Title: On the Surface
Series: Imperfect Love
Author: Nikki Ash
Genre: Single Dad Romance
Release Date: June 22, 2019
People see what they want to see. They only view what’s on the surface, and they’re easy to fool. I let them see on the outside that I’m a successful businesswoman. My clothes are designer, my makeup flawless, and I live in a high-rise condo in Lennox Hills. They see perfection, not what lies beneath the surface.
The real me, the one I keep hidden is a broken-hearted woman who uses the makeup to hide her tears. The expensive clothing covers a heart once shattered by love. The walls of my expensive home shelter a lonely woman who hides the fact that deep down she wants to be loved. A woman who is too scared to risk her fragile heart.
For ten years, I’ve managed to hide behind the image of perfection. Only letting people see what’s on the surface.
Until I ran into Jase.
Now, every raw emotion, every shattered piece of my heart that I buried long ago is exposed outside the protective walls of my high-rise condo. No matter how hard I try, I can’t keep the walls from crumbling. He sees me beyond the image that I’ve created. He says he can handle what’s below the surface, but can I?
It’s interesting how you can meet a secondary character in a book, see only the top layer of that character and form an opinion. Then when her own book is written and all those deeper layers are revealed, it’s a completely different picture and the initial opinion is obliterated. It’s amazing to me how an author can make a reader love a character she thought she hated, and wow, what a terrific life lesson, as well.
If you met Celeste in either Nick or Killian's books, like me, you probably didn’t like her character very much. She’s a top fashion model with her own clothing line and she comes across as arrogant, cutthroat and ruthless, even in her social interactions. But there is so, so much more to her! She's the poor, “trailer trash” child of a single mom, and Celeste did more parenting and handling of responsibilities than her mother. But Celeste had hopes and dreams, and she worked hard and created her own success.
The only place she isn’t successful is when it comes to love, but Celeste learned a long time ago to protect her heart. Her mother's staying stuck in the past and pining for a man for eighteen years was a good lesson on love to Celeste, but the best lesson was a glorious week falling for a guy and the betrayal that followed right before Celeste moved to New York to start her career. Imagine her surprise, eleven years later, when Celeste walks into a tattoo shop with her friends and comes face to face with Jase, the one who broke her heart.
Jase can have my heart to do with it whatever he pleases, because this guy had me swooning from the very beginning. Jase ticked all the boxes for me and is everything I love in a romance hero. Strong family values, sturdy moral compass, a phenomenal dad, a heart of gold that is quick to forgive, and a believer in second chances. Add to that his rugged, muscular, tattooed exterior -- gah! And he's absolutely perfect for Celeste and exactly what she needs. He knows when to push and when to step back and wait, always supporting her and steadfast in his love.
Ash has certainly moved the bar higher with this book. Easily the best book in the series so far with more humor, more steam and so much more heart! It felt like coming home to meet up with these characters again, and this story held me in its clutches from the first word to the last. I love everything about this one, and love it hard, and I can’t wait for the next book in the series about Jase's sister, Quinn! On the Surface is everything a contemporary romance should be, and you don’t want to miss this heartfelt, feel-good, phenomenal read!
Get your copy via the buttons, above, and scroll down for a fantastic giveaway and author links! Until next time, dear reader
Much love between the covers,
BookAddict
*See my other reviews here.
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