Monday, December 8, 2014

Review: Whatever It Takes

Whatever It Takes (Morgan Family - Book 2) by J.M. Stewart

Publication Date: 12/02/2014
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: InterMix
Genre: Contemporary Romance
File Size: 955 KB
ASIN: BOOFFFSZDE

(Received for an honest review from InterMix)

Purchase: Amazon, Barnes and Nobleitunes, Kobo

J.M. Stewart on the WEB: website, blog, twitter, facebook, goodreads

Books in the series

Morgan Family

1. Risking It All
2. Whatever It Takes

Coverart: Click the Image for a larger, clearer view of the covers in this series.




Excerpt from, Whatever It Takes, courtesy of Amazon's Look Inside feature.

Synopsis:

She’s been dying to hear the words…

Walking away from her husband was the hardest thing Becca Morgan has ever done, even if it was the only way to save her heart from being broken by a loveless marriage. Still, when a terrible accident forces her to stay at her ex Jackson’s house for a few days, emotions she thought she’d buried long ago start coming to the surface—and, to her surprise, seem to be reciprocated…

…he just doesn’t know how to say.

Jackson Kade has never known love like he knew with Becca, but his cold upbringing left him unable to show her how deeply he feels. When Becca winds up under his roof once more, he knows it’s his only opportunity to prove his devotion—and passion. But old habits die hard, and even one mistake could shatter their last chance at love…


Thoughts:

Whatever It Takes is the second book in J.M. Stewart's Morgan Family Romance series. Readers looking for a great second chance romance with a lot of emotional grit and soul searching will love this one. Stewart is able to capture the feelings of two people who want to be together but don't believe they are quite enough for each other. Jackson and Becca's story is poignant and will definitely pull at the readers heart strings. Is is possible to come back from a divorce that neither partner wanted? Stewart makes readers believe that anything can happen when you do "whatever it takes."

What I liked:

One of the reasons I picked this book to review was the gorgeous cover. I admit, sometimes I'm a cover whore but in this case, the cover and the theme of the story really drew me in. J.M. Stewart gives readers an unusual second chance romance. Both characters have their issues with the past and must get beyond them to find happiness together. Divorce in this case doesn't mean the end for Jackson and Becca, much to the reader's enjoyment. I thought the theme was spot on. Sometimes I think people make rash decisions about marriage and divorce and often times they are based on emotion and not necessarily on truth. Both Becca and Jackson 'assumed' a lot of things about what the other was thinking and feeling and it was nice to see they maybe they were wrong.

Jackson is very sexy hero in this book. I loved his swagger, his demeanor and his confidence. But also loved his vulnerability with Allie and Becca. He seems like a big tough guy, with a sexy southern accent, but underneath he is a man who hasn't known much love in his life and is not very good at expressing it. He mistakenly believed that he had to keep his emotions bottled up and didn't really understand that Becca needed reassurance. That she longed to see how much he loved her and hear him say the words. Coming from experience I know that saying those "three little words" can mean a lot. When you know that the person saying them, actually means it, is priceless.

Becca was by no means a damsel in distress. She was going through some serious issues with the loss of her new rental home and she needed Jackson in more ways than she realized. Readers quickly understand that she still loves Jackson with all of her heart, but she needed to know he loved her back. She was a strong woman, she set out on her own with her daughter, ran her own business and was a force to be reckoning with on the training mat. But she had a hard time letting go of the past and letting Jackson back into her heart and life. 

Bottom Line: 

Both characters in this book were broken and I loved the way they helped each other knit back together. There was some definite steam and the chemistry between them was searing at times. But the emotional dialogue did bog things down just a little bit. I wanted to see their feelings in action more than I wanted to know what was going through their minds. It wasn't a big issue but just got a little monotonous at times. I loved the whole Morgan family and can't wait to read more about them.

Whatever It Takes is available from online retailers, NOW!

I'm giving this one 4 out of 5 apples from my book bag!



About the Author:


JM Stewart writes sweet and heartwarming contemporary romances with a touch of passion. She’s a wife, a mother, a spiritualist and a lover of puppies who is addicted to chocolate and coffee. She lives in the Great Rainy Northwest with her husband of sixteen years and their two sons. She’s a hopeless romantic who believes everybody should have their happily-ever-after and has been devouring romance novels for as long as she can remember. Writing them has become her passion. 

1 comment:

holdenj said...

That's funny, I was thinking how much I liked the cover and umbrella, then got to that sentence in the post!