OK, so let me start from the beginning. I read Eric's story in the short Just One Taste in the anthology: The Guy Next Door. This was a little mini kick off for the trilogy coming out this fall that starts with Good Girls Don't (and will be followed in October by Bad Boys Do and in November by Real Men Will). I loved Eric's story and was ready for the conclusion so when I started this first book I was disappointed to realize that Eric's story will be the end of the trilogy. So I was a little bitter when I started. Tess, the main character and little sister of two adoring and over protective big brothers, reminded me a lot of Molly from Talk Me Down and I was all ready to dislike the book on the grounds it was too similar. I don't know how far into it I was before I completely forgot that idea. If you've read my blog before you know I don't give a plot synopsis, instead I include a link to the book's page. So, I'm assuming you've read that and now you want to know if you'll enjoy this book or not. Yes. Oh, wait... I'm supposed to tell you the basics now and let you decide for yourself. (But the answer is Yes anyway.)
Just the facts ma'am:
- Third person with his/hers POV (no secondary story lines or other POV to keep up with)
- He is a cop with a heart of gold who everyone thinks is a slimy bad ass and she is the innocent little sister who isn't so innocent.
- This could have been a suspense... there is a "mystery" to solve but it takes such a back seat to the story line that it isn't worth mentioning.
- Of course there is a conflict and resolution but I'm so grateful to Victoria Dahl for actually writing about adults. There is such a tendency in romance to write the characters behaving like junior high school dwellers in order to give them a conflict to resolve. But Tessa sees a guy she likes, picks up the phone and asks him on a date vs. 20-30 pages of agonizing over whether he will or will not call.
- Best lines:
- "His skin was tan, and creases around his eyes made it look like he often squinted thoughtfully into the distance while puzzling out an investigation."
- "Oooh, gut instincts and fingerprints. And she could just make out the edge of his shoulder holster when he put his hands in his pockets."
- "Right now, he'd give anything to be back in Boulder, in his car next to his secretive and pregnant partner and not having sex with a nonvirgin woman who'd probably never speak to him again."
- And now the HOTTEST lines:
- Luke put his mouth to her thigh, then her hip, her belly, her waist. All she could do was breathe until the dark spots in her vision faded. As Luke stood, she kicked the pile of clothing off her feet and fell to her knees. "Tessa--" "Shut up." His back thunked against the wall when she swung him around, but before he could protest, she'd worked his buckle open and reached for his zipper.
