bookperson
Written on Jul 23, 2018
Nina Sheridan desperately needs a timeout vacation. With a fiancé who can't even remember how she takes her coffee, Nina wants some distance to rethink her engagement. Flying halfway around the world from England to a mountain town in Colorado should do the trick. But when she finds a gorgeous man at her rental cabin, Nina's cold, lonely adventure suddenly heats up. The owner of the house, Holden "Max" Maxwell is surprised by the beautiful woman who turns up at his door. But when Nina becomes ill, Max spends days nursing her back to health. A private man with a broken heart, Max finds himself drawn to the strong-willed woman. Soon it becomes impossible for Nina and Max to deny their growing attraction to one another. Yet even as these two wounded lovebirds think about taking a chance on a relationship, a dangerous secret from Max's past emerges-and threatens to end their love for good.
- ISBN10 1538744341
- ISBN13 9781538744345
- Publish Date 20 June 2017 (first published 1 January 2012)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Forever
- Format Paperback (US Trade)
- Pages 640
- Language English
Reviews
Linda
Written on Dec 29, 2016
stacey_is_sassy
Written on Apr 22, 2016
I absolutely love this story, but sometimes I feel guilty. It makes me feel like a hypocrite. It sort of has cheating in it, sort of has Nina trapped against her will and is completely OTT insta-love.
It must just be KA magic. I'm blinded to the things that would normally make my eye twitch. I honestly never saw those things when I initially read it and had to have someone tell me.
How the hell does she do it? Magic, I tell you...
**********
The Gamble definitely paid off.
I've decided that my re-reads will be done on audio. With my busy schedule and real life, I don't have time to enjoy my re-reads anymore. The beauty of audiobooks is that you can listen to them anytime. I listen to them when I'm exercising, baking, doing school pick-ups (obviously not when my little munchkin is in the car) and when I'm mucking around on Pinterest. As these are re-reads, I don't need to worry that I'll miss something important or need clarification on a plot point, it's just a nice and relaxing way to keep reading while I'm doing stuff.
The Gamble was one of the first books I read by Kristen Ashley and I have a signed paperback that sits on my shelf and never gets touched. If I want to see the message inside...I look at the photos I took. I want it to stay in mint condition. I wasn't sure how the audio would go, to be honest. Nina's character is an American who has spent a lot of time in England and has a "bit" of an accent. The narrator managed Nina's English accent perfectly while also giving Max a fantastic slow and smooth drawl. I always knew when the characters were changing as there was a slight difference in the accents and the way they talked which made it easy to distinguish them.
Max and Nina's story is still one of my favourites. Nina comes to America from England to have a break from her fiancé and to decide if she really wants to stay with him. They had been having difficulties in the relationship leaving Nina concerned she was making the wrong decision. Unfortunately, Niles, the fiancé, wasn't listening when Nina voiced her concerns and didn't really see any problems with the way things were. It doesn't take Nina long to realise that she doesn't really matter to Niles and his work was a lot more important to him than she was. Even when she finally explains this all to him, he can't be bothered or is too busy to "deal" with it. I was glad to see the back end of Niles.
Max has faced heartache and managed to keep going even though he's not happy. When Nina rocks up to his house for her holiday, they realise a mistake had happened and Nina's holiday destination will need relocation. Stuff happens, Nina's sick, the plans are a mess and Max ends up having to nurse Nina back to health. It doesn't take Max long to realise that Nina is awakening feelings in him that he hasn't had for a very long time. He knows he wants more with Nina and doesn't want to see her return to England. When Niles eventually comes out to see what the problem is, Max explains to Niles where he went wrong and why he doesn't get to keep Nina.
The Gamble is at times funny and at times so sad you can't help but shed a tear. All of these emotions are hard to hold back as you're sitting in your car out the front of your kid's school. The squirming at the set of lights when Max is speaking all husky and smooth, demanding that Nina "tell him" (while he's deep inside her) the words he wants to hear. The crying when your heart is breaking for the woman who feels dirty and unclean. The laughing out loud when Nina turns into Zombie Nina in the mornings. But generally, this book just leaves me with a smile on my face.
I still love The Gamble and the audio just reinforces my love.
To buy The Gamble from Amazon - http://amzn.to/1QIuPmO
To buy the audio of The Gamble from Amazon - http://amzn.to/1SEnQ0U
I’m an Aussie chick who loves to read and review romance, drink coffee, be a Style Setter and stalk David Gandy. To see more of my reviews, fashion, food and pervathons -
Eve1972
Written on Dec 7, 2015
Cocktails and Books
Written on Apr 7, 2013
I've heard a lot about Kristen Ashley's books and finally was able to get to one of her books, anxious to see what everyone else was raving about. I can say I honestly enjoyed the book and she seriously snuck some tear-jearker moments in there that took me by surprise.
Nina Sheridan decided to take a break from her life and finance in England to figure out what she wanted. When she rented the mountain A-Frame house outside Denver, she figured it would be the perfect retreat for her to regroup and decide what direction her life should take. She didn't plan on the owner to suddenly be at her rental or to find herself involved with not only her very own mountain man, but the charming and quirky people of Gnaw Bone, Colorado.
I have to tell you, Nina had one hell of a two week period. So much crap was smashed in those two weeks I'm not sure how she came out the other side of her "break" sane. First, she mets Holden "Max" Maxwell, the mountain man alpha male owner of the house she rented and instantly begins fighting him and her attraction to him. Then she finds herself becoming friends with many of the residents of the tiny town of Gnaw Bone and engaging in verbal spats and fisticuffs with others. All this and fighting with her fiance, her estranged father and reuniting with her mother and stepfather. It was a bit far-fetched, but it made for an interesting and entertaining story.
But what kept me glued to this story was the relationship with Nina and Max. Both carried a little baggage into their relationship. And while they kept sweeping their preverbal baggage under the rug, Nina kept trying to fight off Max. But Max was determined to have Nina. He knew what he meant to lose something that meant the world to him and he was determined that Nina was going to be his, despite what Nina thought. I loved their verbal spat and how, despite Nina's protest, Max always seemed to get what he wanted by flustering Nina with innocuous statements like "You're cute."
They did have this instant chemistry and it was that chemistry that kept me hooked until the end. Their relationship and the hoops they seemed to jump through just to be alone with one another, in addition to the verbal sparring they did on a regular basis about meaningless things, made up for most of the secondary storylines that I didn't really care about (with the exception of Mindy's. I need Mindy to get a HEA after all she'd been through).
A decent read and one I'm glad I picked up. If nothing else, to find out what all the buzz was about.
leelu92
Written on Mar 29, 2012
Reread on 7/14/12. Better than the first time.