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Review: Dare to Love by Carly Phillips (Book one of the Dare to Love series)

Veteran author Carly Phillips has made the switch to independent publishing, and Dare to Love is her first indie offering…

Dare to LoveDare to Love by Carly Phillips

Blurb:

Since finding out his father had another family on the side, Ian Dare swore to be the upstanding, responsible man his cheating parent had never been. When it comes to his relatives, he gives his all but in relationships he offers the bare minimum. But one glimpse of sensual Riley Taylor arouses his dominant and protective instincts and Ian is entranced. He will do anything to possess her … and does. But any future with Riley must include him extending an olive branch to the half-brother who is a constant reminder of the pain he’d rather forget.

Independent and always in control, Riley Taylor makes no apologies for choosing men carefully. Relationships have never been a priority and she believes herself hardened to domineering men – until she meets charismatic Ian Dare. He manages to turn a simple kiss into an all out assault on her senses and when he takes control in the bedroom, she’s stunned to discover she likes it. As their affair heats up, they soon realize they complete each other in ways neither imagined. But Riley’s past is closer than she cares to remember, and her struggles with Ian’s dominance might just cost her everything.

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I liked this one a lot. Both Riley and Ian had major family issues, which they needed to deal with on their own in order for their relationship–and their HEA–to work. I thought it was realistically done for the most part, though there was a definite fairy-tale vibe going on with the beginning of their relationship. (Handsome prince rescues gently impoverished damsel in distress by giving her a job, a safer place to live, and buying her a fabulous outfit…)

But hey, it’s fiction, and it still made for a satisfying read. I really liked both of the characters, and the fact that neither of them was afraid to let the other one “have it” when needed was refreshing. Ian was really overbearing at times, but more than one character called him out on it and he finally recognized when he was being an a$$hat. Riley in turn worked on her major trust issues the real-world way: with counseling. No quick magical fixes–yay!

The secondary characters here are a pretty strong lot, and made reading the book fun. Ian has many siblings, so the potential for future books is huge. I for one am looking forward to them all. 😉

B+ rating.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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