Thursday, May 16, 2013

Review - Never Say Never by Aimee Duffy




Never Say Never
By: Aimee Duffy

Publisher:  Beachwalk Press, Inc.
Release Date: April 12, 2013

Genre:  Contemporary Romance

Buy Links:  Beachwalk Press, Inc

Kindle      Nook      ARe


Book Description:

When pretend turns to desire, heartbreak is unavoidable.

Sander Chase needs a date for his ex-fiancée's engagement party, but he doesn't have time for a woman in his life. Between working on the TV show Do You Have What It Takes? and his band reforming, he's too busy for a relationship. What he needs is a pretend girlfriend. He thinks he may have found the perfect woman for the job, and the bribe he offers means she's sure to accept.

After losing her job in the film industry, breaking up with her movie star boyfriend, and finding out her mum has dementia, Chloe Butler returned to the UK determined to put her life back together. The last thing she needs is to parade around London on the arm of a celebrity, and after the heartbreak caused by her ex, she swore she'd never again date a star. But when Sander offers her a chance at her dream job, it's not something she can turn down.

As Chloe gets to know Sander she learns he's nothing like her scumbag ex. But she struggles to fight her attraction to him, knowing their relationship is only for show and their separation date is closing in fast.

Ignoring the insane chemistry between them should be easy for Sander, especially since he carries a secret that means there can be no future for them, but the more time he spends with Chloe, the harder it is to keep his hands to himself.

Content Warning: contains more denial than you'll find in a courtroom, more sexual tension than most people could handle, and explosive sex that some readers may find long overdue.

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My Review


A contemporary romance with likable characters and snappy dialogue, Never Say Never by Aimee Duffy, had me turning the pages from the very beginning.  Set in contemporary London, this second chance romance introduces us to two wounded young people who are both afraid of falling in love.  As Shakespeare once said, "The course of true love never did run smooth".

A celebrity in the limelight, Sander Chase is trying to avoid getting back together with the pop band he used to front.  A talented song writer, TV show host and celebrity DJ, he hates having to pretend he's forgiven his ex-fiancee, who cheated on him with a fellow member of his band.  Knowing he doesn't have time for a relationship, and has no intentions of letting himself fall in love only to get hurt again, Sander decides the pretty young woman at his favorite coffee shop will do nicely as a pretend girlfriend. Now he just has to talk her into it.

Chloe Butler wants nothing more than to get her life back on track. After five years as a Hollywood makeup artist, she's working part time as a barista at a local coffee shop, while trying to get her foot in the door at one of the British networks. When a celebrity client gets her an interview at one of the networks, she's willing to return the favor by pretending to be his new gal. She intends to keep as much distance as possible between them while appearing as if they are in love. She too has been turned and has no intentions of risking her heart.

The scenes between Sander and Chloe are fun, full of emotional angst and repressed sexual tension. Clearly attracted to each other from the start, they've both had bad experiences with the opposite sex and are weary of falling in love. Ms. Duffy does an excellent job developing both characters and giving us insight into what has made them into the lonely and scared people they are today. Sander was not only betrayed by his ex-fiancee, he's had issues with love since he was a small child. Meanwhile, Chloe is trying to deal with her mother's dementia and the pain of her mother's loss of memory.

The secondary characters, from Chloe's mom, a sweet woman going through a horrible experience, to Sander's horrible parents are well written and contribute to who Chloe and Sander are today. We also meet Sander's supermodel ex, and the member of the band, she left him for.

Will Sander and Chloe's chemistry lead to
more than just a physical relationship? Will they realize they've fallen in love and give each other a chance? You'll have to read Never Say Never to find out. I really enjoyed it and I think you will too, I look forward to reading more of Ms. Duffy's work.

My Rating:  4.5 out of 5 Stars






FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book as a part of a book tour in exchange for a fair and honest review. There was no additional renumeration.



1 comment:

  1. Thank you Maria for the lovely review. Thrilled you enjoyed it!

    ReplyDelete