Tabs’ review of Meant to Be Mine (Guilty Pleasures, Book 1) by Lisa Marie Perry
Contemporary Romance published by Forever 30 Aug 2016
In a new contemporary series from Lisa Marie Perry, a woman is forced to confront her past if she wants to move on with her present, after her great aunt suddenly passes. Sofia Mercer returns to Eaves, Massachusetts for her aunt’s funeral with her best friend in tow and finds herself suddenly saddled with a large dog, a prosperous sex shop, and boatload of buried issues. Burke Wolf lives as a reclusive fisherman, hasn’t seen Sofia since they were teenagers, and is not at all prepared for a reunion.
Sofia and Burke both have a lot of baggage. Sofia has suffered from a severe heart condition her entire life and it drastically affected her childhood, her place in the community, and her relationship with her father. She received a heart transplant shortly after leaving Eaves as a teen, but health problems will always be a factor in her life. Burke also had a difficult childhood filled with grief from his mother’s death and a serious substance abuse problem as a teen. Sophia was his only safe haven and when she left town, he hit rock bottom. Seeing her again kindles things in him that he doesn’t think he can handle.
This book has major pacing and plotting issues. The first third drags considerably and you end up just watching the heroine careen from one info-dumping townsperson to another for a good five chapters. If I hadn’t been reading for review, I would have DNF’d early on. The relationship also drags. The characters tease their history to the reader and, boy, was it not engaging and not worth the tease.
So, what kept me reading if the pace dragged and the central romance didn’t float my boat? Well, the town and side characters are actually pretty interesting. I’m intrigued by Bautista and his broken heart and murky past. I want to know all about Caro and her secretive past. Will we learn more about the cute brothers who run the laundromat? The side characters really pulled me through the story. Even though I didn’t enjoy most of the book, I’m intrigued enough to try the next one, just to spend a little more time with these characters and to see if things improve.
Grade: C-
Summary:
Sofia Mercer may have been sick as a teen, but she’s no delicate flower. And she’s proven it by making it on her own and starting a new life away from the town that turned against her, away from the boy who broke her already fragile heart. But when her aunt Luz dies unexpectedly, leaving Sofia with a mountain of regrets and the keys to a quirky boutique, Sofia has no choice but to return to Cape Cod. Only, this new life in her old town comes with complications.
Burke Wolf was Sofia’s first love-a relationship that burned bright and went up in flames. Seeing him again, Sofia can’t help but get caught up in that all-too-familiar tornado of passion and pain. He’s battled his own demons-that much is clear. But Sofia can’t afford to be careless with her heart . . . and loving Burke again might just break it completely.
