When I first stumbled on Pappano in a collection of short stories I really liked the concept of the Tallgrass series. This a group of army wives who have been widowed and are trying to survive. A Man to Hold on To is about Therese Matheson who has been left not only a widow but with 2 stepchildren who she's not sure how to handle. Keegan Logan has come to Tallgrass looking for the father of the little girl his ex-girlfriend left with before she took off. When he stumbles on Therese a friendship quickly grows and then turns to more. There was a lot I liked about this book. Pappano's characters are real and strongly drawn. I could feel Therese's desperation and just bleakness and she struggles with dealing with her stepdaughter. Keegan's hopelessness basically leaps off the page. When they're happy the reader is happy. I didn't care for the storyline that was obviously setup for the next book as Therese and Keegan were strong enough on their own. I also tend to not care for books with a SECRET and this book definitely contained that. However, I was so connected with the characters, especially Therese that I was ultimately satisfied with the book. 3 Stars
Waiting on You by Kristan Higgins
Higgins is one of those names I've seen around and always seems to show up on favorites and auto-buy lists. I was thrilled when I was able to grab a copy of Waiting on You for review. I was pretty quickly able to see what makes Higgins show up on all this list. Her writing is fast paced, funny but emotional and attention grabbing. While I enjoyed the writing and the setting the main characters never quite gelled for me. I liked Colleen O'Rourke but don't think I loved her as a main character. Lucas seemed a little too judgmental for me and while I love a 2nd chance romance I'm not sure I realliy believed in this one. Overall, though I enjoyed the other characters so much that it was still a fun read. I definitely will be looking for Kristan Higgins' other books 3 Stars
Waiting on You by Kristan Higgins
Higgins is one of those names I've seen around and always seems to show up on favorites and auto-buy lists. I was thrilled when I was able to grab a copy of Waiting on You for review. I was pretty quickly able to see what makes Higgins show up on all this list. Her writing is fast paced, funny but emotional and attention grabbing. While I enjoyed the writing and the setting the main characters never quite gelled for me. I liked Colleen O'Rourke but don't think I loved her as a main character. Lucas seemed a little too judgmental for me and while I love a 2nd chance romance I'm not sure I realliy believed in this one. Overall, though I enjoyed the other characters so much that it was still a fun read. I definitely will be looking for Kristan Higgins' other books 3 Stars
Even though the characters in Kristan Higgins book didn't gel for you, it sounds like the author's writing is worth following. I'll have to give her a try!
ReplyDeleteA Man to Hold On To sounds like it could be a good one too, especially given the military wife tie in (even though they're widowed).
I think Higgins is definitely worth a try. The reviews I read indicated that this wasn't her strongest book so I'm hoping with a better set of characters the story would be really fun.
DeleteI was impressed with A Man to Hold On To. I'm not a military wife but we live in a town with a pretty strong military presence and I used to work on an army base so I'm familiar with the community. It felt accurate to me. However, these aren't light breezy books and the grief is talked about pretty regularly so not a great one to pick up if you just want a happy little romance.