was shagging her best friend’s ex-fiance. That surely breaks the BFF Code of Conduct and Rules of Behaviour. The level of conflict suited the story length and I happily kept turning the pages and read the whole thing in one sitting.

Violet as a character, is a breath of fresh air. Yes, she has her secret fears and vulnerabilities, but she speaks her mind, takes care of herself and doesn’t need a man to make her successful. She’s not pining away for Mr. Right. She has a healthy and robust enjoyment of sex. She dresses how she likes to – in short tight skirts and sexy stilettos but she falls short of being garish or brash.

At the beginning of the story Martin is not terribly self aware, but his break with Elizabeth leads to him reassessing his life and his goals. He’s not desperately seeking to fit in anymore. He becomes comfortable in his own skin. The earlier Martin couldn’t have coped with a relationship with Violet – she doesn’t fit his heretofore “ideal” of wife material. But, Martin has his own vulnerabilities too, a self-made man, he worked his way up from the lower working class and he’s secretly not 100% certain he belongs in the upper echelons. There is some irony in that he’s secretly worried that he’s not good enough for her. He’s a guy though, so he doesn’t go round saying that. But when she says to him:

“How could I possibly walk out on you, Martin? In what universe do you think I would be able to do that?” she said, her voice breaking.

he finally gets that she’s all his and he is good enough. *sigh*

Martin, stuffy and repressed as he initially appears, turns out to be the perfect hero:

He was a good man. A real man. The kind who honored his commitments and did the right thing and stood up for what he believed in. He also cooked like a dream and fucked like a god and he made her feel important and sexy and special.

Isn’t that every girl’s dream?

The way Martin stands up for Violet to her father was very satisfying, as was the way they mutually took care of one another. Martin chooses Violet over what he thought he wanted and at the end, Violet chooses Martin over all. It really was lovely.

I thought I’d read the prequel(ish), Hot Island Nights featuring Elizabeth and Nathan. Turns out I’d read Island Heat instead. So, Hot Island Nights is on my wishlist now – I want to find out what happened to Elizabeth when the door opened! 🙂

Also, I’ve just realised that the dress the cover model is wearing is the one Vi wears to the Savage Club banquet – how cool is that?!

What else? As I said above, this book is self published. For a first effort in that realm, I have to say that I think Ms. Mayberry did a great job. There are a couple of typos in the book, but nothing egregious and certainly not more than you’d see in a traditionally published book. My copy was free so I feel churlish saying this, but pdf isn’t a great format for ereading. It doesn’t reflow well when changing the font size and the native font was tiny tiny tiny. Unfortunately, resizing to the next one up meant that there were some weird hieroglyphics in places – where words were missing or appeared to be typed over one another. Read in it’s native size (if you have good eyesight), it was lovely and all the words were there and well set out. So, I had to change the font from time to time because I didn’t want to miss out on anything. Having said that, I was invested enough that I did change the font back and forth so I didn’t miss anything.

Epub is a much better format for ereading because it reflows well when the font size is changed. Pdf – not so much as (apparently) it is image based to fit a 1:1 ratio – when the screen is small (ie, not a laptop or PC), the font is often too small to read comfortably but it doesn’t re-size very well. But, this is Ms. Mayberry’s very first self published book and there is a learning curve which is absolutely understandable. I do hope she continues to self publish – overall, I’d say this was a polished first effort in self pubbing and, most importantly, the story was top notch. (Who knows, maybe we’ll get a full length novel from Ms. Mayberry one of these days – how good would that be?)

Grade: B+

The Governess Affair by Courtney Milan

May 18, 2012 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I loved the Turner series and bought this one the day of its release.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) She will not give up…Three months ago, governess Serena Barton was let go from her position. Unable to find new work, she’s demanding compensation from the man who got her sacked: a petty, selfish, swinish duke. But it’s not the duke she fears. It’s his merciless man of business—the man known as the Wolf of Clermont. The formidable former pugilist has a black reputation for handling all the duke’s dirty business, and when the duke turns her case over to him, she doesn’t stand a chance. But she can’t stop trying—not with her entire future at stake.

He cannot give in…Hugo Marshall is a man of ruthless ambition—a characteristic that has served him well, elevating the coal miner’s son to the right hand man of a duke. When his employer orders him to get rid of the pestering governess by fair means or foul, it’s just another day at the office. Unfortunately, fair means don’t work on Serena, and as he comes to know her, he discovers that he can’t bear to use foul ones. But everything he has worked for depends upon seeing her gone. He’ll have to choose between the life that he needs, and the woman he is coming to love…

What worked for me (and what didn’t): This novella is the prequel to Ms. Milan’s new Brothers Sinister series, the first 2 of which I believe are due for release later this year with the third and final one in 2013. As much as I enjoyed the Turner series, I thought this story was a bit thin. The start felt just a little bit clumsy to me after the smooth beginnings of the other books I’ve read and the romance wasn’t as well developed as I would have liked. I agree with comments I’ve read about the place that this could easily have become a full length novel and I think I would have enjoyed it much better had that been the case. After the first chapter or so, however, either I settled into the story or it improved and it was certainly an enjoyable read.

But, reflecting on the story afterwards, I’m not entirely sure I believed Serena had sufficiently recovered from her trauma to embark on a relationship with Hugo. I’m not sure I truly believed that Hugo would be happy on the farm with Serena when so much of his life’s ambition had been about becoming very rich and powerful. It is apparent from the epilogue that he, at least, isn’t powerful. I’m not sure how rich he is. I would have liked more of Serena and Hugo together later on to be satisfied in their HEA. As the epilogue didn’t feature the couple at all, I found that a little disatisfying.

On the other hand, I’m very interested in reading about the Brothers Sinister and as a prequel to the series, this novella does a good job of setting the stage.

I thought Unlocked was a more complete story and I liked it better, but this was still a bargain at 99c and the quality in terms of self publishing is (as usual) excellent.

What else? There is a potential hot button in the story – the heroine is raped by the hero’s employer (albeit off page). In the end I was satisfied with how Hugo dealt with the matter but a duke back then didn’t really face many consequences for raping a governess so I while it is probably historically apropos, his “punishment” was fairly mild in terms of modern sensibility.

Grade: B-

Plenty of people like this at least a little better than I did – It’s averaging 4.34 at Goodreads at the moment, and Smart Bitches gave it an B+ and Dear Author gave it a B.

Bared to You by Sylvia Day

April 26, 2012 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I picked this one up on NetGalley. To be honest, the blurb didn’t sell me – it was kind of confusing and didn’t tell me what I wanted to know but I’ve read and enjoyed Sylvia Day before so I decided to give it a whirl.

What it’s about: Because I thought the blurb wasn’t very helpful, I’m not going to copy and paste this one – so I’ll give you my own. Eva Trammell (24) moves to New York with her gay BFF Cary from California to pursue a career in advertising. She is the stepdaughter of a very rich man and so has a lovely apartment (which she shares with Cary) but has insisted on an entry level job which she obtained without his help. She works at the Crossfire Building and there she (literally) runs into Gideon Cross, a 28 year old bazillionaire. There is instant connection. Instant and sizzling lust. But, both Eva and Gideon have past traumas which come back to haunt them – can they have a successful relationship? Are they soul mates or are they destined to flash, crash and burn?

What worked for me (and what didn’t): With all the hype about Fifty Shades of Grey (50SOG) around the place, it is hard not to make a comparison between it and Bared To You. I havent’ read 50SOG and I don’t plan to. But, from what I’ve read about it, I think that Bared To You is what 50SOG could have been, maybe aspired to be (if it had left out many fanfic conventions and had some savvy editing)^. Like 50SOG, there is a bit of the Harlequin Presents (HP) about this story.

But, Bared To You takes a few somewhat old tired tropes, equalises and modernises and creates something compelling and different and good. *rubs hands together*

Unlike (what I understand of) Ana, Eva is a little older and definitely not naive (~~she’s not clumsy either~~ ETA – she does fall over when she and Gideon first meet, but she’s not generally a klutz). She is sexually experienced and not afraid to express her desires or take the lead in her sexual encounters with Gideon.

“Don’t burn off too much energy,” I whispered. “I want you missionary-style the first time. I’ve been having this fantasy of you on top, banging the hell out of me.”

She even shows him a thing or two (limo sex!). Eva does not depend on Gideon for a place to live, friends, affection, a job. She is not physically helpless (she’s learning Krav Maga). Because of a rich stepfather, she doesn’t depend on Gideon for money either. Plus, she has a job and ambition of her own. That changes the dynamic straight away from many HP’s I think (and 50SOG too). Gideon is a super bazillionaire sure, but in his relationship with Eva, I’d argue that it is she who mostly has the upper hand. He’s jealous but so is she. She makes demands very early on about a particular female acquaintance of his and he accedes – she is in the power position from the start.

Gideon wants sex with Eva from the beginning. But Eva doesn’t do sex that way. She needs some sort of relationship, a connection, before being physically intimate with someone. She doesn’t need hearts and flowers necessarily, but she doesn’t want to be “a vagina on legs” either. She needs to know that Gideon wants her for her, not just because she’s convenient. Gideon does not do this. Ever*. But, such is his obsession for her, that he very quickly agrees to “review and revise” in order to have her. Gideon separates things in his life. There is work, there are friends and there are sex partners. They do not mesh. A relationship where there is time spent with a sex partner “not actively fucking” is not on his agenda. But, for Eva…

“Eva… If you just tell me what you want -” his throat worked on a swallow. “I can become whatever you need. If you give me the chance. Just don’t… don’t give up on me.”

It is not very long after that first “revision” that Gideon’s rules change again and he’s diving headlong into a traditional and exclusive relationship. He wants to be with Eva all the time. He can’t get enough of her.

This might be creepy except that Eva feels the same way about him. It is the mutuality of the obsession which, I think, makes this book work so well. Where Gideon shows dominance and “mastery” the reader sees it from Eva’s POV and therefore is implicitly aware of both her consent and her reciprocal feelings. Where Gideon crosses a line (and he does from time to time), Eva calls him on it. Refreshingly, Gideon quickly recognises where he went wrong each time (for the most part) and gives a genuine apology and then changes the behaviour (or at least, makes a good faith effort).

He calls Eva out too and fairly.

“I can let you in, Eva. I’m trying. But your first response when I screw up is to run away. You do it every time and I can’t stand feeling like any moment I’m going to do or say something wrong and you’re going to bolt.”

Their relationship is very HP over-the-top dramatic – in fact, one of the secondary character in the book refer to it being better than a soap opera – the angst factor is intentionally dialled up to 11.

However, as much as there is on again/off again, the problems seem realistic and they are dealt with pretty quickly so there’s not lots of time where the couple are apart (another plus for me).

The writing is spare and yet evocative and I was completely hooked.

To call either of us virgins would be ridiculous, yet emotionally that’s just what we were. Fumbling in the dark and too eager, completely out of our depths and self-conscious, trying to impress and missing all the subtle nuances.

The last 100 pages – read after a break of a day and a half (due to time issues not lack of interest) – didn’t work quite so well for me as the first part of the book had. I wonder if I would have felt that way if I’d managed to read this in one sitting? The last part of the book, far from resolving their many issues, mainly served to introduce new ones. And, it is here there is a discussion about D/s aspects to their relationship. Gideon says he will take Eva any way he can have her but he believes that she needs the submission to be truly satisfied. Or, at least, I think that’s what he was saying. The conversation gets hijacked (as conversations often do) and I didn’t think Gideon was able to get back to his main point – therefore, to me it felt loose and unclear – I didn’t know exactly what had been in his mind to say and there weren’t enough clues for me in the text for me to put it entirely together. I felt that this aspect of the relationship was introduced a bit late into the story as well – this was over 2/3 into the book.

I was also a bit nonplussed by the introduction, so late in the book, of the Corinne character and it seemed inconsistent* to me. Given his previous history with Corinne does that make the set up for Gideon’s character inaccurate – the part about him not doing relationships? And, with Gideon’s previous growth that he could be so clueless about her effect on Eva.

There was also a character by the name of Dr. Terry Lucas introduced around that time which confused me a little – it is clear he knows Gideon and there is history between them of some sort but he had such a small part to play in the book that I wondered why he was there. Perhaps the answer is to consider Bared To You like Part I of a miniseries and taken as a whole the story will feel more balanced?

I did find this book compelling and angsty and sexy and dark and Gideon was sighworthy.

“Talk to me Eva, so I can tell you it’ll be okay.”

I enjoyed seeing his vulnerability to Eva and his complete intoxication with her.

“Oh, Eva.” He rubbed his cheek against my damp face. “I must’ve wished for you so hard and so often you had no choice but to come true.”

If Eva hadn’t have felt the same about Gideon though it would have just been stalkerish behaviour, but instead, their mutual obsession was compelling reading.

What else? The book does finish abruptly and there are many issues left unresolved. While the couple are together at the end, I didn’t feel at all confident they had worked out enough of their issues to be certain they would make it. On the one hand, I’m glad there will be another book (due out in October) so those issues can be explored. On the other, will it be too much? Will I be as engrossed or just exhausted by all the drama? As much as the last 20 pages introduced a whole slew of new problems, there were some problems (e.g., Gideon’s traumatic past) which were barely touched upon – so there is plenty of conflict set up for the next book.

I did enjoy this book and I’m seriously hoping that the author can pull off the delicate balance between resolving their many problems, giving them a believable HEA and keeping everything interesting without becoming caricatured. I have my fingers crossed and roll on October!

In the meantime, if you like sexy, dark and angsty, go and read this book!!

Grade: B+

^In fact, Jane_L (from Dear Author) and LizMc2 and I had a Twitter conversation about this very thing. Also, Jane wrote this review of Bared To You on April 7 and she actually said there that Bared To You was what 50SOG could have been, so she agrees with me. Or rather, because she said it first, I agree with her! 🙂

Somebody to Love by Kristan Higgins

April 20, 2012 / Kaetrin

Why I read it: I picked up a copy from NetGalley and I’m a fan of this author.

What it’s about: (blurb from Goodreads) After her father loses the family fortune in an insider-trading scheme, single mom Parker Welles is faced with some hard decisions. First order of business: go to Gideon’s Cove, Maine, to sell the only thing she now owns—a decrepit house in need of some serious flipping. When her father’s wingman, James Cahill, asks to go with her, she’s not thrilled — even if he is fairly gorgeous and knows his way around a toolbox.

Having to fend for herself financially for the first time in her life, Parker signs on as a florist’s assistant and starts to find out who she really is. Maybe James isn’t the glib lawyer she always thought he was. And maybe the house isn’t the only thing that needs a little TLC.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): First off, this is the second book Ms. Higgins has written in 3rd person POV and once again, we get (a lot – yay!) of the hero’s POV in this story. As much as I have enjoyed her 1st person POV books (well, mostly), my continuing “complaint” was that there was not enough of the hero for me. I’m a very hero-centric reader I have discovered. More hero, in general, equals more win for me. I hope that Ms. Higgins decides to stick with 3rd person and giving us the hero’s perspective because I just love it.

Now, on to this book. I loved James, the hero. He’s a genuinely nice guy – he’s kind, smart, humble, funny, handy, built, sexy, very good-looking and all round wonderful. He does have a couple of darker secrets and something he’s been paying for for a very long time, which serve to round out his character and save him from being too good to be true and too good to be interesting. I found myself extremely sympathetic to him as the book went on. His love for Parker, almost from the first time he even sees her, is something which permeates his actions – even though for most of the time they have known each other Parker thinks he’s lower than a bug, he is unfailingly generous to her. He decides to go to Maine and help her flip the house for sale – he wasn’t asked to by Parker or her father and he’s not getting paid for it. He does it because he cares about Parker. There’s something very attractive about a guy so steadfast. It can be something which can come across as wimpy but James is not a doormat. He’s nice but he doesn’t let himself be walked on either.

As for Parker, well, mostly I liked her too. She copes very well with the change in her circumstance, considering. She doesn’t spend a lot of time complaining and she’s, for the most part, not a “rich bitch”. Yes, she has had money all her life but she’s not afraid to work hard – she demonstrates this many times while in Maine and it is one of the things James loves about her. She is also a devoted mother to Nicky – but she’s not an over protective gorgon and she doesn’t spoil him terribly rotten either – (I think most parents would like to spoil their children – the more money you have the easier that must be) – Nicky is still required to use his manners and behave well. She also has a healthy relationship with Nicky’s father Ethan and his wife Lucy (their book is the only Higgins I have not read) – they are her best friends. Her mother is on her 4th husband and tends to breeze in and out of her life but the impression I got was that while Parker would have liked to be closer to her mother, she was happy enough with the way things were – there was no strain there. Parker has a difficult relationship with her father, Harry and resents those closer to him than she is. Which means, James. Harry has two “minions” which Parker dubs “Thing One” and “Thing Two”. The original “Thing One” retired and James took his place as Harry’s personal attorney. Thereafter, Parker called him “Thing One”. To me, this is unutterably rude. It’s one thing, perhaps, to think of someone by a disparaging nickname but to call them that to their face? Repeatedly? Well, it was the one thing I disliked intensely about Parker. While I understood that her rudeness to James was a reaction to her poor relationship with her father and her jealousy and confusion over his good relationship with him, it was still so very rude that I found it hard to reconcile.Parker has been writing a series of children’s books called the Holy Rollers (earthbound child-angels on skates). The pitch was a joke but she’s been stuck with these characters for years and has finally managed to end the series. (I did like the flat cat stuffed toy which appears later in the book. LOL!) Problem is, she is having trouble coming up with a something new – her ideas are pretty funny but not setting her agent/publisher on fire. Although she donated her earnings from the Holy Rollers to charity, now she actually needs to earn a living and she’s desperate to try and come up with a new series. I liked what she ended up doing but no spoilers here!

Nicky, Parker’s son is a mostly sweet little boy but he’s not perfect and he’s not charmingly precocious either (what a relief). Lavinia, Parker’s older cousin from Maine is a hoot – her descriptions of having steamy old people sex were hilarious and I nearly choked (as James did) when she described playing “Spank me, nanny” with the local Judge. 😀

For fans of Higgins, we also catch up with Maggie and Malone and Chantal and Jonah and various other Gideon’s Cove characters. It didn’t feel too cutesy to me and it was nice to see what they were doing. Although, I’ll probably have to go back and read Catch of the Day because I couldn’t remember a lot of it, I read it so long ago.

The bedroom door, while not firmly shut in this book, is a little more closed than I think it was in the previous 2 books – I’d be happy if the door opened again!

What else? I can’t go into some of the best parts of the story without giving away spoilers but I’ll just say that there are some things towards the end of the book which I found very scary, emotional and moving and there were even some tears.

I could have done without the intervention from Leah but I appreciated that all of Parker’s problems weren’t solved overnight and that, while James found some measure of peace with his family and himself, things weren’t magically fixed there either.

I suppose some people will find the epilogue a bit cheesy, but I appreciated that it took place 18 months after the events of the book (thus I was sure that they were making things work) and that James took the time to ensure Nicky was okay with what was happening between he and Parker.

Parker is 35 at the start of the book and James is 30, so there was a bit of angst on her part about whether he was too young for her – it felt appropriate that she’d think about it and that it would be something of an issue, but I certainly appreciated that it wasn’t beaten to a pulp. Parker gave James credit for knowing his own mind. Plus, James didn’t come across as “young”. He and Parker seemed very much equals to me.

I liked this book very much. James is a peach and once Parker stopped calling him “Thing One” she was pretty special too.

Grade: B

Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas, narrated by Tanya Eby

April 6, 2012 / Kaetrin

Note: Review originally written for Speakingof Audiobooks . Permission has been granted to publish review in its entirety here.

Why I read it: I was so looking forward to listening to this book. I adored Blue Eyed Devil and Smooth Talking Stranger and I love Tanya Eby’s narration. The combination of this author and this narrator felt like an automatic win for me. And I did enjoy it, but… well, let’s get to what the story is about first.

What it’s about: Sam Nolan is the owner of the old Victorian House and proprietor of the vineyard at the end of Rainshadow Road on San Juan Island, Washington. We met him in Christmas Eve at Friday Harborwhich featured his brother Mark and his, now, wife-to-be, Maggie. Sam’s gorgeous and talented and friendly and sexy but he doesn’t do commitment. Ever. He’s always honest about it. He’s not a cheater or a deceiver but his experience with his alcoholic parents and their toxic marriage has scarred him for life.

Lucy Marinn is a glass artist, working mainly on stained glass windows. We first meet Lucy when her boyfriend of 3 years, Kevin, dumps her for her younger (and very spoiled and not at all nice) sister Alice. We are toldthat Kevin has awakened Lucy’s sensuality and taught her about trust in a relationship (as she’s not otherwise a very trusting person) but frankly, Kevin is an asshole. We see that there are no redeeming aspects to his character at all. He whines. He blames everyone else for his shortcomings (eg, “It might be your fault, but it’s definitely not my fault” [that I cheated on you and slept with your sister]). I wondered why Lucy had been with him at all. Kevin was a caricature and didn’t fill me with confidence in Lucy’s judgment in men.

Moving along. Lucy meets Sam early on in the story and there is an attraction but Lucy is gun shy after her breakup with Kevin. They start to form a friendship and then Lucy is involved in an accident where she needs someone to care for her. She moves into the house at Rainshadow Road and their relationship develops as Sam looks after her. (It makes sense in the book, trust me).

What worked for me (and what didn’t): The book features “magical realism”. During times of strong emotion glass on or near Lucy turns into real creatures – butterflies, hummingbirds, and other small animals. I confess I don’t know much about it but, from this book, it didn’t seem to be something which really added to the story. I felt that those parts could have been left out altogether and there would have been no loss. I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be that way or not. In a PNR for example, the paranormal/magical aspects of the story are necessary, but I’m not sure the same could be said here.

Tanya Eby is one of my favourite narrators. She has a very pleasant voice to listen to. I think I’m extra picky because there are some narrators out there who do great character voices and everything but to my ears, their “narrator” voice (i.e. the voice they use when they’re not doing dialogue) isn’t that nice to listen to. Not the case with Tanya Eby. She has a lovely timbre to her voice. She also delivers a number of different female and male character voices across a range of ages. Her voice for Sam was very sexy – kind of husky and just like I pictured him actually having. Kevin sounded like the moron he was. Lucy’s mother sounded more mature without being old and Lucy’s dad sounded like the distracted, somewhat uptight, professor-type he was in the text. I’m happy to say that there is even a distinction between the voices of the 3 brothers Mark, Sam and Alex – it’s subtle, but definitely there.

I haven’t read the DIK review which was published at AAR the other day as I didn’t want it to influence my own review. But, suffice it to say that I didn’t have quite the same experience of the book as AAR’s Pat did. I liked it; Tanya Eby’s narration was wonderful. I was surprised when I looked at my iPod and saw that I was 6 hours into an 8 hour audiobook and realised that Sam and Lucy’s relationship had really only just begun. On the one hand, those 6 hours had flown by. On the other, there’s only 2 hours left and they’ve only just got together! I ended up having the same criticism of Rainshadow Road as I did with Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor – after such a beautiful set up, the ending is rushed. In this case, the relationship part is rushed. We see Lucy and Sam together for 3 or 4 days when she is recuperating at his house, but then all of a sudden we move to “over the past 2 months…” – I wanted to hear about those 2 months dammit!! They are beautiful characters – Sam is funny and he’s a geek with cool science-y t-shirts – Lucy (despite her previously appalling taste in men) is eminently likeable. Because those 2 months were missing in action, it was difficult for me to really buy into Sam’s conversion from “no commitment. Ever” to “marry me”. (I don’t think the HEA is a spoiler! :D) I wanted to but I just didn’t see enough of their interactions as a couple together. I didn’t see him completely falling for her over those 2 months. I was only told it happened.

What would have made this book an A read for me would have been to make it longer and fill in those 2 months. I would have had the joy of listening to Tanya Eby’s wonderful narration for more hours and I would have gotten to know those great characters better and been more convinced at the end. Oh, I believed it, but I didn’t sighover it. Not like I did with Hardy and Haven from Blue Eyed Devil.

What else? There’s one other thing. Sam and Lucy first make love very soon after her accident. As someone who has recently had some surgery, I found this a bit hard to believe. A few days after a significant accident where you can’t walk for a while is not a time when one is likely to feel sexy. Romantic? Sure. A few kisses and many cuddles definitely. But sex? Um, not so much.

I recommend this book. I flew through it. It was very good; it’s worth a listen for Tanya Eby’s narration alone, but it could have been amazing and because of that, I was left feeling a little disappointed in the end. The story was engaging, the narrator excellent – I would have happily listened to more. There was just something missing for me – those 2 months!!

Grade: B-