A feel-good romance about unexpected change, second chances, and seeing old relationships in new light.
A long-single young woman must battle her conscience when she develops romantic feelings for her sister’s hunky ex-husband.
Nyla, a dedicated nurse, daughter, and sister, has always been close to her family. She even stays friendly with her ex-brother-in-law, Leo, after he and her sister, Mandi, divorce. Nyla helps shuttle her nephew, Seth, between his parents’ homes, and she even stops by to check on Leo after he has dental surgery. Unfortunately, while doped up on painkillers, Leo confesses an enormous secret to her about Seth’s parentage. Nyla is a notoriously poor secret keeper, and when Leo sobers up, he begs her to protect Seth’s innocence by keeping mum about what she knows. Nyla finally agrees, but she and Leo keep running into each other at one family affair after another, and it grows increasingly difficult for Nyla to remain silent. As Leo tries to appeal to her conscience, Nyla realizes that she is developing feelings for him that are decidedly not sibling-y. They begin trading secretive looks and meeting in private to discuss strategy. Nyla finally realizes that the attraction is mutual, but she can’t imagine ever betraying her sister by pursuing a relationship with her ex-husband. Unfortunately, the longer she forces herself to stay away from Leo, the more she feels she is betraying herself instead. In close third-person narration, the perspective shifts between Nyla and Leo from chapter to chapter, allowing readers to taste the complicated thoughts swirling inside each character’s head. A larger portion of the story is dedicated to parsing family drama than is typical of Fenske, but it adds strength to a plot that would have otherwise felt flimsy. The close relationships among siblings, parents, and extended family are drawn in a manner that is both realistic and heartwarmingly enviable. With a healthy dose of slapstick humor and steamy sex scenes, the novel should satisfy most romance readers. While the plot points are largely predictable, the author renders them in such a way that the journey to the inevitable conclusion is still great fun.
A feel-good romance about unexpected change, second chances, and seeing old relationships in new light.Pub Date: Feb. 22, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-64937-030-3
Page Count: 364
Publisher: Entangled: Amara
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.
After being released from prison, a young woman tries to reconnect with her 5-year-old daughter despite having killed the girl’s father.
Kenna didn’t even know she was pregnant until after she was sent to prison for murdering her boyfriend, Scotty. When her baby girl, Diem, was born, she was forced to give custody to Scotty’s parents. Now that she’s been released, Kenna is intent on getting to know her daughter, but Scotty’s parents won’t give her a chance to tell them what really happened the night their son died. Instead, they file a restraining order preventing Kenna from so much as introducing herself to Diem. Handsome, self-assured Ledger, who was Scotty’s best friend, is another key adult in Diem’s life. He’s helping her grandparents raise her, and he too blames Kenna for Scotty’s death. Even so, there’s something about her that haunts him. Kenna feels the pull, too, and seems to be seeking Ledger out despite his judgmental behavior. As Ledger gets to know Kenna and acknowledges his attraction to her, he begins to wonder if maybe he and Scotty’s parents have judged her unfairly. Even so, Ledger is afraid that if he surrenders to his feelings, Scotty’s parents will kick him out of Diem’s life. As Kenna and Ledger continue to mourn for Scotty, they also grieve the future they cannot have with each other. Told alternatively from Kenna’s and Ledger’s perspectives, the story explores the myriad ways in which snap judgments based on partial information can derail people’s lives. Built on a foundation of death and grief, this story has an undercurrent of sadness. As usual, however, the author has created compelling characters who are magnetic and sympathetic enough to pull readers in. In addition to grief, the novel also deftly explores complex issues such as guilt, self-doubt, redemption, and forgiveness.
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.Pub Date: Jan. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5420-2560-7
Page Count: 335
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
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