Review: A rating...
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 10, 2014
My Review:I love the premise for this series. This is a set of five books. They all work completely as stand-alones because they are all written by separate authors, but the stories are intertwined through a friend's wedding. Those friends were introduced in Laura Kaye's novella, Dare to Resist, which came out a month ago (you can see my A rated review of it HERE.) The premise is that at this Colorado destination wedding for that original couple, all the bridesmaids and groomsmen hook up and find their happily ever afters. Unlikely, but still a super-fun premise especially since all the friends are intertwined by their various levels of friendship with the bride and groom. On paper, this particular book is #1 in the series (and I try to read things in order.) Not only did Laura Kaye's initial novella set the bar high, but Diane Alberts has continued with that in this story which I completely and totally LOVED!!!This is one of those couples that has a history from before the wedding. Eight years ago, Christine went to Mexico with her friends just a few months after her parents were horrifically killed by a drunk driver. At only 18, Christine wasn't dealing with the loss well, but hoped the trip would distract her and help stop her friends from worrying so much about her. Older brother to one of her friends, Tyler went along to help make sure they stayed out of trouble. As a doctor, Tyler likes to fix people and when he saw Christine was sad, he wanted to comfort her which led to her losing her virginity...something that he was horrified about after the fact because he didn't realize. He did NOT handle it well and Christine never recovered from either the enormous blow to her ego or the amazing sex. They've avoided one another ever since.I loved this story just because they are so good together. They both have really strong emotions about what happened in Mexico 8 years ago, but part of that is because it was such a mind-blowing event for both of them. In that single night, they connected so deeply, but circumstance and immature ages kept them apart. When things begin between them again, Christine is somewhat focused on revenge. She was so hurt by him and he doesn't seem to get that even though he feels remorse for the way he handled things. I had a problem with that at the beginning just because it's such an immature way to handle things, but as I got further into the story, both characters and the story were so strong I could look past that minor flaw.This was definitely a perfect start to the main series of four novels. The glimpses we got to see of the other couples in this book were definitely intriguing and I am ready to dive into book #2.I received a complimentary copy of this book in return for an honest review.