Review

In the first contemporary novella for Rodale’s historical/contemporary crossover things heat up…

This book is in a word: amazing. I couldn’t put it down and surprise, surprise this story doesn’t end with the one novella. Jane and Duke’s story carries on in two more installments. I’m chomping at the bit to get a hold of the next one.

The awesome part is that this ties in with Rodale’s current historical series The Wallflowers. You can read my review of the first book, The Wicked Wallflower in November’s issue of The Season.

The contemporary has Jane playing the fictional writer of The Wicked Wallflower and can you guess who she’s basing her story plot and events after? I loved how this story worked out from the cute meet to the awesome tech savvy bits. Rodale certainly has researched her way around computers, social media, and hacking. The details are impressive and if you’re a geek for gadgets then this novella will give you a newfound respect for navigating the internet.

The hero, isn’t much of one. If there’s a word for playboy Duke Austin is the epitome of it. Urban dictionary definitely should have his picture next to the definition. Besides being hot, extremely intelligent, and full of himself, Duke’s attentive to Jane and spends a little too much time taking their relationship to another level. I liked Duke, but Rodale definitely makes me want to smack in by the end of the story.

I loved Jane. Her entire backstory is very relatable and I could see her motivation to break out of her shell and explore something absolutely insane. As a writer I think we all venture into the insane at some point. I rode a mechanical bull once so I’d be able to write about the experience.

This is a quick paced read that will be hard to walk away from, and if you’re a fan of the historical then you’ll love the tie-in’s from the other book. I will say I didn’t expect a novella and I was a tiny bit disappointed at the lack of HEA, but similar to a serial novel Rodale promises a new installment in February so I won’t be waiting long.

Overall, Rodale has presented a marvelous and brilliant way to bridge the Historical and Contemporary genres. I’m jealous for not thinking of it myself. The art of the bridge is how the stories weave seamlessly and I can believe in the contemporary characters and the idea of this relationship.

This is for readers who love Miranda Neville or Shannon Stacey