I always jump at the chance to read books by Louise Bay. I love her characters and the stories she writes for them. This book is a standalone, however, it connects to two previous books (each is a novella series) and I am always happy to revisit characters I fell in love with. This novella take s an interesting twist as well because one of the main characters is a recovering alcoholic and being inside her thought process was unique.
Beth and Dylan are both complex characters, each of them shaped by a complicated past. They certainly aren’t one dimensional and watching them grow and learn throughout the story is fascinating.
Beth had me waffling sometimes, I wanted to always like her, but there were small moments when I was frustrated with her actions and the thoughts that spurred them. However, I couldn’t let it detract from my rating because I’ve never been in her shoes. I think that’s the point though, she’s not your typical heroine for a romance novel, she’s fighting to find her place in her life, a sober life, and has a hard time not judging her every thought based on what she would or has done in the past. She is so scared of where she was, so afraid to make the same mistakes, she loses sight of the fact that she can trust herself to make decisions. She forgets that those bad choices were affected by alcohol and not her own rational and sober thought processes. It makes the realization that much sweeter when she learns to trust herself.
Dylan…how could I not fall for Dylan? He has quite the history as well. It has shaped and molded him into someone who if solely focused on his work, with the exception of having some meaningless fun between the sheets. However, it doesn’t take long to see that there is so much more under the surface and as the book continues, right up to the end, we see more and more of those layers. Watching him change and fall in love is fun and full of moments that will make you swoon. He doesn’t even recognize the signs and feelings in the beginning and when he does, it’s cute how shocked he is, but how he dives right in, willing to see them through. The situation between Beth and Dylan is an interesting twist, because I think it’s the opposite of what we expect from a hero and heroine. Usually, it’s the man putting the woman on a pedestal, and while Dylan worships Beth, he sees the real woman, the human woman who isn’t perfect. However, Beth puts Dylan up in that impossible position where slipping off the pedestal is pretty much inevitable.
Like all of Louise’s books, Indigo Nights is sexy and steamy, so hot! The book moves at a great pace and despite them living on separate continents, the author didn’t spend too much time in the sections where they are not together. We get to focus on how they grow when they ae together instead of spending time watching them pine for each other…that can get really boring. This story picks right up and I had no trouble going straight through until I was at the end and wishing there were more because I didn’t want to say goodbye to Dylan and Beth yet.
I recommend any of Louise’s books and this one is definitely a winner in my book. It is definitely on my reread list!