Review: The Book You've Been Dreaming About
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 30, 2013
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.For fans of Sophie Oak, and if you’re not, you should be, Sirens in Bliss is the book you’ve been dreaming about. Sirens in Bliss reunites characters from two of Ms. Oak’s fantastic series – Texas Sirens and Nights in Bliss. It tells the “after” part of several couples’ “happily ever after.”“We place a lot of emphasis on weddings, but that’s not the end of the story. It’s just the beginning. The rest may not be pretty, but that’s life.”For romance fans, it’s usually about a couple/trio etc., working toward their happy ending. For those of us who are married, we know that the happy ending is the easy part. Sirens in Bliss shows the reality of how children, careers, money problems and more can impact a relationship. It rips the door into happily ever after wide open and shows that the after part is not all fairytales. Sirens in Bliss offers an authentic view of marriage and in my humble opinion, does it better than I have ever seen.“Love took work . . .”While many of your favorite characters from previous books make an appearance, Sirens in Bliss focuses on the difficulties faced by four couples. Stef and Jen are expecting their first child. Stef is afraid that something is going to happen to his wife so he treats her with kid gloves. Jen is afraid that Stef is turned off by her pregnant body and worries that Stef no longer wants her. Lexi is working herself to the bone to earn enough money to fix a mistake that she believes she made. As a result, she no longer has time for her kids and her two husbands, Aiden and Lucas. Aiden has his own secrets and is afraid that he’s losing his wife. Lucas is afraid that he no longer has anything to offer to the loves of his life and is therefore not needed. Rafe is at a crossroads in his life. While he loves taking care of his infant daughter, he feels he has lost his identity. He isn’t working so he isn’t providing for his family. And a possible job offer would require relocating the whole family as well as keeping one member of their trio a secret. Finally, it’s Shelly, Wolf and Leo’s wedding that has brought everyone together. But Wolf and Leo’s mother is convinced that Shelly is an alien queen and the only way to prove her humanity is to eat beets. Shelly loves her men but can she overlook her crazy future mother-in-law? And can Leo keep the reappearance of their father a secret from Wolf?“Happily ever after was so much easier with a damn fine work ethic.”Ms. Oak expertly showcased the importance of communication in a healthy, working relationship. I really appreciated that problems were not fixed overnight, nor were the problems occurring because someone had done something bad or wrong. The truth is that melding the lives of two (or more) people into one cohesive unit is difficult and comes with compromise and acceptance. Each of the couples loved each other but sometimes you think you are doing the right thing, but it turns out that you’re doing the wrong thing, just for the right reason.I confess to shedding a few tears at the end of the book as each couple worked through their difficulties. I attribute this to Ms Oak’s amazing ability to create characters that you can relate to. Within each character, I was able to find a small piece of myself. Whether it is a desire to solve my problems on my own, thinking I wasn’t good enough, or worrying about how children would affect my relationship, I understood what the characters were feeling. Ms. Oak writes dialogue that flows so naturally you really believe that you are overhearing conversations.Ms. Oak has created a delightful town in the appropriately named Bliss. The inhabitants of Bliss are generous, kind, and loving. They do not judge, instead they accept each other. In Bliss, family is about much more than blood. Family are the people who love and care for you. Each time I read one of Ms. Oak’s books and return to Bliss, I sigh in happiness. I am transported to a place overflowing with love and laughter. I wish such a place truly existed, but at the very least, I can’t wait to return to Bliss and forget about the stress of my daily life.I strongly recommend reading the books in Texas Sirens and Nights in Bliss series before reading Sirens in Bliss so that you have a clear understanding of the couples and the history that has an effect on their decisions today. You could try to read Sirens in Bliss as a standalone; however, you will have to work hard to keep all of the characters straight and you may end up more confused than anything. But frankly, I don’t care how you do it just as long as you read Sirens in Bliss. This is an absolute MUST READ book.