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Amelia Cook #2
Better Not Love Me
Amelia Cook never wanted to be a corporate executive responsible for a toy business that spanned the country. She accepted the job out of obligation to her past love. The work has forced her away from her children and broken her marriage. After years of misery, she's decided to walk away.
Single, unemployed and uninspired, Amelia rents a palatial lake cabin for the summer and attempts to reconnect with her children who barely recognize the mom they once knew.
Amelia's summer at the lake takes a surprise turn when a handsome man moves into the cabin next door. The only problem? It's her old boss, Nate.
Can Amelia forgive Nate's past behavior, find love and forge a bond with her children all while being dragged back into the corporate life she loathes?
Single, unemployed and uninspired, Amelia rents a palatial lake cabin for the summer and attempts to reconnect with her children who barely recognize the mom they once knew.
Amelia's summer at the lake takes a surprise turn when a handsome man moves into the cabin next door. The only problem? It's her old boss, Nate.
Can Amelia forgive Nate's past behavior, find love and forge a bond with her children all while being dragged back into the corporate life she loathes?
250 pages, Paperback
First published October 26, 2015
11 people are currently reading
305 people want to read
About the author
Dan Kolbet
10 books48 followersDan Kolbet lives in Spokane, Washington, with his family. He is an independent author, former newspaper editor, and reporter. He is currently working on his next story.
Visit www.dankolbet.com to learn more and sign up for Dan’s newsletter. You can like his author page on Facebook www.facebook.com/DanKolbetBooks.
Follow Kolbet on Twitter @dankolbet. Find him on Instagram at dankolbet.
Visit www.dankolbet.com to learn more and sign up for Dan’s newsletter. You can like his author page on Facebook www.facebook.com/DanKolbetBooks.
Follow Kolbet on Twitter @dankolbet. Find him on Instagram at dankolbet.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 31, 2016
Great sequel to Don't wait for me.
May 10, 2018
Read the first book in this series, "Don't Wait For Me (Amelia Cook #1)" four years ago and have no idea why I waited so long to get to this sequel especially enjoying the first book so much. This one wasn't paced as well as the first book since it jumped back and forth from present time to the past. Could be read as a standalone but would suggest reading "Don't Wait For Me (Amelia Cook #1)" first because it was just that good.
August 4, 2020
Easy read but with an emotional twist.
Continuing the story of Amelia is just as good as the previous book. It's great to see the characters play out in the second s story.
Continuing the story of Amelia is just as good as the previous book. It's great to see the characters play out in the second s story.
January 1, 2016
Amelia Cook is a single mom, who's become burned out by her corporate position at Riddell Industries. She'd only taken the job after her new love, Edwin, died tragically while saving her son, Marcus. But after four years of being bullied by top executive, Nate Rosen, and being away from her children for weeks at a time, Amelia's had enough. She leaves the corporate world and takes her family on a summer vacation at the lake. All set for two months of rest and relaxation, Amelia is annoyed to find out that the occupant of the neighboring cabin is none other than her former boss, Nate Rosen. What follows is a rollercoaster ride of events and emotions for everyone involved.
Better Not Love Me contains several of Dan Kolbet's previous characters from his popular novel, Don't Wait For Me. However, Better Not Love Me is definitely a standalone novel, with its own original plot, twists and turns. The author expertly and concisely inserts any pertinent backstory into this novel, so readers are caught up to speed as quickly and precisely as possible.
I found Amelia Cook to be slightly more irritable and at times unsympathetic than she was in Don't Wait For Me, but I get why the author changed her up somewhat. She's a woman who's been through a lot of emotional turmoil and it has changed her. Nate's character is new to readers. And, once I got a better feel for what he'd been through, he became more likable as the story moved forward. This is something I really admire about Dan Kolbet's male characters: they're vulnerable and show emotion. It's a welcome change from the usual macho male characters so often prevalent in romance novels.
As in the author's previous books, there is a slight Christian feel to Better Not Love Me. However, it is never overwhelming or sappy. The author sparingly injects a feel-good "spiritual" vibe into the story, yet it doesn't come off as being preachy or pious. The author addresses his reasons for doing this and more at the end of the book.
As with other books I've read by Mr. Kolbet, I thoroughly enjoyed the author's writing style in Better Not Love Me. His novels are charming, slice-of-life-style stories about ordinary people trying to deal with life, love and, at times, heartbreaking loss. There's always a valuable lesson (or two or three) to learn - the most important one being that none of us lives in a vacuum. Each of us has something to offer and you never know who will enter your life right at the very moment you need them most. Better Not Love Me is classified as a romance novel, but it's also about family, compassion and understanding. Highly recommended!
http://ebookreviewgal.com received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Better Not Love Me contains several of Dan Kolbet's previous characters from his popular novel, Don't Wait For Me. However, Better Not Love Me is definitely a standalone novel, with its own original plot, twists and turns. The author expertly and concisely inserts any pertinent backstory into this novel, so readers are caught up to speed as quickly and precisely as possible.
I found Amelia Cook to be slightly more irritable and at times unsympathetic than she was in Don't Wait For Me, but I get why the author changed her up somewhat. She's a woman who's been through a lot of emotional turmoil and it has changed her. Nate's character is new to readers. And, once I got a better feel for what he'd been through, he became more likable as the story moved forward. This is something I really admire about Dan Kolbet's male characters: they're vulnerable and show emotion. It's a welcome change from the usual macho male characters so often prevalent in romance novels.
As in the author's previous books, there is a slight Christian feel to Better Not Love Me. However, it is never overwhelming or sappy. The author sparingly injects a feel-good "spiritual" vibe into the story, yet it doesn't come off as being preachy or pious. The author addresses his reasons for doing this and more at the end of the book.
As with other books I've read by Mr. Kolbet, I thoroughly enjoyed the author's writing style in Better Not Love Me. His novels are charming, slice-of-life-style stories about ordinary people trying to deal with life, love and, at times, heartbreaking loss. There's always a valuable lesson (or two or three) to learn - the most important one being that none of us lives in a vacuum. Each of us has something to offer and you never know who will enter your life right at the very moment you need them most. Better Not Love Me is classified as a romance novel, but it's also about family, compassion and understanding. Highly recommended!
http://ebookreviewgal.com received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
January 3, 2016
Better Not Love Me is the sequel to Dan Kolbet's book, Don't Wait For Me. I remember reading Don't Wait For Me and feeling heartbroken at the ending. It wasn't the happy ending I'd expected, though it seemed to be a somewhat happy ending at the time.
Better Not Love Me picks up a few years later, with the main character, Amelia, front and center again. She's been working as the president of Mr. Z's toys, not that it means much. Her title is really a formality, because she has very little say, despite how hard she's working. Rather, despite how much she WAS working. Amelia has just quit her job and is taking the summer on the lake to reconnect with her children, and herself, before deciding what to do next with her life.
While at the lake, she meets up with Nate, her old boss. There's a lot of animosity there, and Kolbet does a good job of showing us why that animosity exists, while also moving the characters past it and into a new, somewhat tenuous relationship.
I loved the way that we were caught up on what the characters had been up to in the intervening years that we didn't get to see between book one and book two. I also enjoyed that the flashbacks to the events in book one were detailed enough to clue in the reader who hasn't read the previous book, but also not so detailed as to feel tedious and dragging to the reader who has read it. We see the effects that the events of the past book have had on the characters.
This book moved forward at a brisk pace. Though one could argue that there were some similarities to the first book - say, Amelia getting involved with a man again - there are more than enough differences to ensure that this is a fresh, completely different book. Different season, different location, and even Amelia herself is different. We see the changes that her job, her children, her marriage, and more have had on her - and all of it is believable, realistic, and sympathetic.
Kolbet did a great job of pulling at my heartstrings again, just as he did with the first book. In fact, without giving anything away, I will say that at one point, I was thinking that if he did what I thought he was doing to these characters, I would never forgive him or read another of his books again. Luckily, he didn't do what I thought he was doing, providing a great twist that left me breathless and smiling, and I can happily continue to read his work.
While Better Not Love Me could be read as a standalone novel, I would highly recommend reading Don't Wait For Me first, as the two books complement each other so well.
I was provided with a free copy of this book by the author, in exchange for my honest review.
Better Not Love Me picks up a few years later, with the main character, Amelia, front and center again. She's been working as the president of Mr. Z's toys, not that it means much. Her title is really a formality, because she has very little say, despite how hard she's working. Rather, despite how much she WAS working. Amelia has just quit her job and is taking the summer on the lake to reconnect with her children, and herself, before deciding what to do next with her life.
While at the lake, she meets up with Nate, her old boss. There's a lot of animosity there, and Kolbet does a good job of showing us why that animosity exists, while also moving the characters past it and into a new, somewhat tenuous relationship.
I loved the way that we were caught up on what the characters had been up to in the intervening years that we didn't get to see between book one and book two. I also enjoyed that the flashbacks to the events in book one were detailed enough to clue in the reader who hasn't read the previous book, but also not so detailed as to feel tedious and dragging to the reader who has read it. We see the effects that the events of the past book have had on the characters.
This book moved forward at a brisk pace. Though one could argue that there were some similarities to the first book - say, Amelia getting involved with a man again - there are more than enough differences to ensure that this is a fresh, completely different book. Different season, different location, and even Amelia herself is different. We see the changes that her job, her children, her marriage, and more have had on her - and all of it is believable, realistic, and sympathetic.
Kolbet did a great job of pulling at my heartstrings again, just as he did with the first book. In fact, without giving anything away, I will say that at one point, I was thinking that if he did what I thought he was doing to these characters, I would never forgive him or read another of his books again. Luckily, he didn't do what I thought he was doing, providing a great twist that left me breathless and smiling, and I can happily continue to read his work.
While Better Not Love Me could be read as a standalone novel, I would highly recommend reading Don't Wait For Me first, as the two books complement each other so well.
I was provided with a free copy of this book by the author, in exchange for my honest review.
September 14, 2016
Another happy ending.
I live in Washington. So, I like reading good clean stories set in familiar locales. I would recommend this book to all my friends.
I live in Washington. So, I like reading good clean stories set in familiar locales. I would recommend this book to all my friends.
April 16, 2017
OVERALL RATING: (2) stars because the plot lost its CLEANLINESS on the bicycle trail which is where I stopped reading and forever closed the book. A book with such great and fantastic potential. An author with fantastic writing skills. No longer a mellow adult and YA book. Disappointed.
SENSUALITY RATING: NO Profanity; NO Euphemistic "code words”; Y sexual encounters- “…..she gently raised and lowered her body to his; a use your imagination encounter.
GENRE: Modern day; fiction romance;.
SETTING: Lake Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
CENTRAL FEMALE CHARACTER: AMELIA COOK – Absentee parent; Alone; No direction.
CENTRAL MALE CHARACTER: NATE ROSEN- Meeting corporate demands; bossy and demanding himself.
SYNOPSIS: She proceeded to give him all the hate that she had for him. She quit. He annoyingly ends up in the cabin up from her and her children’s vacation spot.
WHAT I LIKED: Her sister is hilarious
WHAT I DID NOT LIKE: The previous books were so CLEAN to read and then….sexual encounter. HATE IT. Not everyone in a book should be so beautiful and so handsome. She found 3 “handsome” men? Really?
Therefore, “AN EASEL FOR AVERY” and “DON’T WAIT FOR ME”; (5) absolute stars. Totally Awesome. Fantastic books. This one? ☹
SENSUALITY RATING: NO Profanity; NO Euphemistic "code words”; Y sexual encounters- “…..she gently raised and lowered her body to his; a use your imagination encounter.
GENRE: Modern day; fiction romance;.
SETTING: Lake Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
CENTRAL FEMALE CHARACTER: AMELIA COOK – Absentee parent; Alone; No direction.
CENTRAL MALE CHARACTER: NATE ROSEN- Meeting corporate demands; bossy and demanding himself.
SYNOPSIS: She proceeded to give him all the hate that she had for him. She quit. He annoyingly ends up in the cabin up from her and her children’s vacation spot.
WHAT I LIKED: Her sister is hilarious
WHAT I DID NOT LIKE: The previous books were so CLEAN to read and then….sexual encounter. HATE IT. Not everyone in a book should be so beautiful and so handsome. She found 3 “handsome” men? Really?
Therefore, “AN EASEL FOR AVERY” and “DON’T WAIT FOR ME”; (5) absolute stars. Totally Awesome. Fantastic books. This one? ☹
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews