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Mariah Ankenman

Autore di Crazy Little Thing Called Love

18 opere 83 membri 15 recensioni

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Opere di Mariah Ankenman

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This particular title is near and dear to the author's heart because it features a character with OCD. You may know what it is, heck you might even have it or know someone who does, but a few important things to remember...it varies from person to person, the compulsions or rituals they perform are specific to them and not something that can simply be turned off, and a person with OCD is just that a PERSON with ocd...they are not their diagnosis; they are themselves. Unique, original, and with their own idiosyncrasies, just like the next person. No one is exactly the same as the next, but all deserve love, kindness, and acceptance. In this story, the characters are true to themselves. There are no magical turn of events that solves their problems. There are no potions or amount of attention that removes their symptoms, or diagnosis...and that is SIMPLY PERFECT.

I adored Ellie for everything she did, and everything she was. From her problems to her solutions, her witty wardrobe (so would wear those shirts!) to her care of others, the way she interacted with the animals to how she handles Sullivan...and now I'm getting off track. (LOL!) There is not a moment that I felt a disconnect from her character, or a falsity in her personality. She was simply her, and eventually learns to love that even more about herself. Sullivan was a perfectly imperfect specimen of a man that most woman and their mother's would go gaga for..but for me, though his outer beauty can't be denied, his inner beauty is a real heart breaker. He adores his little girl (who wouldn't? Charlotte is a doll!), cares for all of his patients beyond the clinical aspect of medicine, takes the white coat off at home but leaves the amount of care and understanding that he has remains because it's simple him. Watching these two come together was PURE MAGIC. I laughed, I gasped, I blushed, and grinned like a lovelorn schoolgirl, and by book's end the HEA was in the bag!

*ecopy for review; opinions are my own
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GRgenius | Oct 10, 2023 |
My first firefighter romance coupled with the first time I have read anything by Mariah Ankenman, I can honestly say she has a new fan! Even though this is a standalone, it throws back to the previous two books and hints that whatever is between Diaz and Ward has been brewing for awhile. For that reason, I can't wait to go back and start from the beginning!

Determined to always be the best, the brightest, and the fastest, Stephanie Diaz is a force amongst men! As one of the only two female firefighters at Station 42, she holds her own and is fixated on making a name for herself. Despite an almost career-destroying setback at her prior station, Diaz has the respect of the fellow members of her team, including Ward who can take her insults, teasing, and laughs as well gives them. Competitive to a fault, Diaz isn’t surprised when she finds out the Chief has selected her and Ward to participate in a reality competition for first responders. She is; however, shocked to find out there is a Lieutenant position open with a clear track to becoming a Chief. Knowing Ward wants to become Chief just as bad as she does, she is dead-set to win the competition and prove she is the best person for the job. So what if her mind has been misfiring lately when Ward is around. As long as she can keep her distance and her head in the game she’s safe - until she finds out she will be sharing a cabin with Ward for two solid weeks. Still, she is sure she can stay focused as long as Ward never discovers her growing attraction towards him. Trouble is, Ward has had a crush on Diaz for four years. The idea of being in close quarters and not letting his desire for her slip through is going to be impossible. He is convinced he can handle the situation until he notices the heat in her eyes when she looks at him. The question is, who will break first?

What I like about it: I always love good banter in a book and this one is no exception. The ribbing between Ward and Diaz is hilarious. The moments Ward turns up the charm are sizzling hot and Diaz constantly putting out those little fires (pun intended) is what made the interactions absolutely delightful. They just played off each other so well but to learn how much deeper the feelings go, especially for Ward, just makes those scenes that much stronger.

Peeking at the sweltering moments of the story - I would love to say something cheesy like “With a firefighter story, of course they brought the heat” but even I have to roll my eyes at that. I will just say Mariah knew what she was doing when she built up (as in escalated) each moment with Diaz and Ward. It was sweet, it was passionate, it was hot!

Back to Diaz, I am so glad Mariah doubled down on how difficult it is, especially for women - let along a woman of color, to make it in a male dominated field. The double standards Diaz was subjected to, how much harder and better she had to be at everything, and how alone she felt with that plight because her male counterparts would never understand that struggle.

For that reason alone, I absolutely loved how Diaz was written. Her strengths were not her weaknesses. She owned who she was and thrived on the criticism of others. She didn’t allow her determination and grit to be overshadowed. She knew her worth, her capabilities, and anyone who couldn't see it was of no use to her.

For Ward, there were so many emotions behind him that you just wanted to coddle his character. This is why I applaud Mariah. I love it when an author writes a heartbreak so earth shattering that it yanks at your empathy strings, pulling up memories of your own past (or the emotional connection of friends who you have nurtured through a heartbreak) and makes you want to reach through the pages and console the character.

Without hesitation, I have already added the first two stories to my TBR stack! I can't wait to go back to the beginning and enjoy the world that Mariah has created. If she had this much heart in her third book, I can only imagine what is waiting for me in her first two!
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romcombc | Mar 11, 2023 |
Questa recensione è stata scritta per Recensori in anteprima di LibraryThing.
I enjoyed this sweet book. Delta and Cassie make a great pair and the rest of the Jackson brood make excellent secondary characters.
I wish Cassie had chosen to keep her house and we saw the wedding, and maybe Cassie buying Delta the car back, or a similar one.
 
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Tina_Evans | 6 altre recensioni | Jan 6, 2023 |
Did not finish, could not finish it was so bad. Someone else may love it, but it wasn't for me. More detailed review here:
https://cautiouslyoptimistic474006888.com/2022/09/12/the-wedding-dilemma/
 
Segnalato
Bunny20 | Sep 12, 2022 |

Statistiche

Opere
18
Utenti
83
Popolarità
#218,811
Voto
4.0
Recensioni
15
ISBN
28
Lingue
1

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