Review: Engrossing
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 30, 2011
Cole, book five of the Red, Hot and Blue Series, is a story that will pull your heartstrings and make you wish you could get your hands on the next installment from Pigeon Hollow right now.Lizzie Barton is a woman who is dedicated to her family and loved ones and sacrifices her own dreams for them. Lizzie has been in love with her brother's best friend for as long as she can remember and then on her 18th birthday she is given the opportunity of a lifetime to be with him and he is more than welcoming of her affection. But that one night of passion has irreversible consequences and Lizzie cannot bring herself to tell the man she loves and upset his rise to glory as a professional baseball player.Cole Ryan is Pigeon Hollow's golden boy, who leaves home and goes on to become a pitcher in the majors. He plays ten years of professional baseball until an injury takes him out of the game and he has to figure out what to do with his life. He returns home and discovers that a major secret has been kept from him and by the only girl he ever loved and dumped him for no apparent reason. His feelings run the gamut from angry, disappointed, excited and scared. Why would Lizzie keep something this important from him?Ms. Johnson has written a poignant story where your heart goes out to both the hero and heroine. Ms. Johnson gives detailed insight into both characters minds with her distinctive writing style. They are both very lovable characters with depth and emotion that readers can relate to. I could not put this book down; I just wanted to see them be happy with each other because it was obvious that they were truly made for each other. The dialogue was realistic especially since you have the characters at a very young age, 18 to 20, and then 10 years later when they have matured.If you are not familiar with the other stories in this series you may be confused by some of the events taking place throughout the story especially with Bobby, Lizzie's brother, unless you have read the preceding book, Jared. That said, it does not take away from this story, I found it as an incentive to want to read the next installment of the series to find out what is to happen next. Although this is a short story and I do wish it had been longer, it was very well written, the plot flowed smoothly and made me feel satisfied with the ending.Cat Johnson has written another keeper, this series from Pigeon Hollow continues to keep us readers coming back for more and I cannot wait for the next installment.Originally posted at Whipped Cream Reviews