Review: 4.5 stars for Book #2 in the Estate Series
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 02 11, 2014
Read the full tour stop at my blog - Red's Book Blog - http://redsbookblog.blogspot.ca/2014/02/blog-tour-review-hope-restrained-estate.html*Provided ARC for honest review*This story is not a story of second chances, long lost loves or friendship turned lovers. It is not a story that will give you sweet butterflies or fluffy unicorns. But it will make you think, feel and thank God it is only a story.This is a story about acceptance, family, loyalty and devotion. Simple, right? Hell no.To say that Hope and Xander's relationship started out rough, is an understatement. But what I found fascinating about this story was that there are so many reasons that people do what they do.Hope rocked. I mean literally, she kicked ass. I can always count on getting a strong female lead when I read a M.S. Willis book. This means a lot to me. Deep in her was her strong connection to her sister. It was moving and painfully real. My heart broke for them, both of them and everything they endured.I started to fall for Xander when I first met him in Book #1 Madeleine Abducted and continue to adore him. His loyalty to Aaron and Maddy is amazing and when he realizes his feelings for Hope, regardless of their start, his devotion was beautiful.Does this make me twisted? Perhaps. But hey, I don’t read a book so I can relive reality. I only have so much time in my hectic day to devote to my love of books. I don’t waste my time. So, when I can have characters that are strong, unique and flawed but I still love them, a story that twists, turns and throws me for a loop and a style that flows nicely, it is a winning combination for me.Since I began my journey with The Estate it has made me question ... everything. Good and evil, night and day, up and down. There is a lot of grey, I have discovered. The saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover" comes to mind.Again, I won’t bore you with my admiration of Ms Willis’ writing. She knows, you know. I will say that the Estate keeps me on my toes, shocks me and awes me. I appreciate the creativity and time that is put into these characters.My biggest worry? I don't want to get too attached to anyone, who knows what will happen to them!!