Crazy Thing Called Love (Crooked Creek Ranch, #3)

by Molly O'Keefe

[Rowena]

This is the first book that I’ve read from this series and I really liked it. There were times when I wanted to strangle the heroine and the beginning dragged but once it took off, I came to really like the story and the characters that were introduced.

Billy Wilkins and Maddy Baumgarten were married when they were too young to know any better. They were married when they thought love alone could save anything they get themselves into but they learned the hard way that a marriage can’t survive on love alone. Fourteen years later, they’re thrown into each others lives again and the chemistry that’s been between them since they were kids is still as strong as ever.

Billy’s NHL career is nearing its end and his grumpy attitude isn’t helping matters so when he gets a shot to clean up his act by appearing on a makeover show that just so happens to be hosted by his ex-wife, the one that got away, Billy jumps at the chance. The whole thing started as a way for Billy to make amends for the way that their marriage ended but what he got was so much more.

Maddy Baumgarten is now Madelyn Cornish and there isn’t an ounce of the young girl she’d been when she was married to Billy left in her. She’s a successful morning show host in Dallas and has moved on from the life she had with Billy. She’d like to keep it that way. She doesn’t talk about her marriage with Billy and she doesn’t like to think about it either but when Billy comes storming back into her life, everything that she’s feared would happen…happens. When she married to Billy, her entire life was filled with Billy that there was no more room for her. Everything she did was for Billy and his hockey stuff that there wasn’t any time left for her dreams. She lost herself when she was with Billy and she’d do anything to keep that from happening again.

So of course she pushes Billy away. Again, and again and again.

My issues with this story stemmed from Maddy and the way that she didn’t trust herself and made Billy pay for it. She knew deep down that Billy wasn’t the same guy that he was when they were married. She knew that he knew where they went wrong and was sorry for it, hell he was even trying to make things up to her but she kept going hot and cold on him and the more she did that, the more she got on my nerves.

When Becky and Charlie come into the picture, my heart melted…a lot.
Their story, how old Becky felt for being such a young girl made my heart hurt and I really, really enjoyed seeing what their addition did to help Billy realize what’s important in life. I really liked Billy in this book. His family is what I really connected with and when he finally steps up and does the right thing for Becky and Charlie, he totally won me over.

Maddy took some getting used to because she’s built this ice queen demeanor and it was hard to get passed that but when she finally realizes what she really wants and goes after it, I threw my hands in the air and was like, “FINALLY!” So alls well that ends well and I closed this book with a goofy grin on my face so I think O’Keefe did a great job of entertaining and though it wasn’t a perfect story, it was still enjoyable.