EVERYTHING I NEVER WANTEDby K STREET
A single dad, contemporary romance standalone.
This wasn’t supposed to be my life.
One phone call was all it took to bring me back to the small town I had grown up in. Everything had changed, and staying away was no longer an option.
Four and a half years later, I was a widowed single father still here, still trying to pick up the pieces. We were doing just fine on our own, my little girl and me.
At least, we were until Camryn Parker stumbled into our lives. The woman was like a tornado after a hurricane; she was the storm I never saw approaching. Behind her beauty and sarcastic wit, she was just as broken as I pretended not to be. As hard as I tried to resist, it was impossible not to fall in love with her.
In the end, it took nearly losing it all for me to realize everything I never wanted was exactly what I needed.
"You don't get to choose your hand, but you can decide how to play the cards."
For my first K Street book, I was pleasantly surprised. For someone that doesn't read a lot of cutesy, sweet books, I immediately fell in love with her characters and was enjoying the storyline. I also read select few single daddy books because I am always afraid the story may not live up to my expectations from what I have read and loved previously, but I usually love the sound of them because there is nothing sexier than a man handling his business. While this book embodied the sweetness of a man not sure that he can love again, it was also a very temperate read. Not overly emotional, and with zero angst, it was definitely not one with any turmoil - but it was a good read. I'm glad I read it because not only did I get a good read, but I got to hear a new-to-me author's voice as well. But for as sweet as it was, it was also anticlimactic and slow in some parts for me. Not bad, just wasn't the emotional and deep book I was hoping for given the subject matter at hand.
This book isn't exactly the kind of read, for me, that I can shout from the rooftops about how emotionally challenging it was because it just....wasn't. It was a sweet vacation read, a light in the feels department kind of read; one that you don't necessarily have to read all in one sitting because you are busy and running around, but you can pick it right back up and start reading again. It was an easy read with enough activity to keep the story moving along, but not enough nail-biting turmoil to suck you in and make you have to follow along closely so you don't miss anything. Just.....easy.
I do feel like the chance to embellish a little more on some of the storyline arcs that she threw in there was a missed opportunity. We met secondary characters and went into great detail with them and spent a good amount of time building their character, yet their reason for being a part of the story wasn't entirely relevant, leading me to believe they weren't really necessary to the storyline. But with the character building, I also feel like I missed out on some good story building as well. I mean, I don't need to read that you added the water and oil, and then cracked two eggs to mix it in the batter to make cupcakes (super descriptive break down of events) and then in another part, we missed some imperative scenes that led up to certain events because we jumped an entire month later in their story but we didn't get that emotional buildup to it (super NON descriptive brush over of events). Yet, for instance in other parts, it's almost as if the buildup to, let's say, the big secret was not indicative of the actual secret we were told, so I felt a little harumph about it after it was all said and done too.
I loved Tucker and his personality, and the fact that he was a standup man was not lost on me. While he was a good and worthy man, one part threw me off and it made me squint my eyes at him hardcore. I was none too pleased with him and his mouth. Not only did that happen at the very end, but it cleared up quite expeditiously and I was left shaking my head as to where the craving came from, the need to be back together. The ache to hold her and love her and feel her....and kiss her. I wanted that grit. I wanted that pull...and I just didn't feel it. Again, some parts were super developed and explained, and then others were glossed over, leaving so many questions. This ending being one of them.
Camryn had such a good disposition to her, especially with kids. She was such a natural, so with her being in the position she was in, it wasn't so far fetched and it really rounded out her character. She had her walls, but it wasn't anything that was touched on in great depth.
Kids in books are not a favorite of mine in general, but I was actually pleasantly surprised. Sometimes they are over exaggerated, and sometimes the author hides behind the cutesy side to to help carry the story. While Shayne did help, she wasn't the only entertainment for the book. Shayne has to be my favorite kid from a book in a while. She was definitely cute, but even though she was a significant part of the story, there were parts without her too and I liked those parts just as well.
Overall, some of this felt predictable, but it was an extremely sweet and smile-worthy read. I know this reads as one long complaint about the book, but I assure you it is not. I liked her characters, the story (besides the grrrr part), it was really cute to read, and the flow was easy to follow. Again, light and airy read with zero angst/turmoil. So if you are looking for a quick and easy, sweet and lovey-dovey read, this one is a good option! It wasn't bad, it wasn't my favorite...it was just good.
~BEE
KINDLE UNLIMITED
K. Street has been making up stories since she was old enough to talk, and she began writing at the tender age of eleven. She resides in central Florida with her husband and daughter. Her affinity for coffee, sweet red wine, dark chocolate, and hockey runs deep. When K. isn’t working or writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, spending time with her family, and cheering on her beloved Chicago Blackhawks.
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