That Thing Called Love by Susan Andersen

Do me a favor?  Pretend I posted this LAST Monday.

Blogging Jedi mind trick:
this post is not uploading
on the day you think it is

Can you do that for me?

Thanks.

It turns out that I've read 20+ of Susan Andersen's books.  I guess that makes me a fan.  I wish I could say that I was a bigger fan of the "hero" in That Thing Called Love because I really liked the setting, the heroine, her best friend, the teen characters, and the hero's brother.  But, Jake, the main male character is a little too whiny and angst-y for me to really connect to him.

I'm probably getting ahead of myself.

The book opens where Jenny (our heroine) is helping Austin (one of the teen characters) cope with the mourners after his grandfather's funeral.  Jenny and Austin aren't related, but they act like siblings. Austin's grandparents gave Jenny a job and a surrogate family years ago when her own family fell apart, and she's watched Austin grow up as his maternal grandparents have raised him.  Now that both grandparents have passed, Jenny will be Austin's guardian until the estate attorney can determine if Austin's wayward father will show up.

Jake does make an appearance, and he's determined to make up for the disappearing act he's pulled for the first 13 years of Austin's life.  And, of course (this is a romance, after all), he's attracted to the woman he needs to help ease his transition into Austin's life.

Jake is hot.  Jake is talented.  Jake loves his son.

The first of a new series
from Susan Andersen.
I have high hopes
for the second one.

I still don't like Jake.

He's blind to his own self-absorption, and he's overly focused on what happened when he was in junior high.  Jenny, on the other hand, has been dealt a similarly crappy hand, but she's worked to build her life.  She has friends.  She's created her own family.  She works hard.  She's happy.

Jake doesn't deserve her, and I was frustrated by her "I fell in the love with the potential of him" behavior.

I'm getting grumpy in my old age--if you haven't noticed.

Now, That Thing Called Love is the epitome of a redemption story.  The "hero" isn't much of a hero when the story opens, but he changes.  He does, literally, save the girl in the end.  The HEA (happily ever after) does happen, and if you like stories where love saves the damaged character, you'll probably like this book.  After all, I did love the setting, the heroine, her best friend, the teen characters, and the hero's brother.

This is the first of series, and I'm looking forward to Max's (Jake's half-brother) story.  He's wound pretty tight, but he doesn't whine.  Also, if you're looking for a good contemporary romance, I'd recommend Andersen's Bending the Rules, because that one includes a hero I can really get behind!