REVIEW: Undone by Caitlin Crews

Undone by Caitlin Crews (HQN) is the second story in her Hotel Temptation series. It follows a group of men who find themselves in the startling position of being half brothers, a discovery that follows their father’s death (a man none of them knew) and the inheritance of several of his hotels worldwide. In Unleashed, Thor Ragnarsson lived up to his Viking forbears reputation with his sizzling romance with an American professor at his Icelandic hotel. Now, his American half brother Charlie finds his life turned upside down by his new found wealth, and a visiting tourist looking for a way to forget her troubles.

When Canadian socialite and high class lawyer Maya Martin gets ditched on the way to the altar, she sees no reason not to take advantage of their honeymoon plans and get away from all the questions by taking their planned trip (solo) to the Italian Amalfi coast. Her ex had said she was boring in bed so she aims to prove him wrong and what better way than to sleep with the sinfully sexy hotel employee she finds tending to some repairs.

Charlie Teller never expected to end up the owner of a high class hotel in Europe. His roots are much more humble and dangerous – biker gangs and revenge and retaliation are more his style from his life in America. But he’s been able to leave all that behind and loves nothing more than tinkering around his new property. When Maya signals her interest, he’s quite happy to oblige and show her the time of her life, expecting that their fling will be short lived. Maya makes him examine his choices, the past and the present ones, and gives him reason to hope for a better future. Can he convince her to be part of it?

This is the type of erotic romance where the two people involved think they can get away with just having sex and then those inconvenient feelings show up! Maya is struggling with the demise of her carefully thought out future, though realizing that she’s not as broken up about her disastrous wedding day makes her wonder whether she’d really been in love with her fiancé at all. The most devastating thing about it is that she was betrayed by her best friend (who’d been having an affair with her fiance), and that is something she grieves more than the loss of her romantic relationship. Dealing with that over the course of the story in concert with her growing feelings for Charlie helps her come to terms with what she wants for her future though it’s Charlie who makes the decisive moves to get them to a happy ending.

It might be a coincidence, but the name of the hero, Charlie Teller, is a mix of an actor (Charlie Hunnam) and the character he played on the Sons of Anarchy motorcycle club series (Jax Teller). And in the novel, Charlie has a similar background as Jax. But he’s left that life behind, and gotten some new brothers in the bargain who are all coping with the news that they are related, and that they have inheritances to look after. The location of Charlie’s hotel is idyllic and a far cry from his rough and tumble life. And while he’s been happy to live the playboy life and enjoy sex for sex’s sake, his connection to Maya is electric. The sex is great, but it’s also the start of real feelings and the idea of her leaving when her vacation is up doesn’t sit well with him. Since Maya’s life is back in Toronto, there has to be some compromise to get them to their happy ever after. One thing of note is that the cover does not reflect Maya as she is described in the book, as a black woman with big curly hair, and that’s disappointing. However, I enjoyed the plot and setting of this one and vacation romances are some of my favorites so it’s still going on my keeper shelf!

Book Info:

Publication: Dec 01, 2018 | Harlequin Dare | Hotel Temptation #2

Ditched at the altar for being boring in bed, prim lawyer Maya Martin goes on a solo Amalfi Coast honeymoon with one goal in mind: proving her ex wrong! And when she meets tattooed, hard-bodied Charlie Teller he seems just the man for the job – he’s so hot it’s criminal! This Christmas Charlie will help Maya unleash her wild side…over and over again!