Review: Hard to Fall by Marquita Valentine

Hard to Fall by Marquita Valentine

Series: Take the Fall #4

Genres: Contemporary Romance

Release Date: October 18, 2016

Format: Kindle

Source: NetGalley

Find it here: GoodReads | Amazon

Synopsis

As a hardworking, hard-partying firefighter, Hayden Walker values his career and his freedom. But as the eldest son of a U.S. senator, he agreed long ago to follow in his father’s footsteps and run for office, and that means settling down and marrying the picture-perfect wife. Hayden just isn’t ready for that sort of commitment . . . not with women like beautiful, curvy Saylor Dean—the naughty bridesmaid he recognizes the morning after his buddy’s wedding—tempting Hayden to stay single forever.

The unwanted love child of a well-known politician, Saylor has always felt isolated and alone, her only solace the animal shelter she runs in Forrestville. Then she meets Hayden at her best friend’s wedding. During their impulsive and unforgettable night together, Saylor feels desired like never before—only to wake up and find that Hayden doesn’t remember his drunken proposal, or their hasty marriage, or her. But when the truth comes out, Saylor finds it’s a lot harder to fall out of love than in love.

My Thoughts

In this fourth outing in the Take the Fall companion series, Hayden and Saylor take an unconventional path to happily ever after.

Firefighter Hayden Walker takes pride in his work and loves what he does. Among his friends he's known for his easy-going personality and his womanizing. Privately, he's feeling immense pressure from his father to leave a career he loves and instead enter the world of politics, something he has zero desire to do. With his father issuing an ultimatum, Hayden feels obligated to keep a promise he made to his father years ago.

Saylor is passionate about the animal shelter she owns. With a famous actress for a mother and a politico father she's never met, Saylor is happy to live a quiet life out of the spotlight. Her turn as a bridesmaid leads to a night with sexy groomsman Hayden. But she doesn't know what to do when a very hungover Hayden has no memory of their night together... or their quickie marriage. 

Hayden and Saylor are characters that were introduced in After We Fall, the third book in this companion series. I enjoyed both of them as secondary characters and was excited to see them get their own story here. 

Hayden was an alpha male without being an alpha jerk. I loved his openness with Saylor and his sense of duty to his father and family, even when it went against what he really wanted. I also loved that even though he made concessions with his father he did so with a sense of fairness and compromise and he was always willing to stand up for Saylor. 

As for Saylor, I enjoyed her quirkiness and that she didn't try to hide it or change who she was. She had a good head on her shoulders and while she didn't always make the best decisions, she was trying to do the right thing. Even though I appreciated Saylor's quirkiness, she had a way of technically answering questions without really answering and at times I grew frustrated with her. She was purposely evasive, although technically honest, and it often created unnecessary misunderstandings. 

I really enjoyed Hayden and Saylor's relationship and their willingness to see where things went and be open to the possibilities. Hayden, in particular, was so open to his developing feelings for Saylor and I loved the care and concern he had for her. It was easy to become invested in their story and see how they pulled together in tough situations. Despite a lightning fast, and unexplained, conclusion, I thoroughly enjoyed Hard to Fall and hope there's more to come in this series. 

3.5/5 Stars

Note: This title was provided to me in exchange for an honest review. This does not change my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

How do you feel when a conflict is resolved too quickly or without explanation?

Does it change how you feel about the story as a whole?