* * * 1/2
Before you get down on bended knee…
…you should be pretty darn sure the answer will be yes. For ten years, Connor O'Rourke has been waiting for Jessica Dunn to take their on-again, off-again relationship public, and he thinks the time has come. His restaurant is thriving, she's got her dream job at Blue Heron Vineyard—it's the perfect time to get married.
When he pops the question, however, her answer is a fond but firm no. If it ain't broke, why fix it? Jess has her hands full with her younger brother, who's now living with her full-time, and a great career after years of waitressing. What she and Connor have is perfect: friends with an excellent benefits package. Besides, with her difficult past (and reputation), she's positive married life isn't for her.
But this time, Connor says it's all or nothing. If she doesn't want to marry him, he'll find someone who does. Easier said than done, given that he's never loved anyone but her. And maybe Jessica isn't quite as sure as she thinks…
…you should be pretty darn sure the answer will be yes. For ten years, Connor O'Rourke has been waiting for Jessica Dunn to take their on-again, off-again relationship public, and he thinks the time has come. His restaurant is thriving, she's got her dream job at Blue Heron Vineyard—it's the perfect time to get married.
When he pops the question, however, her answer is a fond but firm no. If it ain't broke, why fix it? Jess has her hands full with her younger brother, who's now living with her full-time, and a great career after years of waitressing. What she and Connor have is perfect: friends with an excellent benefits package. Besides, with her difficult past (and reputation), she's positive married life isn't for her.
But this time, Connor says it's all or nothing. If she doesn't want to marry him, he'll find someone who does. Easier said than done, given that he's never loved anyone but her. And maybe Jessica isn't quite as sure as she thinks…
Review:
I love a lot of romance tropes
and Anything For You includes one of my favorites. Falling-in-love-as-children/teens-then-finding-each-other-as-adults. I’m sure there is a better way to describe
it but we’ll just go with that for now. Connor
falls head over heels in love with Jessica Dunn when she not only saves him
from a dog attack but also when he sees her usually hidden vulnerability after
dealing with bullies all day at school.
Jessica Dunn is a wonderfully
complicated heroine. She learned in her
teens to use sex as way to protect herself and her brother. Yes, she had to deal with name calling (she
lost count of how many times people have called her Jessica Does) but, to her,
that was a small price to pay for safety.
After high school, she moved out
to get away from her alcoholic parents and took her younger brother (who was
born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome) with her.
She worked multiple jobs to keep her brother safe and to give him every opportunity
possible. She also busted her ass to work her way through school and earn a Master’s
degree. She proves she’s a fighter and
survivor at every turn.
Connor O’Rourke is a strange
combination of simple and complicated. He’s really the ultimate introvert and I
found him at turns to be frustrating (his relationship with Jess and his lack
of understanding in regards to her brother) and completely loveable (his relationship
with is sister and patient focus on the things he loves).
I understood their attraction
to one another. Connor is one of the few
people that has seen Jess’s vulnerable side and he treats that with care
(except for that one time but no spoilers – let’s just say I wanted to throw
him through a window). He also truly
appreciates her dedication to her brother and her constant motivation to make a
better life for them. Jess sees Connor
as one of the few people that treats her with respect and not just as someone
that will easily agree to sex. She stopped
being that girl a long time ago and Connor is the one person that never saw her
as that girl. Match made in heaven
right? Of course not.
As amazing and strong as Jess
is, you don’t walk away from a childhood like hers without scars. Her need to care for her brother runs deeper
than sibling devotion and she will do WHATEVER it takes in order to make her
brother happy. And, because of something
that happened when her brother was small, her brother vehemently hates
Connor. To the point he becomes
violent. Rather than seeing if that is
something that can be resolved therapeutically or medically, she decides that
there can be no normal relationship for her and the one guy she’s ever been in
love with. But she’ll take what she can
get with a secret relationship.
Connor has his own set of
parental issues. Having a father that
was not only unfaithful but also the kind of guy that would knock Connor down
in order to put his twin sister on a pedestal.
Needless to say, Connor has some issues believing in his own self-worth
when it comes to relationships. Which is why he puts up with Jess’ need for
secrecy and their on-again, off-again relationship. But after a decade he has to step back and
decide if it’s worth the constant emotional strain and the sacrifice of his
dreams of having his own family.
But this isn’t just about their
relationship. Kristan Higgins does an
amazing job of incorporating the growth and resolution of other relationships
in Jess and Connor’s lives. There is
Connor’s attempt to forge a relationship with Davey which is sweet and
sometimes alarming. Jess and Davey’s dad
shows up after being MIA for years. He’s
sober and wants to make amends. Then
there is Connor’s dad who is also looking to have a better relationship with
his son. None of these relationships are
given quick fixes. Each take work and
they weave in perfectly with Connor and Jess’s romance.
On top of that there are the positive
relationships these two already have.
Between the Holland family and Connor’s twin sister, Colleen, these two
main characters have an amazing and humorous support group. Despite the heaviness of some of the story lines,
there were some hilarious laugh out loud moments. Higgins shows true adeptness at balancing
comedy with serious situations in this novel.
I struggled with my rating on
this book. There was obviously a lot
that I enjoyed. But there was a lot that
made me uncomfortable and/or annoyed.
Mostly in regards to Connor’s reaction to things. His lack of confidence made him tactless and
awkward to the point it was uncomfortable and not entirely forgivable. In the end, he grows a backbone but until
that point it could be difficult to read.
That being said, I’ve read four
out of the five Blue Heron books and this is my second favorite (it’s really
hard to top Emmaline’s book, In Your Dreams).
If you are a Kristan Higgins fan, you won’t be disappointed one
bit. And if you enjoy your romance
infused with the perfect mix of comedy and angst, I urge you to pick this one
up.
Nat
