Ebb and Flow

It's always a thrill to read books in a series all at once and in this case I was able to read two of the books in the series back to back. I will be posting later this week about a series I was allowed to read all in a row. Stay Tuned. But I digress.

Again, I'm reviewing a book from the MacDonald family trilogy by Carla Laureano. London Tides is what one of my friends would call a weeper, because there are definite times when tears are the most appropriate reaction to the happenings in the book.

Ian MacDonald is the eldest sibling in the family and the one who holds the most hurt inside his heart. He was engaged once and during the middle of the night ten years earlier, she packed up all of her stuff except the ring and walked out while he was asleep. He kept up with her through her photography in war torn areas of the world. Grace, the woman of his dreams and memories, is an award winning photographer who is able to get the nitty-gritty details of life into her photographs. When he spots Grace on the banks of the Thames while rowing with his crew, his world is turned upside down and sideways.

Grace Brennan would be the poster child for PTSD if there were such a thing. She's seen more in her young life than any woman or any person, for that matter, should, but Grace has seen it through the telephoto lens on her camera. Even more, she's seen her assistant killed by a blast and that was the straw that broke the camel's back. She still has flashbacks, panic attacks, and even loses time when these things happen to her.

I've spoken before about the formula for writing romances--boy meets girl, boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back. This fit the formula in a way, but not in a conventional way--and the way Carla weaves it together keeps the reader involved and engaged in the plot of the book. It is very hard to put down. I cannot wait for the third book in the series to come out. During James and Andrea's wedding, Carla introduces Malcolm as the manager of the family hotel. I am hoping he is the man for Serena--he takes his responsibilities seriously and loves each and every family member.

Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a Pulitzer Prize winning photograph.

My thanks to David C Cook for allowing me to read and review this book.