Welcome to the review tour for A Reckless Heart by Jennifer Wilck! I've read a couple of her other books, so I was very interested in giving another one of her books a shot. This is a unique contemporary romance with some hints of a familiar fairy tale in it. Read on for an excerpt as well as my full book review. Be sure to follow the tour for even more. Leave your questions and comments along the way. Best of luck entering the giveaway!
Meg Thurgood, former society girl, took the blame for her friend and paid a steep price. Now all she wants is solitude and a chance to rebuild her life. She thinks she's found that in an isolated house she rents from a mysterious stranger.
Simon McAlter has hidden in his house on the coast of Maine since a fire left him scarred. A successful landscape architect who conducts his business and teaches his classes remotely, he's lost his inspiration and is trying to pretend he's not lonely.
Simon's new neighbor is more than he bargained for. When he learns Meg's secret, will he retreat into the shadows or will he learn to see past the surface and trust in Meg's love?
Read an excerpt:
Meg walked with Simon on the rocky beach, waves on her right, cliffs on her left, and seagulls overhead. This time, her lungs expanded, her respiration slowed, and she became hyper aware of him. He took longer strides than she did, but after they’d gone a few feet, he shortened his.
She appreciated the consideration. It only made her more aware of his muscular thighs. Their arms brushed as they walked, and tingles shot up her neck. It was an accident, wasn’t it? He stepped away, but a few strides later the uneven ground pushed them together, and their bodies brushed against each other. She listened to his breath hitch at the contact, and he didn’t move away.
Nervous laughter bubbled in her chest. They’d been close before and held hands. Granted, he’d covered hers on the ladder, but still. It wasn’t the first time they touched. Why was this different? She remembered the sensations when he’d covered her hand on the roof— warmth and roughness and safety. And she wanted it. She bumped her hand against his, on purpose, to feel his skin. It wasn’t smooth like hers. Its texture, unique to him, fascinated her. A moment later, he rubbed his arm against her.
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**My thoughts**
All I kept thinking of while reading this book was Beauty and the Beast. Meg is the beauty, of course, formerly a notorious socialite who was constantly in the spotlight. She has literally spent time in prison for a crime she may not have actually committed. We get bits and pieces of the truth sprinkled throughout the book because now she's in a sort of psychological prison, not being permitted to actually tell anyone what really happened. She is deeply ashamed of her past, so there's a bit of self-incarceration going on as well. And then she finds herself drawn to the beast.
Simon isn't really a beast. He actually has a heart of gold, but a fire that destroyed his family home, killing his parents and others and leaving him physically scarred as well as emotionally scarred, has made him very wary of people. He has closed himself off from others because he feels he is too repulsive to look at. And he doesn't like the whispers that he hears around town.
So the two of them are basically misfits. And when fate brings them together on a stormy night, they are forced to get to know each other and end up falling for each other. It seems like a totally unlikely romance, and yet, it makes perfect sense all at the same time.
And then of course, when the truth rears its ugly head, everything comes crashing down and they have to find their way back to each other without destroying themselves in the process.
This book had a lot of whispers of another book I read some time ago. Of course, I can't remember what that particular book was. There were a few similarities more in the beginning, and then this one went on its own path. So double familiarity between that romance and then the fairy tale, plus the unique spin, kept me up a lot later than I had intended to stay up because I just wanted to keep going with it.
This is the first book in a new series. I'm looking forward to seeing what other scarred characters come to life in future installments.
Thank you to the author and Goddess Fish for a requested review copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
In the real world, she’s the mother of two amazing daughters and wife of one of the smartest men she knows. She believes humor is the only way to get through the day and does not believe in sharing her chocolate.
She writes contemporary romance, many of which feature Jewish characters in non-religious settings (#ownvoices). She’s published with The Wild Rose Press, as well as indie, and all her books are available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Author Links:
Website: http://www.jenniferwilck.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jennifer-Wilck-201342863240160/
Newsletter: https://www.jenniferwilck.com/contact.html#newsletter
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JWilck
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorjenniferwilck/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/jennifer-wilck
Jennifer Wilck will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
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Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for taking the time to read and review!
ReplyDeleteUnique works for me.
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