A smart, compelling romance that realistically explores two socially mismatched lovers fighting for their happily-ever-after.
When a dangerous storm keeps helicopter pilot Sara Charles and her devastatingly handsome client, Lucas Angelo, out of the air, it leads to a night of passion, then to an uneasy but passionate affair between two people from completely different worlds.
A thriving surgeon, Lucas is also part owner of the New York Saints, a Major League Baseball team he bought with his two best friends. Commuting between Staten Island and Manhattan is easier by helicopter, he finds, especially with a female pilot who stays on task and keeps the copter steady. But when a violent storm strands Lucas and his favorite pilot outside the city, Sara makes a move on the achingly handsome Lucas, then winds up sneaking away the next morning when she learns her helicopter has been damaged by the weather. With her business grounded, Sara has other things to think about than the man who set her on fire one dark night, and she’s too embarrassed to contact him, but Lucas is obsessed with the mysterious woman who disappeared. Tracking her down only intrigues him more, and he hires her as the team’s private pilot, increasing their proximity in both New York and in Florida, where the Saints are in spring training. At first, Sara and Lucas agree to keep things professional, but that plan soon flies out the window. However, as hot as the affair gets, Sara is uncomfortable with Lucas’ wealth and high-profile life, not to mention his family’s noticeable disapproval. Lucas is all-in where Sara is concerned, and he’s surprised that his courageous helicopter pilot is choosing to be ruled by fear where her heart is concerned. Scott continues her New York Saints series with another emotionally complex romance set against the exciting backdrop of professional baseball. Sara, especially, has to overcome some major vulnerabilities, and the way she handles her misgivings is understandable but at times aggravating.
A smart, compelling romance that realistically explores two socially mismatched lovers fighting for their happily-ever-after.Pub Date: Dec. 30, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-250-04040-4
Page Count: 352
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Nov. 5, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Heartfelt and funny, this enemies-to-lovers romance shows that the best things in life are all-inclusive and nontransferable...
An unlucky woman finally gets lucky in love on an all-expenses-paid trip to Hawaii.
From getting her hand stuck in a claw machine at age 6 to losing her job, Olive Torres has never felt that luck was on her side. But her fortune changes when she scores a free vacation after her identical twin sister and new brother-in-law get food poisoning at their wedding buffet and are too sick to go on their honeymoon. The only catch is that she’ll have to share the honeymoon suite with her least favorite person—Ethan Thomas, the brother of the groom. To make matters worse, Olive’s new boss and Ethan’s ex-girlfriend show up in Hawaii, forcing them both to pretend to be newlyweds so they don’t blow their cover, as their all-inclusive vacation package is nontransferable and in her sister’s name. Plus, Ethan really wants to save face in front of his ex. The story is told almost exclusively from Olive’s point of view, filtering all communication through her cynical lens until Ethan can win her over (and finally have his say in the epilogue). To get to the happily-ever-after, Ethan doesn’t have to prove to Olive that he can be a better man, only that he was never the jerk she thought he was—for instance, when she thought he was judging her for eating cheese curds, maybe he was actually thinking of asking her out. Blending witty banter with healthy adult communication, the fake newlyweds have real chemistry as they talk it out over snorkeling trips, couples massages, and a few too many tropical drinks to get to the truth—that they’re crazy about each other.
Heartfelt and funny, this enemies-to-lovers romance shows that the best things in life are all-inclusive and nontransferable as well as free.Pub Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5011-2803-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2019
Not Woods’ best, but a smoothly written, beach-themed story with a happy ending helps forgive the weaknesses.
When Samantha, an established-yet-struggling actress, comes home to act as maid-of-honor in her sister’s wedding, the family unabashedly tries to pair her with the best man, Ethan, her teenage crush and now a local war hero.
Samantha is the oldest Castle, and while her two sisters found true love in quick succession, she’s in New York with a struggling acting career and no Mr. Right on the horizon. Coming home to Sand Castle Bay, N.C., for youngest sister Emily’s wedding, Samantha is continually thrown in the path of Ethan Cole, local football champion–turned–war hero. Samantha had a huge high school crush on Ethan but is surprised to learn he lost a leg in Afghanistan, and his then-fiancee abandoned him soon after. Spending time with him now, Samantha realizes what a wonderful man he is, but the association is tainted by the humiliating lengths her family is going to in order to get them together. And while Ethan is a great and honorable man, his post-war romantic experience has left him gun-shy and determined to avoid relationships. At a crossroads in her own life, Samantha has to decide whether she’s going to stay in Sand Castle Bay or go back to her sputtering career in New York—and what her hopes are with Ethan. The two navigate insecurities and misunderstandings as they fall in love and fight for their happily-ever-after. Woods' latest is slightly off-key. Great writing and deft characterization can’t save a thin romantic conflict, and the more Ethan clings to his “I’ve given up on love” position, the less heroic he becomes. Some secondary storylines offer similarly shrill undertones that denote a disturbing lack of communication, unrealistic expectations and waffling with annoying justification. Still, in the end, love conquers all in satisfying ways for everyone concerned, and this ties up a few loose ends for the trilogy.
Not Woods’ best, but a smoothly written, beach-themed story with a happy ending helps forgive the weaknesses.Pub Date: May 28, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7783-1446-2
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
Review Posted Online: April 28, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
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