Take a Chance by D. Jackson LeighMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Just a quick note: This is the second book in the trilogy. A trilogy set in the same small village in ... why can I never remember if this is in South Carolina or Georgia? *reads book description* Right, Georgia (there were several mentions, in the book, about South Carolina, which is why that state was also lodged in my brain).
Right, so - the first book involved someone from 'out of town', a 'yankee' at that, who was brought to the small town through inheritance. An aunt she didn't really know left the woman, River, her belongings, which included an art galley, a car, and a . . . I think a house though I do not recall now. River, being all femme like and stuff, 'fell for' Clay upon first sight; Clay, 'all butch like' (or was she sporty? eh, all three books made a point of pointing these specific things out so I include them in the reviews) also was 'struck' upon seeing River, hurdles had to be overcome . . . . etc. etc.
Second book, this book here, included a book involving a 'person of color', though, despite seeing this character in two other books (book 1 and 3), this is the first time I learned of this specific issue. I'm either not very observant, or it wasn't an issue that was brought up, much, in the other two books (and here, while it was brought up several times, it was somewhat lightly brought up). I forget if Jaime is also described as a 'yankee', though Dani certainly is (Dani being the 'outsider' in book 3). Regardless, Jaime is 'different' in being an outsider, and 'from the projects', oh and having, as the book notes 'caramel skin'. But let's get into book 2 later.
Third book also includes an outsider mixing it up with an insider - Dani the zoo vet from Baltimore. Who, like in book 2, also hooks up with a police officer. Or, in other words, both of the books involves a police officer hooking up with an animal doctor. Difference being which individual is the 'outsider' and which is the 'insider'.
Right, that's kind of boring and I already did that three book description thingie elsewhere, so back to book 2.
Book 2 stars Trip, the money conscious animal doctor (well she did seem constantly aware of money, how much certain things pull in money wise, etc. etc.), who, 'despite' that money comment, is from an 'ultra rich' local family and living in a massive mansion like place. Before I move onto the second main character, I'd like to note: there were many comments about Trip and her mother, all made in passing, all vague, all seeming to indicate that they do not have a great relationship but . . . the Beaumont family, Trip being in that family, is the 'top tier' family in the small town and I've read enough books involving such descriptions so . . . where was the 'forced' interactions with the mother? Or was she dead? I became confused somewhere along the line if the mother was dead (just like Trip became confused, every once in a while, as to whether she had living siblings (she does, though, apparently, she has nothing to do with them, preferring to see her friends Clay and Grace as her family; along with the people who live/work on her estate).
mmphs. That paragraph got away from me. So let's retry that, eh?
Trip is the ultra-player in the group of three Pine Cove friends. The kind who has no problem sleeping with her vet practice clients . . . and . . . um . . stuff, you know, she's a 'real player'. As cliche as it might be, there was someone who 'stole her heart' long ago which 'turned' Trip in this player direction (though she had that reputation way back then as well). She's from a rich family, is an animal doctor, played college basketball, and . . . hmms.
Jaime is the other main character. The story starts with her already living and working inside Pine Cove, as the newest police officer. She's a military veteran with PTSD issues. She comes with a trained drug dog, though the dog has a gas problem (is important issue). Something like, hmm, 15 years ago, Jaime left the projects and went to college - played basketball there. Became best friends with a fellow teammate, only to catch that teammate doing something horrifying and betraying, and responding by fleeing into the military. One thing lead to another and Jaime is where she is now - a police officer in the same town as that former college friend/teammate who betrayed her.
To a certain extent this specific book might be best read third instead of second, and definitely not as a stand-alone. Not as a stand-alone - there are many plot lines mentioned, shown, and very much not followed in this book that would be frustrating for anyone trying to read this book without knowledge of how those plot lines were resolved - those plot lines that intersected with the Grace & Dani storyline, and the plot lines involving River & Clay. Entire scenes are recreated in this book that occurred in the other two books, mostly from new viewpoints, but there are scenes that just can't be included because they weren't seen from either Jaime or Trip's point of view. Though I had expected the epilogue to fill in some of the blanks, maybe not all of them, but enough to give a satisfying enough 'closure' to those plotlines followed in the other books (obviously enough some things couldn't be mentioned, shown, etc., but we are talking about three books set at the same time, following connected people, so no matter how the three books ended, they would cause issues - either because they revealed too much about the other books/plot lines, or not enough).
I liked the depth found in this book, and I liked what was revealed. Especially as neither of the two leads were characters I was especially interested in when they appeared in the other books (one of the reasons it took me a while to read this one). Though I liked them well-enough in this book here. Mostly better than expected.
Rating: 4.15
August 4 2018
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