B
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Novella, Romance
This RITA® Reader Challenge 2015 review was written by Laney Shupe. This story was nominated for the RITA® in the Romance Novella category.
The summary:
Free-spirited artist Harper McGee is happy to go wherever the wind takes her…until her flight pattern sends her back to Brentsville, New York for her beloved grandmother’s funeral. Harper’s grief turns to shock, however, when she discovers her grandmother has named her sole proprietor of her candy shop, Luscious. But she has no intention of being anchored to one place, and anyway, she doesn’t know the first thing about running a kitchen or a business. Selling Luscious is the only viable option— until the shop catches fire due to old wiring. Fixing the damage requires major work, and if Harper wants to put it on the market, she needs major help.
Thrill-seeking firefighter Aaron Fisher has never walked away from a challenge or a friend. So when a fellow firefighter is hurt on a call and can’t complete a side job for his contracting company, Aaron’s quick to jump in. He’s done plenty of fix ‘er ups for his buddy in the past, and despite his silver spoon upbringing and his no-holds-barred attitude, swinging a hammer suits Aaron just fine. That is, until he discovers the client is the same impetuous woman he forcibly dragged from the flames of Brentsville’s local candy shop.
The more time Harper and Aaron spend at Luscious, the hotter their attraction burns, daring them both to shed their tough outer layers to reveal the tender desires beneath. But when a buyer makes Harper the offer of a lifetime, she must choose between roots and wings. Can two people who live in the moment learn to see past the moment, or will Aaron and Harper always live their lives pushing the line?
Here is Laney Shupe's review:
This selection was nominated in the Romance Novella category; I don’t read many novellas, because I tend to prefer characters with deep questions that I can watch them struggle to answer throughout the book. Shorter novellas do not usually fulfill me in that regard. Now that I’ve shared that bias, here’s my review:
We are first introduced to Harper, a free-spirited artist who hates to sit still. While both of those adjectives would not be used to describe me, I could identify with Harper in her sadness at the loss of her grandmother, Izzy, and her hesitancy to take over Izzy’s candy shop either because of her fear of failure or fear of calling somewhere “home.”
The harder character for me was Aaron Fisher, the firefighter and construction worker from a wealthy family that was blazing his own path. I get that this was mainly Harper’s story, but I just wanted something more from Aaron. He was a little too perfect; a little too much pretty face without letting us into his head.
The first meeting between Harper and Aaron was a scorcher – literally. They met in the middle of a fire in the candy shop kitchen. They each form first impressions of the other: while he thinks she’s stupid for not leaving the burning building without her grandmother’s candy molds, she thinks he has a tight butt. Their initial bickering painted the picture of the type of headstrong individuals they each turned out to be.
As Harper and Aaron meet again to renovate the candy shop, their chemistry continues to develop – somewhat fresh and strong, but at other times contrived and cheesy. I liked when the author played off the food backdrop, such as when Aaron brought Harper cinnamon rolls and she prepared pecan clusters for his friend.
But some of the lines just didn’t match up with what I was getting from the story: “You’re going to get what you want. Just be sure you want what you’re going to get.” This line should’ve been full of sexual undertones but felt like it was more about the construction work and just didn’t seem to fit with the dialogue.
By the time they share their first kiss, you know Harper and Aaron are going to be a good pairing. Even though I may have wanted to know more about Aaron, I couldn’t argue with his feelings about Harper or the heat they generated together.
Which brings me to the important part of any romance tale – how was the sex? Damn good. The characters aren’t shy with each other and the author is not shy about sharing the details with the reader. This is far from erotica, and probably on the sweeter side as when he takes care of her needs before his own and she takes charge to repay the favor.
As the candy shop gets closer to completion, Aaron tries to convince Harper that she has a home in Brentsville and her grandmother Izzy left her the shop and the house for a reason. Harper has her own internal struggles – one of which is showing vulnerability which she eventually does with Aaron.
The tagline on the cover of the book seemed out of context for a while, even after finishing the book, but “the only boundary he can’t cross is her heart” made more sense as I understand Harper’s battle in this story was about letting people into her life after the only person she had, Izzy, is gone.
Ms. Kincaid is able to effectively tell her story within the shorter novella framework. It may not have hit 5 stars on all my measures of a good romance tale, but it was definitely worth the $1.99 paid to the Kindle store and the few hours it took me to read. Grade: B. Rating: R for descriptive sex scenes.
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