A moment of danger brings together a man trying to live up to his father's reputation, and a woman struggling with a disability, in an entertaining romance that will pull you into this world of sexy second generation heroes. Keep reading to get a tempting taste of Say It Ain’t So by Lani Lynn Vale, along with my impressions of this small town romance, then add this ninth installment in the SWAT Generation 2.0 series to your bookshelf!
He should’ve never left his house. He should’ve stayed at home. He has a legitimate excuse—he’s running a fever and he’s fairly sure he’s developing pneumonia. He should have called in sick...but he doesn’t.
He goes to work, because his team is relying on him.
First, he has to sign about eight thousand calendars—all from women who purchased said calendars to benefit the Fallen Officer fundraiser. And when he’s done with that, he has to endure a television interview along with the rest of the SWAT team seeing as they made national news with their ‘Hot SWAT’ calendar that’s sold a million copies to women all over the world.
Needless to say, when Samuel Adams walks into the pharmacy hours later, he only has one thing on his mind. Ibuprofen.
Sadly, he never gets to the Ibuprofen. Mostly because before he gets there, he finds a junkie waving a gun around threatening to kill anybody that moves.
He’s running a fever. That has to be the reason that the girl in the corner begins cursing up a storm and drawing the junkie’s attention. Has to be.
***
Stop it, stop it, stop it!
She tells herself to take a deep breath. Tells herself that she needs to calm down. Tells herself that if she doesn’t get her act under control, things are going to get ugly.
And, of course, that’s when the curse words start flying.
The more nervous she gets, the worse her Tourette’s becomes. Which is, of course, why she stands up and gives the man a perfect target.
Thank God that the coughing giant in the corner makes the same move and saves her life. And how does she repay him? By calling him every awful word in the dictionary.
Thank you, Tourette’s.
MY IMPRESSIONS OF THIS BOOK:
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MY IMPRESSIONS OF THIS BOOK:
When it comes to unique characters, Lani Lynn Vale has crafted a few that have me coming back for more as I appreciate seeing characters reminiscent of me. With her latest release she's given readers a heroine dealing with Tourette's, one teeming with self-doubts from past relationships that were affected by her disability, but it clearly hasn't kept her from going after her dreams. Pairing her up with the sexy SWAT team member next door makes for all sorts of fireworks, a few tears, and some suspense too as they grow closer together in a pulse-pounding and fast-paced story.
Hastings Hughes is a likable heroine who's always felt like a weirdo due to her Tourette's. She's always felt a bit lacking and it's clear at the start of the story that her self-esteem is bruised. She's always dealt with her Tourette's head-on though, keeping it fairly under control with the help of meds and being as stress-free as possible. When a robbery attempt at a drugstore brings her to the attention of a strong and sexy SWAT member, life for her will change irrevocably in a romance full of push and pull and unconditional acceptance. Hastings is a caring heroine who's been hurt by relationships in the past so she's trying to be more careful of her heart this time around which had the two of them dancing around each other early on which left me frustrated a time or two. Through it all I found Hastings easy to relate to as I too am a person who has a disability. She was shown in a straightforward manner, never sugarcoating things, and I appreciated the honesty in describing what she went through when her disability flared. Issues of intimacy were also on display in a way that was respectful and realistic and her reactions to these moments endeared Hastings to me all the more. She and Sammy were charming together, both accepting of the other wholeheartedly, and it was a sweet and steamy journey of insta-love that soon became something more.
Samuel Adams is a second generation member of SWAT, trying to make a name for himself separate from his heroic father. He's always been popular with the ladies as they easily land at his feet, but he's not at all arrogant about the thrall he has over women. He does take it for granted though, so when the unique woman he comes into contact with at a robbery attempt doesn't easily give in to him he's thrown for a loop. Hastings is like no other woman he's known before and he quickly becomes entranced by her, trying to be cool early on before laying all his cards on the table to finally win her over. Sammy's an immensely appealing hero with a heart of gold. He's protective with alpha instincts that sometimes rush to the surface, but isn't afraid to say what's in his heart with words and deeds that made me love him all the more. His thoughts on pregnant women were especially charming and made me wish that all men thought like him. Through everything lobbed at this couple he made me laugh, made me smile, as well as bringing a blush to my cheeks in a romance that brought out all his heroic tendencies.
From start to finish this story held me captive with its unique and appealing characters and its array of emotions that kept me constantly on edge. The issues between Sammy and Hastings early on were typical problems of not listening, and though annoying, thankfully didn't last long. Once these two committed they were all-in and it was them against the danger creeping ever closer to her that had me speeding through the pages to see what happens next. Overall there was a great balance between the action and romance, a delicious balance in and out of the bedroom that made me smile while I fanned myself. Though their romance seemed instantaneous I enjoyed the time they spent together building their foundation while dealing with life, enjoying their humorous and naughty banter. There was much to enjoy about this book, as is often the case with a book from Ms. Vale, but I did feel there was a bit of roughness regarding the narrative as certain actions were forgotten as well as an overly-fast wrap-up to the story's ending. Despite my small quibbles I found this another delightful addition to the series, loved the family feel these characters engendered in me, and was especially drawn to this entertaining couple whose journey to HEA put me through the emotional wringer...in a very good way! I look forward to seeing these characters again and am counting down the days until Ms. Vale introduces us to her next unforgettable couple.
My rating for this is a B+
*I got this book from the author for review in exchange for my honest opinion.
AUTHOR INFO:
Lani Lynn Vale is a Wall Street Journal & USA Today Bestselling Author of over thirty titles. She is married with three children, two dogs, two cats, a donkey, and a couple (a couple also meaning over twenty) chickens.
When she’s not writing, you can find her curled up in her favorite chair reading. Lani is married with three children and lives in the Great State of Texas.
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