Kassiah

5 swoonworthy stars.

This review also appears on Steamy Guys After Dark.

I have a confession. I've been waiting to read this guystory for a loonnngggg time. I've enjoyed Brighton Walsh's work for years, and let me tell you--the girl can write some super hot smut. She's not about PWP, though, and always has a compelling story to go with her sexy characters. So, I was already excited about this story before I really knew much about it. And ever since Walsh sent me her picspiration on twitter, well, let's just say I was super excited:


I know, I know. You want to stop reading this review and dive right into reading Season of Second Chances rtfn, right? I don't blame you. So go ahead.

Still here? Now I'll tell you why you shouldn't be (and why you should be reading the book instead).

I love reunion stories. I love that we can experience all the feelings that the characters go through without questioning why they're jumping into a relationship (even if it's just a physical one) so quickly. Even if we as readers don't know the characters very well yet, we know that they know each other and lived through whatever their history was, and that familiarity gives them liberties that strangers don't get.

Thirty-year old Claire Hanlin finds herself stranded at an airport in the city that she least wants to be in on Christmas Eve. Her search for an available hotel room is interrupted by her ex-fiancé, Logan Dawes. Claire goes through a myriad of emotions at seeing him and hearing his voice again.

His sea-glass eyes were boring into hers, the same heavy, intense stare she'd noticed when they'd met more than four years ago. And when she looked into them now, it was like no time had passed. Like they hadn't broken an engagement, hadn't been separated for two years, hadn't lived through the heartache of ending the best relationship either of them had ever had.

Logan insists that she come stay with him until the storm passes and she can get another flight. She reluctantly agrees, and you know what happens. Chemistry! Flails! Holy hotness, Batman!

Of course, with every good story, there's a dilemma, and Claire's is that even though it's hard to resist Logan's charms and the way he always made her feel, she can't help but forget how she felt when Logan constantly chose his job over her when they were together. Logan realizes that he made the biggest mistake of his life when he let her go the first time, but can he do what it takes to get a second chance with her?

Read it and find out!

You know I loved pretty much everything about this story. Obviously, my favorite part was Logan. This guy is hotness personified. Dark hair, light green eyes, sexy muscles. And he's a doting dad to a seven-year old girl who has him wrapped around his finger. *swoonysigh* He's sweet and determined, and he's hot as hell.

Her argument died in her throat when his tongue traced her pulse point and then his teeth bit into the juncture of her shoulder and neck and the scruff on his face brushed against her delicate skin, and oh God, he didn't play fair. "Logan."

He groaned, his hands covering the expanse of her lower back, his chest now pressed right up against her so she could feel the vibrations of his voice against her breasts. "Jesus, I've missed you saying my name like that."

I really liked Claire, too, and that sort of surprised me. It's not often that I actually love the heroine, but this time, I did. I was proud of her for standing up for herself and understood her. The perfect combination of kick-ass and vulnerable, she was a great character, and I'm sad that I won't get more of these two.

There were very few things that I didn't love, and I can honestly say both of those were totally because I'm a long-time reader of Walsh's work. I'm weird, I know, but I just didn't like Claire's name. And there are a few words that I was surprised that Walsh used. With that being said, who really cares about her name? Not me, and not you, either, once you start reading this fantastic story.

Want one more thing that I loved? This novella is short (less than 100 pages), and I can't even tell you how many times I have "perfect description" in my notes. Walsh portrays her characters' emotions with such authenticity, I felt like I was right there, feeling all the feelings with them.

The low, smooth rumble of his voice still managed to send chills down her spine, firing all the synapses in her body at once. She remembered that voice. How it washed over her like the rain when he was breathless and happy. How it crashed into her like a tidal wave when he was angry and frustrated. How it settled right into her bones when he whispered into her ear while aroused and overcome with need.

::flails:: There are several other instances, and the whole story is pretty damn close to perfect. Readers will share Claire's utter heartbreak as she contemplates the demise of her relationship with Logan, will experience the longing that Logan still feels for what might have been, and will feel their passion as they appreciate this second chance that fate has handed them.

It's the best holiday-pick-me-up if you need one, but whether you're looking for something to read to keep you warm in the winter, or if it's in the middle of the sweltering dog-days of summer, Season of Second Chances is the story for you. I can't express how much I enjoyed it--it's a must read!