THE ART OF RUNNING IN HEELS

When Lexie Kowalsky abandons her reality TV groom at the altar in Seattle and hops on a seaplane to Canada, she shares the flight with handsome Sean Knox, who joins her on a crazy roller coaster of publicity, spin, and romance until they realize they’re truly in love.

Lexie joined a reality wedding show to garner a little free publicity for her designer pet-clothing business but is stunned when, thanks to her competitive nature, she wins the groom. When true reality hits—she’s expected to marry a man she doesn’t love—she flees, jumping aboard a seaplane preparing for takeoff. There, she meets Sean, who's headed to Sandspit, Canada, to visit his hypochondriac mother. Sean and Lexie share an immediate attraction, but Sean is determined to keep his distance. Not only is she swimming in drama, but she also happens to be the daughter of John Kowalsky, head coach of his professional hockey team, the Chinooks. However, a photo of Lexie and her “mystery man” goes viral, turning public opinion against her and threatening her business. Back in Seattle, Lexie convinces Sean to pose as the love of her life and the reason she couldn’t marry her TV groom, which forces them to navigate their families, the television audience, and the Seattle social scene. Somewhere along the way they fall in love, but the journey to figuring it out and admitting it is both heart-wrenching and funny. Gibson’s (Just Kiss Me, 2016, etc.) Chinooks have been a favorite romance series for two decades, and this, the next chapter for Lexie and her parents, the stars of Book 1, is a highly satisfying revisit. Gibson blends emotional and comic details without turning farcical or melodramatic, showing subtlety and finesse in her storytelling and characterization.

A perfect balance of heat, humor, quirkiness, and refinement.