Cherish Hard (Hard Play, #1)

by Nalini Singh

[Rowena]

Nalini Singh has a new spin-off from her Rock Kiss series called the Hard Play series and Cherish Hard is the first book. It features Gabriel Bishop’s younger brother, Sailor Bishop and Sailor is out to get the girl that got away from him when he was 16 years old and she was running away from a party.

Years later, Sailor runs into that same pretty redhead at her place of employment and a second chance presents itself…he’s not going to let her get away a second time. He’s busy as hell trying to build up his landscaping company but sometimes life hands you a love that you just have to find room in your life for.

Isa is a grown adult these days and a far cry from the humiliated young girl she used to be but when she hears from her ex-boyfriend that did the humiliating back in college, she’s thrown and then she throws herself at the sexy landscaper on her walk to her car after work. Once that happens, her life changes big time.

Nalini Singh really shines at writing paranormal romance and she’s really doing her thing on the contemporary romance front as well. I have enjoyed every single book that I’ve read by this author and after reading this one, I’m super anxious for more. I’m crossing my fingers that we won’t have a long wait for Nanya and Raj’s book and I’m also really excited that we’re going to be getting a diverse romance from Singh. I just know that she’s going to knock their romance out of the park and I’m so here for it.

But back to Sailor and Isa. What a sweet romance theirs turned out to be. I enjoyed getting to know both Isa and Sailor and seeing them overcome their insecurities and finding a way to be together despite their doubts.

Sailor was a great hero who just kept getting better and better as I turned each page. I loved his determination to be better than his father and set his own mark on the world without the help of his friends or family. He had goals and a dream of building something on his own and that was admirable. I loved seeing him try to figure out how to have it all. The business, the family and the love. It wasn’t an easy ride and he spent a lot of time trying to convince Isa that they belonged together and when all was said and done, I was super thrilled that all of his hard work paid off.

Isa had a lot of things that she was dealing with over the course of the book. She had parents who were never really parents to her and she was doing her best to keep her family together by forcing her parents to act like parents to her younger siblings. She was her sibling’s champions and I loved that Sailor saw how she spent so much time taking care of everyone in her world and he wanted to be the one to take care of her.

Nalini Singh wrote another wonderfully entertaining romance about two people who wound their way right into my heart and set up shop. I’m super excited about the next book and am wondering who else will get their stories told. I’m hopeful for the teenagers in this series to grow up and get their stories told because Isa’s sister and Sailor’s brother? I’m low key shipping them.

I seriously want Singh to write forever and ever. She has the writer’s touch and I just love her work to pieces. I definitely recommend this one, it’s a good one.

Grade: 4 out of 5