LOVING THE CHASE

Charming, adventurous Zach Chase has always craved the spotlight, and now he’s on the hunt for publicity for his family’s storm-chasing business. So when a reality TV network approaches him with the idea for a show profiling their work, he can’t resist. But the last person he expects to walk into the meeting is the former love of his life.

Production assistant Maddi Hayes was once engaged to Zach—until she was almost killed by a tornado he was out chasing. She walked away from her fiancé and their future together, convinced she’d always come second to his dangerous career.

Dreading the show and anxious over working so closely with Zach, Maddi also knows this project could mean big things for her career. If only Zach weren’t still so infuriating…and so infuriatingly sexy. Can they finally let go of their stormy past? Or will the passion still raging between them win in the end?

Release Date: August 25, 2015

Montlake Romance

Heart of the Storm #1

Review copy provided by publisher

Nikki’s Review:

When I open a book by a new to me author, I'm always filled with a certain amount of trepidation. I can always count on my favourite authors to deliver the stories that I want to read. So, reading someone new sets me a little off balance. Let me tell you, Ms. Lovelace has a new fan! I was completely engrossed in her writing from the first page!

I love watching documentaries about tornados. I have this morbid fascination with the destructive beauty of them. They completely terrify me; the very thought of them makes me shiver. But I can't look away when they are on the tv screen. Initially, the fact that the hero, Zach, is a storm chaser, is what drew me to the book. But this whole book wasn't just about the storms that our Earth creates, it was also about the storms that we create on our own. The turbulence that our hearts go through when love is involved.

Maddi never stopped loving Zach. And when they are thrown together to create the pilot for a reality show based on storm chasing, her feelings come roaring to the surface. Maddi left Zach seven years earlier because she couldn't compete with his adrenaline junkie lifestyle. She had met a tornado up close and personal, and it nearly killed her. She had to get away from it all. I can't imagine always wondering if the person you love will come home at the end of the day. I imagine Maddi always waiting for that phone call. And when she is swallowed up in her home by a tornado, she does what most people would do; she looks for a place of calm and safety. And that isn't with someone who runs right into these violent winds and debris.

Zach loves what he does. He loves working with his siblings and carrying on his fathers legacy. But he's also completely misunderstood. He's so much more than what his family gives him credit for. They all think he fools around and takes nothing seriously when he isn't chasing funnel clouds. So it's no surprise that he doesn't tell them about his budding woodworking company. He's always regretted never going after Maddi. He's always missed her and kept her deep in his heart. And when he has the chance to make things right, he doesn't necessarily say all the right things!

Man, these two are so hot together! And I don't mean just all lovey dovey and stuff. Their arguments and yelling matches are epic. There is so much pent up hurt and love. I was practically squeezing my kindle violently with anxiety, waiting for these two to make up and make out! Maddi has groveling to do for the way she left. She has rights to make wrong. And when things come to a head with Hannah, her former best friend and Zach's sister, the crap hits the fan. As I was reading the words that Maddi was ripping from her soul...well it just tore me to shreds. Listening to her talk about how Zach was her everything and she loved him with her whole heart...yup, there were some tears! These two were so in love and they couldn't see beyond there own hurt. I wanted to knock some sense into them.

There's always a moment in a book that I feel those little butterflies flutter their wings in my tummy. Sometimes my heart gallops a bit too. And it isn't always for the same reasons. In this book, the butterflies visited when Maddi and Zach get caught in the rain. When they can no longer deny anything. When all their hurt and love comes barreling forward. It was like a scene from a movie playing in my head. The hero pulls the heroine in close, they're all wet, water dripping from their eyelids, and then they close the gap completely and kiss. I could practically hear the music that would have been playing. The love scene certainly wasn't anything kinky or over the top, but it was beautiful and romantic. And it was in the rain. Kind of fitting for them really. My only complaint is that it took a little longer than I would have liked to get to that point. I'm impatient that way.

Of course there's some regret and not everything is worked out by a beautiful bump and grind in the rain. There's some truly fabulous climatic stuff that I won't spoil. They have their own storms to overcome and one big ass tornado to outrun! I'm so happy that I opened this book. Like I said, reading new stuff is always a little nerve wracking. I love being in a book high and when I'm thrown off course, it's awful. I'm really looking forward to the next book in this series and visiting with Zach's crazy and completely loveable family. This book is beautifully written and with a solid plot, it just captivated me. There are so many great characters in this story that deserve their own book. I will definitely be adding Sharla Lovelace to my TBR!