August 15, 2014

Book Review: IN YOUR DREAMS (BLUE HERON #4) by Kristan Higgins


Book:  In Your Dreams (Blue Heron #4)
Author:  Kristan Higgins
Publisher:  Harlequin HQN
Genre:  Contemporary Adult Romance; Fiction

“…stop whispering into my hair.  You might chip a tooth, I’ve got so much crap sprayed in there.”- Emmaline
“I know.  You smell like ethanol.  I can feel my brain cells dying.  You wearing those chicken cutlets today? Because the girls are looking fantastic.”- Jack
“Shut up Jack.”- Emmaline
“Is that any way to talk to the man you supposedly love?”- Jack
“You’d make a wonderful prostitute.”- Emmaline

Blurb via Goodreads:

Emmaline Neal needs a date. Just a date—someone to help her get through her ex-fiancĂ©'s wedding without losing her mind. But pickings are slim in Manningsport, New York, population 715. In fact, there's really only one option: local heartthrob Jack Holland. 

Everyone loves Jack, and he won't get the wrong idea…. After all, Jack Holland would never actually be interested in a woman like Em. Especially not with his beautiful ex-wife creeping around, angling to reunite ever since he rescued a group of teens and became a local hero. 

But when the wedding festivities take an
unexpectedly passionate turn, Em figures it was just one crazy night. Jack is too gorgeous, too popular, to ever end up with her. So why is she the one he can talk to about his deep, dark feelings? If Em is going to get her dream man, she'll have to start by believing in him.

My Synopsis:

Jack is the quintessential white knight.  The man people turn to and depend on.  The one everyone in town trusts.  He is also the hero who saves the lives of 4 reckless teenagers, or almost all 4, as one of them is in a coma.  And that one could-have-been haunts Jack’s every waking moment.

Emmaline is a small town cop who’s in need of a date for the wedding of her ex, the man she spent half her life with, who dumped her for his gym instructor.  Although she never got over the hurt he caused, she also can’t forget how, for many years, he was the only one who saw through her stutter and loved her despite the hate and bullies in their childhood.

So off to the wedding they went where one night of passion changes their friendship status.  But the road to love is bumpy as Jack has a beautiful wife still sniffing about and doing everything she can to win him back.  He is also in denial about suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from the accident.  Em knows what and who she wants, but is she willing to give herself to a man who isn’t ready to face the truth about himself and his past?

My Review:

I like Jack.  I have always liked Jack.  The past three Blue Heron books wouldn’t have been complete without him.  He is a fun, supportive brother with just the perfect sense of humor to balance the craziness of his three vastly different sisters.  So I’m sad to report I’m a bit disappointed in this book.  Not to say that Jack isn’t funny here.  He is.  He has nice comebacks for Emmaline and his sisters and he is still the hero everyone loves. BUT I expected so much more.

Maybe Emmaline isn’t my type, maybe this had too much going on (the ex-wife, the PTSD, the former fiancĂ©e, the dying boy) or maybe I just wanted Jack’s story to be much more romantic.

Is it romantic enough compared to the previous ones? No.  It feels hurried especially at the end. The proposal part just comes out of nowhere as if this being a Blue Heron novel has to end with a wedding no matter what.  I love happy endings more than the next person but the transition from breakup to makeup here is just too abrupt.  I didn’t feel IT.  And that just sucks because I fell in love with all three previous books, especially the last one, Waiting On You.

That said, Kristan Higgins is still one hell of a funny writer.  Her cast of characters are just awesome, especially Jack’s sisters Prudence, Faith and Honor plus their honorary sister Colleen.  I also appreciate the bigger than most part of Levi, and the tiny cameos of Lucas and Tom... better little than none right? I’d take what I can get of my favorites.

So, not the book I like most in the series but it’s still worth a read.  Now I’m looking forward to the next Blue Heron story, hopefully that of Connor (Colleen’s twin) and Jessica’s (Levi’s ex).

Before reading this, check out my reviews of the series:

#1 The Best Man

#2  The Perfect Match

#3  Waiting On You

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