Publisher:  HarperCollins Publishers Inc


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WHAT IS ABOUT?

Darcy Barrett has undertaken a global survey of men. She's travelled the world, and can categorically say that no one measures up to Tom Valeska, whose only flaw is that Darcy's twin brother Jamie saw him first and claimed him forever as his best friend. Despite Darcy's best efforts, Tom's off limits and loyal to her brother, 99%. That's the problem with finding her dream man at age eight and peaking in her photography career at age twenty-ever since she's had to learn to settle for good enough.

When Darcy and Jamie inherit a tumble-down cottage from their grandmother, they're left with strict instructions to bring it back to its former glory and sell the property. Darcy plans to be in an aisle seat halfway across the ocean as soon as the renovations start, but before she can cut and run, she finds a familiar face on her porch: house-flipper extraordinaire Tom's arrived, he's bearing power tools, and he's single for the first time in almost a decade.

Suddenly Darcy's considering sticking around to make sure her twin doesn't ruin the cottage's inherent magic with his penchant for grey and chrome. She's definitely not staying because of her new business partner's tight t-shirts, or that perfect face that's inspiring her to pick up her camera again. Soon sparks are flying and it's not the faulty wiring. It turns out one per cent of Tom's heart might not be enough for Darcy anymore. This time around, she's switching things up. She's going to make Tom Valeska 99 percent hers.

REVIEW

The whole time reading I was thinking that Sally Thorne really wanted to write something unusual and different and unfortunately, it backfired.

Don't take me wrong, I am all about different, but this time it did not work for me.

I have read THG, it is one of my favourites and I get it must be difficult to surpass and outdone oneself as an author after such a great first book.
If I haven't known she wrote another (and perfect) romance, I would think this was her first book ever. And maybe it was, maybe it was somewhere buried as a backup document and the THG idea came and she postponed this idea.
We will never find out.
And it is not that Sally can't write. It's more about this particular story.
More like "a typical male protagonist in a woman's body". 

Don't you agree? Here are some clues:
- Darcy is a male name (I know it is different today with the UNISEX names, but you get me)
- She sleeps around (and never calls them back)
- She is emotionally unavailable
- She is sooo stubborn (it hurts)
- She is masculine, has cut her hair short
- She is a smart-ass
- She can't settle down, always travels and no one can stop her
- THE ONE will change all of that
Does it sound familiar? Yes... Darcy is PRETTY MUCH ALL OF THE MALE HEROES IN EVERY ROMANCE NOVEL - except, she is a lady....

And what about Tom? Typical female :
- has slept only with one woman before Darcy
- is super caring and helping everyone
- he is extra sensible
- he waits for THE ONE to settle down

See? 

And what about the actual plot? 

There was basically none... or some of the character arcs just disappeared, so that Darcy and Tom could get all of the (unwanted) attention.

Examples: 

- she works at the bar, we get to know her colleague, her typical guests and her admirer, but after the introduction, we no longer get to meet them...why? 

- the whole thing was happening while remodelling the house which was...boring?
- her twin brother was like ..... I do not know, I felt they both were 15 years old
- she was constantly dying from heart disease, but she did not care...wtf?
- the passport thing and the ring thing got resolved in one chapter, why? 

This, however...

I do not like to write "bad reviews" because I am also an "aspiring author",  not successful as Sally, of course( or rather "at all"...), and I treasure people, especially women, who can write beautiful stories. 

I know it must hurt, every author is so vulnerable,  he is out there, in the open, with his new "baby" (aka book) and probably really proud of what he's achieved and then comes the negativity.  

But I believe, some of the reviews are really objective and should help the author to write better books in the future. 

Unfortunately, once you write something everyone loves, they all have expectations from you. And in this case, they were not fulfilled.

It was more than clear to me (after a few pages, I might add) that Sally Thorne really wanted to create an "unusual" heroine.

Besides that, the whole plot was very....different. Like she did not know what to do with that not-so-great setup she's created.

I really missed more dates, fun, more chemistry, more danger from some of Darcy's admirers. They just banged the walls (literally and figuratively) and she always undressed Tom with her eyes, while he worked... and that was pretty much it...