LauraJ’s review of Servicing Rafferty by Janie Mason
Contemporary Romance Novella eBook released by Samhain 22 Jul 08

I may have mentioned this before, but one thing I love about reading a novella is that I can try out new authors without investing a whole lot of time if I end up not liking the book. Janie Mason is a new author to me, but the premise of the book sounded good so I wanted to give it a try. It’s a friend to lover story (well an employer/friend to lover story), which is my favorite type of romance and it had some humor in it (another plus for me).

Heidi works for Joe “Rafe” Rafferty at his automobile repair shop. Heidi has worked for Rafe since she was 16 and while she was younger she had a typical teenage crush on Rafe, that crush has turned into full blown love and Heidi is ready to take action and make Rafe see her as a woman and not the little girl she used to be.

This was a fun story. Heidi’s tactics to get Rafe to notice her had me laughing out loud several times. I almost felt sorry for him, because he really didn’t know what hit him. He was a bit dense and slow on the uptake sometimes and does a couple of things that made me want to smack him, but overall he was still very likeable.

Once I started reading this story, I couldn’t seem to put it down. Ms Mason had me hooked from the beginning. A lot of times when I finish a novella or short story, I feel like while the story might be really good, it just wasn’t long enough and parts were sacrificed for space. While I was a little sad this story was over, Ms Mason did a great job keeping the story flowing and I didn’t feel like she left anything else. I’m looking forward to reading more from her and hope that she has some longer stories in the future.

Grade: B

Summary:

One night. One set of handcuffs. Can lovers remain friends?

Auto mechanic Heidi Callihan is tired of her boss treating her like one of his younger sisters. After seven years working for Rafe, what began as hero worship has grown into love—not that he’d notice. When an attractive young widow throws herself at him, Heidi’s had enough. It’s time to put herself in the driver’s seat.

Rafe only recently came to think of Heidi as more than his “Little Buddy,” but he’s determined to mask his growing attraction to her. At nine years her senior, he’s certain they’re not right for each other. He was forced to become the head of his family at a young age, and he’s determined not to let her miss out on all the fun of being a young adult.

But Heidi’s about to teach him the definition of determination—and she’s armed with a set of handcuffs. One turbo-charged night later, Rafe is left with a decision: Lose her friendship…or lose her love.

Read an excerpt here.