3.5 Smooches

Synopsis

He left me shattered and mentally scarred. Our divorce should have healed those emotional wounds. It didn’t.

Nine months have passed, and I am still trying to piece together my life that was torn to shreds. I am a shell of the person I once was.

GRIEF-
Shrouds me in a cloak of darkness, isolates me from family and friends, and barely leaves me treading water. The only thing keeping me afloat is my rambunctious three- year -old son, River.

FATE-
Brings Liam Bowers into my life. he offers me everything my ex did not – love, adoration, romance and peace.

Trouble-
Slithers it’s way back into my life, threatening to kidnap the only glimpse of happiness I have found.

My past and future are colliding, and I am afraid the only fatality will be …ME.

Review

This is one of those stories that had all the prerequisite elements to being a great book.  In theory the characters and storyline along with certain dramatic incidents should have produced an exciting and sensual read but unfortunately what I found was a fairly unconvincing plot along with weak and unengaging characters that tended to use over flowery and saccharine sweet dialogue, which in turn just seemed to highlight how schmaltzy and cheesy everything was.  I love romance, I live for romance but in The Five stages of Riley Winters it was overkill and at times I felt like I was reading a nineteen-eighties Mills and Book with Fabio on the front cover.  It is as though she used every known cliche in the romance genre and amplified it.

There were parts of this book I just could not get into, others I liked well enough and others that just didn’t make sense.  The timeline of events is much too quick.  Our hero Liam is a speech therapist by day and rock star by night, who after only one day of knowing our heroine Riley, decides it is great professional practise to join his new client Riley’s son and her on a family outing.  The relationship is harried and never develops fully, there was a ton of potential to prove how strong and resilient Riley was after suffering at the hands of her ex-husband but she came across as rather whiney and unrealistic.  Unfortunately it wasn’t just the main characters that felt a little stuffy.  The relationship between Riley and her sister didn’t gel either, it felt forced rather than fun and loving.  Liam was an okay hero.  He had all the right words to say and at times was very sweet but he too often seemed too good to be true.

‘He removes his hand from my hair and places both of his hands in his pockets.  “Riley, I’m sorry if I am freaking you out, but I have never met anyone like you.”

“What do you mean, like me?” I ask confused.

“No, no, nothing bad, Riley.  It’s just that your eyes tell me that you have a story that is hidden there, but your smile says otherwise.  You’re just a pretty little mystery.”’

The Five Stages of Riley Winters was an okay read but I wouldn’t say it had a lasting effect on me.  It will be one of those books that you will either love or dislike depending on your preferences but for me it just didn’t work out.  I can see definite potential in the author however, and I would read another book she writes but I feel that time and experience would better benefit here.

~Nicole

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