Short Take Reviews: The Awakening, Love at First, Undeniable

 

THE AWAKENING - Nora Roberts

4 stars

Breen was living a truly unfulfilling life and, after the discovery of money set aside for her by her long-lost father, traveled to his home in Ireland for the summer. That set into motion events that would lead her into another world and a destiny she could never have imagined. Discovering a portal that transported her to a land she had dreamed of, Breen found herself among people who had been waiting for her arrival and were anxious for her to fulfill her fated role.

It's been years since I read anything by Nora Roberts, but the premise of The Awakening appealed to me. It was easy to get sucked right into the story as Breen ventured to Ireland and found much more than she anticipated. A magical land, fae, dragons, and a loving grandmother – as well as darker force intent on doing harm and bringing ruin to the land and its people. The Chosen One trope is alive and well here and I totally enjoyed the cast of characters, Breen finding her way in such unfamiliar surroundings, and the choices she was faced with. This is what I consider “fantasy lite” and it was a fun reading experience. I’m already looking forward to the next book in the series.

LOVE AT FIRST - Kate Clayborn

3.25 stars

Love at First was a mostly entertaining tale of two sort-of lost souls who (finally) came together. Nora had a strong connection with the other residents in her apartment building. A place where she’d spent summers as a child and where she had stability and felt loved and understood. Since the death of her beloved grandmother, Nora had moved back and was determined to protect the building and all who lived there from an outsider (Will).

While I enjoyed the found family aspect and all the quirky side characters that formed Nora’s support system and social circle, the two main characters left me wanting more. Nora and Will were pleasant enough but overall pretty bland. I never felt like I had a good understanding of who they were and what their motivations were, and that meant I wasn’t particularly invested in their outcome. However, the story was sweet and I’m a sucker for a grand gesture, so the ending was satisfying and left a smile on my face.

UNDENIABLE - Melanie Harlow

3 stars 

I read the first book in the Cloverleigh Farm companion series, Irresistible, a couple months ago and enjoyed it so much. So I was excited to dive into this one and meet another of the Sawyer sisters. Unfortunately, Undeniable used a trope I really dislike and focused on two main characters that I just couldn’t get behind.

Chloe and Oliver were childhood friends turned frenemies. After four years of not speaking, Oliver shows up with a business proposition that Chloe feels pressured to accept, in part because their parents are lifelong friends. Part of the agreement is that Chloe will spend the next week with Oliver, before she fully commits, giving him time to make his pitch, and also to talk out the past and hopefully re-establish some trust. What ensued was a whole lot of lies by omission on Oliver’s part and a lot of doormat behavior on Chloe’s part. I really, really wanted to like these two because Melanie Harlow is so great with dialogue and humor and swoony goodness, but it just wasn’t happening. I couldn’t get past Oliver’s actions and the fact that he only came clean when forced into a corner, and that Chloe was let down by Oliver again and again but kept coming back for more. 

HAVE YOU READ ANY OF THESE BOOKS?