Make Me Stay
(Hope, #5)
By: Jaci Burton
Publisher: Berkley
Published: Dec. 1, 2015
Genre: Romance
Rating:
Reid McCormack is back in Hope to renovate the old mercantile. Then he plans to go back to Boston, where he’s built a successful career. But beautiful florist Samantha Reasor is a distraction Reid hadn’t counted on. Samantha intends to convince Reid that Hope is where his heart has always been, and coming home might be the best choice he could ever make.
Reid’s come back into town to renovate an old historic building in his hometown. He doesn’t plan to stay longer than the renovation process. However, his plans quickly change when a stray dog claims him as his owner and he starts to spend time with Samantha. Pretty soon he finds himself thinking about the what-ifs.
This is a sweet romance that has to do with a tight knit group of people. Everyone from the previous books played a rather significant role in this novel. I should probably point out that I only read the second book in the series which was about Reid’s brother Logan. So with that being said, you don’t have to read all the previous books, but I feel like I would have had more of a connection to these characters if I did. Especially since all the guys are friends and all the girls were friends. Make’s me think that these two popped up a lot in the previous installments. Regardless, this was still an enjoyable read.
These two characters were great. They’re both independent, have successful businesses, are loyal to their family and friends, and don’t beat around the bush when it comes to things they want. There wasn’t a whole heck of a lot of angst in this story because whatever Sam and Logan wanted from each other, they voiced it. I found that aspect to be very refreshing. Nothing bothers me more than two people who don’t know how to communicate what they want.
Now I’m sure some people will go on and on about how swoon worthy Reid is. I’m not going to be one of them. I felt like he was a bit too scripted at times. The character that stole the show for me was Reid’s dog, Not My Dog. I loved that dog! He got his unique name because people would comment on Reid’s new pal and he would immediately go on the defensive and say, “He’s not my dog”. Thus, the dog was named by the community of Hope as “Not My Dog”… or Notty if you’re in the know. This pup followed Reid around and essentially bullied and cemented his way into Reid’s life. He made sure he was always beside Reid on any adventure and he even hung out at the building Reid was renovating. Not to mention that Reid had full blown conversations with Notty where he imagined what the dog would say in return. Yeah, that dog was awesome!
Okay, enough about the dog. Can you tell that I’m an animal person? Ha! Anyways, if you are looking for a sweet romance set in a small town where everyone knows your name, then look no further than Jaci Burton’s Hope series.
Reid and his brothers were pretty funny. They were always ribbing on each other there were definitely times where I cracked a smile at their brotherly ways.
“Where the hell are you going to get a date?” Logan asked.
He’d known it was coming. “I know people. Women people.”
“So you’re gonna call one of our cousins?”
Reid glared at Logan. “No. I’m not going to call one of the cousins. I’m going to call a woman who isn’t related to us. Because I know women.”
Previous reviews from Hope
Hope Ignites
Not much angst, fun, a tight group of people, a great cover (as usual with Jaci Burton) and a great dog : I want to read this ! Book #1 is already on my to-read list, and the dogs on almost every cover on the series helped a lot 😉 Great review, Kristin !
HaHa glad to know I wasn’t the only one drawn in by the dogs on the cover. I haven’t read the fist book but I’ll probably go back one day and read the ones I’ve missed.
I need to try this author again, i tried a novella and it didn’t work. I love animals in stories too!
She’s 50/50 with me. The first book of hers that I read I fell in love with. Since then none have lived up to it. I keep trying though.
So I think what you are saying about Reid is that he was a bit too good to be true? I have had that happen, and it definitely bugs me. The dog sounds terrific.
Pretty much. I like my characters to have flaws and I don’t mean the obvious cut and dry problems that have been overused in romance novels nowadays. I just need some flaws to know they are human.
I would read anything with animals in it. They always make the best characters.
Yes! Except when the author doesn’t include them enough and they end up being background noise. Then I get sad because there’s usually a good chance that I’m reading said book because of the animal on the cover. LoL Which is probably why I like shifter books so much. 🙂
LOL Not My Dog was awesome. I love when there’s a great animal character. You know. I don’t remember them having huge roles in the other books but having read the other books I do think had me enjoying this one more. It was fun seeing all the other characters I’d fallen for earlier show up in this one 🙂
I only read the one but I don’t think the dogs played a huge role in it like Notty did in this. Since I only read the one book, I felt a lil left out when everyone got together and started chatting like BFF’s.