Review ~ Meant for Me (Second Chances #3) by L.P. Dover

ebook received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: 30th December 2013

Publisher: Self-published

Description:
***A STEAMY, ROMANTIC SUSPENSE (STANDALONE) NOVEL BY THE USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR, L.P. DOVER. If you love sexy MMA fighters then this book is definitely for you. Let the fight begin ...***

After a night of raw passion with the man Claire O'Briene had been secretly admiring for years, she thought their time together had come once and for all. Fate had finally brought them back to each other, but unfortunately nothing had changed. He was still the same man who ran away from relationships. Against his better judgment, Mason Bradley gave in to the temptation and allowed himself one night with the one woman he'd been too afraid to want ... too afraid to need.

Four months after leaving Claire and regretting every minute of it, Mason gets called in for an undercover mission that's not only dangerous, but brings back a past he spent years trying to forget. A past of fighting ... of getting in the ring and using his fists to get what he wanted: money, women, and drugs. Now there are fighters turning up dead, and it's Mason's job to find out the truth.

Knowing he might not come out of the mission alive, Mason seeks out Claire to tell her how he truly feels, only to find another man competing for her love as well. Fighting is what he's good at, and for once he will be fighting not only for justice ... but for love.

My Opinion

When I saw this cover on Netgalley it stood out. I think it was the font on the 'M' that caught my attention so I thought I'd check out the blurb to see if it was for me. After reading the blurb I couldn't hit request fast enough. The MMA/undercover mission had piqued my interest and having never read a romance that sounded like this, I was itching to give it a go and I definitely wasn't disappointed.

Meant for Me was one of those romances that left me thinking about it for a few days after I finished it--you can probably tell that because it's taken me 2 days to try and arrange my thoughts for this review. It was one of those romances that takes your breath away because you are so invested in the characters and their story and I think the author did a great job with her characterisation. I haven't read any of L.P Dover's work before but I think I might have to now.

Meant for Me caught my attention right from the offset and it didn't let go at all. The only time I stopped was when I thought murder scenes were going to be described as it was already 2am and not knowing how graphic the author would make it, I didn't want to freak myself out and get no sleep. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the balance the author struck between the violence, detail and content. She seemed to get it exactly right every time with how much she revealed and I never found it too much or overbearing. She masked it at the right places and then went into a bit more detail in others--it allowed you to picture it but it gave you a little creative license with how bloody you wanted to make the scene which I liked.

There was definitely a lot going on in this book and I found the structure was faultless. The book flowed seamlessly and developed brilliantly. I found myself falling more and more in love with the character (especially Mason--I may have a new book boyfriend) as it went on. I wasn't sure how things were going to go from the start but I loved his development and how intense Claire and his feeling were. Claire was the right mix of strong yet vulnerable and I felt they really worked well together.

I don't really know what else to say about the romance--except I want Mason. It was really intense and did leave me thinking about it for a while. The emotions felt were believable and the action had me on the edge of my seat as the characters found themselves in the middle of everything. I loved that there was a darker twist with the MMA/Cop drama and it tied in well, making for a unique story that had a deeper level than just second chances and sex.

The only slight quibble I have is that I may have liked the mastermind to be hidden or for his identity to be kept a secret a bit longer. I may also have liked a few more suspects to have been thrown into the mix for a little more tension and suspicion. Don't get me wrong, it was still crafted excellently, but I think a layer of who the characters couldn't trust would have made it exceptional.

Overall, Meant for Me was a brilliant, fast-paced read that I couldn't put down. I loved the characters, their story and their romance. I also liked the ending, it summed everything up perfectly. I do wish this series wasn't stand-alone books as would love to read more about Mason and Claire but for now I'll have to settle for Matt's story as the MMA aspect has caught my interest again. Anyway, this is definitely on my ebook to paperback buy list.