I like stories about people coming back home, especially when they left suddenly or have something in their past that really changed things for them. I think it's the whole idea of overcoming the obstacles of your past and making things right with the people left behind, so I was pretty excited about this book.
Zoey comes home to take care of her ailing mother, and boy did she make a memorable entrance. Her friend was suppose to pick her up from the airport, and instead, her friends hot brother Garrett shows up instead, and she's covered in baby vomit from a highly undesirable airplane ride. But Zoey is remarkably compassionate and good natured, and you get that feeling from her right from the beginning, so its easy to see why Garrett would be so attracted to her. As a character, I really enjoyed Zoey, she was genuinely a good person, but she didn't come off as a push over or too sugary sweet, she was just the right amount of authentic. I liked that she showed understanding to the people from her past that she had a bad history with, that she never really overreacted to things. She's the kind of person anyone would want to be friends with. Also I love that she has a soft spot for animals (her getting her dog Ticket sounds like just the kind of thing/situation that would happen to me).
As for Garrett, I liked him too. I liked that he was good guy, and ready to lend a hand to his friends/family. He definitely comes off a a good looking man (and what girl doesn't like the image of a hot firefighter). I liked the dynamic that he had with Zoey, he wasn't too pushy, but rather offered his help freely and wanted to hear what Zoey thought, I hate when men get a little pushy, so Garrett was my kind of guy for sure.
The two of them definitely had chemistry together, and they work so hard and not being a couple that it's slightly hilarious. Of course it was amusing to see how little Garrett's family bought into that, his family is without a doubt a great cast of secondary characters. I liked his dad's impromptu visit to Zoey's only to find Garrett there too.
The book was a tad bit short for my normal taste, but still really enjoyable. I think my biggest problem was the ending felt a little too rushed for me. There is a confrontation at the end with Zoey and someone from her past, that gets resolved over like the course of two pages, which felt a little bit unnatural. But other than that I really didn't have any complaints about the book, it was really a fun read. Easily recommend to other.