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A review by jess_78
Serendipity by Carly Phillips
4.0
Review posted: Happily Ever After - Reads
Ethan’s back in Serendipity, after leaving years ago following his parents fatal car crash. He was young and not able to deal so he took off, leaving his 2 younger brothers and didn’t look back. Well, he’s back now and his brothers want nothing to do with him. Each brother was raised separately in foster homes, Nash on the right side of the tracks, Dare on the wrong, and now Ethan’s back to try and make amends and bring his family back together again. He’s made a good career for himself and as way to reestablish himself in the community, he buys the “mansion on the hill” and needs a lot of help trying to turn it into a home.
Faith is also back in Serendipity, her life doing a complete 180 from where she was the last time she lived here. Her father’s in prison for running an investment scam that ruined many residents and businesses in Serendipity and his guilt is put upon Faith and her mother by many in the town. Faith’s not sitting around moping though, she’s determined to make a life for herself and puts out her shingle for her new interior design business. After being caught at her old family home by the new owner, Ethan, sparks still fly between them, proving that their attraction from high school is still there and Ethan convinces her to take him on as her first client and redecorate his new house.
This was such a fun, easy read about two people trying to make lives for themselves surrounded by a town, in Faith’s case, and brothers in Ethan’s, that are hesitant to give them a second chance. They find friendship first, rekindling what they once felt for each other as teens, only it means so much more now and the feelings are just that much stronger. There’s no denying they have chemistry and while Faith may be the more skittish of the two, wanting desperately to be independent, something she lost when she was married to her controlling ex-husband, Ethan’s determined not to let her get away again, or ignore what’s building between them.
Ethan grinned. He hadn’t realized his little tigress had teeth and he found himself wishing she’d use them on him, not to reprimand him the way she had her judgmental mother, but in bed.
I loved this couple – it was a nice slow build up, with a lot of fun banter between them and incredibly sweet and sexy scenes all throughout their relationship. When Ethan gets the shock of a lifetime dumped on his front doorstep, Faith is there for him and helps him deal with this new development in his life. He also has problems relating to his brothers who are none too quick to offer him any forgiveness. I see their side, absolutely. Ethan ran away, he had no other way to deal with the tragedy that happened in their family and at 18 he was as lost as his brothers were, only they didn’t have the choice to run. While I felt for Ethan as he tried to mend their relationships, I couldn’t fault the brothers for being stand-offish and hostile, and it takes a young teenage girl to be the common factor in all their lives that starts to bring them back together.
Teenage Tess was really a nice addition when she came on the scene. She’s a smartass, sassy and incredibly vulnerable. She hasn’t had a stable life to this point and when she’s dropped off at Ethan’s, she’s angry, confrontational and wants nothing to do with anybody. She shuts herself off from opening up to anyone until she overhears the brothers fighting about their past and brings it up to Ethan:
“Man, you really were a screw up, weren’t you? Guess we have something in common after all,” Tess said, sounding pleased with herself and him.
He bit the inside of his cheek. “Does that mean you’ll give me a break and behave from now on?”
“Hell, no.” She burst out laughing, taking him off guard.
When she realizes that Ethan had issues himself growing up, they find some common ground to build on and she slowly starts coming around. She bonds with Faith and it was charming to see her go from that insecure, covered head to toe in black clothes, hostile girl to acting like a teenager who’s comfortable with her life and not so worried anymore about things outside her control.
This was a great start to what’s sure to be a fun series centered around siblings in a small town. I enjoyed the sexy, easy (with a few bumps along the way) romance between Ethan and Faith, and look forward to Nash’s story next, which we get a little taste of at the end of this book.
Ethan’s back in Serendipity, after leaving years ago following his parents fatal car crash. He was young and not able to deal so he took off, leaving his 2 younger brothers and didn’t look back. Well, he’s back now and his brothers want nothing to do with him. Each brother was raised separately in foster homes, Nash on the right side of the tracks, Dare on the wrong, and now Ethan’s back to try and make amends and bring his family back together again. He’s made a good career for himself and as way to reestablish himself in the community, he buys the “mansion on the hill” and needs a lot of help trying to turn it into a home.
Faith is also back in Serendipity, her life doing a complete 180 from where she was the last time she lived here. Her father’s in prison for running an investment scam that ruined many residents and businesses in Serendipity and his guilt is put upon Faith and her mother by many in the town. Faith’s not sitting around moping though, she’s determined to make a life for herself and puts out her shingle for her new interior design business. After being caught at her old family home by the new owner, Ethan, sparks still fly between them, proving that their attraction from high school is still there and Ethan convinces her to take him on as her first client and redecorate his new house.
This was such a fun, easy read about two people trying to make lives for themselves surrounded by a town, in Faith’s case, and brothers in Ethan’s, that are hesitant to give them a second chance. They find friendship first, rekindling what they once felt for each other as teens, only it means so much more now and the feelings are just that much stronger. There’s no denying they have chemistry and while Faith may be the more skittish of the two, wanting desperately to be independent, something she lost when she was married to her controlling ex-husband, Ethan’s determined not to let her get away again, or ignore what’s building between them.
Ethan grinned. He hadn’t realized his little tigress had teeth and he found himself wishing she’d use them on him, not to reprimand him the way she had her judgmental mother, but in bed.
I loved this couple – it was a nice slow build up, with a lot of fun banter between them and incredibly sweet and sexy scenes all throughout their relationship. When Ethan gets the shock of a lifetime dumped on his front doorstep, Faith is there for him and helps him deal with this new development in his life. He also has problems relating to his brothers who are none too quick to offer him any forgiveness. I see their side, absolutely. Ethan ran away, he had no other way to deal with the tragedy that happened in their family and at 18 he was as lost as his brothers were, only they didn’t have the choice to run. While I felt for Ethan as he tried to mend their relationships, I couldn’t fault the brothers for being stand-offish and hostile, and it takes a young teenage girl to be the common factor in all their lives that starts to bring them back together.
Teenage Tess was really a nice addition when she came on the scene. She’s a smartass, sassy and incredibly vulnerable. She hasn’t had a stable life to this point and when she’s dropped off at Ethan’s, she’s angry, confrontational and wants nothing to do with anybody. She shuts herself off from opening up to anyone until she overhears the brothers fighting about their past and brings it up to Ethan:
“Man, you really were a screw up, weren’t you? Guess we have something in common after all,” Tess said, sounding pleased with herself and him.
He bit the inside of his cheek. “Does that mean you’ll give me a break and behave from now on?”
“Hell, no.” She burst out laughing, taking him off guard.
When she realizes that Ethan had issues himself growing up, they find some common ground to build on and she slowly starts coming around. She bonds with Faith and it was charming to see her go from that insecure, covered head to toe in black clothes, hostile girl to acting like a teenager who’s comfortable with her life and not so worried anymore about things outside her control.
This was a great start to what’s sure to be a fun series centered around siblings in a small town. I enjoyed the sexy, easy (with a few bumps along the way) romance between Ethan and Faith, and look forward to Nash’s story next, which we get a little taste of at the end of this book.