Series Name: Modern Love, #2
Her insides did a crazy somersault and her heart beat a little faster. He was already tall, but standing steps above her, he seemed huge, and intimidating in every way. Muscles and tattoos and intense pale grey eyes in a striking face.
Finally! A romance heroine over the age of 50 gets her due in Flirting With the Beast. It’s about time.
It’s been five years since Andi McDermott lost her husband, and she’s finally starting to feel like herself again, ready to live fully–she’s even started dating again. But when her holiday plans with her stepson and his fiance fall through, she refuses to spend another Christmas alone while everyone is celebrating with their families. Impulsively, she decides to go up to her cabin in Lake Arrowhead, a place she used to love to visit but hadn’t gone to in years, not since the feud started between her husband and their nearest neighbor.
Andi starts to rethink her decision when being alone at the cabin proves to be more challenging than she expected–a heavy snowstorm hits the area, and Andi finds herself trapped there with no one to help except for her neighbor, Wolf Enders. A military vet who lives full-time on Lake Arrowhead, Wolf is as grumpy and intimidating as Andi remembers. But he’s also unexpectedly kind and uncomfortably sexy–his presence reminds Andi that she may be older, but her body still works perfectly fine, thank you very much. But can this good girl tame this sexy beast of a man, and will this snowy fling turn into a love of a lifetime?
I really enjoyed this book. I don’t feel like we get enough romance books featuring characters over the age of 40, let alone 50, so I relished the chance to read this one. Why do we feel like romance only happens to those under 40? I have no idea. Older characters make for such great stories!
I loved Andi’s character. She is so sweet, caring. Even after spending the first half of her life as a dutiful wife and step mother and losing her husband to a sudden heart attack, she is slowly rebuilding her life with optimism. Andi is the sort of person you would want in your corner. Always ready with a cup of tea or wine and a listening ear. She makes people around her feel comfortable and cared for. I found myself wishing we could be friends!
Wolf is a swoon-worthy love interest. The ultimate bad boy. Ex-military, muscled and tattooed, his grumpiness is the perfect foil to Andi’s sunshine. I was glad Jane chose to make this a dual viewpoint book so we got to know Wolf more deeply. Without it, he would have come off as too much of a stereotype. Even with knowing his story, I did find him a little harsh for my liking. There were points when I thought he didn’t deserve sweet, caring Andi. Their chemistry is well constructed and the slow way their relationship develops seemed to be well suited to the characters. I just wished the dialogue was a little more polished.
Overall, a worthwhile read. Flirting with the Beast is the story we all need to remind ourselves that romance doesn’t end at 40.
Thank you, Berkeley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
