By 50 pages in the book, I was so bored, there was nothing going on at all. The whole Windham clan makes an appearance, so many of them I can hardly keep my head from spinning. For me, this book feels like a grand family reunion/gathering of the Windham clan rather than the sweet, tender romance with two people as the main character trying to escape their past. It feels like the entire family is butting in. I hardly feel the need to go back and read most of the previous installments in the series; so much background information is given on every couple.I wasn't drawn in by the romance with Deene and Eve. I understand that they have been friends a long time, and as such, it might take feelings a little longer to develop from platonic friendship to true love and passion...but for me, the passion, the spark that's supposed to singe the air as the readers delve deeper into their romance, was simply nonexistent. There's probably more ardor between me and my Pillow Pet.The trauma that caused Eve's subsequent injuries and emotional grief were so briefly mentioned, I missed it completely the first time I read the book. Yes, I skimmed it. The book itself wasn't engrossing enough and the writing not on par enough to maintain my interest, so when I felt myself drifting off the the land of Nod, I'd just skim a few pages, and so I missed the retelling of The Big Trauma completely. Afterwards, I was left with a sense of discombobulation...I knew the blurb often lies, but all that trauma caused by a horse fall? After the second reading, I finally figured it out. It might be a good idea to have more than a mild hint of the trauma that became such a big, encompassing part of a young and sheltered woman's life, just saying. There's no need to mention the horse so often. As such, the first time around, I thought the horse was the cause of the trauma.The story was dull and formulaic, the writing was not terrible, but nowhere on the par with truly excellent romance writers that redefine the genre. It's just a sweet, dull story with a Secret Past thrown in to liven things up. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who wishes to stay awake throughout the entire book.
