A great Rachel Gibson short story. I always find her books very entertaining. This story was steamy, romantic and enlightening. I loved the information about New Orleans,it added to the romance. ( )

Good story but way too short. Blue and Kasper had first met when Blue was eighteen and Kasper was twenty-one. She had just graduated from high school and he was home on leave from the Marines. Their families had been feuding for two centuries, so neither had met before they encountered each other at a friend's party. Blue was fascinated by him, seeing all the things she had been warned about - "stay away from those rascally corrupt and sugar-mouthed Pennington boys." When she had a few minutes to talk to him, she did it, just to see and quickly came to the conclusion he was just as dangerous as she'd heard. Kasper, too, had heard all the reasons to stay away from the Toussaints women, but his first sight of Blue had him ignoring all that. While passion flared between them at that first meeting, Blue was cautious and pulled away that first night. The next day, however, she went to see him and they ended up having a passionate encounter. The next day he never showed up for their rendezvous, breaking her young heart.

Now he's back, and wants to see her again. It's been twenty-two years, with a marriage and divorce on her side, and two on his. Blue has never quite forgotten him, nor has she forgiven him for standing her up. She's a successful woman, having restored her family's plantation, and is running it as a tourist attraction. Kasper has been out of the Marines for a few years and has a successful construction company. He's renovating his family's plantation and uses that as the initial way to get together with Blue. Kasper knows he messed up when he left all those years ago and wants to prove to her that he can be what she wants.

I generally liked the story, but it was too short for me to feel really connected to it. I liked the way we got a quick introduction to the feud and their backstory, but it would have been nice to have more detail. With a feud as long-standing as this one, I would imagine that their families are going to have something to say about a relationship, but we don't get any of that. I liked the fact that Kasper owned up to the reason he stood her up, it was very believable for a guy that age. I enjoyed the description of Blue's business, and the steel magnolia vibe I got from her. It's a bit of a stretch for me to buy into she and Kasper declaring their love after just a few days, considering they hadn't seen each other for so long. ( )

By: Blue By You
Published By: Avon Impulse
Age Recommended: Adult
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: 4
Book Blog For: NOR
Review:

"Blue By You" by Rachel Gibson was a cute sweet contemporary romance that was somewhat predictable, however, it was still a good read. The storyline was of two divorced people, Blue Butler and Kasper Pennington, who something special at one time as teens, however, it was not to be at that time. Now, some twenty years later with the heroine being forty and the hero forty-four will these two come back together and bring back that spark (forbidden love) that they had many years ago? "Blue was now a successful businesswoman and Kasper was back from the Marines, leaner, meaner and strong enough to"...now, you will have to pick up this good read "Blue By You" to see how this author will bring it all out to the reader to see if these two will have a second chance. I found the characters all interesting, funny and colorful especially Kasper's grandmother. I liked how this author was able to bring out the information about the various mansions descriptions ...its art forms were really brought to life. If you are looking for a short well written romance you have come to the right place for "Blue By You" would be recommended as a good novel to read. It will definitely leave you with a smile on your face. ( )