Rene's Getaway: igniting the wild sparks

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Book Review: Daring The Wild Sparks by Ren Alexander (Book #2)

Daring The Wild Sparks

Wild Sparks Series book 2

By Ren Alexander

Reviewed by Sandra Long

5 Stars

In the follow up to “Chasing the Wild Sparks,” Hadley Beckett’s quest for wedded bliss perseveres…

What would you do if the love of your life were closer to making your dreams come true?

Riding high in her relationship with her sportscaster/local daredevil boyfriend Finn Wilder, Hadley Beckett makes plans concerning her future with Finn. Big plans.

Infamously anti-marriage, Finn promised Hadley he’d consider taking her to the altar if she gives him more time. Diving headfirst and with encouragement from friends, Hadley formulates her own way to handle Finn if he can’t commit to her soon.

Knowing she has an uphill climb ahead of her, Hadley is still determined to succeed, yet is she unwittingly destined to fail?

The love story of Finn and Hadley picks up where Chasing the Wild left off. The two lovers meet at his mom and step-dad's house as planned for a long Easter weekend. But even away from their jobs and their interfering friends, their problems continue and become even more complicated.

After a 3 year courtship Finn's family has decided it is time for him to marry Hadley and they want it done that weekend. They are really putting pressure on him to do it. But his mom also drops a bomb on the family--she is divorcing her current husband who has been Finn's step-father for 19 years and has a very close relationship with him. To Finn this is even more proof that marriage destroys love and ends happy relationships, all the more reason to stay single and just live together.

Finn and Hadley have argued and made up and argued, several times and after his mom's big announcement, he and his best friend, Ricky, who is also spending the weekend, take off. Hadley feels like he has thrown her down so she takes off also and goes to visit a friend who lives on an island fairly close to Finn's mom. Finn follows her and once more they make up.

They go back to his mom's and Finn and Ricky take Hadley to Easter mass with them. It is her first time and there are baptisms and communion and as she watches Finn, who seems so comfortable in these rituals, she begins to feel very unworthy . She has never been baptized, never attended church, never taken communion. Her feelings affect their relationship after church but she has trouble explaining how she feels to Finn.

Much like the first book in this series, the story continues with break-ups and make-ups for Finn and Hadley. As this book ends, their relationship is still strained. A hot new intern at his office is chasing him shamelessly and when he is asked to coach Hadley's office softball team, his friend Ricky and this blonde intern volunteer to be his assistant coaches since both have been on teams before. Our story ends as everyone arrives for the first softball practice and the intern in hanging onto Finn while Hadley seethes with jealousy, but hides behind her friends trying to keep Finn from seeing what it is doing to her.

Great book, interesting story, but leaves the reader anxious for the next installment. Will these two lovers ever get their act together or will they end up destroying each other and their relationship by not dealing with their own insecurities and sharing those feelings with each other honestly ? Another 5 star novel for this author.

Ren Alexander was born in Wheeling, West Virginia, but grew up in a nearby tiny, historical, college town in the Northern Panhandle of the state. She graduated from West Liberty University, where she received a B.S. in criminal justice. Although interested in that field, her true passion was reading and writing.

She currently lives in Detroit, Michigan with her husband, two daughters and two cats.

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Igniting The Wild Sparks

Book #3

In the second follow up to “Chasing the Wild Sparks,” Hadley Beckett comes closer to triumphing over a reluctant Finn Wilder…

What would you do if the love of your life gave you the keys to the kingdom, but won’t let you in?

At the end of her rope, Hadley grabs her intrepid boyfriend Finn Wilder’s world by the…bridge. Finally ready to end the never-ending merry-go-round that is their unknotted life together, she enlists the help of her friends to help boost her own courage. Since Finn is all about walking on the wild side but not down an aisle, Hadley challenges him to the ultimate test that will prove her more daring than the daredevil himself, hoping Finn will take notice and change his mind about making her forever his.

Throwing down the irrevocable gauntlet, will Hadley celebrate supreme victory over his heart or will she accept the cruelest defeat at the very hand she holds?

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Book Review: Chasing The Wild Sparks by Ren Alexander (Book #1)

Chasing The Wild Sparks

Wild Sparks Series book 1

By Ren Alexander

Reviewed by Sandra Long

5 Stars

Hadley Beckett has failed in not only her career, but as a daughter, friend, and girlfriend. Hadley’s longtime boyfriend, Finn Wilder, who is Richmond, Virginia’s local daredevil and favorite sportscaster, isn’t afraid of anything…almost. Hadley desperately wants a marriage and kids with him, the two things Finn infamously dreads.

Finn pressures Hadley into moving in with him, but being traditional, she wants to be married first and she wants to stick to her beliefs, just as he clings to his own. On the other hand, Finn has tolerated Hadley’s stubbornness long enough and he’s reaching his breaking point. 

Fearing at 33 that she will soon be too old to have kids, Hadley wants Finn to change his mind and marry her, yet her insecurities about his public life and from his constant rebuffs have her questioning her aspirations. With conflicting advice from her friends, Hadley concludes she should take things into her own hands.

But then again, Finn Wilder has his own story to tell.

Hadley and Finn meet accidentally in a hospital emergency room and there is instant chemistry between the two despite their totally different lives. She has had several different jobs since college, finally settling in as a legal assistant. She likes her job and her co-workers but at 30 she has no boyfriend and no prospect in sight for the happy marriage and babies she dreams about. He is a TV personality, extremely popular and extremely the confirmed bachelor.

After a few dates they are both deeply in love and committed to each other but everyone Finn knows, including both parents, have been through at least one divorce. He thinks marriage destroys relationships so he just wants them to live together and never have children. She cannot give up her dreams but she also cannot give up this man. This situation causes on-going strife in their relationship but somehow they always manage to stay together.

This author, like many others in today's romance genre, uses the technique of switching from telling the story from different characters' views, so we, as the reader, know what they actually feel. But this author has a very special way of describing the characters in ways that make them come to life for us. They take on a life of their own. The reader gets so caught up in the story that almost before you realize it you have formed opinions of these people and have started liking some and disliking others. They take on the personalities of people like them we have known in real life and that influences our opinions of them. Even the irritating characters become so irritating that we feel an intense emotion when a scene involves them. These intense opinions of the characters is very unusual for most readers but adds greatly to the enjoyment of the book. We find ourselves wanting the main characters to make decisions based on what we would do in their situation and if they don't, we feel angry, almost like a betrayal. Now, this takes good writing skills.

Finn and Hadley go through ups and downs and the book ends with their conflicts unresolved as they prepare to spend Easter weekend with his family. So, the reader will have to wait for the next installment to see how this romance ends.

A delightful book to read. 5 stars and on to the next book !!