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One Reckless Summer is the first in a series set in Destiny, a fictional small town in Ohio. It’s a lovely combination of sexy, fun, and heartbreak, and I look forward to checking out more books by this author.
Jenny Tolliver has always been a good girl. She’s never broken the rules, she’s always tried to please everybody, and she waited until she fell in love to lose her virginity. She married that first love, and gave up her dream of becoming an astronomer because he thought she should be a middle school teacher. She was reasonably content until her husband cheated on her — because, he says, she’s too good/sweet/nice to be wild and passionate with. Distraught, Jenny returns home to small-town Destiny, Ohio for a summer of relaxation and stargazing.
One night Jenny heads to the other side of the lake to go stargazing on the hill. There she runs into Mick Brody, all grown up. Mick had always been the bad boy from the wrong side of the lake, never fitting in with the good citizens of Destiny, but Jenny had secretly been both attracted to and a little afraid of Mick. But Jenny’s not a teenager anymore, and she’s tired of being the good girl and always pleasing everybody. When Mick tells her to get off his property she argues with him, and their attraction to each other leaps to life. They end up having sex, and then argue again when Mick tells her to leave and insists that she not tell anyone that she’s seen him. Mick is definitely hiding a big secret out at that old family cabin, and Jenny is curious as hell and not a little worried.
To say that Mick and Jenny’s relationship gets off to a rocky start is an understatement, but neither of them is able to ignore their powerful attraction. They embark on an intense sexual affair, with neither of them really trusting the other. The more time they spend together though, and the more secrets they share, the closer their bond becomes.
One Reckless Summer is at turns funny, sexy, and tear-jerking. Jenny and Mick’s chemistry is flammable and the sex scenes hot, but what is even better is how much I felt their growing bond. Mick and Jenny find in each other something that they are each desperately in need of. They complement each other well, and their love is the balm to soothe past hurts.
If the first half of the book had been as solid as the second half, this would have been a DIK for me. Some of it was annoyance over Jenny’s emotional flip-flopping (which, thankfully, doesn’t last too long), but mostly I just wasn’t feeling the level of connection in the beginning that I felt the rest of the book. Don’t get me wrong — the first half is enjoyable and fun, but it was only a B for me. The second half though, rated an A- as I found myself completely engaged with the story and the characters.
I really had fun reading this book, and I’m excited about the next one in the series. One Reckless Summer has only vague hints about one future pairing, but introduces a few possible lead characters, so it’ll be interesting to see who stars next. If the rest of the series is as good as this one, I’ll have some great reads to look forward to.
Buy it at Amazon/iBooks/Barnes and Noble/Kobo
Grade: B+
Book Type: Contemporary Romance
Sensuality: Hot
Review Date: 29/05/09
Publication Date: 2009/06
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Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.