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mamamelreads 's review for:
Pipe Dreams
by Sarina Bowen
As with the previous two books in this series I felt as if this book had something missing. It was a nice enough book, but I felt like there were opportunities for depth in the story that kept it from being one that I could really love. Mike and Lauren had fallen in love years earlier after Mike's marriage to his high school girlfriend had fallen apart. Although Mike and Lauren seemed to have an epic sort of love story going on, he ended up abruptly leaving the relationship to go back with his wife who had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. He wanted to be there for his wife and young daughter. But Mike handled this decision with very little class, and in the process he destroyed Lauren's heart. Now, years later, she is harboring a whole lot of anger and resentment toward him ... and the world in general. She's kind of a grump. But apparently Mike never stopped loving Lauren, so when she is brought back into the front office of the Brooklyn Bruisers organization he works to get her back.
There's lots of potential in this story, but I felt like I was thrown into the middle of it without much build up in the main relationship to draw me to the story. Mike begins this story already in love. Technically, Lauren is in love too, but she's bitter, so she tries to hide her feelings. It would have been more meaningful if there had been more story about the initial relationship. Or it would have been a deeper story if there was more of a struggle for the two of them to regain those earlier feelings of love. But Mike's all in from the very beginning. Lauren doesn't take too long to get on board. Her sharpness, to say the least, toward the other people in the organization that was highlighted in the last book of the series seemed to disappear instantaneously. Like magic. She was a whole new character. And I have to say ... some of Mike's tactics were downright creepy, if not illegal. Showing up in someone's hotel room uninvited and simply being there when they opened the door was ... not romantic. It was icky. And at that point in the story there had not been enough growth in his character to warrant him going all in when it came to his relationship with Lauren. I didn't like the way this played out. And, frankly, I thought that Mike was AWFUL in the initial breakup. If two people are so in love that they are discussing marriage and buying a house together, it sure seems like they could have a much better conversation/discussion about the reason for him going back to his wife and daughter. He had a valid reason to return to them. He could have at least attempted to ease Lauren's pain. He was kind of a jerk to her.
Overall, I'd say this had an engaging writing style that I am accustomed to seeing in Sarina Bowen's writing. The narration of the audio book was nice enough. I think these two narrators are growing on me. I liked the resolution of the story and the HEA ending. It just didn't move me all that much. So this one gets three stars. I liked it. (But to be honest, I have been slogging through these first three books just so I can get to book four. Becca and Nate. Can't wait!)
There's lots of potential in this story, but I felt like I was thrown into the middle of it without much build up in the main relationship to draw me to the story. Mike begins this story already in love. Technically, Lauren is in love too, but she's bitter, so she tries to hide her feelings. It would have been more meaningful if there had been more story about the initial relationship. Or it would have been a deeper story if there was more of a struggle for the two of them to regain those earlier feelings of love. But Mike's all in from the very beginning. Lauren doesn't take too long to get on board. Her sharpness, to say the least, toward the other people in the organization that was highlighted in the last book of the series seemed to disappear instantaneously. Like magic. She was a whole new character. And I have to say ... some of Mike's tactics were downright creepy, if not illegal. Showing up in someone's hotel room uninvited and simply being there when they opened the door was ... not romantic. It was icky. And at that point in the story there had not been enough growth in his character to warrant him going all in when it came to his relationship with Lauren. I didn't like the way this played out. And, frankly, I thought that Mike was AWFUL in the initial breakup. If two people are so in love that they are discussing marriage and buying a house together, it sure seems like they could have a much better conversation/discussion about the reason for him going back to his wife and daughter. He had a valid reason to return to them. He could have at least attempted to ease Lauren's pain. He was kind of a jerk to her.
Overall, I'd say this had an engaging writing style that I am accustomed to seeing in Sarina Bowen's writing. The narration of the audio book was nice enough. I think these two narrators are growing on me. I liked the resolution of the story and the HEA ending. It just didn't move me all that much. So this one gets three stars. I liked it. (But to be honest, I have been slogging through these first three books just so I can get to book four. Becca and Nate. Can't wait!)