Review: Strong story that still needs work
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 10 9, 2012
There is a very good story in this book for anyone who likes a sweet romance.  The general plot and characters seemed well thought out.But the execution could have been so much better.  There are minor plot holes, like when the heroine mentions putting the dogs where they have access to a doggie door all day and then rushes them outside whenever she gets home.  And more significant issues surrounding the paint debacle, which is a major event in the story.  1 - That better be some super, super premium paint to cost $40/gallon wholesale.  2 - I have a hard time picturing a room in anyone's house that would require 10 gallons, let alone 20.  3 - She later mixes up a specific color right in the store so I can't figure out why it would have needed to be a special order in the first place. 4 - She repeatedly mentions that her bill and her customer's bill was the exact same amount.  No one is going to stay in business long charging customers the wholesale price.The writing was inconsistent.  I usually have no patience for easily cleared up misconceptions, but the author did okay not drawing either out too much.  And I really could understand why the guy didn't want to reveal a certain detail right away or at the wrong time.  But there are a few words and phrases that Ms. Naramore would do well to retire, including "suddenly," "epiphany," "scrubbed his hand across his jaw," "pinned him/her with a look," and "snared his/her gaze."  After the fourth or fifth snared gaze I was starting to picture eyeballs being lassoed out of heads.  No character should be allowed to have more than one or two epiphanies per chapter, especially when it's essentially the same epiphany each time.  And interruptions sort of by definition happen suddenly.The self-absorbed teenager in the story did provide a bit of comic relief.  The advice offered to her was a bit off since true good guys tend to recognize jerks and not become friends with them, but I appreciated when they named the dog Sidekick anyway.  I'd mostly recommend this book to anyone suffering over a breakup who wants to believe that a rich, handsome man might just move in next door.