Hey everyone! I'm back and I had a great week-end :) It was fun to go away and to hang out with friends :) The week-end would have really been perfect though if I could have bought some books... but alas. And it wasn't from lack of trying!! Ah well, to make it up, I went to the bookstore yesterday LOL.
I hope to post a few more pictures in the next coming days - as soon as my friends send me some LOL. 9 persons, 7 cameras - I decided I could let my friends take pictures :) Of course, now, I need to harass them to get the pics...
So in the meantime, here's a review. Enjoy!
Only Yours by Susan Mallerypublished by HQN Books in August 2011
Montana Hendrix has found her calling—working with therapy dogs. With a career she loves in a hometown she adores, she's finally ready to look for her own happily ever after. Could one of her dogs help her find Mr. Right… or maybe Dr. Right?Genre: Contemporary romance
Surgeon Simon Bradley prefers the sterility of the hospital to the messiness of real life, especially when real life includes an accident-prone mutt and a woman whose kisses make him want what he knows he can't have. Scarred since childhood, he avoids emotional entanglement by moving from place to place to heal children who need his skillful touch. Can his growing feelings for Montana lead him to find a home in Fool's Gold, or will he walk away, taking her broken heart with him?
Series: Fool's Gold series, Book #5
The Story: Simon Bradley is a gifted surgeon who specializes in patients who have been burned. As a burnt victim, Simon knows first-hand the excruciating pain his patients are going through and the will needed to recover and that's what makes him good at his job. He also lives a nomadic life, dedicating all his energy and talent to a hospital for a short period of time before moving on to the next place, never getting emotionally attached to anyone. For the next three months, Simon is in Fool's Gold and the mayor wants him to stay... She thus enlists the help of Montana Hendrix to convince him.
Montana is a bubbly and enthusiastic young woman who has finally found her calling: working with therapy dogs. Her first meeting with Dr. Bradley is not a success as one of her dogs barge in the burn unit of the hospital... Still, Montana cannot refuse the mayor's request. Then, when Simon needs a therapy dog to help one of his patients, Montana is more than happy to help.
From the first moment, Simon is attracted to Montana in a way he cannot explain. However, Simon doesn't do relationship, doesn't get emotionally attached to anyone... but once he does, what will happen?
My Opinion: If you've been reading my blog for the past few years, you know that Ms Mallery's books have been hit and miss with me. There are some that I really, really enjoy such as Almost Perfect and Hot on her Heels and others that just didn't work for me. So from experience and from the first Fool's Gold trilogy, I decided to be a bit more selective when it came to this second Fool's Gold trilogy featuring the Hendrix triplets... and decided to skip Only Mine and go straight to Only Yours. My reasoning was that out of the three triplets, Montana was the one that I've liked the most based on their previous apparitions in the series and also, the storyline seems to be one that I'd enjoy as it's a bit of the "happy-go-lucky heroine thawing stuffy hero" theme. All in all, I think it was a good decision :)
I really liked the characters in Only Yours. I think both Montana and Simon were likable, nice and well-developed characters. I didn't completely get the "Montana has finally found herself/her vocation." And her projecting on Fluffy the dog was a bit extreme. I don't know, she appeared to be happy in previous books, always cheerful and smiley. Did it really matter if she didn't have a true calling? I don't think so, although it doesn't hurt of course. I guess she needed a bit of a conflict... As for Simon, my heart broke for him and his past really gives a good insight of the man he's become and his lifestyle.
What I liked most of Montana and Simon is that they complemented each other very well. They came from completely different backgrounds and have very different personalities, but it worked. They were cute together and I enjoyed reading those parts :) However, I do think their relationship was a bit rushed and precipitated. I guess it's because of the deadline - Simon only staying for three months. It just bothered me a little bit that Montana knew what she was getting into, basically a fling with a man that didn't do long-lasting relationship... and she wanted more. I understand falling in love and wanting more and everything... but after less than three months? In that case, why start this fling? Also, it'd be nice from time to time for a man and a woman wanting the same thing and evolving at the same rhythm in a romance. Just saying.
I also think that in Only Yours, Ms Mallery balanced the secondary characters well. She gave us a bit of the Hendrix family and a bit of the town. I especially liked seeing the Hendrix dynamics between the siblings. Especially when they were discussing their mother's past love LOL. That was cute. I think Kevin and his son returning to Fool's Gold is a nice addition and wonder what Ms Mallery has in store for them. Another part that I liked was when Simon was expecting everyone to treat him badly because he and Montana have broken up, but everyone at the end was nice. It surprised him and at the same time, it broke my heart. Shows us how little love Simon had in his life. Sigh.
I have to say, I wasn't crazy about the whole town getting involved in Montana and Simon's relationship. The insinuation about how Montana should convince Simon to stay in town. Another thing that bothered me was the "miracle" near the end. Throughout the book, Simon is taking care of a young girl who's been severely burned... and at the end, she crashed. Well seriously, I think Ms Mallery should have let her die. I don't mean to be heartless, but one minute her condition worsens and the next, she's all right. I thought it was unnecessary drama. Either you let her recover nicely in which case, she doesn't crash at all... or she crashes and dies. It's a bit like in Only Mine where the chances of Dakota getting pregnant are almost null and thus, she decides to adopt... and suddenly, voila, she's pregnant! Yes, this is fiction, but there is just so many times you can do this. At least, there is no pregnancy in Only Yours which makes it "refreshing" LOL.
Oh by the way, the dogs were a nice touch to the book :) They made me smiled and I loved how Simon got attached to Cece. So cute :)
My Grade: B-. Overall, I enjoyed Only Yours. Not ground-breaking, but it was still a nice romance :)
