eARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest reviewRelease Date: August 28th 2014
Publisher: Escape Publishing
Description:
Samantha is celebrating her newly retired status from competitive triathlons with a diving holiday in her favourite place in the world: Australia’s Lord Howe Island. But all divers need a buddy, and Sam can’t dive solo. A chance meeting with rugby league superstar Cooper Sterling in the dive shop seems serendipitous. Sam can’t wait to have a partner who might be able to keep up with her.
It soon becomes evident that Cooper and Sam are compatible both in and out of the water, and things gets seriously sexy. But Sam is disinclined to be another football groupie, and Cooper has been burned before. So the rules are clear: a holiday fling, no strings attached, and they part as friends at the end.
But as the final days of their time together come to a close and a life apart becomes a reality, Sam and Cooper start to question their decision. Is this holiday fling really the finish line or can Sam and Cooper turn their friendly competition into more than sizzling sex?
My Opinion
I'm really struggling to rate this book as it has split my opinion right down the middle. On one hand parts made me consider giving up, while on the other I'm glad I finished reading it. I think by the end of it though, I really loved the characters and their story.
It was the first forty per cent of this book that has me struggling with my rating so much. It really didn't engage me and I felt the writing was a bit stiff. I was thrown straight into the story and I felt like I was constantly trying to catch up with background information and trying to make a connection with the characters. I also didn't think I was going to grow to like the characters. I'm not sure what is was about them but in the first half of this book, but I felt very disconnected from everything--maybe it was the speed at which everything happened ... I don't know.
However, saying that, I'm glad I didn't give up on this book as the second half more than made up for it. The characters grew on me, as did their relationship and the writing picked up. It became more engaging and I couldn't put the last half down. I think the main reason for this was that there were more feelings involved rather than just sex--which was still hot.
I found the holiday fling believable--maybe not all of the conversations--but in general things moved along well and I liked how the characters grew together. I liked Cooper's playful attitude and how they both teased each other. As well as that, I liked the constant competition between them and the setting. I've always been interested in diving so the constant underwater aspect was a nice, unique touch.
Overall although the start didn't work for me, the ending left the book on a good note. This is a feel-good read that gets better as it goes. You may have to wait a little for it to pick up but it's worth the wait.
I'm really struggling to rate this book as it has split my opinion right down the middle. On one hand parts made me consider giving up, while on the other I'm glad I finished reading it. I think by the end of it though, I really loved the characters and their story.
It was the first forty per cent of this book that has me struggling with my rating so much. It really didn't engage me and I felt the writing was a bit stiff. I was thrown straight into the story and I felt like I was constantly trying to catch up with background information and trying to make a connection with the characters. I also didn't think I was going to grow to like the characters. I'm not sure what is was about them but in the first half of this book, but I felt very disconnected from everything--maybe it was the speed at which everything happened ... I don't know.
However, saying that, I'm glad I didn't give up on this book as the second half more than made up for it. The characters grew on me, as did their relationship and the writing picked up. It became more engaging and I couldn't put the last half down. I think the main reason for this was that there were more feelings involved rather than just sex--which was still hot.
I found the holiday fling believable--maybe not all of the conversations--but in general things moved along well and I liked how the characters grew together. I liked Cooper's playful attitude and how they both teased each other. As well as that, I liked the constant competition between them and the setting. I've always been interested in diving so the constant underwater aspect was a nice, unique touch.
Overall although the start didn't work for me, the ending left the book on a good note. This is a feel-good read that gets better as it goes. You may have to wait a little for it to pick up but it's worth the wait.
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