By Heather Thurmeier
Synopsis:
Rebecca's life of luxury in Meadow Ridge is vanishing faster than the designer clothes from her closet as she sells them to pay rent--unless she finds someone to share her life and her rent.
When she meets Finn, the rugged, sexy motorcycle hunk, she thinks her luck is finally changing. There's just one problem--he's not from Meadow Ridge. Reid, her high school flame, comes back to town as the Meadow's most eligible bachelor with a tendency to spoil her and a gorgeous mansion--everything she's always wanted.
Now Rebecca's torn between Finn, the man who lives a simple life outside the Meadow, and Reid, the man who can give her the life she's always wanted.
Available for purchase at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Excerpt:
"Hey, bro. How's it going?"
"Fine. Listen, I wanted to make sure everything is still okay for this weekend."
Colin laughed. "Gettin' a little punchy already, are ya? Boy she must be a looker."
His brother loved nothing more than a good excuse to tease him. "Oh, shut it. I'm not punchy. I just don't want to make the drive for no reason."
Like having a brother hanging around, killing the mood. Not that he was looking to get lucky or anything. It was a bit early for that. Although he probably wouldn't turn her down if she happened to suggest it. He was only human after all.
"The cabin is still yours. I'm not going to be there at all this weekend."
"Great, thanks."
"I told the cleaning service to put fresh sheets on the guest room bed, and there's plenty of wine and food in the fridge."
"We're using your lawn. No reason to change any sheets."
"Sure, you say that now, but I don't want to come home next week from the conference to find my master suite messed up."
"Seriously, dude. That's sick. I'd never use your bed for anything, let alone bring a girl into it. I know what you do in that bed out there all alone."
Colin laughed loudly into the phone. "I'm more of a shower guy myself."
"I'm hanging up now." Imagining his brother in the shower with a soapy hand was enough to spoil his good mood, and he didn't want that to happen.
"Hey," Colin yelled into the phone.
"What?"
"Be sure to clean up after yourself. I don't want to find evidence of your indiscretion littering my yard." He laughed again and hung up the phone without giving Finn a chance to respond.
Author Bio
"Heather Thurmeier's hunky heroes and feisty heroines will have you laughing out loud, falling in love ... and coming back for more!" ~ Carly Phillips, NY Times Bestselling Author
"Heather Thurmeier writes sweet, funny romances that capture your heart!" --NYT and USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Probst
Love and Lattes, Love on Landing, Love or Luxury, Bunny Hills and Bikinis, Falling for You ~ Available now!
Stuck on You, Lost without You ~ Coming Soon!
Viviana's Review:
We're familiar with this story plot: Rebecca (rich girl) looses trust fund and now must ‘earn’ her way. She believes that all her problems could be and will be solved if she were to marry a rich “Meadow Man” (Meadow is the town/city where this story takes place) and is looking forward to being a ‘Trophy Wife’. In fact that was one of her goals in life. Insert “What the heck” smiley face here. Seriously? Unfortunate, it is true. Not only is it true but she still hopes that her high school sweetheart, who left her to go to medical school I might add, will return and marry her and it’s been years! Oh, the ages of the characters are not defined but being that the “Dr.” went to medical school, specialized in Cardiology, and now has opened his own practice, I believe this puts most of the characters in their early to mid 30s to very late 20s (in case Rebecca was a class or two behind). Of course the story continues with Rebecca meeting a guy from “the wrong side of town” and falls for him. However, the “wrong side of town” is basically anywhere that isn't “Meadow”. Which of course then leads for a decision to be made on Rebecca’s part.
Finn, ahh he makes this book worth reading. He’s the ‘guy from the wrong side’; however, he has a solid job, not the traditional bad boy with a past nor is he the womanizer. How does that make him the “guy from the wrong side”? Well, perhaps only in the small mind of the Meadow town people, I guess.
The author does have a good writing style that is smooth, easy to follow and draws the reader in. However, this truly only occurs where Finn is included. I couldn't get past the superficial behavior and belief of Rebecca and her world. I found myself skimming many of the parts where Rebecca was narrating or only involved her. I tried to empathy and tried to see things from her side, but I just couldn't This was especially when I've read other books with a similar story line where the heroine strives to overcome her circumstances vs. well, how Rebecca was.
I usually try not to base my review on the characters but the story as a whole. However, as Rebecca is one of the main characters, it can’t be helped. The first half of the book is Rebecca stating over and over and over and over again, how wonderful "The Meadow" is, how perfect "The Meadow" is, how her life will be complete being a trophy wife living in "The Meadow", all the while proving how shallow, superficial, vain she and her friends are. This made it difficult to root for her and like her. It was too much, especial since we can't give her the benefit of the doubt of her being this naive due to age. They are not in their early 20s, though their behavior at times may place them to be more like teenagers in what they think is actually important.
I did enjoy her writing style. Love the interaction between Finn and his brother (from the excerpt above) as well as all the places where Finn was included. The dialogue between Rebecca and Finn is smooth, easy and even witty! I wish we got to see more of that side of Rebecca throughout the book.
I was provided a copy of “Love or Luxury” for an honest review.
Rating: 2.5 - I Liked It
Thank you for the review and excerpt.
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