PUBLIC AFFAIRS
CASSANDRA CARR
Blurb:
Nate O’Halloran is a PR superstar, an expert in crisis management for his image-conscious celebrity clients. When his college roommate, now a hospital director in Buffalo, calls to beg for his help– a cancer researcher on staff has disappeared with millions of dollars’ worth of government research funds– Nate agrees to help right away, though this situation is pretty small potatoes for him.
Val Chase, the hospital’s PR director, is none too thrilled when Nate shows up; does it mean her boss doesn’t trust her to handle this mess herself? Against her better judgment, Val decides she and Nate have to work together to save the hospital’s reputation, though the explosive attraction they feel is making any actual “work” difficult…
Review:
There’s something just so fun about reading a book set in your hometown, isn’t there? Though I would have liked this one even if it weren’t; it’s just a good read. But wondering–is that coffee shop that sells sandwiches Spot Coffee? Which steak house did they visit?–adds an extra layer of entertainment to the experience. The only disappointment was that Val didn’t watch any hockey games; then again, she was rather busy with the major work crisis and the whole falling in love bit…
Plus, the Sabres are having another seriously sucky season. Again. And since Nate lives in New York, he might <shudder> be a Rangers fan. Or the Islanders. And then I’d have to hold that against him. So it’s probably all for the best, then.
But I digress….
I really enjoyed reading Public Affairs. Watching Val and Nate try to salvage the reputation of the cancer research hospital where Val works as the head of PR after a major amount of their donated funds is stolen by one of the doctors had me on the edge of my seat. Knowing how much good such an institution can do (and yes, there is an a similar hospital in Buffalo, the Roswell Cancer Institute–Val’s CCC even borrows their tagline–“Cancer can’t win”) and how much it depends on various types of funding, I shared their frustrations as one supporter after another seemed to be lost. How could they possibly fix the situation?
On top of all of their work frustrations, the romance between Val and Nate was nicely developed and believable. The Nate of my head isn’t quite the one that shows up on the cover, but I honestly can’t blame Val for her workplace distractions no matter which version of Nate walks through her office door. Nate’s grand gesture at the end was nicely done, and the ending was satisfying.
Whether set in my hometown or not, I’ll definitely be reading books by Ms. Carr in the future.
Rating: B+/4 stars
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Author bio:
Cassandra Carr is a multi-award winning romance writer. When not writing she enjoys watching hockey and hanging out online. Cassandra’s books have won numerous “Best Book Of” awards and her novella Unexpected Top was nominated in the E-book Erotic Romance category of RT’s Reviewers’ Choice Awards.
She thinks the best part of being a writer is how she writes about love and sex while most others struggle with daily commutes, micro-managing bosses and cranky co-workers. Her inspiration comes from everywhere, but she’d particularly like to thank the Buffalo Sabres, the hockey team near and dear to her heart.
For more information about Cassandra, check out her website, “like” her Facebook fan page or follow her on Twitter.
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