Lucky, after a wild college start and a bad breakup, has resolved that she’s not up for that sort of thing. She’s looking for a real, solid, last boyfriend, not a playboy like Zane. But she can’t help being attracted, and when he hires her as an assistant for a documentary on her historical specialty, the Civil Rights era, she starts to fall for him in a dangerous way.
Then there’s former child actor and movie star, Braydon Eagle, who seems much more wholesome – but there’s bad blood between him and Zane, and neither of them will tell Lucky the full story. Which guy is the good guy here? And can Lucky keep her heart free until she knows what she really wants?
This is a sweet little story, romantic and tender. Zane’s protectiveness and affection make him a sympathetic hero, even when the reader is led to believe that he’s behaving badly, and Lucky’s vulnerable charm is quite appealing. The couple they interview add a nice view of a more mature, committed love affair, which gives perspective on their newly-developing romance. The story is short and entertaining, without dragging or tedium, making it a good candidate for a light read during a few stolen moments on a stressful day.
The book could be much improved by a good edit, as there are occasional grammatical errors. The dialogue is a bit stilted and clumsy, even unnatural in places. Additionally, the conflicts are sometimes implausible – it seems unreasonable for a man to expect a woman to accept his warning about another guy, when he won’t tell her why or what his actual problem is, and when he has no real reason to avoid telling her.
The interview for the documentary also seemed a bit off, as Lucky keeps not-exactly-interrupting her interviewee in order to explain the history of the time to Zane, when surely the person who was actually there could do so much better. (One of the first lessons a social scientist and/or historian learns is to let the primary sources do the main talking.)
Reviewed by Catherine Langrehr for IndieReader