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Precious Embrace by Dana Mason
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
First of all, this is the second book in the series, but this book is definitely able to be read as a stand-alone book. In fact, I didn’t realize that I had read the first book in the series when I initially began reading it. So if you haven’t read the first book, you can still thoroughly enjoy this book–at least, in my opinion.
This book essentially follows a similar formula to the first book, and that is both a good and bad thing as far as I’m concerned. The storyline is fast-paced, involving, and oftentimes filled with nail-biting suspense. When it comes to this author, you can always count on a strong narrative with three-dimensional characters. I could identify with Ali from the beginning since I am a single mom myself who has had nothing but trouble from men! And when the unthinkable happens, well, it gets pretty intense. I think both Ali and Johnny seem a little too needy, and the relationship between Ali and her first ex really boggles my mind. But those are just small details that don’t truly take away the pleasure from the tale.
I will caution anyone who wishes to read this book or the first in the series. You will encounter hard-core profanity and some intensive bedroom scenes. I wasn’t overly bothered with this when I read the first book, but this one really did wear on me. I’m not marking it down for this reason, but I believe that this author’s story does not need all this added content. I grew increasingly tired of reading the profanity, but that is just my opinion.
The thing that spoiled this book for me somewhat is that it follows the same format as the last book. What I mean specifically is that the reader knows too well what the outcome will be. Many not-too-subtle hints are dropped along the way, and everything ends too neatly. I know that sometimes I enjoy a happy ending, and romances are always supposed to be like that, right? However, when reality is too strained (in my opinion), and I find myself rolling my eyes throughout several instances in the story, the story tends to turn me off. Maybe I’m just too much of a realist, and I prefer more meat when it comes to my characters and stories. This does not make the book bad–nothing could be further from the truth. I would hope that if the author chooses to write another follow-up to this book that she will add more surprises into the mix and perhaps interject some realistic elements that will shake the reader up a bit. But again, this is just my opinion. If you are a fan of romances with a bit of suspense, this book is most certainly for you, as long as you don’t mind the profanity and sex.
I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I was not financially compensated, and all opinions are 100 percent mine.
