Kim’s Review of Desire After Dark (The McCarthys of Gansett Island #15) by Marie Force

Several years ago I was scavenging on the Barnes & Noble website for a new nook book to read. I stumbled upon Maid for Love by Marie Force and was transported to a tiny New England island called Gansett Island, which was modeled after Block Island.  I read Maid for Love in a night, downloaded the next books available in the series (6), and proceeded to read them all over the next two days. Since Maid for Love I’ve downloaded each new book on its release day and completely devoured it. Yesterday, Force released the 15th book in the series (!!!) Desire after Dark.  All I can say is, what a wonderful return to Gansett Island! Every new book in the series feels like a homecoming. Each book and each love story given to us is another glimpse into the lives of our Gansett family, because that’s what this group of characters has become, family. We’ve been with them as they’ve found love, started families, dealt with miscarriages, abusive parents, new career paths, divorces, and grief. Just when you think you’ve experienced everything possible with them, Force surprises us and gives us something new to love.

Plot from Goodreads:

Tobias “Slim” Jackson has the perfect life as a pilot on Gansett Island in the summer and in Florida in the winter. He’s happiest when he’s in the air, or at least that was the case before last summer when he met Erin Barton, Gansett Island’s newest lighthouse keeper. Now he can’t seem to find his usual enthusiasm for flying, winter in the sunny South or anything that doesn’t include her.

Erin has been stuck on pause since she lost her twin brother. She’ll tell you herself that her life has been a hot mess since Toby died. After dropping out of law school, she’s flitted from one pointless job to another, existing rather than truly living. Then she comes to Gansett Island to take over as the new lighthouse keeper and meets Slim, who happens to share her beloved brother’s first name. That small coincidence is enough to convince Erin that she needs to spend more time with the dashing pilot—except for the fact that he’s spending the winter more than a thousand miles from her.

Now Slim’s come home to Gansett for the holidays and to hopefully pick up where he left off with Erin. He’s got twelve days before he’s due back in Florida to finish out the remainder of his winter obligations. A lot can happen in twelve days, but will it be enough to convince Erin that it’s time to start truly living again? Read Slim and Erin’s story and catch up with the rest of the Gansett Island cast in Desire After Dark!

If you’re new to the Gansett Island series, I highly recommend starting with Maid for Love and working your way through the series and ending with this fantastic latest installment. I know that 15 books may seem daunting, but trust me, it’s worth the wait. Each book acts as an additional chapter to the overall story of the island and its inhabitants, and you get the opportunity to revisit couples from previous books as time passes. Force does a wonderful job immersing the reader in the story, and before you know it the books fly by. This new work is no exception.

Erin and Slim’s story is yet another wonderful chapter to the Gansett series. When I first learned about Jenny (the heroine of Meant for Love) and Erin’s past and the substantial amount of grief that existed in their lives I wanted so badly for them to find their happy-ever-afters. They are such beautifully strong women, and the men who love them treat them like the queens they are. They are showered with so much love and desire that they can’t help but fight against it for fear from their past losses. Thankfully Slim and Alex fight through their grief and prove to them how wonderful love can be.

Not only was Erin and Slim’s story a pure joy to read, I was SO excited to get more of Owen & Laura, Grace & Evan, and David & Daisy. Force is a master at giving you JUST enough of the other couples and rotating the focus of each new book so as to never feel like you’re missing out on anything important in their lives. Sweet, romantic, and fun, this is the perfect read to get you in the mood for summer!

4 out of 5 Stars

Special thanks to Ms. Force for my review copy!

Desire After Dark by Marie Force
HTJB, Inc (2016)
eBook: 280 pages
ISBN: 2940157747572

2015 – A Year in Review

Friends. I know it’s the end of February and that means I’m oh…almost two months late in posting my 2015 Year in Review blog entry. But better late than never right? Is there ever really a time when it’s too late to share book recommendations? (Answer: There is never a bad time to share book recommendations)

SO. 2015. I completed my goal of reading 140 books. In actuality I read 182 over the course of the year.

Now for the hard part of the post: my top ten reads of 2015!

1. Before We Were Strangers by Renee Carlino
2. Bringing Home the Bad Boy by Jessica Lemmon
3. When a Scot Ties the Knot by Tessa Dare
4. The Billionaire Takes a Bride by Jessica Clare
5. The Cut & Run series by Abigail Roux
   •  Cut & Run
   • Sticks & Stones
   • Fish & Chips
   • Divide & Conquer
   • Armed & Dangerous
   • Stars & Stripes
   • Touch & Geaux
   • Ball & Chain
   • Crash & Burn
6. Splintered Trilogy by A.G. Howard
   • Splintered
   • Unhinged
   • Ensnared
7. The Tairen Soul series by C.L. Wilson
   • Lord of the Fading LAnds
   • Lady of Light and Shadow
   • King of Sword and Sky
   • Queen of Song and Souls
   • Crown of Crystal Flame
8. Enslaved by Virginia Henley
9. An Offer From a Gentleman by Julia Quinn
10. The Boleyn Trilogy by Laura Andersen
    • The Boleyn King
    • The Boleyn Deceit
    • The Boleyn Reckoning

And because 10 is just not enough, here are some more of my favorite reads of 2015, in no particular order:

• Pride, Prejudice, & Secrets by C.P. Odom
• Bound by Flames by Jeaniene Frost
• The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn
• Wishing for a Highlander by Jessi Gage
• Serving Pleasure by Alisha Rai
• Act Like It by Lucy Parker
• It’s Only Love by Marie Force

2015 was a romance heavy reading year for me (whatever haters, I love love.) I’m trying to diversify myself a bit more in 2016. So far, so good. What did you read in 2015? Give me some of your recommendations!

New Year; New Challenges, Episode V

So here we are near the end of January and I’m only just now getting around to posting my annual “New Year; New Challenges” post. I received a promotion at work right around Thanksgiving and have been trying to deal with the change to my schedule. Having a job with irregular hours can sometimes throw off my schedule outside of work. I’m trying to find my balance between work, life, and blogging, and I appreciate you all sticking with the blog as I figure it out.

With all of that being said, here is my goal for 2015: 140 books. Since I successfully completed reading 100 books in 2014, 10 more books gets added to my goal. (2011 = 100 books, 2012 = 110 books, 2013 = 120 books, 2014 = 130 books, etc) As per years past, you can keep track of my reading progress and what books I’ve read here.

In no particular order, here are some of the books releasing in 2015 that I’m looking forward to reading!

1. Fairest by Marissa Meyer
2. Bound by Flames by Jeaniene Frost
3. Picnic in Provence by Elizabeth Bard
4. And I Love Her by Marie Force
5. The Heir by Kiera Cass
6. Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan
7. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (This is an exclusive collector’s edition!)
8. The Seven  Sisters by Lucinda Riley
9. When A Scot Ties the Knot by Tessa Dare
10. Murder at Beechwood by Alyssa Maxwell
11. Dearest Rogue by Elizabeth Hoyt
12. Tiny Little Things by Beatriz Williams
13. One Night with a Billionaire by Jessica Clare
14. Lady Maybe by Julie Klassen
15. A Worthy Pursuit by Karen Witemeyer

Well readers, what are your reading goals for 2015? What titles are you excited to read?

Series Spotlight: The Fatal Series by Marie Force

I’ve long been wanting to start a new feature on the blog which spotlights book series that I’ve found and truly enjoyed.  A lot of times I get hooked on a series, find that it’s been out for a while, then binge myself on 5 or 6 books in a row, finding myself totally entranced by the series and author. One such occurrence happened when I found the Fatal series by Marie Force.  Currently 6 books and a novella, the Fatal series is a hybrid of the crime and romance genres.

The Fatal series follows Sam Holland, a police detective for the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington D.C., as well as Nick Cappuano, a chief-of-staff turned Senator.  The two had a memorable one-night stand a few years prior, but they are now brought back into each other’s lives as Nick’s boss, Senator O’Connor, has been murdered.  As the head of the murder investigation, Sam becomes a constant part of Nick’s life again, much to his surprise.  After their one-night stand Nick tried contacting Sam over and over in the hopes of beginning a relationship with her.  Circumstances neither of them could have known about kept them apart, and this reintroduction has begun to rekindle the feelings both have never been able to truly suppress over the years.

So, why do I love this series? First and foremost, the characters.  Nick is AWESOME.  He’s not threatened by Sam’s powerful career or her need for control.  Nor is he perturbed by the thick armor she wears to deal with the world.  Instead, he pushes her to think in new ways, express her emotions, and allow herself to need those around her.  His love, support, and encouragement help her shed the tremendous amount of stress, guilt, and pressure she’s carried around.  Sam’s an incredible character (AND woman) in her own right.  She’s strong, resilient, intelligent, and powerful.  The two together are awe-inspiring.  They can achieve anything together, as their love truly makes them better, stronger people.

I’m glad that Force chose to have Nick and Sam’s love story spill out over multiple books instead of having everything happen in one.  It makes their relationship and subsequent marriage more believable and realistic.  It also allows their development as a couple, individuals, and professionals  to grow leaps and bounds.

So, what else is so special about this series besides the characters? The non-stop action, for one thing.  Also, the intriguing mysteries!  While Sam and Nick’s love story is the heart of this series, it’s not the main plotline in each book.  The mysteries that Force comes up with are super fascinating, and they take up a good portion of each book, filling out the romantic portions nicely.  It’s obvious she’s a talented writer the more you read of the Fatal series.  Each book will have you guessing from start to finish.

In order (with my ratings) the series is:

1. Fatal Affair – 5 out of 5 Stars
2. Fatal Justice – 4 out of 5 Stars
3. Fatal Consequences – 4 out of 5 Stars
   1. Fatal Destiny (novella) – 5 out of 5 Stars
4. Fatal Flaw – 3 out of 5 Stars
5. Fatal Deception – 5 out of 5 Stars
6. Fatal Mistake – 3 out of 5 Stars

If you’re looking for something new to read that is truly out of the box (I mean come on, murder and romance!?) I suggest giving this series a shot.

What Are You Reading This July?

It’s July!  That means vacation time, BBQ time, beach time, or what I like to call “reading time!”  July has a lot of book releases I’m excited about, so instead of telling you what I’m currently reading, I’m sharing what new releases I’ll be planning on reading.  What’s the book I’m looking forward to reading most?  Beauty and the Billionaire by Jessica Clare.  It is the second book in Clare’s Billionaire Boys Club series and it’s a Beauty and the Beast type story (I’m a HUGE lover of BatB tales. LOVE.)  My review on book one in the series, Stranded with a Billionaire, can be found here (Look for my review on book two sometime in the next two weeks.)  I’m also excited about the fourth book in Jennifer Probst’s Married to a Billionaire series, The Marriage Merger, set for release July 23rd (can you tell I have a thing for the billionaire romance trope?)  Also releasing on the 23rd is the next book in Marie Force’s Gansett Island series, Time for Love.  The conclusion to Tiffany Reisz’s Original Sinners series, The Mistress, is slated to be released on July 30 and wow, it packs a punch.  I was fortunate enough to read an advanced copy and hot damn, it was so good.  I’m duel reviewing the book with reading bestie Kelly towards the end of the month.

Ok readers – your turn.  Share what you’re reading and what you’re excited to read this month in the comments section below!

Living With a Book Addict: Being a Genre Snob

From Reddit

Hello there Reflections fans.  It’s been a little while since I’ve graced the pages of this blog with a Living With a Book Addict series post, so I figured I’d remedy that today.  The subject of my post is genre, and although this is a wide-ranging topic that could encompass genre analysis, genre stereotypes, or any other form of analysis, I shall limit myself to the act of being a genre snob, and what it has done to my reading habits.  I will define said snobbery shortly.

First, the inspiration for this post must go to Reddit.  I spend a good amount of time on Reddit, much to Kimberly’s chagrin, but when the top post today encompassed books (here it is), neither of us could argue the fact that our two favorite pastimes had collided.  I think that this particular bookstore’s idea in covering their books with brown paper and only giving clues to the genre and plot of the book is clever.  It prevents cover stereotyping, and to a lesser extent genre stereotyping.  For example, if you happened to have a particular bias against historical fiction, but noticed the words “manhunt”, “assassination attempt”, and “President”, you could very well be picking up a current Tom Clancy thriller as a historical fiction book about Lincoln’s assassination.  The point is, both contain similar elements of suspense, action, and stately Presidents, but the latter just happens to be set in the past, hence historical fiction.  What someone would originally dismiss purely based on genre alone could actually be quite similar to a book that he or she actually likes.  It’s expanding the old adage of judging a book based on its cover and expanding it to cover a wider meaning.  Because genres aren’t explicitly spelled out, often it’s harder to realize that genre stereotyping is happening, although often one does so based on a perceived opinion about a particular genre.

As far as my own personal involvement with genre stereotyping (or snobbery, as it may be) goes, I have to admit that I always stuck up my nose at the romance genre.  I thought that no matter how you dressed it up, you would eventually get to the sappy and syrupy core of a boring romance between two individuals which would make me bored out of my mind and ready to throw the book out.  In fact just the other day, however, Kim was describing a new crime-based series to me authored by Marie Force (the Fatal Series).  I seemed quite interested in the books, until she reminded me that Force was primarily a romance writer.  My thoughts immediately soured, although I thought back to my original interest in the series.  I was being just as shallow as those who don’t read a book based on a cheesy cover.  I should give it a try.  I will give it a try.  And thus begins my start as a recovering genre snob.

The June Roundup

June, June, June.  It is unarguably the busiest month of my year, every year.  Amidst a plethora of special events I somehow managed to  finish 25 books last month, bringing me two short of my year-long goal of reading 120 books.  I think I got so much reading done because of all the traveling we did!

Beatriz Williams with Jess and I

We started the month off with a trip to my favorite bookstore (all together now….R.J. Julia!) to see the incandescent Beatriz Williams, author of Overseas and A Hundred Summers.   What a pleasant presentation we were treated to! Williams’ newest book, A Hundred Summers, takes place in Rhode Island during the Great New England Hurricane of 1938.  Seeing the before and after photos of the destruction caused by the storm was truly astounding.  Knowing how powerful Hurricane Sandy was this past fall, I was amazed that I could still be shocked at the extent of the damage attributed to water and wind.  Williams has some of the photos of the storm she shared with us posted on her website here.  I highly recommend checking them out.

My delicious grilled artichoke and crème fraîche dipping sauce

Next up on the docket was a trip into NYC with my good friend Jen to see fellow staff blogger Adam!  Our adventure into the city took us to Eataly, where I promptly died from food pleasure.  Seriously, if you haven’t heard of Eataly please click the link above.  It’s an Italian foodie’s heaven.  After eating a ton of food we went for a walk through the city and wound up down on the High Line, a mile long park that was the site of the old New York Central Railroad that delivered goods to factories on the west side of NYC.  There were great views of the Hudson, as well as food vendors and plenty of benches to sit and take in the scenery.  We also threw in a trip to the Strand (my 2nd most favorite bookstore ever) where I picked up the entire Matched trilogy by Ally Condie.  (Staffer Sam’s review of the first book in the trilogy, Matched, sold me and I’ve been anxious to begin it ever since.)  Todd was also excited that we finally bought the second book in Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park series.

Todd and I on the bus for the wedding!

The next few weeks of the month flew by with a wedding for our good friends Greg and Ashley (CONGRATS GUYS!), our five-year college graduation, and our long-awaited Relay for Life event.  The wedding in Massachusetts was a ton of fun.  The bride’s aunt has a huge piece of property that they tented for the wedding.  Instead of a bar there was a boat filled with ice and drinks (SO awesome). They had all sorts of lawn games which created some great competition between the guests.  Not only was it a beautiful wedding, but it was so much fun seeing friends that we don’t see so often.  The wedding was a mini-reunion in itself and only increased my excitement for our college reunion the weekend following.

Unfortunately the time we were able to spend at reunion got cut short when our bathroom ceiling became a waterfall.  Apparently the tub in the apartment above us had a clogged pipe, as well as a rusted connection somewhere that led to our bathroom becoming a tropical rain forest.  5+ hours after the plumber arrived and figured out where the leak was coming from, we were left with a massive hole in our ceiling.  Needing to leave the hole open to make sure the leak was completely taken care, we were left with a cardboard covering across our ceiling.  Over the next two weeks the hole was patched, sanded, and repainted.  In the five years we’ve been in our building this is the first major problem we’ve ever had, so I can’t say I’m really upset about it.  Our maintenance staff was great and left me with nothing to do!

Todd making liquid nitrogen ice cream!

The last weekend of the month held the event that I look forward to all year-long, Relay for Life.  I wrote a fairly extensive post about Relay last year and why the event means so much to me.  This year, the event meant more than ever.  My aunt, who was diagnosed with Leukemia in 2005, began receiving chemotherapy treatments this May.  I hope for a cure for cancer every year, but this year that hope for a cure is larger than ever.  The event as a total raised over $104,000 so far.  With our fiscal year closing August 31st we still have almost two more months to raise money.  I personally was able to raise just under $2,200 this year!  My team raised just under $3,300.  I couldn’t be happier with the efforts put forth by my team and the teams that make up the rest of the relay.  Todd got in on the day-of event fun this year and made liquid nitrogen ice cream for the kids.  To put it simply liquid nitrogen instantly freezes anything it touches.  So basically you mix cream, half & half, sugar, and chocolate syrup together, add in the liquid nitrogen, and viola! you have ice cream!  The event went over really well and it helped cool the kids down on a super hot day.

On the bookish front I mentioned before that I finished 25 books.  That consisted of books from the following genres: crime, romance, new adult, historical fiction, young adult, erotica, and paranormal.  I really ran the gauntlet last month.  My top read of the month was definitely Making it Last by Ruthie Knox.  I’ve been looking forward to this book since it was announced.  When it popped up on Netgalley (as available to request) I did a massive SQUEEEEEEE and promptly requested it.  The wait for approval consisted of some of the darkest days of my life (this is of course an extreme over-exaggeration, but you get what I’m saying.)  I also discovered two series this month that while not new, are new to me.  Of course, I became obsessed and read all the books in both.  The first is Lydia Dare’s Regency Vampyre Trilogy and the second series is Marie Force’s Fatal series. Damn friends, I was HOOKED.  I’m going to start a “series spotlight” that will discuss all the new series I’ve been finding lately, and eventually I hope to get you guys as into them as I am.

Until next month…..happy reading!

The February Roundup!

February proved to be a month for catching up.  When January ended I was two books behind the pace I needed to meet my goal of 120 books for the year.  As of the end of February, I’m completely back on pace! Woo-hoo!! (I read 12 books in February, bringing my total to 19 for the year.)  Two things directly contributed to my ability to get back on pace:  1.) An INTENSE blizzard that wound up dumping 40″ of snow onto my town, making it the hardest hit in the tri-state area. 2.) The weeks I spent sick with a sinus infection and possible case of bronchitis.  Together, these two things equated out to a ton of time spent in the house and reading.

The blizzard was one of the most insane things I’ve ever witnessed.  Todd’s car (a VW Passat) was completely covered in snow, so much so that we couldn’t even see it! It was super difficult to dig out.  Regular plow trucks were no match for the record-breaking amount of snow we had and kept blowing transmissions due to the weight and amount of snow they had to push.  Commercial construction trucks and the National Guard had to come in and help plow streets enough for emergency vehicles to pass through.  Plows couldn’t get to the apartment building that Todd and I live in for almost three days.  Thankfully we didn’t lose power and had enough heat, books, and snacks to keep us occupied.  It’s been almost three weeks since the storm hit and we still have MOUNDS of snow everywhere. We’ll be lucky if it’s melted by April.

On the book front, February was a month filled with releases I was eagerly awaiting.  I was able to read the final book in Lauren DeStefano’s Chemical Garden trilogy, Sever, as well as Sarah MacLean’s newest addition to her Scoundrel’s series, One Good Earl Deserves a Lover.  Add to these Marie Force’s newest Gansett Island book, Waiting For Love, Rachel Van Dyken’s The Wolf’s Pursuit,  Nancy Kelley’s Loving Miss Darcy, and Maya Banks’ Rush, and you can tell I did a lot of “new” reading.

Speaking of “new” reading… if you remember, last month I did a joint review of Beth Revis’ final book in the Across the Universe trilogy, Shades of Earth, with Sam.  Well, I found out that Beth was coming to Connecticut (WAHOO) with something called the “Breathless Reads” tour.  Penguin (her publisher) organized the tour for her and several other YA authors to come out to indie bookstores all across the US and speak about their books.  Luckily the bookstore that they came to in CT was R.J. Julia (my favorite)!  Todd and I jumped at the chance to attend and man are we happy we did.  Not only were we able to see Beth (and get our books signed), but we were able to listen to four other YA authors (Fiona Paul, Morgan Rhodes, Elizabeth Richards, and Jessica Spotswood) and get introduced to some new books we’re excited to tell you about.  Todd wrote more about the event here, as it was the first one he’d attended where he knew one of the authors.

Looking forward to March, I have lots of books to read (I’m asking myself why I’m even writing that sentence as it’s the story of my life each month.)  I’m hoping to get caught up on reviews over the next two weeks.  I have some GREAT reads to tell you about that you’ll hopefully find as interesting as I did!  Todd’s reading Targets of Revenge by Jeffrey S. Stephens, Adam’s reading Game of the Gods by E.J. Dabel, Sam’s reading Three Graves Full by Jamie Mason, and Christine’s reading A Natural History of Dragons: A Memoir by Lady Trent by Marie Brennan.  So, lots of new and unique stuff coming at you from across the genre spectrum.

Until next time….happy reading!

#47 A Review of Ready For Love (McCarthy’s of Gansett Island #3) by Marie Force

Marie Force is quickly becoming a force (haha) to be reckoned with in the world of indie self publishing.  If you follow her Facebook and Twitter accounts not only will you find one incredibly hard-working individual, but one earning awards left and right for her many works.  I count myself among the lucky to have found her works when doing my weekly scavenge for nook books.  I came across the first book in this series, Maid For Love, and upon finishing it found myself quickly reading all five that are currently published. I felt like I was reading as fast as this man speaks.

Now that our heads are spinning…

In her third installment of the McCarthy’s of Gansett Island series, Ready for Love, Marie Force tells the story of Luke Harris.  Born and raised on the island, Luke had a summer romance with Sydney Donovan, whose wealthy parents had a summer home on the island.  When the summer ended and Sydney was destined for college, the romance ended, as is most often the case.  Fast forward many years later: Luke still lives and works on the island, and Sydney is happily married to another man with two beautiful children.  However, all of this changes when a terrible accident claims the life of Sydney’s husband and children.  Seeking an escape from this terrible loss, Sydney comes back to Gansett Island 15 months later, only to find that Luke is still there and his love for her is as strong as the day they parted so many years ago.  Will they rekindle their love or will Sydney’s pain be so great that she cannot love anyone any more?

I’m writing this review having finished the first five books of the series.  Having read them all I can honestly say that Ready for Love is my second favorite. (Book one, Maid For Love, is the only one beating it!)  Force has an extraordinary ability to create characters that are relatable, charismatic, and have great personalities, which in turn makes readers WANT to care about them.  Her books are filled with a collection of characters that become like a second family the further you get in the series.  For any author to achieve this is a great feat in and of itself, but Force continually does it book after book.  It’s one of the main reasons I keep reading all the books in this series.  I want to meet more of the Gansett Island folks!  Knowing that there are several more books expected for this series makes me SQUEE with joy.

Additionally, another great thing about Force’s writing is that her plots aren’t unrealistic.  In my opinion, Ready For Love’s main theme is that true love waits.  Luke has truly been in love with Sydney since they were teenagers.  They definitely weren’t ready for “the rest of our lives” when they were 17, but the trials that life has put them through in the years since their last meeting have turned them into the people they are today, the people they need to be for their love to last.  Sydney’s plight, albeit a sad one in that she lost her husband and children, teaches her that her life can be redeemed from the depression she’s been beholden to with Luke’s effervescent personality, charm, and sheer confidence in the strength of their love.  It was a touching story from start to finish.  If this is the first review you’re reading for the Gansett Island series, then click back for my reviews of book one and two and give this series a try.

5 out of 5 Stars

Ready for Love by Marie Force
HTJB, Inc (2011)
eBook: 642 Pages
ISBN: 2940012807687

#32 A Review of Fool For Love by Marie Force

After devouring Maid For Love, book one in Marie Force’s McCarthy’s of Gansett Island series, I knew I had to continue reading about the lives of the Gansett Island folk.  I couldn’t get enough of Force’s fun and witty writing style, so I knew I was definitely in for a treat when I cracked open Fool for Love, the second in the series.

This time, Joe (Mac’s best friend from Maid for Love) is the main interest.  Seeing Mac happy and in love makes Joe’s heart-break, as he is the unfortunate victim of unrequited love.  The object of his desire is Janey, Mac’s younger sister, who is engaged to a medical student living in Boston.  All that changes, however, when Janey finds her fiance in bed with another woman after she travels up to surprise him.  Furious and hurt, she leaves in a hurry only to have her car break down.  She calls the one person she knows will help her: Joe.  She’s always viewed Joe as a “fifth brother” whom she could confide anything in and turn to when times got tough.  Joe jumps at the chance to help Janey, but he is wary of her recent break up, and feels even more pressure when Janey decides to stay at Joe’s to recuperate before she travels back to Gansett Island to tell her family of her break up.  Will Joe be able to handle having Janey, who he’s always admired from afar, so close to him (and single) for the first time?  Will Janey begin to view Joe as more than just a friend?  What will Mac have to say about all of this?

I would normally have thought that the plot of this book was ridiculous, where a girl who has been in a relationship for 15+ years finds out that her boyfriend has been cheating on her, jumps into another man’s arms, and begins a relationship with him in the same night that she discovers the infidelity!  In reality I think that you would need more time in order to get over the shock of this event.  However, Force somehow makes all of this work, and even makes it believable to boot.  Joe’s ability to start this relationship with Janey is never in question, he’s pined over her for ages.  And while at first hesitant and scared of becoming a rebound, he eventually realizes that he may never be able to get another chance to show Janey that he’s the one for her.  Janey, on the other hand, is at first confused and conflicted in her feelings for Joe and what her impetuous behavior says about the relationship she had with David for the past 15 years.  When all of those feelings and emotions the two are feeling come together it is volatile, giving the reader a great story to follow along with.

The way in which Force incorporates the characters from her first work in this series into the plot of this work creates a very close-knit and believable community that ties the works together.  As we read more about the lives of those on Gansett Island, we get a better picture of the goings on in the community as a whole, effectively making the island its own character.  I can’t wait to see what else Force has in store for this series, and I know that once I get to know even more characters from this island I’ll fall in love all over again.

4 out of 5 Stars

Fool For Love by Marie Force
Marie Force (2011)
eBook: 632 pages
ISBN:  2940012576842