Review: Sexy and Fun
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 6, 2013
It’s a classic Amy Andrews story of opposites attract. Ella and Jake are probably as opposite as you can get on the outside. There’s the inside, too, but I’ll get to that. What I love about the connection between these characters is that it is built on a kind of polar opposition which makes them perfect for each other. I’m finding that’s kind of my new favorite watermark of Amy Andrews’ love stories. On top of that, the book is just full of this kind of attraction and the problems that come with it. Take Rosie and Simon, Ella’s best friend and the guy who falls for her. Fantastically opposite. Spectacularly opposite. They’re the kind of opposite Shakespeare would write about. And it works. I’m rooting for Ella and Jake from the moment she walks into the bar where Jake is working. I’m anticipating the agony of watching Rosie and Simon try to navigate their differences (plus, hello, I love that she’s a cougar…sort of). The pairings are just plain well-done.The characters, all of them, have real depth and complexity. What you often find with “opposites attract” novels is a kind of complete and total difference inside and out. Not so with these characters. I think one of my favorite things about this novel is how intrinsically Ella and Jake match on the inside. Their desires, their drive, and their dreams are relatively the same if not completely the same. Life hasn’t been easy for either of these characters. All the characters are at a mature enough age and emotional seasoning that it’s not just about physicality (though, hoorah, there’s plenty of that) or the novelty of real love. The subtlety that Andrews uses to paint these characters is the perfect touch to draw the reader in. I am completely 100% in support of Ella and understand her hesitance, fear, and attraction. But I also recognize that she’s being a complete dunce when it comes to Jake. And I don’t hate her for it either. These characters are real enough to compel understanding. There’s no too-dumb-to-live heroine here. Just a woman who struggles with her own identity and the emotional undercurrents that her identity rests on.The issues are equally serious and whimsical at the same time. I love a good laugh. I love a good cry. Rarely do I find those two things wound together in one book (or done well for that matter). Holding Out For A Hero is now going to be one of my favorite books because it does exactly that. There are these fabulous characters that are richly drawn who dabble, like real people, in the deeply rooted issues of life (read: family relationships, financial problems, self-respect, sexuality, etc) and, often at the same time, reason through them with everything from coping mechanisms (read: budding alcoholism for better or worse, curry dinners, and feeding notices happily to dogs) to whimsical fancy. I’m pretty sure if Iris and Daisy, Rosie’s aging Aunts and ex-Carnies, weren’t padding through this book with their Tarot cards and sweepstakes chandeliers hanging over toliets, I wouldn’t be half as in love with this story. To top it off? I laughed out loud several times and, in turn, my muscles tensed up while I fretted with the ends of a throw. Anytime a book creates a physical response in me, I’m absolutely delighted.The writing is delightfully sexy and entertaining without going overboard. I was frequently drawn in by Andrews’ ability to engage an intense sexuality without going overboard. I often read scenes in novels that paint their heroines as just this edge of slutty and oversexed. Not so much with Ella (or even Rosie who is arguably kinky). If anything, Ella’s sexuality is comfortable and engaging to read about. A difficult feat for any author. Trust me, the book is sexy. I’m pretty sure I could pick Jake’s butt out of a line-up and I don’t feel the least bit perverted for it, either. I was pulled through each chapter easily, telling myself ‘just one more’ until I was up far later than I had intended.What can I say? Not only is this book worth a read, but I simply must own a print copy now. Buy it like it’s going out of style people!Disclaimer: An ARC copy was provided. No compensation was asked for or gained for this review.