Low on plausibility but high on entertaining drama, dialogue, and hot romance.
A woman’s search for closure with an ex is upturned by a hot new man in this romance novel.
North Carolina native Kesler “Kez” Walsh was sure that her handsome, funny, and bright law school boyfriend, Miller Thompson, was ideal husband material. But after graduation, Miller left the South, returning to Rochester, New York, while Kez took a good job in Charlotte. After many arguments and drunken phone calls from Miller claiming his love, they couldn’t resolve the long-distance problem and broke up. That was four years ago. Now 28, Kez has never truly moved on from Miller and his promises. She’s learned that he’s engaged to a bartender at the very pub where he’d drunk-dial Kez. She hatches a scheme to crash Miller’s high school reunion in Rochester and, as she tells best friends Regan “Rae” Murphy and Vivian “V” Walters, “see for myself that he’s moved on. That this thing with her is real, not just checking a box in his personal life.” Only then, she claims, can she find closure. Kez wants her besties to come along, so despite their doubts, Rae and V loyally agree. In the hotel bar, Kez meets Jackson “Jax” Jenkins—tall, dark, muscular, tattooed, brimming with confidence, and totally into her. He’s also attending the reunion. When he gets wind of Kez’s plan, he invites her along as his plus-one, giving her the perfect cover to evaluate Miller’s commitment to his intended. Meanwhile, erotic heat builds—and builds and builds—between Kez and Jax, who is ready for much more than just a fling. If the door on Miller closes, maybe another one could open, but first Kez must take a chance and trust again.
In her debut, Dodd runs the risk of making the romance too good to be true. Kez is a “gorgeous” red-haired head-turner, and she already owns her own law firm. Jax is perhaps even more inordinately ideal, and not just physically. His restoration business is both masculine and artsy, and he’s thoughtful and sensitive behind the sometimes-cocky exterior—after a misunderstanding, he sends flowers to Kez with an apology note that makes Rae exclaim, “Seriously? Those arms and that ass come with a poetry option?” He also conveniently happens to live right outside of Charlotte. Fortunately, Dodd gives her heroine a significant flaw in her obsession with the past and dubious logic about needing to gauge Miller’s feelings; Kez didn’t just Google-stalk Miller; she actually hired a private investigator. Additionally, a few misunderstandings, eruptions from Miller and his fiancee (who earns Kez’s sympathy), and other bumps in the road to love also help spice the story with some conflict. And of course, some readers will appreciate the well-crafted wish-fulfillment angle. The dialogue is energetic and funny, and the sex scenes are a plus: lusty, varied, and suggestive but not pornographic.
Low on plausibility but high on entertaining drama, dialogue, and hot romance.Pub Date: Sept. 28, 2021
ISBN: 978-1954614659
Page Count: 280
Publisher: Warren Publishing, Inc.
Review Posted Online: Nov. 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
Hoover’s (November 9, 2015, etc.) latest tackles the difficult subject of domestic violence with romantic tenderness and emotional heft.
At first glance, the couple is edgy but cute: Lily Bloom runs a flower shop for people who hate flowers; Ryle Kincaid is a surgeon who says he never wants to get married or have kids. They meet on a rooftop in Boston on the night Ryle loses a patient and Lily attends her abusive father’s funeral. The provocative opening takes a dark turn when Lily receives a warning about Ryle’s intentions from his sister, who becomes Lily’s employee and close friend. Lily swears she’ll never end up in another abusive home, but when Ryle starts to show all the same warning signs that her mother ignored, Lily learns just how hard it is to say goodbye. When Ryle is not in the throes of a jealous rage, his redeeming qualities return, and Lily can justify his behavior: “I think we needed what happened on the stairwell to happen so that I would know his past and we’d be able to work on it together,” she tells herself. Lily marries Ryle hoping the good will outweigh the bad, and the mother-daughter dynamics evolve beautifully as Lily reflects on her childhood with fresh eyes. Diary entries fancifully addressed to TV host Ellen DeGeneres serve as flashbacks to Lily’s teenage years, when she met her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy she found squatting in a neighbor’s house. When Atlas turns up in Boston, now a successful chef, he begs Lily to leave Ryle. Despite the better option right in front of her, an unexpected complication forces Lily to cut ties with Atlas, confront Ryle, and try to end the cycle of abuse before it’s too late. The relationships are portrayed with compassion and honesty, and the author’s note at the end that explains Hoover’s personal connection to the subject matter is a must-read.
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of the survivors.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5011-1036-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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