For this review, I chose Tempting by Susan Mallery. Ok, on Goodreads, I am in a Challenge to see how many Susan Mallery books I can read for the year. Read about it here.
Each book is about a family member.
Book #1 (Delicious) was about Cal Buchanan & his ex wife, Penny.
Book #2, Irresistible. It is about Walker Buchanan, who we met in Book #1.
Book #3 (Sizzling) is about Reid Buchanan & the one nurse he hired for his grandmother, Gloria.
Book #4 (Tempting) is about Dani Buchanan & about her fresh start.
Spoiler Warning: If you have not read this book, stop! Read the book before reading the rest of my review!!
This is my favorite Buchanan book. I love how this book starts out. Dani is looking for her father. I am not going to tell you where. You need to read that for yourself. We meet Alex for the first time. Alex says to Dani "Think of me as the dragon at the gate." (page 6) Dani calls him "dragon-boy" (page 8) in a forceful way. I love this because she never spoken to someone like this before.
Dani is confused about a lot of things. Dani "might not be sure of the place in the universe or her last name, but she was clear on how much she mattered to her brothers." (page 27-28) Her brother did not care who her father is because they are her brothers always! This quote is about Dani talking to Gloria: "I thought there would be more," she admitted. "I guess that's not fair." about her father. (page 72) "Sometimes we don't know our expectations until we're in the situation," Gloria told her. (page 72) I love that Dani now has her grandmother to go for advice. Something that she never had before. I think there is 1 problem with her & her father. They need more time to get to know each other. Both with & without anyone there. Dani is also confused about Alex, too.
I normally only do the main 2 characters, but there are too many favorite quotes to just put 2 characters so I have chosen my top 1-3 favorites per character.
Dani has been through a lot. We meet her in the Buchanan book #1. Each book in the series we learned more & more. My favorite Dani quotes is
"You don't have to do this, Dani said impulsively. "You don't have to be nice to me or help me or even accept me. Yet you are. I'm sorry. I mean that. I never meant to cause any trouble. I never meant to hurt anyone." (page 245) to Katherine. Dani was taking into account Katherine's feeling about what her mother did. Dani is her dad's child, but Katherine is her dad's wife. She has to feel mad, angry, & maybe hate Dani. Dani wanted to tell Katherine that it is ok. Another great Dani quote is Dani grinned. "If I decide to take the job, we will. Don't worry. I'm going to make you pay for the best." (page 279) to Walker & Gloria. Dani was offered a job position within the Buchanan restaurant empire. Read to find out which restaurant they want her to run! I am not going to tell you! Another Dani quote is "Katherine, I would have loved to have you along. I admire you so much. There have been times...." She drew in a breath. "I've often wished you were my parent, not Mark." (page 323-324) During the book, you see that Dani & Katherine have gone through so much. It is hard for Dani to find out who her father is. It is hard for Katherine to find out after all these years that her husband has a child of his own when she can not have kids. This is my favorite Dani quote. "I want to be the one, " she told him, not caring who else was in the room. "I want to be the only one. I want to be that safe place where you can go no matter what." to Alex (page 374) Read to find out what is next! ;)
We met Alex when Dani first wanted to meet her father, but Alex stopped her. This is one of my favorite Alex quotes is "Think of me as the dragon at the gate," the man said. "You're not getting past me until I know your business." (page 6). Another favorite Alex quote is Alex is thinking about how this all is affecting Katherine & says "This has to be hard for you." (page 136) Alex saying to Katherine. Alex is a very good son & does want he needs to do for his family. He reminds me of Noah. Noah is always there for me when I need him. He will make a great husband one day. Dani said the quote above (my favorite quote) then Alex replied to her "You're stealing my speech." to Dani (page 374) I love it!
Katherine is Dani's Dad's wife. Katherine is an amazing woman & the mother of 8 children. There is 6 children at home while Julie & Alex are on their own. Each of the children has some kind of disability. Alex had issues with living in a real home. Not sure about Julie. The other 6 children have anything between deafness, CP, or AIDS. One of my favorite Katherine quotes is "I loved you the first moment I saw you, Alex. But, I didn't make you anything. You are the man you were meant to be. I'm so proud of you, but I won't take any credit. Flowers, maybe, but not credit." (page 91) Alex was thanking her for picking him. Another favorite Katherine Quote is "Until then, I'll do what I've always done. Take care of my family and try to make a difference in the world." Katherine saying to Alex (page 137) This has to be my favorite in of all of them. "People rise to the level of expectation. It has been proven time and time again. Expect more and you will get more." (page 227) This took place at Oliver's IEP meeting. I have been at many IEP meetings. As a parent of special needs child, you have to fight to get what your child needs. We have a child advocate for this. I did not like that Oliver's teacher said he has limitations. How do we know a child's limitation? A child needs to be challenged. This includes all children including special needs. I love Katherine. Her & Mark adopted special needs children. Katherine is fighting for the best education possible for each of her children.
I love how Gloria is with her grandchildren. It is so great. Here is my favorite quote from this book: "I know it's not all right at this minute, but we'll make it all right. I promise." (page 130) Gloria saying this to Dani after Dani saw the newspaper. I love this new Gloria. So sweet, loving, caring. This is exactly what Dani needs in her life. Someone there to help her with everything that is going on in her life. She found her dad, but never dreamed it would be this hard. I am not sure how I would handle my dad being a senator, having the press following me everything, & my life not being private. Then, add in Alex. Gloria is there to help her.
Once again I left out a lot out on purpose. ha! It is the good parts! I want you to read it. I am not going to tell you! =)
I love this book! I give it 5 stars. It is my favorite in the Buchanan series. If you are looking for a series, then read this one! I highly recommend this book!
Keep reading!
Melissa
P.S. Questions for you
1. Why did Alex divorce his wife? What did she do?
2. What does Dani's dad do?
3. What happened to Dani & Bailey at the end of the book?
4. What is your favorite book in this series?
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