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melonreads's review
3.0
I have a very trusted friend who gives me great recs and she’s been recommending Holley Trent to me for a while now. I was excited to nab this book a few weeks ago when it was on sale or maybe even free on amazon, I don’t remember. But when my friend found out that I was starting my Holley Trent reading experience with this book, she warned me that this was not her best work and to manage my expectations. And I’m glad she said that because when she warned me, I was already halfway through and thinking “what am I missing?”
So, I did like some parts of the book. I liked Valerie a lot, I liked that she was fiercely and unapologetically ambitious about her profession. I liked that she didn’t pull any punches about telling Tim why it was always harder for women to climb up the corporate ladder and frankly, I found it lame and disingenuous that a man of Tim’s position and power and age needed to have this explained to him. Pay disparity exists, Tim. Women get passed over for raises and promotions and career advancements ALL the time. Not because they’re not smart or capable enough. But simply because they’re women. And the fact that Valerie actually had to spell all this out for him was annoying as hell. I understood Valerie’s reticence in getting involved with Tim and I appreciated her being very very upfront with Tim about exactly what she was able to offer and where her boundaries where and what she was working towards. She was ambitious and she had plans for herself and yes, some of that was due to her past and what happened to her mom but I could also appreciate that she had the right to have her own professional dreams not be compromised for a man.
What I didn’t love was Tim. An overbearing, alpha dog hero who assumed that just because he saw Valerie as the future Mrs. Dowd and mother of his babies that she should just fall in line and basically dismiss all her professional ambitions. And once that perception of Tim was planted in my mind, I could not figure out a way to like him. I did feel sorry for his interactions with his son (but I also thought he and Heidi had enabled a lot of Kevin’s bad behavior - seriously, who allows a 19 year old to have access to their trust fund?!?). But overall, yes, I know he’s a Dom but his attitude was very high-handed and dismissive and petulant at times.
I’m glad that Valerie basically got everything she wanted but at some point in the story, I stopped rooting for them as a couple and started rooting solely for her and I don’t think that’s the hallmark of a great romance novel so that, I hope, explains why this book only gets a 3 star from me. However, I trust my friend’s recommendations so I will definitely try another book by this author.
So, I did like some parts of the book. I liked Valerie a lot, I liked that she was fiercely and unapologetically ambitious about her profession. I liked that she didn’t pull any punches about telling Tim why it was always harder for women to climb up the corporate ladder and frankly, I found it lame and disingenuous that a man of Tim’s position and power and age needed to have this explained to him. Pay disparity exists, Tim. Women get passed over for raises and promotions and career advancements ALL the time. Not because they’re not smart or capable enough. But simply because they’re women. And the fact that Valerie actually had to spell all this out for him was annoying as hell. I understood Valerie’s reticence in getting involved with Tim and I appreciated her being very very upfront with Tim about exactly what she was able to offer and where her boundaries where and what she was working towards. She was ambitious and she had plans for herself and yes, some of that was due to her past and what happened to her mom but I could also appreciate that she had the right to have her own professional dreams not be compromised for a man.
What I didn’t love was Tim. An overbearing, alpha dog hero who assumed that just because he saw Valerie as the future Mrs. Dowd and mother of his babies that she should just fall in line and basically dismiss all her professional ambitions. And once that perception of Tim was planted in my mind, I could not figure out a way to like him. I did feel sorry for his interactions with his son (but I also thought he and Heidi had enabled a lot of Kevin’s bad behavior - seriously, who allows a 19 year old to have access to their trust fund?!?). But overall, yes, I know he’s a Dom but his attitude was very high-handed and dismissive and petulant at times.
I’m glad that Valerie basically got everything she wanted but at some point in the story, I stopped rooting for them as a couple and started rooting solely for her and I don’t think that’s the hallmark of a great romance novel so that, I hope, explains why this book only gets a 3 star from me. However, I trust my friend’s recommendations so I will definitely try another book by this author.
tiggerreads's review
4.0
3 1/2 out of 5
This was a surprise drop from Ms. Trent. The main characters are on the older end of the spectrum. I found Valerie's stand-offishness interesting. It took a long time to really understand why she was holding herself away from something she wanted. I liked that Tim listened rather than running roughshod over her. I think Valerie could have benefitted from having someone to confide in. It made it hard for her to see realities outside of what she grew up in that had formed her. I enjoyed the co-parenting that Tim did with his ex-wife, Heidi. Overall, it was good.
I did encounter some editing issues. Missing words and once the wrong character name was used. None of it was too jarring, though.
This was a surprise drop from Ms. Trent. The main characters are on the older end of the spectrum. I found Valerie's stand-offishness interesting. It took a long time to really understand why she was holding herself away from something she wanted. I liked that Tim listened rather than running roughshod over her. I think Valerie could have benefitted from having someone to confide in. It made it hard for her to see realities outside of what she grew up in that had formed her. I enjoyed the co-parenting that Tim did with his ex-wife, Heidi. Overall, it was good.
I did encounter some editing issues. Missing words and once the wrong character name was used. None of it was too jarring, though.
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