Train Wreck - T. Gephart I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an unbiased review.

I honestly wasn't sure if I'd read one of T. Gebhart's books when I signed up to review this book, but I knew there were a couple of them on my TBR pile. I'm truly happy that I went with my gut and took a chance. This story was delightful and fun, and a gorgeous cover to boot.

Our heroine, Eve, is outspoken and sometimes a little scatterbrained, but also confident in many ways. Having been shaken up by some stumbling blocks, she gets help from an unexpected ally - and finds an artist that she hopes will help her find her muse. I really dug how much of a contradiction her character is - it made for a completely 3-D personality that jumped off the page.

The man who's tasked with getting her back on track is Josh, the co-owner of a successful tattoo parlor. He's big, inked, charismatic, and to Eve - completely mesmerizing. She can't help but stare at him, his work, his art, his movement, everything.

They both know it's not a good idea to jump each other even though there's a huge attraction between them, but how long is that gonna last when Eve and Josh work together in tight quarters? Will Josh be her muse? Will Eve get her mojo back? Will they make beautiful watercolors together?

Here's the good news: you can find out by picking up this book and reading it for yourself. I give it 4 to 4.5 stars.

 

Train Wreck was like a breath of fresh air. It was so cute, light, sweet and funny and it was impossible to not be charmed by Pepper and all her adorkableness. She was honestly one of the most refreshing new characters that I have read in awhile. I think we have all felt like a train wreck of sorts at one time or another, and Pepper managed to make it feel okay to embrace that a little. Or at the very least accept it and still be able to face the day with a smile and a can-do attitude.

 

Pepper and Derek were really cute together. I liked the idea of these two both out trying to find their own way in life, free of the family expectations that don't quite fit them, and ultimately finding a new way together. Even if they were kind of fumbling through it at first, actually that might have been my favorite part.

 

This is the perfect little rom-com that pulls your right in from the beginning and has you rooting for these two to figure things out and make it work. It is a fun, quick read with laugh out loud moments. If you like contemporary romance with a side of comedy I suggest giving Train Wreck a try!

 

 

I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

2.75 stars

I wanted to read Train Wreck because it sounded cute. I was hoping for a light, funny read, and it did deliver, with mixed results. The premise of the story is that Pepper is a klutz, and that everything she touches quickly goes wrong. This was amusing at first, but it quickly became tiring. If Pepper was consistently that clumsy and constantly injuring herself, I don’t see how she could have successfully managed to make it to her mid-twenties without permanently damaging herself. Really. She’s that much of a clod. Tripping. Falling. Almost getting hit by cars. Cutting herself on broken glass. Etc., etc., etc. Sigh.

Pepper, the daughter of a mega-successful movie producer, is hanging out in a small town, living in a beach house, just trying to keep it together. Attempts at holding down menial jobs aren’t working for her, because disaster follows in her footsteps. Her latest attempt at financial independence is working for a burger place, waving a specials sign at traffic. She spaces off, steps into the street, and is almost plowed over by a car. But she’s saved – but Derek! Her older brother’s BFF. Mortified, Pepper can’t believe that she’s been reunited with her teenage crush by almost being crushed by a little old lady’s car.

Derek is in town scouting locations for the movie he’s working on. He’s also keeping an eye on Pepper. Her father has agreed to finance his project, but only if he keeps Pepper out of trouble. Derek reluctantly agrees, because he has nowhere else to turn for funding. While he tries to keep his distance from Pepper, he can’t resist her. She’s peppy and fun, even if she’s a walking disaster zone.

The romance was cute, until the wedding. Pepper’s brother is getting married, and both she and Derek are in the wedding party. So is Pepper’s obnoxious ex. Before Pepper and Derek fly on a private plane to the island for the wedding, they are closer than two bugs in a rug. Once the plane lands, Derek is cold and unapproachable. The hot – cold thing drove me nuts. I don’t care that he wants to change the terms of his deal with her dad before making their relationship more permanent. You don’t treat someone like they are gold one minute, and then treat them like they are trash the next. In front of her unsupportive family, and in front of her jerk ex. The conflict felt forced and unnecessary, and oh, yeah, once they got back home, he was all “I love you!” again. Um, nope. His behavior was inexcusable, and only made me think he was cold and uncaring.

Pepper’s family – ugh. Poor Pepper is blamed for any and every mishap, whether she has any involvement in it or not. I really wanted to throw her dad and her clueless brother in the shark infested waters. What a bunch of self-absorbed twits.

The other major irritant for me was when Pepper was feeling sorry for herself. She needs to break free of her family. She wonders, as she sits in her ocean front cottage, how she can earn her own money. While she is working through her list of things she doesn’t want to do (go back to school, work with kids) she starts to become disheartened. All I wanted to do was tell her to get a job like all the rest of us. The rich-girl self-pity party did not work well for me.

So, I enjoyed the story – until the wedding. Then I found it irritating and unbelievable. Everyone got down on Pepper, and she just accepted how her crappily her family treated her. That must have rubbed off on Derek, because he started acting like a douche, too, and I wouldn’t have blamed Pepper if she told him to hit the road. I recommend this for an afternoon by the pool. It’s a quick read that doesn’t require much emotional investment.

The storylines in this book take some erratic twists, with some plot points being dropped without conclusion. This review will discuss those in greater storyline detail than I would normally do, so I am erring on the side of caution and marking this review as containing spoilers.

 

The girl: Lady Meleri Weatherby has been engaged since childhood to the son her her aging father's good friend, but she now sees the light and realizes Lord Phillip is a cruel, cruel man. She knows she needs to end the engagement, but her father's mind is in the clouds, and her much older half-sisters are miles away in London (the Weatherby estate is in Northumbria).

 

"What she had once adored was nothing more than a thin veneer, cracked and peeling away."

 

The guy: Robert Douglas (he's the earl of something-or-other) is the latest head of the verra old Douglas clan. Things haven't been so good for this branch of the Douglases, and the ancient Beloyn Castle is falling into disrepair and there's no money to fix it (and it's mortgaged as well).  Worse yet, Robert gets a letter from King George ordering him to marry an Englishwoman (being a Scot he hates the English), and he's got three weeks to find one. So, he sets off with his younger brother and they're on horseback trotting through the wilds of Northumbria looking for an heiress to marry. You would think he'd have better luck in London socializing with the swanks, but no...

A sometimes cheeky, frequently provocative and thoughtful exploration of our morbid curiosity, fascination with evil, and peculiar attraction to the dark, macabre, and gruesome in life.