Whiskey on Our Shoes

Eva is the daughter of a supermodel. She was kidnapped as a young child, and because of that, she's grown up in disguise. She's told that it's for her own good, that her mother wants to protect her. Now she's in Austin, caring for her rock star brother Lor, who is recovering from an accident that left him unable to perform with his band. Can she start fresh here, where no one knows her?

Alex is a young man on the verge of being grown and flown. He's a cowboy, a student at the University of Texas, working to keep up his grades and hold down a job. But he's haunted by his fling with a much older woman, and now he faces the possibility that it's all going to come to light.

The two meet when Lor orders a delivery that is definitely not in his rehab plan, and sparks fly almost immediately. Both are hesitant to pursue a relationship because of their respective secrets, though. They dance around it for a while, but are soon unable to resist each other. On top of all the new relationship turmoil, they're each keeping the other at arm's length. But as so often happens, life conspires to bring secrets to light.

This was really a fun read! Eva and Alex are both likable characters. Most of the characters are. The only ones I really didn't like were Eva's mom Sloane Silver (and I could understand to some extent why she was the way she was – I don't like it, but I understand it) and Alex's ill-advised fling Angie (she was just hateful and predatory toward Alex – she wanted him back and didn't much care who she had to stomp on to try to make that happen). Did I want to shake Eva and Alex at times when they were holding back from being open and honest with each other? Yes. Yes, I did. But I was young and foolish once, too. Their reticence was based on fear – fear of rejection, fear of showing their true selves. And I suspect we've all felt that way at some point in a relationship.

I really appreciated that Preece wrote such a good relationship between Eva and Alex's sister Lena. Lena has Down syndrome, and it would have been easy to make Eva hesitant or stand-offish around her. But she jumps right in and treats Lena just like she would anyone else, with kindness and dignity. Their interactions were a particularly bright spot in the story!

I also love that Eva isn't pretentious. Tiny houses are a fascination of mine, and I'd love to read more of the story in the future. Does Eva ever build her tiny house? Do she and Alex go traveling with it? What happens?! I want to know!

The story had a bit more on-page spice than I usually prefer in my romance reads. I wasn't really expecting that. I mention it for those of you who, like me, may prefer the zestier action to take place off the page.

Spice notwithstanding, Preece does a good job of weaving a lot of different elements together to create a fast-paced, engaging story with main characters you'll cheer for. Four shiny stars from me for Whiskey on Our Shoes!