Still Waters

Check out this and my other reviews at My Blog, Facebook, Google+, Twitter and Pinterest Copy received from Author in exchange for an honest review ★Book Basics★ Genre : - Cont. Romance Series : - First in this series but strongly connected to the Sons of Templar MC series. Love triangle? - (view spoiler)[No (hide spoiler)] Cheating? - (view spoiler)[No (hide spoiler)] HEA? - (view spoiler)[Yes (hide spoiler)] Would I read more by this author/or in this series? - Yes Rating - 4 stars ★Review★ Having read the Sons of Templar series, and as such having read some of the scenes that appear in this book, in other books, I am not sure how this would read as a stand alone. Again, this is another great book by this author. Lucy and Keltan are both damaged characters, both carrying grief for lost friends (and guilt) and neither are really ready for a relationship when they meet. One of the parts of the story I enjoyed the most was the friendship between Lucy and Rosie, and I have to be honest I missed this in the second half. Also, overall, I enjoyed the first part of the book more, as I say, we had the friendship between the heroine and her best friend, all the characters I know and love from the Sons of Templar series were there. For me, the second half of the book, while still enjoyable was less so. Mainly as I really really dislike journalists as characters, always have, I just find they grate on me in a way I cannot help. And yes, the heroine is a journalist all the way through, but in the second half of the book, she is trying to become an investigative journalist and on occasion there are certain lines crossed that rub me up the wrong way and can put me off a character. And because of this, I did on occasion get frustrated with the heroine. She was verging on making really dumb decisions to further her career (or as she put it, get to the truth!) And I felt she pushed the hero away a touch too much, she was SO determined to be a strong independent woman, and be all "I am a woman, I can make decisions, I am not a pretty little doll, screw you and your alpha maleness" that it came across abrasive. You are in a relationship, it is not all a power play, and you know your fella works in security and has lost a friend and cannot bear to lose you....so maybe throw him a bone and realise he is being a bit overbearing out of fear, not a need to just be THE MAN. It sounds like I did not like the heroine, I did, I just found her frustrating at times. Keltan I adored, he felt so much for Lucy but knew when she was not ready for a relationship and was willing to wait for her (well until he got impatient and you know, all protective due to well, murder, but who wouldn't?) I loved them as a couple and it was an enjoyable read despite my frustrations. I LOVED Duke and so hope he gets a story, and cannot wait for Luke and Rosie! 4 stars.

I received an ARC of this book from the author via Give Me Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Anne Malcom and Give Me Books! This book was way different from Making The Cut, yet I still really liked it. Again, Anne's flawless taste is showcased in her novels through musical and film references. Let's all be honest here, Audrey is a queen. Keltan and Lucy are both beautifully broken people who try and find a way to make their love work. They are like two puzzle pieces who are trying to find out which way they fit perfectly together. This creates a lot of back and forth between them, which got me exasperated at times, yelling at my phone "YOU LOVE EACH OTHER WHY ARE YOU ACTING STUPID!", and then realizing that their actions were absolutely consistent with their characters. I really liked the structure of the story. The flash backs were perfectly placed within the plot and the Covet columns were really entertaining. The way the flashback passages were inserted, created a certain stillness while reading - referencing the very important aspect of the line between drowning and stillness. Speaking of drowning and stillness, I liked how Anne used the contrasting imagery of water and fire throughout the novel. The use of vocabulary such as wading, swimming, drowning, etc. sporadically in the book created a sense of unity. In comparison, Lucy and Rosie are said to like to burn things because it sends a message. Not to overanalyze these characters, but it seems as though they are compensating for their lack of control whilst drowning, by using the opposite element which they can control. Anyways, let's stop with the English Essay type review. It I had one critique of the novel, it would be that the first two/thirds could have been slightly more concise, but over all a well written book!