Hey there, bibliophiles! Im starting this book review with a quick update. Here goes. I’ve been trying so hard to regularly post two blog updates a week (at minimum), but I’ve had a few road blocks lately. Work has either left me super busy and exhausted, real life has taken up my free time, or I have free time, but I’m behind on my reading so I can’t seem to post anything even if I want to.. which is frustrating. I think I’ve been on the same book since before the 4th of July, which is completely unlike me. However, I have to say I appreciate the patience. Blogging does take a lot of time and effort, and as many of you know, I do this out of my genuine love of literature, so just remember I am one person trying to find that balance. I know several of you authors out there have asked me to review books for you, and I promise, I’m getting to them. Just try to hang in there for me.
NOW! Let’s talk about one of the last romances I’ve read.
This is a book that has, as usual, been sitting on my kindle for awhile.. I’m talking probably close to a year. I’m a cover sucker, and was totally pulled in by first glimpse, so when I was in bed one night, scrolling through my phone and all of my MANY books to read, this one drew me in yet again and before giving any thought to my decision, began reading. I’m talking about Unexpected Reality by Kaylee Ryan.
So, this is not going to be one of my typical reviews, because unfortunately, I didn’t love this story. However, when it comes to all of the time and effort I know that authors put into their work, I do try to walk away with something positive about the story no matter what. I struggle time and again to write my own novel, and have been since I was in high school, and so far, I haven’t finished a project, so I’ll always give props to authors in any way I can, simply because they did it, they finished what they set out to do, and that is to tell us a story and bring us on an adventure. Let me see if I can tell you a bit about this book and explain my experience during my journey.
Ridge is a bachelor and a hard-working man who just happens to find himself in an encounter and one night stand with a girl named Melissa. The pair part ways before the night is even over, and then his life changes forever.
Months later, Ridge finds himself in a hospital with a stranger he rescued on the side of the road in a terrible storm; or so he thinks. Turns out, the stranger is Melissa, and she’s not only badly hurt from her accident, but she’s also heavily pregnant… with Ridge’s child.
Ridge doesn’t think twice before taking his son on full-time, and he insists on doing it all on his own. Although his family is supportive to this sudden and drastic change, He wants to be the primary caregiver of baby Knox.
If you’re thinking this is about Ridge finding his way through parenthood with the mother of his child, think again. Things don’t quite go that route. Instead, during a doctor’s visit with the baby, he encounters Kendall, a girl he knew from high school. The two hit things off and form a fast friendship that develops into something more.
I thought the concept of this story was not only interesting, but different. Not everyone gets their happily ever after, and not everyone has a clear cut path in life. This story had such potential for me, but it fell short.
To start, the structure and writing style of this story jumped around a lot and came across as choppy, which affected the flow of events for me. It bordered on simplistic which became painful at points. On top of that, I felt like the characters were extremely under-developed and had so much more to offer. Instead, little factoids were thrown in along the way as an after thought, but like I should keep these little traits and quirks in mind as the book progressed.
While I was fine and intrigued by the mother and father of Knox not winding up together, I wasn’t prepared for the twist at the end. Normally, I love a good plot twist, but the one that was in this story involving the two main females, just seemed like an extra, thrown-in random, that I couldn’t get into. It was almost like an, “oh, I forgot to put this into the story” from the author.
Lastly, there’s Ridge. I couldn’t get on board with Ridge. When we first meet him, he has a one night stand, which is fine and dandy. Then, he dates a girl that his friends make a bet with him to date, and he treats her horribly. She had plenty of flaws as well, but it didn’t justify the way he treated her. For being such grown men, they sure were childish about the whole dating scene. Throw Kendall into the crazy mix and have Ridge fall head-over-heels seemingly out of nowhere for her? He’s one messy man.
I finished this book, and it was a pretty fast read. In the end, I liked it, but I was severely underwhelmed with the whole thing. It had a few “aw” moments, but they were few and far between for me. If you’re looking for a cute read about a hot dad, then this is the book for you. If you’re looking for something that’s just a little bit…. more, then think hard before attempting this one.
If this story had even been a hundred pages more with a extra character and plot development, I would’ve been completely on board and probably had fallen in love with the whole thing. Unfortunately, it just fell short and I couldn’t get there to fully swoon the way I wanted.
My Final Rating: two out of five stars
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