"One Reckless Summer" by Toni Blake

The perfect daughter. The perfect prom queen. The perfect wife. Jenny Tolliver's been the good girl all her life, and it's gotten her nowhere. Now that her marriage has been busted up by her cheating ex, she's decided it's time to regroup and rediscover herself. This summer she's headed back to her hometown of Destiny, Ohio, to the very lakeshore cottage where she grew up, to figure out what life holds in store for her next.

She never dreamed the answer would be Mick Brody, Destiny's #1 hellraiser. He comes from the wrong side of the tracks (or in his case, the lake), and he's landed in hot water more times than he can count. He's exactly the kind of guy Jenny's always kept her distance from . . . but soon the good girl and the bad boy are caught in a raw heat that's out of control. Too bad Mick's got a secret that threatens to tear them apart and ruin Jenny's perfectly, passionately reckless summer . . .

My review:

This was the first book I read by Toni Blake, but it won't be the last. I was really able to connect with the characters quickly and felt really invested in them. I found myself CRYING about 3/4 of the way through the book, and it lasted several chapters!! I didn't expect the tears but it just goes to show that Toni Blake can make you identify even with "less than savory" characters.

I really liked the progression of Jenny's character throughout this story. She found her strength and while it was an adjustment for some of the people in her life, I was happy to see that she identified what she needed to change and did so. She showed a lot of growth. And Mick's character had such depth as he struggled with his current situation. His is clearly a story of "pulling himself up by his bootstraps" and I was happy to see that Mick and Jenny got their happily ever after.

I found the dialogue easy to follow and while there were definitely times of "internal thoughts being heard" it was just the right amount to help us know what is going on with the characters without feeling like that's all we were seeing. This was a great read and I look forward to reading about the other folks in Destiny, Ohio in subsequent books!

Amazon: Amazon Listing
Goodreads; Goodreads Listing