Review: Romance and Drama!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 14, 2013
Once I found out the Keller Family series would continue with the kids of the original group I was looking forward to this one the most. With Clara being the only girl in a family with two boys for siblings I couldn't wait to see how her story would go. Love Songs was exactly what I look forward to in a Bernadette Marie romance.For me, having gone through all the books in this series and seeing the children all grown up was emotional to handle. Trying to see Clara as anything but the sweet young girl she was was a little difficult. She's a grown woman now pursuing her dream of theatre and music. For the past few years she's been starring in her aunt's theatre productions. On her way to rehearsal one day she is stopped on the street by Warner Wright with a proposition to sing the songs he writes. Clara is very wary of Warner at first and with good reason. After her near death experience at the hands of a madman she is more cautious but as these two spend more time together a romance begins to bloom between them. Warner comes with his own set of issues being the stepson of Nashville's most hated reality house wife. The stigma he carries by just his brief association with her has almost squelched his chances of following his dream as a musician.It took a while for me to warm up to Warner and I think this was the first time Marie has managed to write a male lead that I haven't fallen immediately in love with. When he first comes into Clara's life it seems like he is just after one thing...her voice. (I totally just channeled Ursula from the Little Mermaid LOL) Anyway all he wants is to use her to sing his songs and get the recognition he craves from the music industry. Warner was a deep pool of issues and the more that was revealed about him the more I started to understand why he was the way he was. Losing his father in a very sad way was hard for him to handle but the ongoing battle he has with his step mom Patty is the meat of his story. It's unclear at first why she hates him so much and goes out of her way to ruin any chance at happiness he has. I have to say I didn't see this particular revelation coming at all. I knew Warner had a difficult past but the struggles he's had to overcome finally softened my heart for him.These two make an impulsive decision together that changes their relationship and adds more junk to the pile of issues they need to overcome. They both get their big breaks with Warner getting to write music for a reality TV show he'll star in and Clara gets a gig singing on tour for a famous singer. I really enjoyed watching them get to live their dreams and even though the wicked step mother doesn't stay away for long Warner and Clara managed to get through everything thrown at them together. I loved getting to see all the Keller's together again and they prove just how amazing this family is by how accepting they were of Warner after a while. There were some really tender moments between Carlos, Clara's father and Warner that melted my heart. This family is made of the kind of people you wish your family was like. They are all so loving, accepting and understanding but at the same time they all have their differences and issues just like any real family.Love Songs was another wonderful addition to this expanding series that just keeps getting better. The romance is always new and unique to the characters and each person has a magnetic personality you can't help but fall in love with. Needless to say I was just as happy with this story as I have been with the others and look forward to getting the next story. If you are one of those people like myself who enjoys a nice long series with characters you can connect and fall in love with then you really need to give this series a try.