Cocktails and Books
Written on Jan 27, 2016
DOLCE was a book that pleasantly surprised me. I wasn't sure what I was getting into when college radio station intern Catie met Hafton College basketball superstar Blane Steele, but it definitely was so much more than the blurb led me to believe.
Catie didn't have a lot of self-confidence, despite being a women's studies major. Beaten down by her mother and sisters ideals on what's perfect, she isn't comfortable with attention (positive or negative) from members of the opposite sex. so when she meets Blane while he's being interviewed at the radio station, she can't believe the small bit of attention he paid to her. And when he began showing up where she was and making her secret dreams come true, she didn't put a lot of stock in Blane actually liking her. Her professor and her boss at the radio station didn't help matters at all, pumping up her insecurities.
Blane had an uphill battle when it came to Catie (or Cate as he liked to call her). He was captivated by her the minute the met. He didn't let her ignoring him push him away and he did his best to make sure she knew he was there for her. He was constantly reassuring her that he wanted her, all of her, curves and all. But despite Blane's assurances, Cate ends up being the biggest obstacle in their relationship. But Blane ends up proving he is the ultimate hero by giving the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with the space she needs. It kills him, but him giving her space to figure things out, made it really, really hard for me not to love Blane.
I had a hard time putting DOLCE down. The characters were charming and the storyline had me eagerly turning pages to find out what happened next. Rachel Blaufeld has created a world that I thoroughly enjoyed (and has me going to Amazon to pick up the first book in the series). If you're looking for a new adult read that's sexy and engaging, definitely pick up DOLCE.