Monday, June 29, 2020

Bookish Thoughts: Start With Me



"Lace, I know you haven't seen a whole lot of it, but this is what love looks like.
Choosing the other person.  Wanting the best thing for them.  What he did last night?  That's love."


Description:

Lacey O’Connor is finally a sure thing for the promotion she’s spent ten years working for. But when a scandal rocks her firm she finds herself on a collision course with the one person she has spent five years trying to forget. Only to discover he doesn’t even remember her…

Victor Carlisle has spent the last three years trying to convince his family he’s no longer the playboy alcoholic who tore their life apart. When a company merger is announced with a US sister firm, he’s presented with the perfect opportunity to prove he’s changed. Only to find himself falling for his competition and the one woman his family will never accept.

As the competition intensifies the choice looms between the professional and the personal. Can they find a way beyond their past decisions and present aspirations to take a chance on the one thing they’re not looking for?


About the Author:

Kara Isaac writes contemporary romance in beautiful Wellington, New Zealand. She is the author of four novels including the RWA RITA award-winning Then There Was You (https://www.rwa.org/page/2018-winners), Close to You, a RITA Award Double Finalist, and Can't Help Falling, an RT Review Top Pick. When she's not chasing three small people, she spends her time writing horribly bad first drafts and wishing you could get Double Stuf Oreos in New Zealand. She loves to connect with readers on her website www.karaisaac.com, on Facebook at Kara Isaac - Author, Twitter @KaraIsaac and Instagram @kara.isaac.author


My Thoughts:

If I’m being honest, I haven’t read a single book by Kara Isaac that I haven’t immensely enjoyed. . . And I’ve read all of them.  So I was obviously super excited for this one!  And as a self-proclaimed fan, I was very disappointed in myself for not immediately recognizing the characters’ names and putting together that they were from “Can’t Help Falling” and “One Thing I Know.”  But my embarrassment aside, this may very well be my favorite book of hers, so far!

As I’ve said in more than one review, I absolutely adore Ms. Isaac’s writing style!  Especially when she’s writing an English character.  I can almost hear the accent as I’m reading (sigh).  I love how she draws me into her novels from the very first pages and I spend the rest of the day wondering where the story will lead next.  Her books always keep me up much too late at night, particularly considering that I have a newborn and should be sleeping when she sleeps.  But I found this tale far too hard to put down, so I was grabbing every extra moment I had to devour it!  As previously mentioned, these characters do tie into a couple of Ms. Isaac’s other books, though each of them are written to stand alone.  Which is great, if you don’t care to start with the prior books, but I personally adored those as well and would highly recommend them!

There were so many things I loved about this book!  I loved the dialogue: the quick wit, quips, and arguments.  I loved the relationship between Lacey, Rachel, and Anna.  And watching Victor seek healing and restoration from his past.  He so desires to be a better man than he was in the past.  I loved the redemptive theme throughout.  I wanted to slap Peter more than once for how he treated his brother (thankfully, Emilia took care of that for me).  I loved little Libby!  She was only there for a couple pages, but she stole my heart.  I loved how real the characters seem; they came alive within the pages and I felt as though I was saying “goodbye” to dear friends by the time I turned the final page.  And honestly, I so appreciated the fact that not every character is automatically a Christian by the end.  There’s no cliched sudden confession of belief.  It wouldn’t have suited the story or the characters, and I admire that Ms. Isaac chose to stay true to them.

My take: if you’ve never read one of Kara Isaac’s books, you’re missing so much!  Including but not limited to: sleep deprivation due to fictional characters.  Said characters taking you through a variety of emotions such as anger, sadness (sometimes with tears), and joy.  Great dialogue, including English and Australian accents.  Laughing out loud in public because you chose to bring your book along.  Adventures on multiple continents, including America, Europe, Australia, etc.  

Do you need any other reasons to pick up this book (and her other ones)?


Thanks for stopping by and reading my review!  As always, if you'd like to learn more about this book, links are below - and I will note that the Kindle price is currently only $4.99!  And it's free on Kindle Unlimited, if you use that service.  Personally, I can't wait for the paperbacks so I can add it to my "keeper" bookcase!  (yes, what is probably much to my husband's dismay, it's an entire bookcase now, not just a shelf or two.)

Have a ducky day! 😊


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