Today, I’ve got another review.  This time, the book is Voyage of Desire by Natalie Kleinman.  It’s a straight-up romance novel, which is not my usual read, though I’ve read a few here and there.  I wanted something light and fluffy this time around, and here ’tis:

What do you do when you discover your boyfriend of two years is married to someone else!

Beth Walker seeks to escape her heartbreak by taking temporary work on a cruise ship. Instead, on the very first day she meets Ryan Donovan and is drawn to him by his soft Irish lilt and mischievous eyes. Her plan to forswear men recedes like the waves at the stern of the ship…but it isn’t quite that simple. There are many obstacles that stand in the way of her happiness – and then she learns she is pregnant.

It seems her problems may only just be beginning. Antagonism between Beth and Ryan abounds and there are misunderstandings aplenty. Can these two warring factions find a happy ever after? Find out what happens in Voyage of Desire.

In my opinion, there didn’t actually seem to be all that many obstacles standing in the way of Beth’s happiness, let alone her happiness with Ryan.  Sure, she was afraid to trust people again after her previous relationship went awry.  I understand that.  But it just didn’t seem an overly-compelling reason to shy away from him.

Still, I kept reading because the blurb intrigued me.  The pregnancy really ratcheted up the tension, and the second half of the book was really enjoyable.  Lots of will-they-won’t-they, lots of misunderstanding – it was great.  I actually thought that the whole first half of the book could have been fed into the second with a bit of well-placed flashback or conversation or something.

At 141 pages, it’s much shorter than anything else I’ve read recently, and I finished it in a single afternoon (though I started it the night before).  I thought it could have been better edited, but it was a nice break from some of the heavier themes I’ve been reading lately.

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