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BEFORE I LET YOU GO - Angie Daniels Harlequin Kimani/Romance March 2010 |
SYNOPSIS: Kellis Saunders has loved Diamere Redmond since childhood. But when he leaves town, she vows to forget him. Now Diamere is back and determined to pick up where they had left off. But Kellis isn't sure she's ready to risk her future on him--again.
SERIES ROMANCE |4| Jennifer Brathwaite
REVIEW:
Whatever is meant to be will be.
Kellis and Diamere learn though a few trials and tribulations, false starts and
close calls, that you can’t make love happen before its time and you can’t hold
it at bay once it gets going.
Diamere Redmond is Kellis Saunders’s childhood crush who she always hoped would
come to see her as a woman rather than just a pseudo kid sister. Passing years
and a marriage on Diamere’s part broke Kellis’s heart and made her give up her
youthful dreams of getting Diamere to see her differently. Now, years later,
Diamere is back and she is presented with the opportunity to get everything she
once hoped for, whether she’s ready or not to admit to herself that it’s
something she still wants. To Diamere, Kellis is the little girl all grown up
whom, unbeknownst to her, he did notice all those years ago. Now that he’s back
he wants the chance with Kellis that he missed. As a result of a past betrayal
however, Diamere isn’t looking for a long-term commitment and Kellis isn’t
interested in begging him for one. Fortuitously, life doesn’t always work out
the way we plan and love finds a way.
Before I Let You Go moves well with the characters being brought
together right away and their mutual attraction to each other being clearly
ascertained. Their relationship itself develops at a believable pace given their
back-story and their feelings for one another.
Angie Daniels’s characters are clearly fleshed out and demonstrate the talent of
a proficient writer. She includes just enough secondary characters to give the
novel the fullness of real life but not so many that the reader feels inundated
with different names and people to remember. Diamere’s Nana is an excellent
example of a player who brings both humour to the story and depth to Diamere as
a lead.
The setting is very good as each locale not only serves to set the mood for a
scene, but also frames the characters and who they are in any given moment. The
sexiness of Diamere’s nightclub versus the sweetness of his Nana’s retirement
facility and how he and Kellis interact in each location demonstrate this
parallel.
Overall Before I Let You Go is an enjoyable novel. It is a sexy
story with healthy doses of romance and sweetness. The only weakness of the book
lies with Kellis. She is written as a character who knows her mind but that is
not backed up with action. Throughout the novel Diamere routinely and blatantly
ignores assertions Kellis makes and she almost always, if not always, just
changes her mind to gives in to his wants. It would be nice if one could see
Diamere altering his behaviour in respect of her wishes, rather than Kellis
merely abandoning her position in the face of whatever he desires. Regardless,
the novel is still enjoyable and still a good buy, especially for those who are
fans of Ms. Daniels work.
reviewer@romanceincolor.com | 18th March 2010