Published: December 1st, 2014
Blindsided by Love
By: Hilary Rose
Momentum (Pan Macmillan)
ISBN-13: 9781760082109
Caroline has left Forrester Creations, heartbroken after her divorce from Rick.
Ridge senses Caroline's pain, for he, too is reeling from heartache but he is drawn to her spark and her smile.
When Ridge is injured in a wildfire in Malibu Canyon, Caroline returns to Forrester Creations to help them with a fashion fundraiser.
Rick and Ridge begin a battle for Caroline's heart. But who can she trust?
Review
Confession time: I have never even seen a single Bold & the Beautiful episode! I am an ABC soap junkie though, and will occasionally read some stuff about it in my "Soaps In Depth" magazine. I've been curious about it though, especially considering how much I love Thorsten Kaye and Heather Tom, from their respective terms on AMC and OLTL. And I admit to seeing that they'd been paired (however briefly) and having my interest skyrocket a helluva lot higher! Then I saw this book on NetGalley and even though it's more of an alternate path to what's happening, or has happened on the show previously, color me curious. I have a weakness for unlikely romances. So I decided to request it and give it a whirl.
Caroline has left behind her life in California, designing for Forrester Creations, after divorcing her cheating husband Rick. She still somewhat blames his brother, Ridge, for the downfall of her marriage after he demoted Rick at his position in the company, leading him to seek out his old girlfriend Maya for comfort. A chance encounter at a restaurant opening in NYC leaves Ridge and Caroline thinking of each other, unexpectedly sharing an attraction. Then Ridge is a victim of flash blindness (supposedly temporary), after saving his son and his son's friend from a raging wildfire. Unable to finish his designs for the upcoming fashion show to honor his deceased mother's memory, his sister convinces him to call Caroline for help. It turns out Rick regrets his mistakes and wants to win Caroline back. But her feelings for Ridge refuse to be ignored and the connection they're forging is getting stronger and hotter every day. Will choosing between the brothers ignite a familial war that'll destroy the upcoming event? Or will playing between the two destroy Caroline's own chance at true happiness?
I was impressed with how easy it was to dip into the world of The Bold & the Beautiful, with almost ZERO prior knowledge of anything in it, while reading this book. The relationships are explained and explored without any seriously annoying/boring info-dump sequences - and that isn't always easy to come by in an established universe. Caroline was a little boring to me, a little too "woe is me" and naieve to be truly interesting. At the same time, I respected her for not just jumping back into bed with Rick. It would have been the easier option, especially with her work at Forrester Creations, the strained/bitter relationship between him & Ridge, and the trouble the whole thing could cause her. Caroline refuses to back down and that's admirable. I liked Ridge's curmudgeonly tendencies, him being a bit of the strong and silent type. The heroism and the way he loses his sight was actually not so out of the realm of reality and I liked that it was well-explained, without becoming a Gray's Anatomy textbook. The romance between Caroline and Ridge was smoking, I liked them together, they brought out the fun and the challenges in each other and it was beautiful. I won't say much more, but we do get a happy ending. For a novella, this was well-structured, enjoyable and made me want to start another Soap Opera committment to go with my General Hospital addiction. Well done Hilary Rose! :D
VERDICT: 4/5 Stars
*I received this book from Momentum, on NetGalley. No favors or money were exchanged for this review. This book was published on December 1st, 2014.*
Caroline has left behind her life in California, designing for Forrester Creations, after divorcing her cheating husband Rick. She still somewhat blames his brother, Ridge, for the downfall of her marriage after he demoted Rick at his position in the company, leading him to seek out his old girlfriend Maya for comfort. A chance encounter at a restaurant opening in NYC leaves Ridge and Caroline thinking of each other, unexpectedly sharing an attraction. Then Ridge is a victim of flash blindness (supposedly temporary), after saving his son and his son's friend from a raging wildfire. Unable to finish his designs for the upcoming fashion show to honor his deceased mother's memory, his sister convinces him to call Caroline for help. It turns out Rick regrets his mistakes and wants to win Caroline back. But her feelings for Ridge refuse to be ignored and the connection they're forging is getting stronger and hotter every day. Will choosing between the brothers ignite a familial war that'll destroy the upcoming event? Or will playing between the two destroy Caroline's own chance at true happiness?
I was impressed with how easy it was to dip into the world of The Bold & the Beautiful, with almost ZERO prior knowledge of anything in it, while reading this book. The relationships are explained and explored without any seriously annoying/boring info-dump sequences - and that isn't always easy to come by in an established universe. Caroline was a little boring to me, a little too "woe is me" and naieve to be truly interesting. At the same time, I respected her for not just jumping back into bed with Rick. It would have been the easier option, especially with her work at Forrester Creations, the strained/bitter relationship between him & Ridge, and the trouble the whole thing could cause her. Caroline refuses to back down and that's admirable. I liked Ridge's curmudgeonly tendencies, him being a bit of the strong and silent type. The heroism and the way he loses his sight was actually not so out of the realm of reality and I liked that it was well-explained, without becoming a Gray's Anatomy textbook. The romance between Caroline and Ridge was smoking, I liked them together, they brought out the fun and the challenges in each other and it was beautiful. I won't say much more, but we do get a happy ending. For a novella, this was well-structured, enjoyable and made me want to start another Soap Opera committment to go with my General Hospital addiction. Well done Hilary Rose! :D
VERDICT: 4/5 Stars
*I received this book from Momentum, on NetGalley. No favors or money were exchanged for this review. This book was published on December 1st, 2014.*
