Head Over Heels by Jill Shalvis

Synopsis: Breaking rules and breaking hearts

Free-spirited Chloe lives life on the edge. Unlike her soon-to-be married sisters, she isn't ready to settle into a quiet life running their family's newly renovated inn. But soon her love of trouble--and trouble with love-draws the attention of the very stern, very sexy sheriff who'd like nothing better than to tame her wild ways.
Suddenly Chloe can't take a misstep without the sheriff hot on her heels. His rugged swagger and his enigmatic smile are enough to make a girl beg to be handcuffed. For the first time, instead of avoiding the law, Chloe dreams of surrender. Can this rebel find a way to keep the peace with the straitlaced sheriff? Or will Chloe's colorful past keep her from a love that lasts . . . and the safe haven she truly wants in a town called Lucky Harbor?

My Thoughts: After finishing book 2 in the Lucky Harbor series and absolutely loving it I might have gone into this book with too high of expectations because I found it a bit lacking.

What Worked: Sheriff Cutie was my kind of hero. Dark and brooding, his presence often spoke more than his mouth did. His by the rules no thrills lifestyle is nice compared to so many broody book boyfriends who have almost too much baggage. He did have some but I kind of blew it off as unimportant. Speaking of Sawyer I liked that a thug from his past (an old high school buddy if you can believe that) brought a sense of conflict that I thought was well played out.

The dynamics between the 3 sisters had nice conclusion in this 3rd book of the series. Growing up as strangers and being brought together for the common good (or their inheritance actually) made their interactions more and more important as the series progressed. It was nice to see them become friends but more importantly, actual sisters.

What Didn't Work: Chloe. Her character is a total free spirit which was fully blamed upon her dead mother's parenting skills (or lack thereof). This might explain why she was wanting to run away from any attachments within Lucky Harbor, whether it be with her sisters, Sawyer or the family business. However, her 'wildness' seemed over the top and the physical danger she put herself in seemed way too self destructive than her free spirit ways should have allowed. There is a balance between dancing to the beat of a different drum and thumbing your nose at fate. Her constant asthma concerns were prominent in every encounter we witnessed. She couldn't help paint without a mask because of the asthma. She couldn't sit by a bonfire because of the asthma. She couldn't have mind blowing sex because of the asthma (for real). Yet, she could go mountain climbing or hang gliding with no trouble? What? I would think the change in atmosphere might be a problem for someone with that severe of a problem. The asthma was never an issue on her adventures with her friend Lance. Weird. My other problem with Chloe is the only time I saw much emotion from her was when she was discussing Lance's disease and it's progression. Even during her "I Love You's" with Sawyer felt out of place and unbelievable.

In addition to Chloe's inconsistencies, the big showdown between the bad guys and Sheriff Sawyer was anti-climactic. It was wrapped up way too quickly and left me wondering if I missed a few pages.

In a Nutshell: Despite my feelings toward Chloe (I like her least out of all 3 sisters) I really enjoyed the book. Chloe and Sawyer had some excellent scenes together that were just plain fun (their drunken painting project comes to mind.) The growing Bed & Breakfast business is a joy to watch if you've read the books in order and have seen them overcome their huge obstacles. I would recommend not only this book but the entire Lucky Harbor series to romance readers. Jill Shalvis has a wonderful way of combining excellent characters, stunning scenery, laugh out loud humor and sizzling hot passion. It's a winner of a series!

At Last by Jill Shalvis

Synopsis: HER LOVE HAS COME ALONG... — Amy Michaels loves her new life in Lucky Harbor.  A waitress in the local diner, she's looking forward to her first weekend hike through the mountains.  But when a wrong turn takes her off the trail, she finds herself up close and personal with forest ranger Matt Bowers.  And even though she's tempted to kiss that sexy smile right off his face, she won't make the mistake of getting involved with the town heartthrob.

A former cop whose life went south, Matt doesn't let anyone get too close.  But something about the feisty beauty caught his eye the moment he first saw her in the diner.  After a hot night under a starry sky, Matt can't deny their attraction -- or the fact that for the first time in a long time, he feels the stirrings of something more.  Now it's up to Matt to help Amy see that, no matter what is in their past, together they can build a future in Lucky Harbor.

My Thoughts: I've been struggling over the last couple days to put into words what I felt about this book. Honestly it isn't a favorite but it was more enjoyable then an average book. Amy is vulerable yet stubbornly independent. She's struggling to create a life for herself and become something better than who she was in her past. Matt is fascinated with her.

What I Liked: Their attraction. It's really what brings them together, (that and our heroine being lost in the middle of the woods needing a hunka-hunka DNR officer to rescue her) so, anyway, I was not surprised that the love scenes were sizzling. I was surprised that I enjoyed reading them as much as I did. I'm a habitual skipper of the noisy moisture sharing parts in my romance books but didn't skip even one word of the hot lovin' that Ms Shalvis created. I think this attests to her skill in writing these scenes and that she doesn't throw them in to meet some hot monkey sex quota.

The secondary characters were equally fascinating. I am looking forward to the hunky doctor's story and to see where the young homeless person's storyline goes. I'm hoping that we see more of her anyway and she gets a happily ever after someday.

The secondary storyline of Amy's grandmother and her journey to the mountains near Lucky Harbor was also very well done. We learn about it through Amy who is trying to follow the journey made so many decades ago in hopes of finding herself. This storyline gave us insight into Amy.

What I Didn't Like (or rather what I thought could have been a tad better): There was yet another storyline within the book that could have been fleshed out more. We see a group of juvenile delinquents wrecking havoc on Matt and his job but after having read another book with a similar secondary storyline I couldn't help compare them. Which honestly, isn't that fair to Jill to compare her to Nora Roberts but as I just finished reading the Roberts' book I just can't help it. Nora just did it better. I think this secondary storyline was important to the characterization of Matt as it showed his morals, values and his ability to stand against evil (or one snot nosed special brownie eating punk teenager). Because it was important I would have liked to have seen more of it.

Overall a good read that I'm glad I had the opportunity to read. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series (Forever and A Day). Jill Shalvis is quickly becoming my go to author for fun contemporary romances.

 

Storm Watch by Jill Shalvis

Synopsis:
Uniformly Hot!: The Few.  The Proud.  The Sexy as Hell.
— SUBJECT:  Jason Mauer, National Guard.
— CURRENT STATUS:  Homeward bound.
— MISSION:  Getting some R & R!
— OBSTACLE:  Lizzy Mann.  Sexy blast from the past.
— After battling a hurricane of catastrophic proportions, Jason needs some downtime -- badly.  But there's no rest for the heroic.  During another deluge, Jason's savior skills are suddenly in demand... by his hot friend Lizzy.
She's fiercely independent.  But that doesn't keep them from having incredible sex as they, ah, ride out the storm!
Jason knows relationships and duty don't mix.  Still, he feels as if he's being swept away by a flash flood of desire for Lizzy.

The permanent kind....

My Thoughts: I haven't read many Harlequin Blaze books. I actually don't seek out super steamy books because I prefer the romance aspect of the books over the sex. I thought though that since I really have enjoyed Jill Shalvis's other books I have read I thought I would give this one a try and was rather disappointed. 


What I liked....As far as characters go I actually did like both Jason and Lizzy (even though her name annoyed me just a bit). He was a hot military man and she was a smart nurse. 

I also really enjoyed the pace of the book. Lizzy and Jason have to get through town to check on Lizzy's pregnant sister but the area her sister lives has been evacuated because of horrible flooding. Their adventure in getting to their destination was nail biting on the edge of your seat fun.


I loved how Shalvis set her storyline up too. Lizzy and Jason had been in high school together (but not a couple). Sometimes authors who use the reunited type storyline don't pull it off so well and the reader is left feeling that there should have been a prequel book somewhere that they missed. This book definitely did not have that problem.


What I really didn't like....The fact that their lives are in danger while navigating rivers where streets used to be the characters found a lot of time to make out. Jason would get out of the Jeep to move a large branch blocking their way and when he got back into the vehicle they would make out. A little further down the road after almost having an accident they take a breather and make out. Lizzy is scared for her younger sister and to comfort her they make out. Ok that last one might not have happened but you get the idea. Jason is in the National Guard just off a search and rescue mission where flooding was happening. With that in mind why would a seasoned expert spend so much time making out when he knew that time is of the utmost urgency and getting to their destination was priority? I just could not suspend my disbelief enough to accept his actions. I kind of felt as if the only reason all the making out was including was so the hot monkey sex that happened once they were safe didn't come out of nowhere.

I also didn't care for the secondary storyline involving Lizzy's sister. In order to make her interest in her mystery man hero believable I think more time should have been invested (perhaps their own book) and after only 12 hours or so they are suddenly a couple of sorts. 


Overall I would say that this was an average read and I kind of expect just a bit more from Shalvis. Not a horrible book but definitely not one of her better ones. If you are new to Jill I would totally recommend Simply Irresistible.