Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Review: It Started With a Kiss (Sequoia Lake #1) by Marina Adair



Book Blurb:

With a kidney transplant behind her, Avery Adams is determined to channel her inner adventurer and explore everything life has to offer. Only problem is, the closest she’s ever come to a real-life adventure was sixth-grade science camp. So to seize the summer in her rustic Sierra Nevada town, she takes a job as a guide at the local adventure lodge. But Avery doesn’t realize her biggest challenge will register at six-plus feet of rugged good looks and alpha-male charm.

As a member of the Sequoia Elite Mountain Rescue team, Tyson Donovan has made a life out of cheating death and rescuing weekend warriors from the treacherous terrain. “The world is my home” is more than just a motto; it’s what scares off women who would otherwise try to tie him down. When his dad’s health lands the family’s adventure lodge in serious danger of going up in flames, he moves home—and quickly remembers why he left. Until he meets Avery, the irresistible new guide who makes him want to stay.

Tyson gives the inexperienced Avery a lesson in romance that her books could never teach her. And with her undeniable spirit for life, Avery shows Tyson the healing power of love. But with one misstep, everything comes crashing down, and they’ll both have to take the biggest leap of all—into the kind of adventure that lasts a lifetime.

My Review:

In It Started With a Kiss by Marina Adair, after sickness and heartbreak, Avery is now living her life to the fullest - and part of that is her job at an adventure lodge.  Another big part of that is her 'bucket list', and I think this part of Avery is what warmed me the most.  She's living dreams for not only herself, but for others who can't.  When she meets Tyson, and checks off part of her list, she has no idea who he is or how much things are going to change.  Tyson is back in his home town at the lodge his parents own...a place he's never felt at home in since a tragedy that rocked his family.  That tragedy defined so many things in his family's life, and there is a lot of unresolved feelings...hurt, anger, sadness.  He's only back for a short time to help turn the business around, and he never expects to meet someone like Avery.  But he's not there to stay, she's not leaving, and neither of them are looking for romance.  Sometimes things happen when you least expect it though, and moving forward in what direction is now uncertain for both of them...

I really enjoyed It Started With a Kiss.  Marina Adair brings so much feeling and life into the plot, making it not only about Avery and Tyson, but those around them too.  I liked the family connections and how they are explored in this book.  There is no easy fix and Tyson in particular grows so much as the plot progresses.  I liked Avery and Tyson as main characters, they both have so much in their backgrounds that brought them to where they are today.  I felt like I got to know them, and I felt for them both so much.  I really hoped that if they didn't work out as a couple, other aspects of their lives would work out.

I had such a good feeling reading It Started With a Kiss.  It is filled with emotional highs and lows, it's believable, and all of the characters are very likeable, each one bringing something special to the plot.

It Started With a Kiss was easy to fall into, and the flowing words, the characters, and the situations kept me there.  I'd recommend It Started With a Kiss to any romance reader!

4/5 stars

Purchase from Amazon.com

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