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Outside The Box
Hi. I'm Alex Franklin. I'm a realtor. Pleased to meet you.
Kids? Sort of. I helped raise Kate's daughter. My lover? Laugh. No. Kate is my little sister. Melody is twelve now. She's the light of my life, and I love it when she calls me "Mom Two".
Seeing anyone? Not currently. But, if you can believe it, Melody has been playing matchmaker lately...
--
This is a sweet romance novel of 65,000 words.
Kids? Sort of. I helped raise Kate's daughter. My lover? Laugh. No. Kate is my little sister. Melody is twelve now. She's the light of my life, and I love it when she calls me "Mom Two".
Seeing anyone? Not currently. But, if you can believe it, Melody has been playing matchmaker lately...
--
This is a sweet romance novel of 65,000 words.
261 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 4, 2016
28 people are currently reading
22 people want to read
About the author
Robin Roseau
114 books213 followersA writer by avocation, Robin has a renaissance interest in many areas. A bit of a gypsy, Robin has called a few places home and has traveled widely. A love of the outdoors, animals in general and experimenting with world cuisines, Robin and partner share their home with a menagerie of pets and guests, although sometimes it is difficult to discern who is whom.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 5, 2017
What a charming story of falling in love and about family and blended families. This was a well done story with well developed characters. Well done!
September 5, 2018
Indicative
This story is so indicative of what our world is like today. There's no black and white anymore, the lines are all blurred... And it's Awesome! Like the old saying goes " it takes a village to raise a child". This story did a great job of showing that it's nurture not nature that makes a "parent". Great job, Robin. Another winning story!
This story is so indicative of what our world is like today. There's no black and white anymore, the lines are all blurred... And it's Awesome! Like the old saying goes " it takes a village to raise a child". This story did a great job of showing that it's nurture not nature that makes a "parent". Great job, Robin. Another winning story!
June 18, 2017
Book
Wonderful story it kept me wanting more. The author did a great job with the characters and the storyline. Two thumbs up
Wonderful story it kept me wanting more. The author did a great job with the characters and the storyline. Two thumbs up
January 22, 2024
well…?
It wasn’t one of my favorite stories, but still very well written. I think my biggest problem was Jenna. I had a hard time relating to her. She was a bit too much like the love interest in “Lost in the Words” and also Nicole from “Fitting In.” I didn’t mind Nicole all the time, but women who come into other women’s lives and want to temper too much of another’s personality, I have a hard time with that. I don’t mind wanting to lead things sometimes, but this was just too much…”I’m small. I’m blonde. I’m cute.” This was what she said that justified her telling Alex that she had to make her always comfortable with her insecurities, paranoia and suspicious and jealous leanings. I get it. But it caused Alex to not be Alex to me anymore. Alex was playful, kind and thoughtful already. I think Jenna could have gone about this better than that.
I felt as if Alex settled for what she could get from Jenna. I don’t mind a slow relationship build. This was too slow. And who knows what the sex was like. You were told it was great, but it was never described by the author. It was hard to see them fall in love without seeing their chemistry through the lens of sex. That’s not good on the part of the author.
Again, like some of the books including children, too much focus on them. We never got to know Alex and Jenna outside the kids. All the jockeying about the kids and the the big shoe to drop about Gina’s dad.
It seemed forced for Jenna and Alex to finally move in together because of how it came about. I mean they should finally live together and have a life. Perhaps that is why Mark did what he did.
All in all, there wasn’t much to make me want to root for the main characters to have a HEA. It felt so contrived. There wasn’t anything special about these two women except raising nieces the way they did. Very little about Jenna drew me in after she told and made all the rules about how she was to he “courted” but then told Alex once they went out she was never to…well I can’t say this part.
Still 4 stars for the wonderful writings of my favorite author.
It wasn’t one of my favorite stories, but still very well written. I think my biggest problem was Jenna. I had a hard time relating to her. She was a bit too much like the love interest in “Lost in the Words” and also Nicole from “Fitting In.” I didn’t mind Nicole all the time, but women who come into other women’s lives and want to temper too much of another’s personality, I have a hard time with that. I don’t mind wanting to lead things sometimes, but this was just too much…”I’m small. I’m blonde. I’m cute.” This was what she said that justified her telling Alex that she had to make her always comfortable with her insecurities, paranoia and suspicious and jealous leanings. I get it. But it caused Alex to not be Alex to me anymore. Alex was playful, kind and thoughtful already. I think Jenna could have gone about this better than that.
I felt as if Alex settled for what she could get from Jenna. I don’t mind a slow relationship build. This was too slow. And who knows what the sex was like. You were told it was great, but it was never described by the author. It was hard to see them fall in love without seeing their chemistry through the lens of sex. That’s not good on the part of the author.
Again, like some of the books including children, too much focus on them. We never got to know Alex and Jenna outside the kids. All the jockeying about the kids and the the big shoe to drop about Gina’s dad.
It seemed forced for Jenna and Alex to finally move in together because of how it came about. I mean they should finally live together and have a life. Perhaps that is why Mark did what he did.
All in all, there wasn’t much to make me want to root for the main characters to have a HEA. It felt so contrived. There wasn’t anything special about these two women except raising nieces the way they did. Very little about Jenna drew me in after she told and made all the rules about how she was to he “courted” but then told Alex once they went out she was never to…well I can’t say this part.
Still 4 stars for the wonderful writings of my favorite author.
February 10, 2017
Alex Franklin is the second mum to her 12 year old niece Melody. When Melody and her best friend Gina set Alex up with Gina's aunt Jenna, it all starts to feel like a bigger family. The four of them start a soccer team, and go on holidays together, and they all get on with Melody's mum Kate, and Gina's dad Mark. But when Mark want's to marry another woman, it all gets a bit more complicated.
This sounded like a family saga, but Roseau has enough experience for it to work. She handles the number of characters well, although many are fairly thinly drawn to allow more space for Alex and Jenna's relationship. For the most part, it is a lesbian romance with the addition of 12 year olds and parenting.
What I had trouble with was how controlling Jenna was. There was no give and take, but a clear statement early on in their relationship that if she didn't get her way on nearly everything, Jenna was going to walk. I didn't like Jenna much because of it, and I really didn't understand why Alex would put up with someone so controlling. I don't think this sort of need for control is a 'foible' that can be worked around in a relationship, and I don't understand why Roseau seems to think it is. It made the book much more of a chore for me to read. I didn't really like the book much as a result.
This sounded like a family saga, but Roseau has enough experience for it to work. She handles the number of characters well, although many are fairly thinly drawn to allow more space for Alex and Jenna's relationship. For the most part, it is a lesbian romance with the addition of 12 year olds and parenting.
What I had trouble with was how controlling Jenna was. There was no give and take, but a clear statement early on in their relationship that if she didn't get her way on nearly everything, Jenna was going to walk. I didn't like Jenna much because of it, and I really didn't understand why Alex would put up with someone so controlling. I don't think this sort of need for control is a 'foible' that can be worked around in a relationship, and I don't understand why Roseau seems to think it is. It made the book much more of a chore for me to read. I didn't really like the book much as a result.
December 13, 2016
Good book
I enjoyed reading this book and I loved the unconventional families in this book. I also liked the thinking outside the box for solutions.
I enjoyed reading this book and I loved the unconventional families in this book. I also liked the thinking outside the box for solutions.
December 12, 2016
Sweet story
This was a sweet story. The kids in this book are lucky to have so many adults that put them first out of their love for them. I was happy I was able to read this book on kindle unlimited because there were many grammatical errors and I can't stand paying good money for a book that wasn't edited properly.
This was a sweet story. The kids in this book are lucky to have so many adults that put them first out of their love for them. I was happy I was able to read this book on kindle unlimited because there were many grammatical errors and I can't stand paying good money for a book that wasn't edited properly.
December 17, 2016
Oh my god. Has there been a ghost writer at work? Contrary to the author's previous books, in this one was no abduction, no betrayal, no Stockholm syndrome. Even the gaming was kept low profile.
I really, really hope for this (the absence of the above mentioned things) to continue. It makes the author doubly enjoyable.
I really, really hope for this (the absence of the above mentioned things) to continue. It makes the author doubly enjoyable.
December 25, 2016
Excellent book.
I loved Outside the Box. All the characters are great and very believable. And there are a lot of people in this book. I think Robin Roseau has written on a very relevant topic. Often lesbians and their children have to deal with unconventional family situations. I loved how everyone's opinions mattered. Excellent read.
I loved Outside the Box. All the characters are great and very believable. And there are a lot of people in this book. I think Robin Roseau has written on a very relevant topic. Often lesbians and their children have to deal with unconventional family situations. I loved how everyone's opinions mattered. Excellent read.
December 11, 2016
Editor needed
Grey story & a real stretch for Ms. Rouseau. Loved the characters & the story. Sweet & unassuming. Loved it.
Grey story & a real stretch for Ms. Rouseau. Loved the characters & the story. Sweet & unassuming. Loved it.
December 17, 2016
Liked this, but it suffers a lot from a huge peeve of mine, and that is name swapping. Otherwise this is an enjoyable read.
January 3, 2017
The Story is good, but there are so many errors which made it hard to read.
Especially how often names get exchanged, and this has confused the hell out of me, and made this book not so enjoyable
Especially how often names get exchanged, and this has confused the hell out of me, and made this book not so enjoyable
January 29, 2017
Great
This is a very good story, I recommend it. Jeena and Alex and their nieces , they raised like daughters........This girls never bore you.....
This is a very good story, I recommend it. Jeena and Alex and their nieces , they raised like daughters........This girls never bore you.....
March 25, 2017
Decent read. Not as good as Roseau's other works, and I don't think Robin is good at writing believable thirteen year olds, but not many people are.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews