Tome Thursday: Seduction Under the Southern Stars

 

Hello everyone!

 

And for once, welcome to a post in which we are NOT going to India.

 

I suppose you're all thankful in some aspects LOL, or maybe you'll be back and can't wait for more Bollywood.

 

Either way, tonight's choice is something else entirely.

 

Aka, it's by my favourite contemporary romance author of all times.

 

I'm not just saying that either - I've pretty much read ALL her books at this point (except, I believe, her Brides series, because I think that one was released solely on KU, which I sadly don't have), and I plan on reading the rest as she keeps publishing them.

 

Some authors are just worth sticking with!

 

Serenity Woods is definitely one of them, and her newest series has just launched - well, her newest trilogy I should say.

 

And it all begins with Seduction Under the Southern Stars.

Links to previous related posts can be found at the bottom of the page, as per usual. In this case, just a general link to my 'Serenity Woods' review collection!

SUtSS being the first of the planned trilogy means that it has nothing to really fall back on, except the Billionaire series which vaguely introduced us to the school for troubled teens this book circles, as well as Linc, the male hero of our story.

This is his story, then.

He was one of the troubled teens who attended school, and actually kind of became an adopted child of the deacon's family, who ran it. He grew very close to the boys of the house, and developed a crush on the family's only daughter, Elora - a crush which led to their first kiss when she was 14 and he was just shy of 18, I believe.

Unfortunately, her father saw them, kicked Linc out, and packed him on the first flight out of the country (in this case, Egypt, which furthered his love of archaeology and history which Elora had first sparked).

Now, decades later, Linc's back in New Zealand for his father's funeral - more so to make sure the guy's really dead than anything else, because his dad regularly beat him until he landed at the hospital.

Elora, who works for her brother at the museum he runs, hasn't forgotten the boy who was her first kiss, and she's grown up thinking that he left them all in the dust since daddy dearest didn't really tell anyone exactly what happened afterwards.

Linc's the one to dispel THAT foolish notion, telling her the truth, which definitely makes her all pissed off at dad - particularly as she then learns that Linc really thought he couldn't be loved if the family he'd come to care for so much abandoned him, just like his mother abandoned him to his father's treatment.

Oh, and also, his dad isn't actually his dad. Mom had an affair, and his REAL dad wants to take a DNA test to confirm whether or not there's truth in that (although when they exchange photos it looks like they're carbon copies of one another, so it's not really all that much of a question mark).

With the huge weight of those chains lifted, Linc can now focus on Elora again - someone he still cares for deeply, and who he notices has some pretty interesting quirks, like checking the locks and being obsessed with certain behaviours.

Clocking into the fact that something must have happened, he drags the story out of her brothers, who explain she was roofied at a party and raped.

Seriously.

The irony here being that, had her dad not freaked out over Linc and her, it might never have happened as Linc had every intention of asking to marry her once she turned 16, so boo-yah, dad. Way to screw things up!

Still, this doesn't deter our Linc, and he takes Elora with him on the cruise where he's one of the keynote speakers, which will also conveniently stop at a location where they might just find an old family heirloom - of Elora's family, that is.

And you know how it goes once the hero and heroine actually get to spend some time alone away from any other distractions.

Dot. Dot. Dot.

Elora asks Linc to go slow, and so they progress at her pace and slowly fall in love all over again - something that's reasonably clear to anybody who reads about two pages from each character's perspective, really. They've simply hit pause on their relationship and are now starting it up again, which only goes to show that sometimes, second chances DO happen, and happily so.

Having secured the ring and met Linc's biological father, as well as the rest of the family he never knew he had (two half-sisters who are DELIGHTED learning they have an older brother they can tease), it's time to wind the story to a close with a little heart-to-heart between Linc and Elora's father, so that they clear the air between them.

Especially since Linc's life is primarily based in London, UK, and he's got an amazing job opportunity coming up, but he doesn't want to leave Elora, who's hesitant on leaving New Zealand, despite the fact he believes it might be the best thing for her, to really switch up environments and allow herself to flourish without any reminders of her unfortunate past.

So with blessing acquired, Linc goes down on one knee and proposes to Elora with that old family heirloom ring, because why not? And he finally gets the girl he would have been married to for years now if not for outside influences and interference.

And that's a wrap!

Oh. My. Word.

I didn't think I'd love this as much as I do, but then I say this about almost every book Ms Woods writes. SUtSS is another one of the really great ones.

I love Elora and enjoyed reading her journey of empowerment and self-exploration, as well as her unwavering support of Linc. I love Linc for his tragic past, his fight to overcome it, his hopeful future, and the way he was the gentle push Elora needed.

Their love story is one of trust, friendship, and a deep abiding love that never fades away. That both of them are into history and archaeology is the icing on the cake.

As always, Ms Woods writes a narrative that flows like the gentle sea currents, driving ever towards a satisfying conclusion. I read this in one breath, basically.

And I can't wait for Joel and Fraser's stories (Elora's brothers, natch)!

xx

*image not mine

Serenity Woods