Handle with Care (Saddler Cove, #1)

by Nina Croft

[Eve1972]

This book is a little hard for me to review because, for the most part, I enjoyed it a lot. I found it sweet. It was pretty low angst. The hero had been celibate for three years. The heroine wasn't a virgin. There was no OW drama. A little OM drama (but nothing bothersome). It was mildly spicy. It had excellent secondary characters. I especially loved Mimi and Josh, and their secondary romance. I want to read more about Tanner's brothers. I found the heroine quite likable. And the ending was sweet and had me shedding a few tears.





So why the 3-Star rating? Tanner...good lord the WOE IS ME attitude was strong in this one. And it lasts until 90% into the book. The chip on his shoulder was the size of the Titanic. Yes, he had a more than his fair share of shitty things happen to him. Yes, the town was made up of judgmental twats. But instead of working to prove them WRONG by being a decent human being, he spent YEARS acting like a douche. He was surly. He was arrogant. He was nasty. He was an a$$hole. He was a self-fulling prophecy. And...ultimately, for me, he was a giant whiny pussy right up until the END. Because of that, I just couldn't bring myself to give this a higher rating.