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jenjenbookfan's review
4.0
Defending Charley is a steamy friends to lovers romantic suspense novella by Bella Lane releasing as part of the Romance Bunnies Hallow Falls Series. Derrick, a detective, returns to Hallow Falls after his mother’s death to settle her affairs. He runs into his old friend, Charley, who grew up to be a firefighter just like Derrick’s late father, the man who saved her from a fire as a little girl. Charley has fought for 5 years for acceptance in her firehouse only to be met with horrendous treatment. Derrick shows up as a breath of fresh air awakening all kinds of feelings in her. But now there’s an arsonist on the loose. Between the long distance and the danger lurking at every fire scene these days, do Derrick and Charley really stand a chance?
I enjoyed this story with the steamy chemistry between Derrick and Charley, as well as the intriguing suspense plot of the arson case. There was definitely a lot of drama surrounding Charley and the firehouse that was frustrating for me as a reader, and more specifically as a woman. Charley never should have put with that treatment for so long, and the actual resolution of it was not sufficient for me at all, but Charley is a much nicer person than me, I guess!
I enjoyed this story with the steamy chemistry between Derrick and Charley, as well as the intriguing suspense plot of the arson case. There was definitely a lot of drama surrounding Charley and the firehouse that was frustrating for me as a reader, and more specifically as a woman. Charley never should have put with that treatment for so long, and the actual resolution of it was not sufficient for me at all, but Charley is a much nicer person than me, I guess!
grinningcat's review
3.0
MMC/FMC- Derrick and Charley
POV- 1st person dual
Genre- Contemporary Romance
Sub Genre- Firefighter Romance
Heat- they do the thing and name the parts
Series? Y
Cliffhanger? N
Cheating? N
HEA/HFN? Y
Triggers- detailed descriptions of building and house fires, Workplace harassment, explicit erotic content.
Tropes- Friends to Lovers, Childhood Friends, Firefighter/Cop, Villain Speech.
What I liked- the romance and the fact that they had a solid bond of friendship to start with
What I didn’t- very suddenly, the bad guy is revealed with no hints beforehand. It felt like it almost came out of nowhere. He even does a full on Villain Speech, where he takes credit for being the Root of All Evil in the book. And the jerks who harassed the heroine were not ashamed or regretful at all.
Verdict- this book started out to be really good, and it could have been excellent, but the sudden big reveal did the book a disservice.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
POV- 1st person dual
Genre- Contemporary Romance
Sub Genre- Firefighter Romance
Heat- they do the thing and name the parts
Series? Y
Cliffhanger? N
Cheating? N
HEA/HFN? Y
Triggers- detailed descriptions of building and house fires, Workplace harassment, explicit erotic content.
Tropes- Friends to Lovers, Childhood Friends, Firefighter/Cop, Villain Speech.
What I liked- the romance and the fact that they had a solid bond of friendship to start with
What I didn’t- very suddenly, the bad guy is revealed with no hints beforehand. It felt like it almost came out of nowhere. He even does a full on Villain Speech, where he takes credit for being the Root of All Evil in the book. And the jerks who harassed the heroine were not ashamed or regretful at all.
Verdict- this book started out to be really good, and it could have been excellent, but the sudden big reveal did the book a disservice.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.