#BookReview – My Sweetest Sasha (Meadows Shore #2)

The blurb reads,

“Meadows Shore is the childhood home of the five Clayton sisters and the six Harrington brothers, the family seat where these irresistible characters gather regularly, or whenever they need the comfort of Portuguese home cooking and the love and wisdom of elder women.

Cole Harrington, the oldest of those swoon-worthy Harrington brothers, is a gifted trauma surgeon with a cocky smile and a whole lot of swagger. He’s assigned an executive coach after he smashes the thermostat in the operating room to smithereens.

Alexa Petersen is a nice girl from Minnesota who’s been tasked with shadowing the naughty trauma surgeon, and writing a report to end his promising career. While she might prefer pretty lace panties, Alexa’s not afraid to slip on a pair of steel-toed boots when Cole needs to be knocked down a notch or two.

Hospital drama and small-town woes, the truth obscured by secrets and lies. Where nothing is as it appears—not even Cole and Alexa.”

This is the second book in the Meadows Shore series that I read. I read the first one I think in May and when I found out this one was up for grabs, I got it too.

I’ve been a little lax with reviews on the blog and I sincerely apologize for it. I’ve dealt with a lot this year, with my grandma’s death and the resulting creative block, and I’m finally back to putting things behind me and doing what I love best, reviewing books!

Right, so back to Cole and Alexa. I’ve been loving reading series related to a big family. I realize we have families like that in India too, it’s just that nobody has ever bothered writing about these dynamics in a way that is relatable. And so I pick them out. I’m a huge fan of Barbara Freethy and her Callaways. And now I am reading Eva Charles.

I can’t say the books are as brilliant as Barbara Freethy, simply, because the genre is different. These books are pure romance, and in that sense, I felt something deficient in the story. It felt like there were parts of the story which were cliche, in terms of the dialogue between Cole and Alexa, or the fact that Cole has to be a bad boy and Alexa has to be a sweet girl.

But after I put aside the cliches I found, the story was quite enjoyable. I really liked Alexa as a character. She was trying her hard to make it big in this world and she was doing it for her family because she wanted to take any burden off them. I really admired this aspect of hers.

Apart from that, the one thing I really liked about this is the family itself. There were so many members, each of whom had their parents who they had lost. And these books outlined how they found themselves and found someone to love. That’s what I loved.

It was nice to read about how much Cole loved Alexa. I don’t know, there is a lot of talk about gender equality and the like, but reading about a man doing something extra to make his girl happy, that always warms my heart.

I’m really looking forward to reading the next installment in the series! Thank you Rock Star PR

About the Author:

Eva Charles is the author of the multi-titled Meadows Shore Series that chronicles the lives and loves of the Clayton-Harrington family. She invites you to visit their beloved Meadows Shore nestled in the charming seaside town of Fair Harbor, where you will enjoy love, laughter, loyalty, and an abundance of mouth-watering food, Portuguese style.

After being a confirmed city-girl for more than thirty-five years, Eva moved to beautiful Western Massachusetts in 2014. There, she found herself living in the woods with no job, no friends (unless you count the turkeys, deer, and coyotes roaming the backyard), and no children underfoot, wondering what on earth she’d been thinking. But as it turned out, it was the perfect setting to take all those yarns spinning in her head and weave them into a romantic tale.

When she’s not writing, trying to squeeze information out of her tight-lipped sons, or playing with the two cutest dogs you’ve ever seen, Eva’s creating chapters in her own love story.

Website: http://www.evacharles.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/evacharles37
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Eva-Charles/1645531855709489
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14223913.Eva_Charles
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Eva-Charles/e/B0140FZ442

More from the Meadows Shore Series

A Wedding at Meadows Shore
A Meadows Shore Novel
Meadows Shore Book 1

Blurb:

Prepare to fall in love with the Claytons and Harringtons, a wealthy and powerful New England family with a rich Portuguese heritage. Visit their beloved Meadows Shore nestled in the charming seaside town of Fair Harbor, where you’ll enjoy love, laughter, loyalty, and an abundance of mouth-watering food.

A Wedding at Meadows Shore is Sophie Clayton’s story. Smart, stubborn, and strong, family means everything to her. After a failed marriage, she creates a new life for herself, one that excludes men. Sophie doesn’t trust men, or maybe she doesn’t trust her judgment when it comes to them. Then she meets Max, a man who leads his life in a way that challenges those very trust issues.

Max Parker is a handsome playboy with a taste for younger women and a past that haunts him. He keeps what’s left of his heart well protected behind a cool exterior, and fills the emptiness with lucrative business deals, punishing exercise, and women he’ll never love. But there’s another side to Max, one that he keeps well hidden, until Sophie blows into his life like a whirlwind and knocks him off his game, threatening to expose his darkest secrets.

There’s an Old Portuguese adage that translates as, “the rooster crows loudly, but it’s the hen who’s in charge”. And so it is with the Claytons and Harringtons: strong women, alpha males, and of course, Avó Angelina, the family matriarch who keeps them all on their best behavior.

Bem vindo à família, Welcome to the family!

 

Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26126429-a-wedding-at-meadows-shore
Buy links:

Kobo: http://bit.ly/21iSyhT

#BookReview – The Callaways : Melody of Love by Terri Deno

The blurb reads,

“Austin Eckhart has spent his life dancing. When he is hired as a dance instructor by Jessica at Sean Callaway’s Ashbury Studios, he is ready to get to work, even though his mind is focused on only one thing: helping out his brother.

Melanie Dover is on the brink of a major pop star career as her alter ego, Melody. Although it isn’t the type of music she loves most, she’s willing to do anything to be in the music industry. With her ambitious father by her side, she’s ready to take on the world—if she could only learn the dance steps to her songs.

When Austin and Mel meet, the sparks that fly are not left to fizzle on the dance floor. But with each of them running towards goals they are not sure of, can their path to love ever align?”

 

This was a very quick read. I picked this up when I was looking for something to read over lunch and this one was perfect. It is a short and sweet read.

I loved Mel as a character. She was probably like every other woman here today. Wanting to chase after her dreams and yet not being able to because of circumstances.

I feel we are generally so restricted in our lives. We sacrifice our dreams and somehow come up with justifications for why our dreams should be sacrificed. It shouldn’t be that way for all of us. And that is the core takeaway. That our dreams should take precedent. And that life will sort itself out somehow.

Also, I loved how sweet Austin and Mel’s romance was. Love is unpredictable and it really does not take long to fall in love, especially if it is with the right person. I am one of those people who believe that couples end up together for a reason and everyone has someone who is meant for them. The way Austin and Mel found each other was very sweet.

That being said, the novel for me was too brief. It was too short. I wanted more character development. The dark side that Austin was trying to protect was not too dark and I wanted that to be more developed. I also wanted some more about their romance, and how they discovered each other. Also some more about Mel wanting to break away and follow her dreams.

I liked the attempt at making a fan fiction novel. But then the thing is, I suppose I expected something more about the Callaways to fill into the book. I thought the story should have been a lot longer. I don’t know whether there is a restriction on the word count. But I felt a longer word count would have helped me to feel for the characters a bit more.
I suppose I loved the characters and that’s why I feel a little short changed for getting a shorter novella when I wanted a longer one.

This book made me read into Kindle Worlds and want to write something based on that. I know I write reasonably well and this would be a great challenge for me. I think the Kindle Worlds program is a wonderful program for authors who want to write and push the envelope.

 

My Rating: 2.5/5

#BookReview – Tweet Me by Desiree Holt

The blurb reads,

“Don’t call. Don’t text. Tweet me… 
Married to her work, event planner Avery Kurtz runs her life and her business on a private message feed. She has no time to waste on emails or a love life, and Valentine’s Day means just more parties to plan. But when Tanner Voss, best man in Avery’s best friend’s wedding, is assigned to help finalize plans, her world is turned heart-side up. The hotshot attorney might be a player. He’d hit on her before and she avoided that mistake but he’s also surprisingly cooperative, focused on making the perfect choices for their friends, and even on board with her messaging preference. Between the erotic dreams about the sexy litigator and her body urging her to forget caution, Avery is wondering if she was wrong about Tanner and wants him to do more than “tweet me.””

I saw this book on Scribd and quickly read through it one night. I love short stories but then I felt this one tried to pack too many things into one thing.

I mean I thought it was very novel to have someone handle their business entirely on Twitter. I am not really sure how that model would work in today’s times but then it was a good spool to think on.

I felt like the chemistry between Avery and Tanner was too hurried. It just happened in a snap and somehow, I did not like the introduction of erotica in the novella. I mean when the book is so short, why waste space with erotica when you can use that same space to develop your characters even more?

I don’t know, I’m not too convinced about this lead pair. I did not like this novella and I don’t recommend it.

My Rating: 2/5

#BookReview – Miss Featherton’s Christmas Prince (The Marriage Game#8) by Ella Quinn

The blurb reads,

“Ella Quinn’s wealthy, titled bachelors think they’re immune to romantic notions. Yet no matter how they try to evade it, love somehow finds a way…

In the two seasons since her triumphant debut, Meg Featherton’s heart has been tested to its limits. Her first suitor: a criminal. The second, a cad. For her third act, Meg vows to leave love completely out of the marriage equation. She has set her sights on a newly made viscount whom she could take or leave. However, now she must avoid his handsome, roguish, irresistible best friend like the plague. It’s no easy feat, as they are all attending the same house party…

Damon, Marquis of Hawksworth, cannot imagine why Miss Featherton seems so damn disinterested—or why he cares so terribly much. Certainly Meg is a fine wifely prospect for a man in his position, but more than that, he finds he longs for her as he has never done for another woman. She may be determined to protect her heart, but Damon is equally set on winning her over, one delicious kiss at a time…”

 

So I got this one from NetGalley because of a tour I signed up for, I think, with Pump Up Your Book. I don’t remember getting mails about the tour, or perhaps it was a review only tour.

But I got to this book in November 2015 and then restarted reading it in 2016.

I love regency romances. There is some charm about Britain and even though India is independent, you can’t help but revere them in some small, slight way. I’m in awe of their towns and cities and of course, any story concerning the Tudor times or the like. I don’t have even a fraction of awe or knowledge about my own country’s history which is sad.

But anyway, all that left aside. This was a fun loving tale. A tale where Damon has to woo his lady love before she finds love with someone else. The thing that struck me first was the male protagonist’s name. Damon! How very un-Brit like. But that just made the story more interesting.

Like a true blue regency book, this love story went through trials and tribulations followed by the ultimate fruit of falling in love. The grandmothers here, who set their children up were absolutely great! I loved reading about them.

I mean, when you look at the social restrictions at that time, it does not seem too different from the Indian society. Britain had dowry too, and openly so. It’s a little hypocritical they bash India for it.

Inspite of all that, I feel my love for Regency romances simply lies with that era or with how unconcerned and fun loving the ladies are. Rather than conforming to the crowd, these ladies stand out and have spirit and character. That’s what sets them apart and makes these books a lot of fun to read.

And this book was nothing different. The matchmaking aspect of it made it different. I loved reading the book and my love for Regency novels stays.

Meg is a spunky character and I absolutely love how she and Damon fall in love. It just melts my heart.

My rating: 4/5

Sigh!! The redeeming feeling of falling in love!! Bring on more Regency romances!!

#BookReview – Jackson (Wild Boys After Dark #3) by Melissa Foster

The blurb reads,

“Receiving a marriage proposal is supposed to make a women happy, but when Erica Lane receives a beautiful marriage proposal from her perfect boyfriend on the eve of her annual camping trip with her best friend, Jackson Wild, the first thing she does is jump into bed with Jackson.

Jackson’s all too happy to screw the annoyance out of Erica. After all, they’ve always screwed the hell out of each other when they were bored or angry, lonely, or too damn drunk to see straight.

But the marriage proposal changes everything, and their annual camping trip takes unexpected turns. Will a few nights in the wilderness set these friends with benefits free, or lead them on a path of destruction?”

So right, I did sign up to receive Jackson’s ARC after I read Heath and Logan.

Read my review of Heath and Logan here!

After a very disappointing read in Heath, I still dug into Jackson thinking it would be something different as compared to the others.

And to an extent I wasn’t disappointed. Jackson did have a different story, just not unique enough. I mean reading about a guy realising his love for his best friend after she is proposed to is oft repeated in both film and book. Made of Honor, Patrick Dempsey anyone?

And this book here is nothing NEW. It is the same old formula, wrapped in oodles of sex. And I mean oodles. Erica and Jackson have sex. All the time. Whenever they are angry, whenever they are frustrated.

But somehow they never realised how much they needed each other before Erica was proposed to by her boyfriend.

I’m a little unsure of how I would take this, a boyfriend being comfortable with his girlfriend having open sexual relations with another guy. Most guys I know would not be comfortable with it, but then if a guy is, however unbelievable it may be, it does show that he is mature enough to let the lady go, only to have her come back.

Jackson and Erica realise their love for each other when they go camping and are caught in a storm. And that tragedy striking is enough to make Jackson realise that he has always wanted his Laney. And for Erica to realise that she looked for Jackson in every man she dated.

And while that realisation is sweet, and touching, the book sort of distracts you with all the sex that is in it.

 

I read this book a while back and what I do remember from it is just the sex. And the very little recollection they have of how their lives are incomplete without each other.

I think I’m going to stay off these books which prefer to make it Dark at the cost of the series. I don’t remember why I gave this book a 4 star on Goodreads but I’ve downgraded it to a 3 since then.

And a 3 star simply because the sex was great! Much as I didn’t like it taking the place of a good story, it did have some sense to it. And I did like Jackson being told off by his brothers and Jackson’s personal story.

Atleast this book told me about the characters. It told me little about their dependencies on each other. About their history with each other. And while I may be miffed about their story being too sex oriented, I can’t discount that their angst was real. That there was so much hesitation at this feeling of letting go and committing.

I hope Cooper’s story is a good one. I missed out on the ARC, but let’s hope I can get to it sometime in the future.

My Rating: 3/5

#Brilliantly Funny: The Ugly Stepsister by Aya Ling

The blurb reads,

“When Kat accidentally rips apart an old picture book, she’s magically transported into the world of Cinderella–as Katriona, one of the ugly stepsisters! Life turns upside down now that she’s a highborn lady and must learn how to survive the social season, including how to get through the door in a huge metal hoop skirt. To get back, she’ll have to complete the story, right to the end of happily ever after. But the odds are huge: the other stepsister is drop-dead gorgeous, the fairy godmother is nowhere to be found, and the prince, despite being insanely hot, openly dislikes balls. Can she ever return to the modern world?”

 

So I requested this one on NetGalley at some point of time without even realising it. And then finally, one evening in Goa, when I was on holiday, I clicked this one on my Kindle and started reading it.

The blurb was immediately catchy and I dove straight into the story. AND I LOVED IT!~

I love stories from the Regency period and this re-telling of Cinderella was so very well written. I absolutely loved Kat and I was rooting for her every step of the way.

Of course, Murphy interfered here and what had to go wrong did go wrong everywhere in the book. But Kat’s personality shone through every dealing she had with the Prince or with her mother.

Reading through this book did make me feel so grateful that we lived in the times we did. Living in those ages with whatever Kat had to go through was definitely not easy.

It did make me wonder and think, that with all the media attention calling India a sexist country, it wasn’t really any much different in UK where this story is based. They were equally sexist and treated women as dirt probably a lot more than in our own society. Talk about not hearing anything bad about your ex-rulers. (Britain did rule India for over 2 centuries)

I sooo loved Prince Edward. And all that sparring that Kat and Edward had. I just wished the book would continue and that their fairytale would continue. I loved reading how hard Kat tried to fight her rising chemistry with Edward.

This book made me realise how wonderful the Romance genre can be. Light and meant to give you a break from the vagaries of life, it is books like these which make me want to stick to this genre and this blog and write more about Romances!

It has made me realise my love for Regency Romances and now I’m busy hunting for more of those online.

If you’re an author who has written a Regency romance, please contact me so I can review your book!

 

My Rating: 5/5 stars

#So-So : Heath (Wild Boys#2) by Melissa Foster

The blurb reads,

“No last names. No strings. No ties.
Except of the silk variety.

Dr. Heath Wild and Allyson Jenner only wanted a simple tryst. But Heath couldn’t live with just one night, just one taste, of Ally—and Ally couldn’t escape the memory of his hands on her skin, the way he looked at her like she was his obsession, or his seduction, which had pushed her to the edge and had made her want to do things she never had before.

One night leads to one tantalizing phone call. Can one phone call lead to forever?”

So I am here taking a bit of a risk, writing such a bland review for such a popular author’s book. But I really can’t help it, there were deficiencies in the book that I just could not ignore.

Heath is the second brother to be written about in the Wild Boys After Dark series.

I was completely taken over by Logan. Read my review for it here!

And then I wanted to devour on the other brothers and their tales. Heath starts off great, steamy and sexy. And believe me, the book is filled with sex scenes. So much so, that someone can enjoy a session, reading it with their special one because it will leave you feeling turned on and wanting to do something more.

I like that Melissa constructs stories around large families with each member spanning a book. It gives the reader a lot more interaction with a particular character.

I absolutely loved Logan. And the story was fast paced too. So I had to request for stories of the other Wild Boys. And the second book in the series is Heath.

To be very fair, I shouldn’t have expected Heath’s story to be something similar to Logan’s but then I did expect a lot more than what I got. I got a lot of sex, barely any interaction with the characters or who they were as persons and also the whole story.

I found it defective that this book did not focus on Heath or Ally. You ended up knowing about Heath because you read Logan and knew where he came from. I didn’t know who Heath was as a person, what made him choose his profession, what characteristics described him and what his dreams were. These were more transparent in Logan. And i loved Logan for that.

This book was a bit of a let down that way. It’s singular focus on how Heath and Ally fell in love felt good to read but it didn’t give me that story I look for in a Romance. Sure Ally and Heath felt for each other and found that they loved each others company. But there wasn’t anything beyond that. Which is why my ire.

I looooved the sex scenes!! They were absolutely HOT! SMOKIN HOT! And seeing how Ally and Heath fell in love was great and it reminded me of how love tended to open all your boundaries and how letting a person inside somehow made you feel more complete.

I was so glad Ally was smart. I’m tired of heroines being Damsels in Distress. I mean they do need to have some spine and Ally sure did.

I loved how Ally seemed to integrate into Heath’s life. It is something every woman aspires to do and she was great.

I just wish the book focused on the characters rather than their story. It would have earned me a full 5 stars. I’m disappointed that the book made its sole focus SEX. I would have thought that Melissa would have described the character but then, I’m wary of her books now, if these are the sort of books that come up, I don’t want to be invested in series where I only read about two people having sex with each other.

Let’s hope Jackson and Cooper live up to the high bar that Logan set.

 

My Rating: 2.5/5

#BookReview- Logan (Wild Boys After Dark #1) by Melissa Foster

The blurb reads,

“Stella “Stormy” Knight is an expert at hiding—her feelings, her past, and her identity. Sometimes all that hiding takes its toll, and she needs to come out from under that heavy suit of armor and cut loose—but it never takes her long to put it right back on and disappear without a trace.

Private Investigator Logan Wild is relentless in his pursuit to discover the truth for his clients. He works hard, plays even harder, and always walks away unscathed and untethered. Until he meets mysterious and sexy-as-hell Stormy, who leaves him craving more than a one-night stand.

Passion ignites, secrets are shared, and their deep connection is impossible to ignore. But in order to have a future, Logan must uncover Stormy’s dark past—and when he does, he’ll hold her fate in his hands.”

 

So, I got a chance to join Melissa Foster’s Street Team on Facebook, as a result of me being a part of Novel Publicity’s awesome team! And I have never read Melissa Foster before.

I’ve been wary about reading a lot of Indie fiction, especially in the Romance genre because, well, it can be filled with a lot of swear words and have a lot of meaningless sex, without a story involved. And some reviews for highly rated authors makes me really wonder whether the really popular authors have what it takes to do a good job, or do we just blindly drink in everything they write.

It is with this intention that I decided to apply for Melissa Foster’s ARC program. And I received a copy of Logan.

At the outset, let me make this clear, my expectations of the book were ZERO. I didn’t expect it to be good. I’m a skeptical Romance reader, and I have this blog so that I can read all different types of Romance and let go of all these biases I may have.

Right! So back to Logan.

The story seemed pretty cliche. Damsel in Distress. Hot Guy. Meet Cute. Sudden Falling in Love. And Staying in Love.

To that extent, the book did not disappoint. It stuck to the cliche with panache. Every item that I mentioned up was a part of the story.

But... (there’s always one somewhere)

But, I felt something for Stella. I could feel her apprehensions. I could feel the closet she had pushed herself into. I could feel the pain she felt and the restlessness that came with being in a situation with no way out.

And I fell a little for Logan. Him being there for Stella, the way he did, softened my stance a little. I felt all my judgemental thoughts flow away, and I enjoyed the story more for what it was.

The language was not altogether that great, but it did succeed in creating that magical world for me, the one I was looking for. The one where a Prince Charming comes and waves his sword about, and all problems seem to recede.

I suppose that is the point of a good book. It makes you forget your problems and your life, even for a short while. And in that short while, it feels like the book helped you rest. And dream. Of a better future.

There were a few sentences written really poorly, which did make me want to rebuke the author harshly. But there weren’t too many of such instances, and I am letting it slide, because, I did enjoy the book, albeit a shade less.

I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series. I love these books where each book focuses on one family member. It is nice to know an entire family in such a way.

My Rating:4/5

#SuperThriller : Falling for a Stranger (Callaways #3) – Barbara Freethy

The blurb reads,

From #1 NY Times Bestselling Author Barbara Freethy comes the third book in the popular Callaway Series, an emotional and suspenseful novel of love, family and dangerous secrets. 
Ria is as sexy and sultry as a warm tropical night and as beautifully dangerous as the island drinks she serves at the beachside bar on Isla de los Suenos — The Island of Dreams. But Ria is not as carefree as she appears, and the pretense is wearing her down. One night she risks everything to escape from reality.

Drew Callaway is a former Navy pilot and rescue operative looking for his own escape from a life that has seen too much tragedy. Meeting Ria is like embracing the sun, and their single night together is life-changing. But the dream quickly fades when Ria is killed in a tragic accident at sea.

Months later, thousands of miles away from where they first met, Drew sees a woman who looks just like Ria. She claims her name is Tory, and that they’ve never met before, but he can see that she’s in trouble, and he can’t walk away. He’s going to save her whether she wants it or not.

Drew isn’t afraid of a little danger, but can he risk losing his heart to a beautiful stranger?

** FALLING FOR A STRANGER is the third book in the connected family series, The Callaways.

So this was the third book in the Callaways I was reading. It was interesting to read story upon story and wonder how it must be to have so many siblings.

I’ve never before read an NYT #1 author and this chance I got from Novel Publicity, I completely sapped it up and opted to review all the 8 novels. Albeit during the blog tour,  I ended up reviewing only 2, I have read 6 at the moment and I am on the way to finishing the 7th and the 8th! Phew!!

What I really like about Barbara Freethy’s books is that she involves you in the story completely. You feel a part of the characters lives and you just can’t stop reading. Also, I’m beginning to soften up towards Romantic Suspense and I think that is great for me because I love Suspense as a genre.

So this book picked up on Drew Callaway’s life. He digressed from the usual Callaway line and worked with the Coast Guard. This itself set the book apart because the Callaways are a firefighter family.

So Sean meets this woman, who changes his life in one night. The next day, she is killed in a boat accident. Sean is devastated.

But all is not as it appears. Ria, the woman who stole Drew’s heart, is hiding in San Francisco, from her sister’s druggie brother-in-law. She is harbouring her niece, who she wants to protect from a degenerate life.

What happens when Drew finds Ria in the crowd. Will he stop to finding the one woman who stole his heart? Will Ria’s past catch up with her? What will happen to this love story?

As most of the men in books, Drew is brooding, quiet and keeps to himself. I feel, this isn’t a very good quality for men to have. I mean, I feel men should be allowed the power to express what they feel.

Any way, my feelings about Drew changed as I read through the book. I saw how he changed because of his interactions with Ria and how he wanted to be more cheerful when he was with her. And that was the true power of love. Changing you for the better.

I could feel Ria’s predicament about how she felt so much more grown up than she was because of the difficulties she was facing. I also felt bad for Megan, Ria’s niece. She just wanted to discover a new life for herself and the life she had in San Francisco was so much better than she had. Her naivete endeared me to her.

I felt, mystery wise, this book did not have that great a mystery. It wasn’t that thrilling and page turning. Drew and Ria’s increasing chemistry made me flip through page after page to find out what happened next.

This was a good book and I really jumped straight into the next book right away.

My Rating: 3.5/5

 

#Super-Thriller – So This Is Love (Callaways #2) by Barbara Freethy

The blurb reads,

Emma Callaway, a hot fire investigator clashes with Max Harrison, a cool homicide detective in SO THIS IS LOVE, the second book in the Callaway Series, by #1 NY Times Bestselling Author Barbara Freethy

For Max Harrison, love seduces and then destroys. His brother went to prison for love. His father left his family for love. And Max is determined not to follow in their footsteps, until he meets Emma…

Get The Book on Amazon

Get The Book on Amazon
Emma runs into burning buildings without an ounce of fear and embraces life as if every day is a new adventure. But while she’s fearless on the job, Emma is a coward when it comes to love. Betrayed by an ex-boyfriend, Emma has no intention of putting her heart on the line again, until she meets Max…

As the fires around the city rage, the heat between them ignites in a blaze of passion that’s far more dangerous. Will it destroy them or will they finally get everything they ever wanted…

Get the Book on Amazon

I’ve finished reading 5 books from the Callaways and I’m on ‘That Summer Night’ now. And this one remains my favorite from all the books.

Emma is my favorite Callaway. She is deeply intuitive, wise and warm. She is friendly and immediately makes you want to be friends with her. She is best friends with Sara and makes an appearance in Book 1 when she welcomes Sara back to San Francisco.

Emma is an arson investigator. She looks into fires which appear suspicious and investigate whether it has a criminal intent to it. Very interesting but highly dangerous work. Is this danger going to catch up with Emma sometime?

Max is someone who has secrets. His brother was convicted 7 years ago. Max has lived his life in the pale shadow of guilt and shame for not helping his brother. He evades love no matter what. He is convinced that love is not worth anything.

When these two meet, sparks fly immediately. Emma tries to ignore them and Max acts gruff whenever he meets Emma. But then their attraction is undeniable. Sparks fly everytime they meet. And no matter how much Emma and Max try to avoid it, they fall into a deep vortex of trying to get to know each other and falling in love.

In the meantime, there is a serial arsonist in San Francisco. He is targeting everything that the Callaways hold dear. Who is the arsonist? What problem does s/he have? Destroying places which Emma holds dear. Is this an arsonist or is he getting much more bolder with each step? Will he stoop to murder next?

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And I found that in terms of suspense, this book had it all. I was so involved with Emma and Max and their story. I was also trying to solve the arsonist’s identity in my mind.

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This was a great book to read. Emma and Max were both afraid of love and it sort of reminded me of myself when I was a little younger. I too was burnt and hesitated about letting myself go. But when I decided to take the plunge and say yes, it was the most beautiful experience ever. It IS the most beautiful experience EVEN NOW.

Likewise, I found myself falling for Max and Emma as a couple. It is so important in a romance to have a connection to both the people. It always matters to see the book from the POV of the man and the woman. To slowly discover their feelings and then to go with the flow when they metamorph from Me to We.

I appreciated the level of suspense and mystery in this book. I enjoyed the writing and also how engaged I was when I was reading the book. It mattered a lot to me that Emma felt like a shadow of myself and that was an added bonus.

My Rating: 5/5

This book really made me want to read about the Callaways. It made me want to discover and peel every layer of each Callaway and find what made their family the way they were. It sort of set me up to reading into them and was definitely miles better than Book 1.

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