Light the Lamp (Portland Storm, #4)

by Catherine Gayle

• ISBN10: 0990412601
• ISBN13: 9780990412601
• Publish Date: 10 June 2014
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Nla Digital LLC
• Format: eBook
• Language: English

Reviews

[Cocktails and Books]

ILIGHT THE LAMP has a hero that will break your heart. Liam Kallen is a broken man who's been traded to Portland, figuring his career is finished. But a chance encounter with a broken down car on the side of the road changed Liam's life.

Liam was a character I just wanted to hug. The poor man was mourning the death of his wife and drowning in guilt because he "made" her come to the US during the hockey season. In his mind, she would still be alive if she had stayed back home in Sweden, rather than be with him. His grief knew no bounds, effecting every part of his life..even hockey. So when he's traded to Portland, he figures he's at the end of his career. He wasn't scoring goals and was just going through the motions. But when he spot Noelle on the side of the road during a rain storm, he suddenly discovers his will to live and to play the game that he loves. Noelle wasn't easy to be with and Liam's overwhelming need to take care of her often caused them to but heads, but she also pulled Liam out of his grief and helped him live again.

Noelle frustrated me at times. I could understand her need to be independent and not rely on others, but she couldn't see beyond her pride. I could understand her need to have a purpose and to help people, but she needed to help herself first. There is a scene that take place at night in a park that made me so sad but also mad because she didn't need to be there if she just compromised a bit.

Catherine Gayle gives us another great addition to the Portland Storm series. If you haven't picked up one of these books yet, definitely do so. The chemistry between the characters and the fantastic storylines makes this series a "must add" to any TBR.

[Kim Deister]

Light the Lamp is the latest in the Portland Storm series, this time focusing on a newer player for the Portland Storm hockey team. Liam Kallen has recently been traded to the Storm from the Islanders and his game is suffering since the death of his beloved wife Liv. One fateful night, he meets Noelle Payne, a damsel in distress that he is determined to rescue. She is the epitome of a free spirit and is more than a little absent-minded when it comes to the more practical matters of life.

I loved both of these characters, but there were many times when I wanted to reach into my Kindle and slap one or the other of them into reality. Liam was so keen on "saving" Noelle that he was smothering her, treating her like a wayward child. But it was hard to be angry with him because he so obviously cared and had reasons to be the way he was. Noelle seemed to think that he should be able to just magically understand who and what she was without really trying to talk about it and that drove me nuts. But she, too, so obviously cared that it was hard to be against her. In the end, these two are the perfect example of the yin and the yang in romance novels, each one supporting the other in opposite ways.

Things to love...

--The romance. I am not generally a straight-up, romance girl, but I like that the romance in this series comes with all of the issues that love really has, even if it is a little fast.

Things I wanted more/less of...

--More hockey. I love hockey, and there was a little less of it in this book!

My Recommendation: This is a great addition to the Portland Storm series, but it should be read after the first two. The fourth book in the series, Delay of Game, is due out in August! I gave it 4.5 mugs.