Same tired formula
2.5 stars rounded to 3, which I'll explain later. Brittney Sahin still holds a special place in my heart as one of two authors who helped guide me into a more open-minded place in regard to the romance genre with her Dublin Nights series. Parker S. Huntington is the second author. Had it not been for those two, I might never have even dipped my toes in the pool of lovey dovey romance.
But alas, it's a two-edged sword.
Because what sprouts an interest (and eventual love) on my part for a genre can also sprout more criticism, especially when I become more familiar with tropes, trends, and formulas. I'm at a point where I expect authors to outdo even their OWN selves for every new story. To be fair, I'll admit that I've simply become more difficult to please nowadays.
When it comes to THIS story, there wasn't anything too splendidly original. Ok, maybe SOME new (ish) things, but they were few and far between the usual formulas: Hot ex-Navy SEAL (Ryan) and gorgeous heroine (Natalia), aka, his brother's ex-fiancé. They hate one another (pfft, no they don't). Once they reunite after some time apart, they both need favors from one another, one of which involves finding a fake girlfriend for Ryan to fulfill a specific purpose, which I won't spoil.
Though *gasp!* How ever will they ignore their own fixations on one another? Infatuations that even time itself was powerless to kill? Is it love? Well it’s suppose to be, tho I had trouble buying it. More lust, in my opinion. They're both adults and both incredibly horny, so pretty much most of the sex scenes are a result of lacking control (yawn). There's of course a moment that involves dressing up (which almost always leads to, shocker, MORE sex). Oh, and can't forget the military danger, which is at least ONE of the requirements for military stories, romances or not.
It was all blah, blah, blah to me. Some sweet, tender moments exist, surely, but eh. Nothing too stirring. I've had my heart ripped out of my chest for plenty of other stories (even by Sahin herself) that took my breath away, and this simply wasn't one of them. The only reasons I rounded this up to three stars were the character dialogues and interactions, as well as all the splendid cameos of characters from Sahin's past books. I didn't expect this, but I definitely delighted in it.
All in all, it's still the same ol' thing. Not dreadful, not amazing. I will forever have a soft spot for Sahin. At the end of the day, even if the stories don't wow me, she's still a great TELLER of a story.