Shy bookstore owner Jane Finch grew up hiding in the margins of her own life while her vibrant, adventure-loving sister, Samantha, dominated every plotline. She’s made peace with it, unlike Sam’s business partner, Caleb, who’s always nudging Jane to go after what she really wants. Why should she care what blunt, brash Caleb thinks? They’ve never had much in common, except for Sam.
After tragedy … Sam.
After tragedy strikes, they don’t even have that.
Caleb can’t quite remember when Sam’s little sister stopped being like a surrogate sibling to him and became just…Jane. She’s the most intriguing woman he’s ever met, and so much sexier and stronger than she thinks. On the emotional journey to honor Sam’s memory, the spark they’ve tried to deny becomes an inferno. This journey was meant to be an ending, but will they discover an unexpected new beginning?
Winner of the RITA Award for Contemporary Romance: Mid-Length.
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I don’t know what anyone else listened to (or read), but I did not enjoy this book. It was terribly disappointing. I don’t know which of the main characters I liked less. Immature, annoying, fake, emotionally stunted and fake. Like the author, but this one was a big miss for me.
I bought this book because it won RWA’s Rita Award in contemporary romance. Having read it, I would agree it’s a winner. I loved the characters and settings. The conflicts and romantic scenes were an inspiration to this writer. The award was well deserved.
I received this book through a Goodreads giveaway, and this is my voluntary and honest review. I loved this book about Caleb and Jane and how even though they are opposites they fall in love. They were friends before they became lovers and it took a tragedy to bring them to that point. What happened to make them see how they really felt about each other? You will have to read the book to find out. I highly recommend this book.
Listened to the audio book
I can’t express how much I enjoyed this book. It’s written in a way that the characters seem so real. I felt part of the story and I was emotionally invested. I couldn’t put it down. It was amazing.
The narrator performance was part of what made this story so great. She was expressive.
This is the first book by Abigail Strom that I have read, but it will not be the last! I have been luck to read a number of good books of late, and I have to count this story among them.
I was enthralled by the two complex and nuanced main players, Jane and Caleb, especially the way that their relationship evolved over time, both in the narrative and prior to those events. Most of the peripheral characters were also fairly three-dimensional, particularly in consideration of the small parts they played. My favorite of them was probably Hunter, Caleb’s older brother, who in his one scene dispensed some very important advice:
“Caleb. You’re not Dad, and in spite of the dick move you pulled today, you’re not Mom, either. Your life worked find when you weren’t in love, but now you are. So you’re going to have to make some adjustments.”
There were a few instances that you could just see coming as the narrative played out, but the tale took several turns that I was not expecting. It definitely kept my attention throughout and wanting to find out what happened next.
There were a few things about the tale that were just hard to come to terms with. Jane’s entire reaction to the tragedy they face seems rather stilted, and just not quite in line with her other activities. I also found her expectations of Caleb a bit excessive, given how well she knew him; and also his eventual about-face to be a bit sudden. Otherwise, though, it was a darling tale of love and acceptance.
Although the main defining event of the book is definitely sad and depressing, the book was nonetheless well worth the read, with a very satisfying ending on many fronts. There were a lot of quick-witted verbal interactions between the characters, enough plot to actually make it interesting, some hurdles to overcome but not enough to make it hopeless, a lovely romance, and the couple of love scenes included were definitely hot. Certainly a fun and enjoyable book that I highly recommend.