Review: Unique and believable romance
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 11, 2013
Reading is my passion, my pleasure. I adore discovering new-to-me writers whose imagination creates a new and interesting premise and better yet, handle it in a deft manner.  This may be my first Serena Bell book, but it sure won't be my last.The PremiseAna Travares can never let her guard down, even as she tutors children in Spanish in a well-to-do neighborhood.  As an illegal immigrant, she has been living in the shadows since she was a child.  If she's caught, the price will be the loss of all she knows, her family and the return to a country she barely remembers. When she is propositioned by a skeevy school employee in exchange for his assistance with a criminal record check, Dr. Ethan Hansen, overhears her cry for help and opens a door, to Ana and a love he didn't even know he was looking for.Ethan is a man who has been trudging through life ever since the death of his wife and raising his teenage son Theo on his own.  He needs a Spanish tutor for Theo and, drawn to Ana, decides to hire her to come to his house two days a week.  As they get to know each other, they realize that there's something between them, but can they overcome their cultural differences and make a life together?The GoodFirst and foremost, I loved that this wasn't treated in a typical Cinderella manner - rich, hot doctor sweeps and saves the poor immigrant girl.  Ana is a strong heroine who works to save herself, whose fears are genuine and her concerns as to how she could make a relationship with Ethan work felt true, instead of some manufactured angst.  Even as a solution to Ana's status is proposed (a marriage to stay in the country), the story takes enough twists and turns that keep the ultimate outcome is hardly assured.  I really felt that Ethan and Ana worked for their relationship, and it was all the sweeter for it.As a Latina (I'm Puerto Rican), I may not have had status issues, but the cultural differences between Ana and Ethan are something that I can definitely relate to, and that is something that is not typically dealt with in contemporary romances.  I loved that, while the problems they had were daunting, I never rolled my eyes and said "that could never happen." Ms. Bell struck a nice balance through most of the story between the reality of their situation without losing the romantic feeling of their HEA.The Not as Good as I'd LikeSince it's a truncated timeline, the story took off at warp speed, and I would have liked more of a slow build between Ana and Ethan, more of the anticipation.  The story could be tighter at the beginning, and there are a (very) few moments where I felt bogged down in the details instead of focusing on the characters.The Bottom LineYours to Keep is a very good effort by Ms. Bell that I definitely recommend to those looking for a unique premise and refreshingly real characters.  I look forward to reading more from this author.**ARC provided by  Random House Publishing Group - Loveswept from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**P.S. This is the first ARC I've ever reviewed.  I didn't know what to expect but I'm thrilled that it's a good one.