Caught in a FAB Romance (@TheLoveJunkee)

PJV Quickie: While It Lasts was a pleasant surprise for me; I’d read previous books by this author and the story was good but the editing made me crazy – crazy enough to swear off reading any more of her books. Editing wasn’t a problem here, though, and I really enjoyed this story about finding love where you least expect it.

Review:

Cage York has not had a lot of good things in his life, but now he has a chance to change that by going to junior college on a baseball scholarship. His plan is to get noticed by a bigger college and hopefully make it to the pros. He almost loses that scholarship when he makes the mistake of driving drunk. His coach tells him he can work on a local farm for the summer, bailing hay and missing out on summertime with his friends, or he can lose his scholarship. Bailing hay it is then…  And even though her father has warned him off, as soon as he lays eyes on ‘farmer’s daughter’ Eva he knows she’s different from all those nameless, faceless girls he’s been sleeping with. Something special.

Eva Brooks has been living life on ‘pause’. When Josh, her childhood-sweetheart-turned-fiance, died in Afghanistan 18 months ago, her world crumbled. She’s been living on her dad’s farm, stuck in limbo, still grieving, still wearing her engagement ring. When the sexy ball player shows up to work on the farm, she’s not impressed – her initial impression is ‘drunk manwhore’. She’s definitely not going to fall for his charms, no matter how sexy they are. And when she feels jealous that her best friend is making a play for him? That’s just her watching out for her friend, nothing more…

~~~~~~~~~~

So. As I mentioned in my PJV Quickie, I’ve previously read two books by Abbi Glines: The Vincent Boys, and Because of Low (Sea Breeze #2). I liked both of the stories, but the editing was so poor that I decided I wouldn’t be reading any more by this author. I did not realize she signed with Simon Pulse (a division of Simon & Schuster) in the latter half of 2012, so when this audiobook was offered for review, I figured the editing would not be an issue any more, and I could not resist. I have to say: I loved it!

I already liked Cage from “Because of Low”, and he’s definitely a character who’s big enough to carry his own story. He’s kind of selfish, doesn’t place much value on himself, and has been abandoned by those he’s loved so he has commitment issues as his way of self-preservation. I’d say he’s a pretty broken hero, an anti-hero, if you will. But I knew from “Because of Low” that underneath all that swagger and baggage he’s a pretty good guy, and I was delighted to see him shine in While it Lasts.

I’m not going to sugar-coat it: Eva is not my favorite type of heroine. She’s devastated by the loss of her fiancee, then spends the next 18 months leaning on his twin brother Jeremy, who left college to take care of her, then moves right from Jeremy to Cage. I would have liked to see her stand on her own two feet for a while. She had her moments where she stood up to her father and others, but I would have liked to see her stand up for herself.

“While it Lasts” is chock-full of the New Adult angst that I love, and all the bad decisions and heartbreak that go along with it. Cage and Eva’s romance moved a bit quickly, but it was sweet and sometimes hesitant, with a side dose of HOT! I think I’ve documented here before my preference for condom use in sexually active fictional characters, and for the most part, “While it Lasts” delivers in that respect; although I was disappointed at one particular scene where it does not. Condoms, people – they’re for more than just birth control!!! (There was one particular scene where Cage brings Eva to his town and she gets a pretty good idea of how many women he’s actually slept with. It was funny, but at the same time kind of sad.) /rant

I especially liked the way Ms. Glines began and ended “While it Lasts”. It starts with a letter to Eva from Josh that just rips your heart out. And hearing it read by the narrator – OMG so freakin’ sad. Then, as Eva and Cage’s story unfolds, we learn a lot about not just Eva and Cage, but Eva’s relationship with Josh. Ms. Glines picked the perfect way to end their story; I started “While it Lasts” with tear-filled eyes, and ended it with a smile.

As far as the audio recording, it took me a bit to warm up to the male narrator because he speaks kind of slowly (I guess it’s supposed to be a slow southern drawl?), but I got used to it and now that I’m reading the next book in the series, Just for Now, I’m still ‘hearing’ Cage’s voice as I read along.

Recommendations:

I wholeheartedly recommend While it Lasts to fans of the New Adult genre.