Up Close and Personal by Jody Vitek Published by Satin Romance, LLC Publication Date: October 27th 2015
Pages: 290
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She collides with her past; he lets go of his present...will it be enough for a future together? Four years after losing her husband, Elizabeth Farefield's mother-in-law still blames her for his death. Finding it difficult to move forward, she takes a Caribbean cruise to contemplate her future...bumping into the past. Divorced for five years, Robert Burnhamwood is happy with his playboy ways until on a cruise, a chance meeting has him longing for something he hasn't wanted since his first marriage...a monogamous relationship filled with love. But when Robert's youngest daughter retaliates against his new relationship, his oldest daughter takes up with a man against his wishes, and a rapist terrorizes her neighborhood putting his daughter at risk, a peaceful future with new found love may be beyond Elizabeth's grasp.
Cocktails and Books received this book for free from Manic Readers in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect our opinion of the book or the content of our review.
Parts of this book I enjoyed other parts seemed to fall a little short for me.
Robert enjoys his life, divorced father of 3 has been single for the last 5 years with a string of lady friends to keep him occupied. A successful businessman has never really taken time off so when his partner talks him into going on a cruise to get out of the frigid MinnesotaΒ winter. Β When he runs into Liz an old client of his who recently lost her husband they spend time on the cruise and really enjoy each others company. Β Robert being a confirmed bachelorΒ can he make a real relationship work once they get back to the real world?
Liz lost her husband in a car accident – now single with 2 small children she is trying to find her footing again and going on a cruise may just be the thing to help her with that. Β When she meets Robert she begins to feel things that she thought were dead. Β With an overbearing mother in law and her kids can they make this work once they get back to the real world?
I did enjoy Robert and Liz for the most part – both older it was a nice change of pace for me. Β Where it got confusing is the subplot with Robert’s older daughter and a coworker and both of them working for Robert’s firm – it was a little much and felt at times like I was reading 2 different books. Β The writing style of this author was just not strong enough to really keep the story flowing between the 2 storylines. Β Then you throw in a preteen daughter who is not a nice character it was just a little too much to take in 1 book. Β I think overall the attempt on the author’s part was admirable but fell short for me.
