5 Smooches!
Synopsis
No take-backs.
That was the motto that Drew lived by in all things, including his love life.
He’s a player, pure and simple.
He’s learned the hard way that women aren’t all hearts and flowers. Sometimes their sexy bodies and beautiful faces are just a pretty shield to hide the crazy, and he’s so freakin’ over crazy.
Been there, done that. He has the divorce papers to prove it.
Karma hits like a bitch.
Aspen needs a break. A long one that doesn’t include anything with a Y chromosome. Not even one as tempting as her new neighbor who just moved in across the street. Men are trouble with a capital freakin’ T, and she has the ankle monitor to prove it.
The last man she gave her heart to was a police officer. A man whose life was dedicated to protection; he was supposed to protect her heart—not break it.
She decides right then and there that she’s done with being the better person.
Everything happens for a reason.
A rash decision—undoubtedly regrettable, undeniably unforgettable. In the heat of the moment, Aspen’s actions with a tire iron and her ex-boyfriend’s brand new SUV land him in the ER getting stitches and have her seeing the inside of a jail cell for the first time.
It’s just her luck that the whole town is there to witness the result of her poor decision, including her police officer brother and the neighbor that already made it more than clear she was more trouble than she was worth.
House arrest never looked so good.
Hide your crazy.
Drew enjoyed the show, though. For the first time in a year, he’s thinking about his life, and how it would be a lot more enjoyable with a woman like Aspen at his side.
Maybe crazy isn’t so bad after all.
REVIEW
Oxygen Deprived is the third book in Lani Lynn Vale’s best-selling Kilgore Fire series, and I really love this series, it just gets better and better. Vale never fails to disappoint me, and she absolutely didn’t let me down here. Oxygen Deprived was definitely my favorite of the series so far.
As I read this book, I couldn’t help but feel like it was the Lani Lynn Vale incarnation of the Carrie Underwood song, Before He Cheats, except funnier, a whole lot sexier and with a much happier ending. We get plenty of visits from favorite characters in Vale’s other Kilgore books, especially Downy, the SWAT team member from Bang Switch in the KPD SWAT series, who is the heroine, Aspen’s, brother. Those two haven’t had the best relationship, and as a side story, Vale explores it.
The romance between Drew and Aspen, though, takes center stage. They were a great match. Their chemistry was palpable and undeniable, and despite the less than ideal circumstances Aspen was in, they made it work. As ever in one of Lani’s stories, this is accomplished through the liberal use of humor. This author just hits the nail on the head every single time for me with her sense of humor. Her heroines are always sassy and sarcastic, bordering on snarky even, but yet each one is unique. These are women I could easily become friends with.
Drew and Aspen had to battle angry, spiteful exes, an overbearing brother, house arrest and someone hell bent on revenge. At least Aspen’s home incarceration wasn’t boring, what with all the activity on her street. As funny as this book was, there was also a very sexy and sweet romance here, another thing I never fail to find in the pages of a Lani Lynn Vale novel. The romance between Drew and Aspen was playful and fun, and I loved how Aspen got Drew involved in her home-based job. It’s these little quirky surprises and twists that Vale always delivers in her books that keep me one-clicking without hesitation.
I loved Oxygen Deprived, and I’m really loving this series. I’ve said it before, but it warrants repeating: my trip to Vale’s Kilgore, TX is always one of my favorite fictional places to go. A swoony and steamy romance, laugh-out-loud humor and a cast of characters I adored, I’m giving 5 smooches to Lani Lynn Vale’s Oxygen Deprived.
~ Danielle Palumbo
