REVIEW: Hold Me by Susan Mallery

In Hold Me (Fool’s Gold #16) by Susan Mallery, Destiny Mills may come from country music royalty, but she chooses to stay out of the spotlight as much as possible. Her job setting up equipment needed to do search and rescue missions nationally has brought her temporarily to Fool’s Gold. For the first time, Destiny begins to make real friends instead of casual acquaintances and it feels nice. But being near the head of the HERO program, Kipling Gilmore, creates sparks inside her she’s never felt before. And given her crazy genetics, that passion scares Destiny more than anything else ever has.

She narrowed her gaze. “I don’t need fixing.”
“I didn’t say you did.”
“Shelby warned me, and she was right. Let me repeat myself. No fixing required. I’m perfectly fine. I have everything under control. I prefer life without surprises.”

Former Olympic gold medal skier Kipling has recovered physically from a devastating crash that left him nearly paralyzed. He moved to Fool’s Gold to head up the HERO program, a local search and rescue team, along with his sister Shelby. While he still longs to be zooming down the slopes, his new gig working, at least for a while, with Destiny holds his attention. Kipling knows with their chemistry they would be incredible in the bedroom. Now if he can just convince Destiny that giving in to their attraction wouldn’t be the end of the world, he could make her a very, very happy woman.

‘Based on what he’d seen so far, Destiny was hiding more passion than even she was aware of. Unleashed, she would be unstoppable. And he couldn’t wait to get in the way.’

Mayor Marsha and the good people of Fool’s Gold were at it again in this newest installment of Susan Mallery’s long running series. Poor Kipling and Destiny had no hope of avoiding their HEA, much to this reader’s satisfaction.

Complicated, tangled emotions are what I think Susan Mallery excels at writing. (And of course small town life!) Her latest love match with Destiny and Kipling was definitely a complex mess. While I might not have connected with each of them the way I have with some previous characters, I still thought there was a lot of depth to the struggles both were going through over the course of this story.

Destiny and Kipling’s individual pasts left them with some serious baggage to bring into their relationship. I could completely understand Kipling’s ‘Mr. Fixit’ vibe and how he thought actions spoke louder than words. I think that’s a very common thing among men. So for me, that made him a more realistic character. I really liked that his fame didn’t go to his head and how kind he was to family and friends alike. He might have been a flirt, but Kipling would never have intentionally harmed anyone, which was nice.

Destiny on the other hand, I liked but thought was a bit set/skewed in her views on love and sex. I totally got that watching her superstar parents flit from one bad relationship to the next, leaving her basically abandoned, would mess a kid up. However, it seemed somewhat unrealistic that a twenty-eight year old woman who travels so much would have had no boyfriends or romantic experience. I did like the bantering back and forth between Destiny and Kipling. It was comical and cute. Plus, the scenes with all the gals meeting up at Jo’s Bar were a lot of fun and gave us a glimpse as to what our favorite characters were up to.

I think Fool’s Gold fans will be happy to see what is new in town and to meet our newest lovebirds, Kipling and Destiny, in Hold Me.

Book Info:

Publication: April 28th 2015 by HQN Books | Fool’s Gold #16

New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery’s classic blend of lighthearted humor and intense emotional conflict works its magic on two newcomers to the California town of Fool’s Gold, which Library Journal calls “a setting so real and appealing readers will want to start scoping out real estate.”

Destiny Mills believes passion has its place—like in the lyrics of the country songs that made her parents famous. After a childhood full of drama and heartache, she wants a life that’s calm. Safe. Everything that Kipling Gilmore isn’t. Her temporary assignment with the Fool’s Gold search and rescue team puts her in delicious proximity to the former world-class skier every day. Part of her aches to let go for once…the rest is terrified what’ll happen if she does.

Though an accident ended his career, Kipling still lives for thrills—and a hot fling with a gorgeous redhead like Destiny would be a welcome diversion. Yet beneath his new coworker’s cool facade is a woman who needs more than he’s ever given. With her, he’s ready to take the risk. But love, like skiing, is all about trust—and before you soar, you have to be willing to fall.