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b_tellefsen_rescuesandreads's review against another edition
3.0
Definitely the weakest of the series so far.
This story follows Amber, the sister of Jesse, one of the main characters from book one. She is currently travelling around the world for several months and this particular story is set in Ireland.
While heading out for a touristy excursion, she is unceremoniously pushed the ground by an unknown man, just seconds before a pipe bomb explodes, her life saved in the process.
She ends up tracking down the unknown hero to a pub called Delaney's where she is formally introduced to River, the man who saved her. And from there a relationship develops. But Amber has always been a rule follower, a good girl. And when she finds how River has a criminal past and his older brother has criminal associations with the IRA..she will have to decide whether or not River can fit into her life, or whether she will leave Ireland with a broken heart.....
I will be honest and say that I cannot be certain that this is a book thing and not more of a "Me" thing. I typically really enjoy K.A. Tucker's books and I really liked the first two books in this series, but I mostly was not in the mood for this type of story when I began and the execution just felt a bit lackluster to me.
But, in fairness, this book was insanely insta-lovey. Picture it:
- Girl almost gets blown up but is saved by a Good Samaritan.
- Girl tracks down Good Samaritan, finds out he is a hot Irish bar runner and flirtation ensues.
- After a few days of getting to know him, Girl sleeps with Good Samaritan and contemplates changing her world travels for him
- Girl is thrust into intense situations, because of Good Samaritan's brother and his affiliation with the IRA
- Girl is a rule follower, preppy, never-been-in-trouble-before, and is bothered by Good Samaritan's affiliations, but ends up over-looking it all, even when Good Samaritan himself is almost blown up.
- Ultimately, after just a week, Girl knows that she cannot just walk away from Good Samaritan and basically her whole life is uprooted as she tries to make a relationship with him work.
It was all way too fast for my tastes. So sadly, this was mostly a miss for me.
This story follows Amber, the sister of Jesse, one of the main characters from book one. She is currently travelling around the world for several months and this particular story is set in Ireland.
While heading out for a touristy excursion, she is unceremoniously pushed the ground by an unknown man, just seconds before a pipe bomb explodes, her life saved in the process.
She ends up tracking down the unknown hero to a pub called Delaney's where she is formally introduced to River, the man who saved her. And from there a relationship develops. But Amber has always been a rule follower, a good girl. And when she finds how River has a criminal past and his older brother has criminal associations with the IRA..she will have to decide whether or not River can fit into her life, or whether she will leave Ireland with a broken heart.....
I will be honest and say that I cannot be certain that this is a book thing and not more of a "Me" thing. I typically really enjoy K.A. Tucker's books and I really liked the first two books in this series, but I mostly was not in the mood for this type of story when I began and the execution just felt a bit lackluster to me.
But, in fairness, this book was insanely insta-lovey. Picture it:
- Girl almost gets blown up but is saved by a Good Samaritan.
- Girl tracks down Good Samaritan, finds out he is a hot Irish bar runner and flirtation ensues.
- After a few days of getting to know him, Girl sleeps with Good Samaritan and contemplates changing her world travels for him
- Girl is thrust into intense situations, because of Good Samaritan's brother and his affiliation with the IRA
- Girl is a rule follower, preppy, never-been-in-trouble-before, and is bothered by Good Samaritan's affiliations, but ends up over-looking it all, even when Good Samaritan himself is almost blown up.
- Ultimately, after just a week, Girl knows that she cannot just walk away from Good Samaritan and basically her whole life is uprooted as she tries to make a relationship with him work.
It was all way too fast for my tastes. So sadly, this was mostly a miss for me.
lindaunconventionalbookworms's review against another edition
5.0
*I received a free ARC of Chasing River from Atria Books via Netgalley in exchange of an honest and unbiased review*
Chasing River took me on a beautiful and dangerous trip to Ireland, with good-girl Amber and bad-boy River, filled my heart with adventure, romance and love.
This and all my other reviews are originally posted on my blog (un)Conventional Bookvies
Chasing River took me on a beautiful and dangerous trip to Ireland, with good-girl Amber and bad-boy River, filled my heart with adventure, romance and love.
This and all my other reviews are originally posted on my blog (un)Conventional Bookvies
marleer's review against another edition
4.0
This book was again highly enjoyable. I especially loved the setting of the story. It was really interesting to read about the history and culture of Ireland. But even though I loved this book, I think it might be my least favourite one in the series so far. It just felt less suspenseful then the other two books, even though there was definitely potential for some nerve-racking scenes. Either way, I'm excited to read Ivy's story, because she was really interesting as a character in Chasing River.
lolasreviews's review against another edition
3.0
Having really enjoyed the first two books in this series I was eager to read the third book. I don't know what happened, but I didn't enjoy this book as much as the first two books. Don't get me wrong it is a well written book and has a lot of the same aspects as the first two books, but I don't know, something was missing. Maybe I just got into a reading slump or something, but this book seemed to take me ages to read. And it wasn't that I didn't enjoy it, I did, but when I put it down I had no urge to pick it up and keep reading. I just didn't feel quite invested in the story or caring about what happened next.
I think what was missing for me was the suspense. I went in expecting a romantic suspense, like the first two books, but it is much more a contemporary romance. Yes there is a hint of danger with how River his brother is part of the IRA, an Ireland based terrorist organization, but they didn't really focus on it. And River his connection with that only was in the past. So there is the connection with crime, but it just didn't feel as intense and suspenseful as in the first two books. I think that's my mistake, expecting the same as the first two books and when the suspense element wasn't as important here I just felt a bit disappointed. I think it would've been better if I went in knowing the focus was more on the romance and less on the suspense.
Chasing River follows Amber who is travelling around the world. In Ireland she almost get's killed by a bomb, but a mysterious stranger saves her live and then takes off, before she can properly thank him. After that she's determined to find him and thanks him. Once they meet again they make a connection that slowly blooms into a romance. I liked Amber in Burying Water and was excited for her book, but now that we actually got her point of view it just felt lacking somehow. Amber is the stereotypical good girl, her father is the sheriff and she always follows the rules, but now when she's out travelling the world she discovers another side of herself. I liked Amber, although she could be a bit quick to judge at times, we know where she comes from and why she is that way. I liked seeing her change and open up in this book and become a bit more doing things from the seat of her pants, instead of planning everything. Although when you consider she's only in Ireland for a week it felt like things changed a bit too fast.
Then there is River, his family was part of the IRA, but nowadays the IRA isn't what it's supposed to anymore. His brother still supports the IRA how it's now, but it's more a terrorist organization now. River isn't happy with his brother choices, but he doesn't really do anything about it either. I liked seeing him learn how solving things yourself wasn't always the best thing and how sometimes it's good to ask someone else for help or let someone else handle things I liked how he changed things thanks to Amber.
Side character Ivy might have been my favourite part of this book. Amber get's to know her a bit more and I really liked seeing them talk things through and then make this weird kind of friendship after years of disliking each other. I thought Ivy was an interesting character and I can't wait to learn more about her in the next book.
The romance fell a bit flat for me in this book. I did like River and Amber. It's a classical bad boy and good girl romance and it was interesting to see two people who were so different fall in love. I just didn't quite feel the spark and connection between them as in the previous books. I did like them, but I never really got invested in this book or the characters. That might just be me or the mood I read this book in. I don't know.
The Ireland setting was fun and it felt like the author knew what she were talking about. There is some background and history about Ireland, the Irish talk differently and there are some descriptions. While I couldn't visualize everything as well as I hoped to I did learn a lot about Irish history and got a bit of a feel for country through this book, which was great.
To summarize: I think I read this book at the wrong time or mood as I didn't get as invested in the story as with the first two books. I felt that the suspense elements was more subtle and to the background and past than in the first two books and that was a bit disappointing. I liked Amber and River, but never really got invested in their story. It's a typical good girl meets bad boy romance and it was nice to see two people who are so different fall in love with each other, but I just didn't quite feel it. I did really like Ivy and I am glad we got to see more of her in this book and her appearances made me curious about the next book. I also liked the Irish history and learning more about the country. It was obvious the author did her research about the culture, language and history and it paid off. Although I would've liked to see more of Ireland and be able to visualize things better. So all in all this was a good book, but I just didn't got as invested as in the first two books. When I put it down I didn't have that urge to continue reading.
I think what was missing for me was the suspense. I went in expecting a romantic suspense, like the first two books, but it is much more a contemporary romance. Yes there is a hint of danger with how River his brother is part of the IRA, an Ireland based terrorist organization, but they didn't really focus on it. And River his connection with that only was in the past. So there is the connection with crime, but it just didn't feel as intense and suspenseful as in the first two books. I think that's my mistake, expecting the same as the first two books and when the suspense element wasn't as important here I just felt a bit disappointed. I think it would've been better if I went in knowing the focus was more on the romance and less on the suspense.
Chasing River follows Amber who is travelling around the world. In Ireland she almost get's killed by a bomb, but a mysterious stranger saves her live and then takes off, before she can properly thank him. After that she's determined to find him and thanks him. Once they meet again they make a connection that slowly blooms into a romance. I liked Amber in Burying Water and was excited for her book, but now that we actually got her point of view it just felt lacking somehow. Amber is the stereotypical good girl, her father is the sheriff and she always follows the rules, but now when she's out travelling the world she discovers another side of herself. I liked Amber, although she could be a bit quick to judge at times, we know where she comes from and why she is that way. I liked seeing her change and open up in this book and become a bit more doing things from the seat of her pants, instead of planning everything. Although when you consider she's only in Ireland for a week it felt like things changed a bit too fast.
Then there is River, his family was part of the IRA, but nowadays the IRA isn't what it's supposed to anymore. His brother still supports the IRA how it's now, but it's more a terrorist organization now. River isn't happy with his brother choices, but he doesn't really do anything about it either. I liked seeing him learn how solving things yourself wasn't always the best thing and how sometimes it's good to ask someone else for help or let someone else handle things I liked how he changed things thanks to Amber.
Side character Ivy might have been my favourite part of this book. Amber get's to know her a bit more and I really liked seeing them talk things through and then make this weird kind of friendship after years of disliking each other. I thought Ivy was an interesting character and I can't wait to learn more about her in the next book.
The romance fell a bit flat for me in this book. I did like River and Amber. It's a classical bad boy and good girl romance and it was interesting to see two people who were so different fall in love. I just didn't quite feel the spark and connection between them as in the previous books. I did like them, but I never really got invested in this book or the characters. That might just be me or the mood I read this book in. I don't know.
The Ireland setting was fun and it felt like the author knew what she were talking about. There is some background and history about Ireland, the Irish talk differently and there are some descriptions. While I couldn't visualize everything as well as I hoped to I did learn a lot about Irish history and got a bit of a feel for country through this book, which was great.
To summarize: I think I read this book at the wrong time or mood as I didn't get as invested in the story as with the first two books. I felt that the suspense elements was more subtle and to the background and past than in the first two books and that was a bit disappointing. I liked Amber and River, but never really got invested in their story. It's a typical good girl meets bad boy romance and it was nice to see two people who are so different fall in love with each other, but I just didn't quite feel it. I did really like Ivy and I am glad we got to see more of her in this book and her appearances made me curious about the next book. I also liked the Irish history and learning more about the country. It was obvious the author did her research about the culture, language and history and it paid off. Although I would've liked to see more of Ireland and be able to visualize things better. So all in all this was a good book, but I just didn't got as invested as in the first two books. When I put it down I didn't have that urge to continue reading.
emiliebookworld's review against another edition
4.0
****ORIGINALLY POSTED ON EMILIE'S BOOK WORLD****
By now it shouldn’t be a secret or a surprise that I love K.A. Tucker and her books. In the last year and a half I have devoured every book she’s published and I just can never seem to get enough. The last few months I was dying to read her latest, Chasing River, and I was not in the least bit disappointed by the story.
Amber Welles has never ventured outside the comfortable bubble of her small Oregon hometown, but she’s decided that it’s time to experience life for what it is. Setting off on a trip around the world, Amber is ready for an adventure wanting to see what the world has to offer. What she never expected was almost dying in a terrorist bombing in Dublin. At the last second, a stranger jumps in and saves her, before taking off again without giving her a chance to thank him. Determined to find her mysterious saviour, Amber keeps looking around Dublin hoping she’ll find the man who saved her life. The one problem is that River is doing everything he can to stay away from Amber, no matter how much he feels a pull towards her. It’s not just to protect himself and his family, it’s also for her own protection. But even if it means putting themselves in danger, Amber and River can’t keep fighting the forces that keep pulling them together.
Here’s the thing about writing reviews for books written by a favourite author: it’s HARD. If I’m being completely honest, all I really want to say about Chasing River is that it was freaking amazing and everyone should read it. But in my opinion, I could say the exact same thing about every one of K.A. Tucker’s books that I’ve read (so all of them), so that’s not entirely helpful. Unless you’re just going to take my word for it and walk over to your local bookstore to pick up any one of her books. So I’ll try to give you all a little more than that where Chasing River is concerned. For starters, this story gave me wanderlust like no other. I’ve been to Dublin and other parts of Ireland before, but reading Chasing River totally made me want to go back, even with the book starting off with a bombing in one of the busiest areas of Dublin. And speaking of that bombing and all its implications, I really enjoyed how much of the story was tied to the history of the IRA and how over time the organization has changed from what it originally was. It added another layer of depth to the story, beyond just the “traditional” suspense and the romance. Which, speaking of the romance, it should go without saying that I loved it. I loved the way the relationship between Amber and River developed, how despite that initial attraction they both tried to resist it, knowing that it was likely not going to end well. It only made it that much better when they did get together
In many ways I could related to Amber, especially when it comes to doing the “safe” thing and never really doing anything to stray from that supposedly “safe” path. Because that’s pretty much what I’ve done with my life so far. So I appreciated and understood that side of Amber’s personality. And I could totally understand her desire to want to go on an adventure, to see what the world had to offer. So it didn’t take long for me to connect to Amber and her story. And as much I would love to go off on a trip around the world the way Amber does, I would like to hope I wouldn’t end up almost killed in a bombing like she did. Or if that were the case, maybe there would be my own River on hand to save me. Because I wouldn’t mind having my own River, or even stealing this River from Amber and keeping him for myself, because, well, yeah. River was not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but he was doing the best he could to do the right thing by his family and the people he cared about and that often put him in difficult situations. But I admired his loyalty, even if sometimes it led to him making some questionable decisions. It all worked out though, but there were still some close calls. But none of that stopped me from absolutely loving River. Also, Ivy was awesome. I loved seeing so much of her in Chasing River and it made me that much more excited about reading her story in Surviving Ice.
Chasing River was exactly what I had hoped it would be. This story was packed with intrigue, drama and romance, just the way I liked it. K.A. Tucker absolutely delivered with this story and I can’t wait to see what she does next with Surviving Ice.
By now it shouldn’t be a secret or a surprise that I love K.A. Tucker and her books. In the last year and a half I have devoured every book she’s published and I just can never seem to get enough. The last few months I was dying to read her latest, Chasing River, and I was not in the least bit disappointed by the story.
Amber Welles has never ventured outside the comfortable bubble of her small Oregon hometown, but she’s decided that it’s time to experience life for what it is. Setting off on a trip around the world, Amber is ready for an adventure wanting to see what the world has to offer. What she never expected was almost dying in a terrorist bombing in Dublin. At the last second, a stranger jumps in and saves her, before taking off again without giving her a chance to thank him. Determined to find her mysterious saviour, Amber keeps looking around Dublin hoping she’ll find the man who saved her life. The one problem is that River is doing everything he can to stay away from Amber, no matter how much he feels a pull towards her. It’s not just to protect himself and his family, it’s also for her own protection. But even if it means putting themselves in danger, Amber and River can’t keep fighting the forces that keep pulling them together.
Here’s the thing about writing reviews for books written by a favourite author: it’s HARD. If I’m being completely honest, all I really want to say about Chasing River is that it was freaking amazing and everyone should read it. But in my opinion, I could say the exact same thing about every one of K.A. Tucker’s books that I’ve read (so all of them), so that’s not entirely helpful. Unless you’re just going to take my word for it and walk over to your local bookstore to pick up any one of her books. So I’ll try to give you all a little more than that where Chasing River is concerned. For starters, this story gave me wanderlust like no other. I’ve been to Dublin and other parts of Ireland before, but reading Chasing River totally made me want to go back, even with the book starting off with a bombing in one of the busiest areas of Dublin. And speaking of that bombing and all its implications, I really enjoyed how much of the story was tied to the history of the IRA and how over time the organization has changed from what it originally was. It added another layer of depth to the story, beyond just the “traditional” suspense and the romance. Which, speaking of the romance, it should go without saying that I loved it. I loved the way the relationship between Amber and River developed, how despite that initial attraction they both tried to resist it, knowing that it was likely not going to end well. It only made it that much better when they did get together
In many ways I could related to Amber, especially when it comes to doing the “safe” thing and never really doing anything to stray from that supposedly “safe” path. Because that’s pretty much what I’ve done with my life so far. So I appreciated and understood that side of Amber’s personality. And I could totally understand her desire to want to go on an adventure, to see what the world had to offer. So it didn’t take long for me to connect to Amber and her story. And as much I would love to go off on a trip around the world the way Amber does, I would like to hope I wouldn’t end up almost killed in a bombing like she did. Or if that were the case, maybe there would be my own River on hand to save me. Because I wouldn’t mind having my own River, or even stealing this River from Amber and keeping him for myself, because, well, yeah. River was not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but he was doing the best he could to do the right thing by his family and the people he cared about and that often put him in difficult situations. But I admired his loyalty, even if sometimes it led to him making some questionable decisions. It all worked out though, but there were still some close calls. But none of that stopped me from absolutely loving River. Also, Ivy was awesome. I loved seeing so much of her in Chasing River and it made me that much more excited about reading her story in Surviving Ice.
Chasing River was exactly what I had hoped it would be. This story was packed with intrigue, drama and romance, just the way I liked it. K.A. Tucker absolutely delivered with this story and I can’t wait to see what she does next with Surviving Ice.
shaunnah511's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
Chasing River spends a lot of time building Ireland as a character. Unfortunately, it didn't feel like enough time was spent building the actual human characters in this story for me to really connect. River and Amber felt a little thin, and thus their love story did as well.
I also wish there had been more action. The pacing seemed a bit off to me, as though there should have been more happening, although the story does take place over the course of just one week.
I felt immersed in Ireland throughout, even the dialogue was great in terms of feeling authentic. I enjoy Tucker's writing style, and I actually wish there was more of secondary character Rowan - I kind of want him to get his own story! I just wanted more in terms of the intrigue and action found in the previous two installments in this series.
* I won a copy of this novel from the publisher through the First Reads program.
Chasing River spends a lot of time building Ireland as a character. Unfortunately, it didn't feel like enough time was spent building the actual human characters in this story for me to really connect. River and Amber felt a little thin, and thus their love story did as well.
I also wish there had been more action. The pacing seemed a bit off to me, as though there should have been more happening, although the story does take place over the course of just one week.
I felt immersed in Ireland throughout, even the dialogue was great in terms of feeling authentic. I enjoy Tucker's writing style, and I actually wish there was more of secondary character Rowan - I kind of want him to get his own story! I just wanted more in terms of the intrigue and action found in the previous two installments in this series.
* I won a copy of this novel from the publisher through the First Reads program.
kaylakaotik's review against another edition
4.0
Rating 4.5 stars
Unlike the first two books, I wasn’t left unsatisfied with the ending of Chasing River. Of course, I’d love more of Amber and River’s story, but it’s not because of a lack of conclusive ending. It’s purely wanting more of two characters I enjoyed. So, once again, K. A. Tucker delivers another book that I absolutely love.
Pros:
– Ireland: This book definitely gets bonus points for taking place overseas (and in a place that I’d love to visit).
– River: Swoon worthy! And I’m totally a sucker for green eyes.
– Ivy: Seeing Ivy in this book makes me impatient to get my hands on her book, Surviving Ice (expected publication October 13, 2015).
Cons:
– Not enough travel! Amber was set to travel the world and I selfishly would have liked to see more of it.
* This book was received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. *
Unlike the first two books, I wasn’t left unsatisfied with the ending of Chasing River. Of course, I’d love more of Amber and River’s story, but it’s not because of a lack of conclusive ending. It’s purely wanting more of two characters I enjoyed. So, once again, K. A. Tucker delivers another book that I absolutely love.
Pros:
– Ireland: This book definitely gets bonus points for taking place overseas (and in a place that I’d love to visit).
– River: Swoon worthy! And I’m totally a sucker for green eyes.
– Ivy: Seeing Ivy in this book makes me impatient to get my hands on her book, Surviving Ice (expected publication October 13, 2015).
Cons:
– Not enough travel! Amber was set to travel the world and I selfishly would have liked to see more of it.
* This book was received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. *
alexperc_92's review against another edition
5.0
Another great novel by K.A. Tucker! find more on http://milkywayofbooks.blogspot.gr/
K. A. Tucker did it again! She was able to introduce us not only to new characters but also connect the love for traveling with heart-pounding romance, characters who were swept by the facts and the circumstances as also introducing her readers to the History of Ireland! I liked Amber's bucke list and the small add from River in the end! It was the best one of her novels and I can't wait to read more!
K. A. Tucker did it again! She was able to introduce us not only to new characters but also connect the love for traveling with heart-pounding romance, characters who were swept by the facts and the circumstances as also introducing her readers to the History of Ireland! I liked Amber's bucke list and the small add from River in the end! It was the best one of her novels and I can't wait to read more!