Review: A rating...
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 23, 2014
My Review:This is labeled as a novella and it can be read in just a couple of hours, but it definitely doesn't read like a novella. This is a story rich in depth, with incredible characters.Tate and Ali have had a friends-with-benefits arrangement for several years and it's still as hot as ever. But it's becoming something more which is something that Ali can't live with because Tate has always made it perfectly clear that they will never have anything more. But with two small boys who are becoming attached to Tate and the knowledge that she's falling in love with him, she knows she has to let him go. She needs more.Tate is haunted. 15 years ago, his mother disappeared and is assumed dead. He thinks his father killed her and as the 14 yo listening to them fight that night, he blames himself for her death. He's haunted by that and the fact that he is so much like his father. That terrifies him and although he cares deeply for Ali and her boys, he can't ever be anything more to them. He won't risk their lives.Because this is a novella there is a ton of backstory that is loaded into it that happened before, but it works and makes this story so much deeper than a normal novella. I loved that. One of the things I love about Shiloh Walker's writing is her ability to show the emotions through her characters, who are usually pretty tortured souls. This book and Tate's character in particular did that so well. This man...wow, I just wanted to hold him. He doesn't want to let Ali go and it's killing him that he's losing her. He has a great character arc in a short amount of time to try and fix that. It's incredibly well-done and I absolutely fell in love with him.On the other hand is Ali who is doing what she has to do to preserve her family...even though she doesn't want to with everything in her. She knows she deserves more. She was such a strong character and I love that she stood up to Tate.Overall, this is a fabulous introduction to this new series. And I will say that I'm really intrigued because this is an unusual way to start a new series. The three siblings (Tate and his two sisters) get a novella before the first book releases. They honestly don't know what happened to their mother. I have a feeling that mystery will impact the entire series, but I have no idea how. Like I said, I love the set-up and am so excited about the entire series. I love romantic suspense and  Shiloh Walker is a master at writing it!