Rumor Has It

by Jill Shalvis

Book 4 of Animal Magnetism

Well, Rumor Has It was definitely a lot more enjoyable than the preceding book in this series, Rescue My Heart, had been.  And then I determined that, it really wasn't just the book itself, but the heroine of Rescue My Heart, Holly Reid, was just plain annoying; case in point, I had an immense problem with her meddling, bossy attitude in this book, even if the story played it off as her being over protective of her best friend.

But this book wasn't about Holly, thank goodness, but her super nerdy (and super cool) best friend, Kate Evans.  Kate teaches elementary school, and has the uncanny bad habit of spouting science facts when she gets really nervous.  So when her long time crush, Griffin Reid comes back into town, she finds herself spouting all sorts of different science facts, whether they are nerdy facts, cool facts, or even some naughty, more lascivious facts.

Kate is like a woman after my own heart, with her no-nonsense personality, and her penchant for seeing good in all people, without letting anyone walk all over her.  But she's also got this strange need to take care of everyone in her orbit, which doesn't exclude Griffin when she learns about the injuries he'd gotten while fighting war overseas.

I definitely love the development of the relationship between Kate and Griffin, even though Griffin could really use a reality check (as could everyone else in the book) about their perception of Kate.  It seems that because Kate is such a sweet, lovable person, everyone and their mothers seemed to think she couldn't handle a one night stand with a man she'd always had a thing for, and I actually DID kind of find it amusing when Griffin clambered over himself to make sure Kate was okay and NOT pining over him after they have sex.  I loved that Kate kind of just put him in his place, with her, "Well, all I wanted was to have a bit of fun.  And that's what we did."

The book progressed very smoothly from one anecdote to another, with an underlying conflict in the background that sort of got a little too emotional for my liking by the time the ending rolled around.  I thought it was a nice touch, except I didn't care for how soap opera it kind of got at the end there with Griffin.

Once again, Thing One and Thing Two are absolutely the coolest names for the two dogs owned by Griffin's father.  I would totally get myself a pair of dogs and name them 'Thing One' and 'Thing Two' if I could handle raising two dogs together.  As it is, our one little puppy drives the family batty enough.

Kate's younger brother Tommy was all kinds of adorable, and I loved how he took after his elder sister so closely--spouting random science facts, trying to take care of or rescue other people, just being a plain weird kid.  And I love how Tommy doesn't seem to really care what the other kids think about him or say about him; he kind of just lets the insults roll off his shoulder, and will sometimes throw something back at the other kids, a phrase or a science fact so strange that no one really knows how to respond.

I wish we could have seen more of some of the previous characters in this series, but we were mainly stuck with Holly and Adam.  And while Adam's presence was a bit more mellow, Holly's frustrating, meddling, annoying personality didn't seem to dim much until a little over halfway through the book.  Even NOT being the main character, Holly managed to make me groan in frustration.

I was actually kind of ecstatic when she and Adam disappeared for part of the book on their honeymoon.

Anyway, Rumor Has It was a pretty enjoyable, sometimes insightful contemporary romance.  Most especially, I loved Kate.  Even though she spends more time taking care of other people instead of herself, never say that she didn't know how to stand up for herself, and keep others from walking all over her.  Griffin was a nice bonus, and the romance was fun, but truth be told, as an individual, Kate was the greatest thing about this book!


***

Booklikes-opoly

Roll #16: (See Also: Roll #16 Activities)
This book is set in a small town.

Page Count:  281
Cash Award:  +$3.00

Updated Bank Balance:  $67.00

• Animal Magnetism (An Animal Magnetism Novel Book 1)  by Jill Shalvis 

Sunshine, Idaho, is a small and sunny town—the perfect home for man and beast. Well, maybe not for man, as pilot-for-hire Brady Miller discovers when his truck is rear-ended by what appears to be Noah’s Ark.
 
As the co-owner of the town’s only kennel, Lilah Young has good reason to be distracted behind the wheel—there are puppies, a piglet, and a duck in her Jeep. But, she doesn’t find it hard to focus on the sexy, gorgeous stranger she’s collided with.
 
Lilah has lived in Sunshine all her life, and though Brady is just passing through, he has her abandoning her instincts and giving in to a primal desire. It’s Brady’s nature to resist being tied down, but there’s something about Lilah and her menagerie—both animal and human—that keeps him coming back for more…

After a delay (library hold list), I was finally able to listen to All I Want, the final title in Jill Shalvis's wonderful Animal Magnetism series. This time around, we get the romantic story for Zoe Stone, the eldest Stone sibling. Now that her younger brother (Wyatt) and sister (Darcy) have found love and moved out of the ancestral home they shared, Zoe is feeling a bit lonely, although she would NEVER admit that to anyone. Determined to make her own way, she’s decided to try a few blind dates to find some one-night companionship.

When one of Wyatt’s best friends needed an off-the-grid place to relax and recover from a work injury, Wyatt suggested he rent a room from Zoe. And now that he’s staying with her, he can’t stop thinking about how much he wants to get her into his bed. But Parker is hiding a number of secrets, like the fact that he’s not really a park ranger on vacation. The truth is far more dangerous, and Parker knows his stay is only temporary, so he can’t give into his feelings for Zoe.

Even though this is the seventh title in the series, Ms. Shalvis has done a good job of keeping each story fresh and unique, while sticking with the small town romance formula that works. All I Want had a bit more edge and suspense to it that previous titles due to the nature of Parker’s undercover work. I enjoyed the added action and mystery solving along side the romance.

As for the romance, I really liked Parker and Zoe. They shared an honesty that was touching and much appreciated. In a couple scenes, the raw dialogue was utterly heartbreaking. The author could have easily used Parker’s job and Zoe’s past to keep the pair apart, but the couple works through each bump in the road as friends fighting a strong attraction. In fact, the couple didn’t really hook up until about two-thirds through the book. It created strong sexual tension and gave me a emotional connection to the pair. I liked that the couple got to know one another and build the much needed trust before that acted fully on their lust. It works well for the pair and the story. However, I did have to cringe a little at the volume of sex they did have, once they decided to jump into bed. The sex scenes went on and on, back-to-back for a while there. 

I have come to really enjoy Ms. White’s performance in this series. After seven titles, her voices have come to capture all that I know about and enjoy from the folks of Sunshine, Idaho. She adds emotion and uniqueness into each of her characters. Her performance is consistent, solid and entertaining. She has a good range of different female and male voices, only once and a while hearing similarities, but even then, she suits the dialogue to the situation and character.

All I Want is another delightful tale in a series about small town romances and a lot of silly/cute animal stories. Zoe and Parker's romance had more of the same great chemistry and formula for success as its predecessors, with just enough differences to not be repetitive. This series has become enjoyable and a comfort - goto type series, especially as read by Karen White. 

I can’t help but wonder if the series is truly over since poor Kell still needs to find love. But for now, it’s been a great run.

My Rating: B+

Narration: A-

Series: B+