Pantasia Series 3: Forever on the Isle of Never
Mardi BallouContemporary erotic romance
Available from Ellora's Cave
ISBN: 1-4199-0212-1
April 2005
| Nan Sullivan is working two part-time jobs in Miami as bartender and clerk at a tourist shop, neither of them satisfying, when she hears from an old friend Pete Payne whom she met while bartending in Miami. Pete is working at Isla del Oso off the coast of Chile where Fantasia Resorts is building a new resort with an arts theme. Pete offers Nan the job of potter at the resort. She would be doing supervision, production, design and teaching. She is needed on-site immediately. Mike Darlin is the chief of construction building the resort for Dominic Laredo. Mike had a miserable divorce from ex-wife Melinda. Melinda spent a lot of time hanging out with temperamental artists, a group Mike has no use for. Mike is very skeptical of love. Nan and Mike meet at the resort and immediately clash. Mike acts like a Neanderthal when he finds out Nan is the new resident potter. Nan is very attracted to Mike until he opens his mouth to speak with such hostility against artists. She thinks he could be the man of her dreams. Will the hurts of the past interfere with Nan and Mike becoming involved with each other or will they decide to take a chance?
I really enjoyed the characters of Nan and Mike. They're both scarred, wounded, angry, hopeful, vulnerable people. They're like a lot of people I know in their 50's and older. Their optimism has been knocked around by life experience. They both are lonely and looking for a relationship. The minimal number of people at the resort project makes it inevitable that they will run into each other often. When Mike was roaring at Nan about "artists", he was complaining about users who are also artist wannabes. The writing is very well-done on the characters of Nan and Mike. Also outstanding were the supporting characters of Pete Payne, Lily Tiger, Dominic Laredo and Gwyn Verde. They stood out in their characterizations as though they walked into the room. This is a fun story. I recommend it to everyone.
Overall rating:
Reviewer: Ellen |
