Exclusively Yours
Shannon StaceyContemporary romance
Available from Carina Press
ISBN: 9781426890017
June 2011
| Keri Daniels has built her life around her career. She left home and her high school sweetheart in order to pursue her dreams. When she's told by her boss to get an exclusive interview with reclusive horror novelist Joe Kowalski, who just happens to be her old boyfriend, or get a new job, she swallows her pride and contacts him for the first time in 18 years. Joe went through a lot when Keri left. While he never fell out of love with her, he isn't willing to compromise his privacy. So he offers a deal where she goes on vacation with his whole family in exchange for the chance to ask one question a day.
At first, I was a little leery of how this would all work out. While I wanted their rekindled romance to work out, I cringed at the idea of Keri having to give up everything for which she's worked. Ms. Stacey met this issue head-on, and Keri's internal struggle became the central conflict in the novel. The resolution left me feeling like Keri gained everything she needed to have a happy, balanced life. Joe is a complex person. He's handsome and successful, yet he's down-to-earth and in touch with his feelings. Instead of being too good to be true, he's just flawed enough to be the perfect hero. The pacing of the story was a little sedate, but spending time with the Kowalskis is never a hardship. One theme I'm noticing throughout Ms. Stacey's Kowalski novels is the idea that a modern woman can have it all—career, family, love, happiness -- if only she has the courage to grab it. Keri is someone most people can relate to, even if you don't have a lot in common, because Ms. Stacey's talent for creating real, rounded characters is almost artistic.
Overall rating:
Reviewer: Clare |
