3.5 Stars! Tattooed Dots is my first read by Kimberly Knight, and I really enjoyed it. The romance was sweet and the story emotional and inspirational.
Summary:
Easton Crawford is in the fight of his life for the custody of his precious daughter, Cheyenne. He refuses to let his high school sweetheart and almost ex-wife, Dana, take his rights away. Easton can't lie and say he isn't to blame for his current situation, because he is. He's the one who didn't respect his marriage vows or put his wife and child before his own selfish needs, but he refuses to be booted out of his young daughter's life without a fight. But when tragedy strikes, Easton's world is swiftly changed, and proving he's worthy of the gift Dana gave him is all that matters. Now, five years later Easton is learning to be the father Cheyenne needs him to be, but as she grows older, it gets harder. Easton isn't interested in marriage or a new mom for Cheyenne. He's content to sample the ladies from his bar because it allows for fast, no-strings hook-ups. Luckily for Easton, sometimes you find the very person you didn't know you needed when you least expect it, and his moment is on a singles cruise with his best friend, Avery. Brooke Bradley grew up before her time. Forced to become the primary caregiver for her younger sister, at the age of thirteen, while her mother jetted off to exotic locales, Brooke has always been somewhat of a mother hen. Now instead of taking care of her now adult sister, she must take care of her thirty-four year old boyfriend, Jared. When she gets the gift of a cruise from her best friend, Nicole, Brooke jumps at the chance for a much needed break. What Brooke doesn't know is it's a singles cruise. When she finds out, she goes along for the sake of her best friend, but doesn't expect to meet anyone for herself. Upon meeting, Easton and Brooke form a bond without sexual strings, making it stronger, and become close friends with an undercurrent of sizzling chemistry. Easton finds his perfect match in Brooke, and Brooke finds the support she's always wanted. But off the boat, their connection isn't as easy to maintain. They live close to five hours apart, Easton has Cheyenne, Brooke has Jared, and some unknown, potentially life-threatening obstacles threaten the love they could share. With an uncertain future, Easton and Brooke will learn that people enter and exit your life for many reasons, not always happy ones, but the people to challenge where you're headed are worth grabbing hold, right.
First, let me say, thank you to Ms. Knight for sharing a bit of her own personal story. You are very strong, a survivor, and an inspiration to others. As a nurse, I find the best way to make my patients feel better, and myself better is feedback from others. Some of the thoughts and feelings you spoke of are incredibly helpful, and for me, will be put to good use for future patients. So, thank you! I really adored Brooke. She was so incredibly giving, hardworking, and loyal. I hated the childhood she led, and felt no remorse at her actions toward her mother. Her hardships, where it would have broken others, seemed to make her fight harder, become stronger. It was beautiful to see. Easton really tore my heart out in the beginning. He wasn't a man I'd want to know. Luckily, he endeavored to win me over, and worked hard at it. He turned out to be loving, thoughtful, supportive, and trustworthy. Easton and Brooke were fantastic together. I wish we had a bigger scene with Jared. Maybe a bit of begging on his part, some humiliation. Lol. I also would have liked to have had a few more scenes with just Cheyenne and Brooke. I didn't quite get the connection I was hoping for, but hope to see that in the continuation of their story. While I truly enjoyed the book, I found some minor editing errors. Nothing too crazy, but still present. Also, some of the chapter ends were a bit abrupt for me. It was easily read over, but startling none the less. I'm really looking forward to Avery and Nicole's book. There seems to be so much more under the surface for them, so I'm looking forward to getting to know them better. <3