Title: Return to You by Samantha Chase
Montgomery Series Book Four
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 352 pages
Book Rating:
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
Brand new Book #4 in Samantha Chase’s popular Montgomery series
She will never forget their past…
He can’t stop thinking about their future…
James Montgomery has achieved everything he’d hoped for in life…except marrying the girl of his dreams. After a terrible accident, Selena Ainsley left ten years ago. She took his heart with her and she’s never coming back. But it’s becoming harder and harder for him to forget their precious time together, and James can’t help but wonder what he would do if they could ever meet again.
Review:
A matchmaking uncle, a concerned brother and a well intentioned friend conspire to reunite former high school sweethearts in Return to You by Samantha Chase. Set against the backdrop of a high school reunion, this second chance at love romance has plenty of drama and sizzling hot chemistry. Although it is the fourth installment in The Montgomery Brothers series, it can be read as a standalone story.
Selena Ainsley and James Montgomery have not seen each other since their inexplicable break up ten years earlier. While Selena was recovering from a traumatic accident, James vanished without explanation, leaving her completely devastated. Nursing a broken heart, Selena left town and never returned. Now a successful event planner, Selena’s good friend Jen convinces her to organize their ten year high school reunion. What Selena does not know is that Jen, along with James’s brother and uncle, have concocted a scheme to reunite Selena and James. The sparks fly between the couple but it soon becomes obvious that anger from their unresolved past burns just as hot as their mutual desire.
James and Selena’s first couple of encounters are extremely antagonistic. Both are still extremely angry over how their romance ended ten years ago, but there is still plenty of passion simmering between them too. James is a little hotheaded, acts without thinking and he kisses her senseless before they have the opportunity to discuss what went wrong between them. Selena is just as impulsive and they quickly jump back into a physical relationship. They do eventually discuss their break up but their reconciliation is uneasy and plagued with trust issues. They gloss over their problems and embark on an affair but it does not take much to break the fragile truce between them. Their relationship wildly veers between the highest of the highs and the lowest of the lows as misunderstandings, snap judgments, miscommunication and rash decisions threaten to tear them apart.
Selena and James are frustrating characters. Communication between them is practically none existent so they make impetus, ill-informed decisions before they have their facts straight. With so much anger and the unresolved issues between them, it is very difficult to believe that they can still be in love after a ten year separation. However, there is no denying the scorching hot attraction between them and their sex scenes are very sensual.
Although Selena and James are a little exasperating, the secondary characters are delightful. Jen is a little uneasy about her role in getting Selena and James back together, but her heart is in the right place. She is an excellent sounding board for Selena and she offers some pretty good suggestions (that Selena mostly ignores!). Selena’s grandmother is a complete sweetheart and her words of wisdom definitely give Selena food for thought. James begins repairing his distant relationship with his brother when he turns to him for some much needed advice.
Despite a few issues with the lead characters, Return to You is an enjoyable romance. The novel is well-written and the storyline is interesting. The characters are well-developed and likable. Samantha Chase brings the novel to a romantic and very sweet conclusion as Selena and James finally get their much deserved happily ever after. All in all, a nice addition to The Montgomery Brothers series.
