In Flirting With the Beast by Jane Porter, Andi McDermott has always had a special place in her 
heart for the Christmas season. The decorations, the food, being around loved ones. But since losing her husband Kevin five years ago, the holidays have been tough. When plans fall through this year, leaving Andi feeling left out and alone, she can’t stand one more minute in her home, instead opting to go to the family cabin. It’s every bit as picturesque as she remembers. And the man who owns the neighboring property, Wolf Enders–Kevin’s least favorite person in the world–is just as daunting (and handsome) as ever.
‘Now she was fifty-seven, almost fifty-eight, with no children of her own, no husband, and another Christmas alone. She couldn’t do it. Not here. Not like this.’
When a snowstorm forces Andi and Wolf to pool resources, neither expects their chemistry to overwhelm them. And neither are they looking to form any lasting attachments. So as their blissful couple of snowed-in days comes to a close, Wolf and Andi move forward, thinking they’ll never see each other again. But fate had other plans. When they next meet, Wolf’s life has undergone some changes and Andi is thinking of making some changes of her own. But that spark, that wonderful pull between them is still as strong as ever. While Andi’s not sure she can ever be the right person for a closed off but wonderful military guy like Wolf, and he’s not sure he deserves someone as incredible as her, they still feel like it’s worth a chance as it could turn out to be the best thing they’ve ever had.
‘He’d…felt…feelings, and God help him, Wolf didn’t do feelings.’
My heart is a little battered and bruised but was pieced back together in the sweetest, most satisfying of ways after reading Jane Porter’s Flirting With the Beast–a love story with a touch of a holiday theme that I simply could *not* put down.
‘She’d found love again, and she appreciated it even more this second time around.’
Trigger Warning: View Spoiler »
I am completely smitten with Jane Porter’s Modern Love series. The combination of her clear writing voice that is always filled with incredibly genuine emotions paired with a more mature cast of characters is utterly perfect. Going into these romances–particularly with widow Andi and Wolf, a former Marine–you would think they would know themselves better than the twenty-somethings typically written about. And they did, for the most part. It’s all the baggage they brought with them from previous relationships and years’ worth of personal battles they had fought that added layers of tension and complications. In other words, theirs was a very realistic relationship.
A dual POV novel, this can be read as a standalone or as part of the series. I think the glimpses of Andi through Paige’s eyes in Flirting With Fifty (the heroine in book one) helped me understand just how much Andi comes into her own in this story. Five years after the death of her long-time husband, she had finally begun dating in her late fifties but never dreamed of being with someone like Wolf, who was the polar opposite of her–and her husband, his arch nemesis.
It started off as intense attraction. But Andi was quickly awed by what she found beneath Wolf’s gruff exterior. How caring, fiercely loyal, and whip-smart he was. Wolf was also knocked for six with Andi, thinking that with her kind heart and compassionate nature she was probably too good for a war-hardened man like him. (Wrong! He so deserved her!) And aside from a big blunder Wolf made about three-quarters of the way through the story, I thought he was the perfect alpha hero. The way he protected his loved ones was swoon-worthy even though it tested the bounds of Wolf and Andi’s new relationship.
QOTD: The book starts with Andi’s trip to her family’s rather remote cabin to get away for Christmas. Do you prefer Christmas at home or do you like to travel?
Book Info:
Publication: November 29th 2022 | Berkley | Modern Love #2
A woman expecting to spend the holidays alone finds warmth in the iciest man she knows in this steamy and charming later-in-life romance by New York Times bestselling author Jane Porter.
It’s been five years since Andi McDermott lost her husband, and she’s finally starting to feel like herself again, ready to live fully—she’s even started dating again. But when her holiday plans with her stepson and his fiancée fall through, she refuses to spend another Christmas alone while everyone is celebrating with their families. Impulsively, she decides to go up to her cabin in Lake Arrowhead, a place she used to love to visit but hadn’t gone to in years, not since the feud started between her husband and their nearest neighbor.
Andi starts to rethink her decision when being alone at the cabin proves to be more challenging than she expected—a heavy snowstorm hits the area, and Andi finds herself trapped there with no one to help except for her neighbor, Wolf Enders. A military vet who lives full-time on Lake Arrowhead, Wolf is as grumpy and intimidating as Andi remembers. But he’s also unexpectedly kind and uncomfortably sexy—his presence reminds Andi that she may be older, but her body still works perfectly fine, thank you very much. But can this good girl tame this sexy beast of a man, and will this snowy fling turn into a love of a lifetime?
Latesha B.
I’ve always spent Christmas at home but would love to travel during the Christmas season at least once.
shygirl19748
Me too!! It just sounds like so much fun to travel to a new destination during the holidays and see how other parts of the country or world celebrate, right? Happy reading, Latesha!