Review: Love Me Again by Jaci Burton

Love Me Again
(Hope #7)
by Jaci Burton
Publisher: Berkley Romance
Publication Date: May 2, 2017
Genre: Romance
Rating:

In the latest novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Don’t Let Go, it’s never too late for a second chance at first love…

When Loretta Simmons returns to Hope, Oklahoma, after a disastrous marriage, she’s determined to remain independent for the sake of her daughter. The only thing standing in her way is Deacon Fox—the man she loved and walked away from years ago.

Since Loretta owns the bookstore right next to his current renovation project, Deacon can’t escape the woman who broke his heart. Throw in her adorable little girl and one ridiculously oversized dog, and they’re almost a family. Only he can’t be that guy—what they had was once in a lifetime.

But love has a funny way of re-opening a door you thought was firmly closed…

My thoughts…

This does not need to be read in order
Okay, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. I’ve only read the second and fifth book in this series. When it comes to a series like this, I’m like a deranged butterfly, I flutter all over the damn place between books. So with that being said, you can absolutely read this series out of order. Whatever tickles your fancy. Now, for those of you who start from the beginning and read your way though, you will find a lot of enjoyment from these books because we meet up with everyone. For instance there’s a scene in this book where the gang (for the most part) get together and go on a vacation to this massive house by the lake. There’s drinks, girl-time, dude-time, kid-time, dog-time… you get the idea. So, I think if I had been a good lil reader and read this series from start to finish, I would have been ecstatic to see what my favorite characters were up to. Since I’ve only read two of the books previously, I settled for getting to see what one of them was up to.

Otis is the best!
If you follow me on Instagram you may remember me babbling on about my love for Otis. You’d also be clued into the fact that Otis is the oh so handsome Great Dane on the cover. I love that the cover shows Deacon with a behaving Otis because if it had been Loretta with Otis, it would have been a hot mess. That dog was a massive goofball and a half. He’s eating lil old lady’s bouquet of flowers, running around with the newly planted tomato plant in his mouth like it’s a rope toy, and he’s giving you those dopey eyes with his head cocked to the side like, “What? What’d I do?” Otis was my jam in this book. Which is no surprise since I always love animals in books and tend to feel put-out when they only seem to be background noise. Otis was all up in this story. He was pretty much a secondary character and I loved it.

Adults adulting
I really enjoyed the fact that we got to see these two fine adults working on the job. Deacon is a contractor who just so happens to be renovating the building next to Loretta’s bookstore, which is how these two bump into each other. So, I liked that it’s not just “these two characters do ‘this’ for a living” but we don’t actually get to see them in action. Jaci Burton takes the time to show you what a day on the job is like for them and I appreciated that.

Adults actually acting like adults
Say what?! Who knew you could have two adults that actually acted like grown ass adults. I know right? I mean, instead of getting their panties in a twist and getting bum-hurt feelings over the littlest of things, they deal with their issues like… well, adults. Loretta broke Deacon’s heart when they were just teens and while she still feels guilt over it, he’s moved on. He helps her out at her new house/ranch with repairs and chats up her kid. He doesn’t mope around and take it out on her. Not to mention, when the big “conflict” pops up, they don’t revert back to their teen years and go storming off in a hissy fit of anger. No! They time out that bad-boy, take a minute to collect themselves, pull up their big girl panties/big boy briefs, and move on.

This was an all around great read
You have romance, goofy dogs, a cute little daughter who will tug on your heart strings, and some steamy scenes. While I haven’t read all the books in the series, it’s not because I don’t want to, it’s just that I can only read so many books. At some point I would like to go back and fill in the blanks because I love how the characters all weave together. In this book we meet Josie who is new to town. Her past sounds a little sketchy, like she was lucky to get out, and with the hint of romance between her and another character in this book, I’m really hoping her story is next.

Favorite part…

Otis! Seriously, I could write a whole review about that dopey dog. If you read this book for any reason at all, read it for Otis.

Previous reviews from Hope
Hope Ignites
Make Me Stay