Title: Extreme Love by Abby Niles
Publisher: Entangled Select
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 352 pages
Book Rating: B
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher
Summary:
New body. New clothes. New men.
Used to the average Joe, Caitlyn Moore is overwhelmed when the supremely masculine Dante Jones walks into her life and expresses an interest in her. At first she pushes him away, refusing to encourage the attention of a cage fighter. Then she learns Dante has a love ‘em and leave ‘em reputation. What better way to fine-tune her non-existent flirting skills than with a male who won’t stick around? But Dante has no intention of being a practice dummy; he’s out for all or nothing. Now Caitlyn must accept Dante—violent career and all—or let him go.
Dante “Inferno” Jones has one goal: win the Welterweight Championship. At a time when focus is crucial, the last thing he needs is a distraction. Yet Caitlyn Moore becomes a challenge he can’t resist. When the light-hearted pursuit shifts to a battle to win her heart, his focus is shot. Faced with losing the biggest match of his career, Dante must decide if his extreme life also has room for Extreme Love.
The Review:
Extreme Love by Abby Niles is not your typical romance novel. And this not a bad thing! The characters and storyline are, for the most part, firmly based in reality which makes for a refreshing change of pace for anyone who reads a lot of romances.
Although she has lost a large amount of weight, Caitlyn Moore is still fighting the effects of a lifetime of being overweight. She still sees the fat girl in the mirror and unused to male attention, Caitlyn has a difficult time understanding why sexy MMA fighter Dante Jones would be interested in her. Adding to her insecurities are the insults aimed at Caitlyn by callous groupies and the machinations of Dante’s opponent in his upcoming fight.
Leading protagonists Caitlyn and Dante are exceptionally well-developed. Their flaws are realistic and easy to relate to. Caitlyn may have low self esteem but she is extremely self-confident professionally. She puts her experiences to good use with her weight loss and exercise program. Caitlyn does not hesitate to speak up and correct some common weight loss and physical fitness misconceptions. Her struggle to accept Dante’s interest in her is lengthy, but her reaction rings true given her history.
Dante is the complete opposite of Caitlyn. He is self-confident but not cocky and his interest in Caitlyn extends beyond physical attraction. Dante embraces her lush curves and he is pretty surprised to discover how overweight Caitlyn was. He is sweet, kind and patient, but Caitlyn’s actions do eventually cause him to doubt her later in the story.
The supporting cast of characters is quite diverse. Caitlyn’s friends Amy and Paul are fabulous and they are quite supportive of her. Amy takes a cautious approach in dealing with Caitlyn’s issues while Paul pushes Caitlyn out of her comfort zone. Paul’s zingy quips are hysterical scene stealers and I absolutely adored him.
Sentori is a ridiculously over the top reprehensible character. His behavior is outrageous and borders on the absurd. One of the weakest points of the story is the lack of repercussions for his actions.
Other than a few reservations about Sentori’s storyline, I really enjoyed Extreme Love. The relationship between Caitlyn and Dante is slow growing, sweet and sexy. The dialogue is witty and entertaining. A big thumbs up to Abby Niles for tackling a difficult subject in such an insightful and sensitive manner.
