Five years ago, Daisy and Ronnie Lloyd had disappeared and neither family had heard from them since. Even Ronnie (and Reese’s) parents were unaware of a child. Chloe had to face Reese, as well as his new girlfriend but her biggest obstacle was her father, Gus Brandt. He made it his life’s mission to abuse his daughters, first Daisy and always Chloe. In fact, one of her first encounters was with her father. The townsfolk were able to see his marks on her when she attended the funerals.

Reese had never stopped loving Chloe but he had planned to move on with his life. He had been courting Isabelle for a while and assumed he would eventually marry her. He did not love her like he had loved Chloe, but Chloe had chosen another life. When Chloe returned, he immediately stepped into the place of her protector again, just as he had in the past.

Ms. Julia Daniels has done a good job of presenting the plot of this unusual storyline. I enjoyed her characters whose intensity showed throughout the book. Chloe and Reese had a tumultuous love affair both before and after her desertion. Their in-depth search into their wavering relationship was poignant and intense. The sub-characters were well written and greatly enhanced the story.

I admire the style Ms. Daniels demonstrated in her passionate story which definitely did not follow the cookie-cutter style of many authors. When the couple married, and I hope that is not surprising, the story was actually just getting started. Day-to-day life was anything but mundane for the family. I recommend this book to all. It’s that good!

Overall rating:
Sensuality rating: Mildly sensual

Reviewer: Brenda Talley
March 26, 2008