Author: Jane Peden
Publisher: Mr. Media
Release Date: November 29, 2016
Series: Miami Lawyers #2
Genre: Contemporary Series Romance
ISBN: 978-1-53762-788-5Add to your TBR List: Goodreads
Her worst enemy is the one man she can’t resist.
Maria Martinez thought it was a dream come true when Ritchie Perez—a sweet and sexy guy she met volunteering at a soup kitchen—took her delinquent little brother Joey under his wing. But her dream becomes a nightmare when she discovers Ritchie is the same man who put her twin brother Tito in prison for 10 years. Now Joey’s in trouble, and Ritchie’s been appointed his temporary guardian. He’ll be moving into Ritchie’s luxurious waterfront Miami home—unless he’d prefer a juvenile detention facility.
And if Maria wants to be with him, she’ll be moving in too.
Now a hugely successful attorney in private practice, Ritchie made his reputation as a tough prosecutor who didn’t make deals with drug dealers and gang members. But that history comes back to haunt him when the woman he’s falling for believes he’s responsible for convicting an innocent man, and destroying her family. Ritchie wants to stop Joey from making the same mistakes his brother did. And he wants Maria in his bed. But as desire heats their blood, will the past reach out and destroy their future?
REVIEW:
Let me start out by writing that this is a very interesting premise. I was glad that it didn’t take the whole story (or even half of it) for them to realize they shared a past, although it was brief, but very painful. I wasn’t sure where the story would go, but I was anxious to find out.
I crushed on Ritchie…big time. He’s tough, yet gentle, fair, and straightforward. I really liked Joey, too. He was your typical teenager, and his transformation was believable, especially for his age. He needed a firm hand, and Ritchie was the perfect person to give it to him.
Now on to Maria. I wanted to like her. And occasionally, I did. But sometimes she just bugged the hell out of me. Sometimes to the point where I wanted Ritchie to kick her out and just keep Joey. Although I understood why she wanted to do things her way, her strength often came across as juvenile, bitchy, fussiness. I’m all for standing on your own two feet, but she had way too much pride, and she worked my last nerve about Tito. She just couldn’t admit that he was in prison because of his own behavior, and her constant need to point out that he’d been given the raw deal got on my last nerves and some I didn’t even know I had. I yelled out “Oh, shut up!” which is something I usually yell at the TV, not my kindle. Now how disturbing is that?
Ritchie and Joey carried the story for me. I also liked Ritchie’s mom. Now, I didn’t hate Maria, I just didn’t like her as much as I would’ve liked to, and I was glad that Ritchie stood his ground with her. I came to terms with the fact that they’d be together, and by the end I was ok with it.
Rating system: Cups of Coffee (the less the better)
0: You won’t need any coffee to stay up for this one. It’s intriguing enough all on its own.
1: You’ll stay up late, but not all night. Brew one cup.
2: You’ll read as long as you’re not tired. If you are, two cups should do the trick.
3: I hope you got plenty of rest; you’ll need it, or at least 3 cups.
4: If the cable goes out, read the book. It’s better than nothing, I guess. Oh, don’t forget your brew!
5: Find anything else to do- it doesn’t matter what it is. Don’t waste your coffee. Too much caffeine is bad for you.
My rating: 2 cups of coffee
Buy Links: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo
About Jane Peden:
Jane Peden is a Florida trial attorney who writes sexy contemporary category romances set in the exciting South Florida city of Miami, where millionaire lawyers live extravagant lifestyles and find love when they least expect it. When Jane isn’t in court, you can find her at the beach with her laptop, dreaming up stories about successful, confident men who know what they want and how to get it, and smart, sexy women who demand love on their own terms. Jane’s books promise sizzling chemistry in the face of insurmountable obstacles. And just when things couldn’t get any worse, an emotional payoff that makes it all worthwhile.
Jane grew up in the mountains of western Pennsylvania, but decided early on that the only thing better than escaping the cold for a two-week vacation at the beach was to live there all year around, so she traded her snow boots for a jet ski and has never looked back. Jane lives on the sunny Gulf Coast of Florida with her husband, two kids, two dogs, and a fish.
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