Book review: Where There's Smoke by Elizabeth Lee

Where There's Smoke by Elizabeth Lee

New Adult contemporary romance

Paperback/eBook, 230 pages

Published May 20th 2014 (first published May 17th 2014)

There is something to be said for letting go. Ryland Roberts knows that better than anyone. He'd let go of his ambitions, of his family and—most of all—of her. He'd perfected the art of putting his past behind him and accepted the fact that the town he wanted to leave in his rearview was the place where he was going to live out his days. But sometimes the past doesn't just go away. Sometimes it comes back to haunt you.

Piper Jameson convinced herself that she left for all the right reasons. She'd saved people by leaving—made sure that they weren't tainted by her rebellious ways. When her little sister asks her to come home and say goodbye to their ailing mother, she's forced to see that things aren't always as they seem. The people who she'd left behind might not have been saved at all. 

In the amount of time it takes a bullet to travel from point A to point B, Piper and Ryland will have to put their feelings for each other aside and make a choice. Forced on the run with Piper's sister, they begin to understand that the future they thought was gone was never really lost.

Piper and Ryland became high school sweethearts. He was the new guy and she was the town bad girl. Opposites attract is the saying and it applies here. Deep down Piper believes she isn't good enough for Ryland. He has aspirations like going away to college and she has...she's not sure what she wants. One thing is for certain for her and it's to leave this town and her horrible stepfather behind. Jump ahead in time and Piper is coming home to see her sick mother and reconnect with her younger sister, Hadley. She broke Ryland's heart when she disappeared and doesn't expect to see him when she returns to town. But things have a way of happening.

I enjoyed Piper and Ryland's story. I would've liked some more depth to their characters, especially to Hadley (I understand book two will be her story). There were some things which didn't convince me (Piper's leaving, Ryland confessing to something he didn't do), but I figured this was pure escapism. Both main characters were likable, even when they were doing irrational things. The pacing held consistently steady until Piper's mother passed away and then the story took off as the couple becomes a trio on the road. Again, there were sections which zoomed by and could have been expanded upon. The author has a way with writing tender romantic moments and I really liked these scenes between Piper and Ryland. The dynamics between the sisters was refreshing and the darker subjects were handled well. 

Overall, I enjoyed Where's There Smoke and will continue with the series.

Rating: 3.5 Liked it.

1/2

Cover comment:

Sweet but typical NA cover with a couple. I like the addition of the plane.

Book source:

I received a promotional copy.