Wendy the Super Librarian‘s review of Island Fantasy by Kayla Perrin
Contemporary romance released by Kimani Romance 01 Feb 10
Kayla Perrin has dipped her toes in a variety of writing ponds over the years – delivering everything from erotica to suspense. Island Fantasy, her first straight-up romance novel in a number of years will undoubtedly please her fans. With the author’s knack for writing steam, and an intriguing premise, I settled in for what I hoped would be a quick, sexy read. I’m sad to report that it was a bit of a mixed affair.
On the eve of her wedding, literally, Shayna Kenyon spies her husband-to-be, the man who professes his undying love for her, in the arms of another woman. Needless to say, she’s devastated. She calls off the wedding, but decides that scraping her honeymoon trip would be a silly thing to do. And while a romantic, off-the-hook resort in tropical Jamaica has her family worried that she’s spend the entire trip wallowing in grief, Shayna is looking at the trip as a chance to recharge, lick her wounds, and catch up on her reading. She did not expect, nor did she go looking for, Donovan Deval.
Donovan is in Jamaica to attend a family wedding when he lays eyes on Shayna, and the man gets hooked. Shayna is sexy as sin, as sweet as an angel, and she’s the first woman he’s found himself intrigued by in the past two years. His family had been after him to start dating again, and it’s not like he wasn’t ready, he just hadn’t found a woman who really captivated him.
What I really loved about Shayna was that she’s a woman who won’t take any bull. Where some women might have justified their fiance’s bad behavior as “pre-wedding jitters” – Shayna knows that a man who would be unfaithful on the eve of his wedding is no man at all. I admired her gumption, her strength, and her sass.
Donovan is an equally appealing character, a genuine Mr. Nice Guy with a smokin’ hot body, killer personality, and a heart of gold. He’s loved and lost, having put himself on the shelf for two years, not really ready to “get back out there.” But meeting Shayna changes that for him. Because while his family thought that he was still grieving, it was more a matter of him not wanting to mess around with women who didn’t ignite that spark of attraction immediately – and Shayna does.
While I admired the heroine for taking her honeymoon trip to Jamaica sans groom, it unfortunately sucks all the conflict out of the story. The kiss of death in category romance is a book that lags, and this one does. Badly. While I appreciated the adult characters, because the internal angst was never painted with a heavy brush, and because there wasn’t really any external conflict to speak of, this book is a slog for the first two-thirds. However, for readers who stick with it? You’ll be rewarded. The final third of the book is where the meat and potatoes are. After a whirlwind affair in Jamaica, it’s time to go home. Back to the real world. That’s when Shayna and Donovan have to come to terms with what they have together. Can you really fall in love with someone in a week? Especially where Shayna is concerned! Was her affair with Donovan nothing more than a rebound? A way to boost her ego after her fiance’s betrayal?
It’s these tough questions, and how the characters deal with them, during the final chapters that salvage this story for me. Because while it was pleasant, and I liked these people, the conflict lacked serious juice for the majority of the story. That said, by the end I was riveted, and Perrin continues to write sizzle like nobody’s business. It wasn’t great, but it also wasn’t a total wasted experience either.
Grade: C+
Summary:
Shayna Kenyon knows heartbreak. After she catches her fiancé cheating on her the night of their wedding, a reality break in Jamaica is just the pick-me-up this romance author needs. Especially when Shayna arrives at the exclusive resort…and notices the seriously sexy brother checking her out.
In the Caribbean for a wedding, Donovan Deval isn’t thinking about making a love connection. But it’s time to move on with his life—and that means pursuing Shayna, the exotic beauty who’s making his libido leap off the charts! Shayna wants to take it slow, but Donovan’s ready to turn up the heat. As passion ignites, he vows to turn their sizzling island paradise into the real thing.
