Opening up Champagne Kisses, I had a feeling about what to expect. Dominant billionaire, ordinary girl, just like Saltwater Kisses and Rainwater Kisses before it. Oddly enough, this book isn't a billionaire story at all.
And for that alone, it gets extra points in my book. It starts simply enough, a college graduate on the beach meeting a great group of guys and one in particular that completely sweeps her off of her feet. Though the time they spend together is initially glossed over, picking and choosing important elements to present the reader, the eventual heartbreak and longing is what won me over.
Rachel is definitely an ordinary girl, but so is Dean, and I love the characterization for that. Yes, he's a strong, honorable, impressive person, but instead of being a dream, he's attainable, he's closer to human and could be the guy at the grocery store. Sure, at their later ages, Rachel and Dean are successful, happy people, but in the beginning they were just like everyone else, trying their best, and that spoke volumes about the characters as the book went on.
Rachel is by far my favorite Kisses heroine. She's kind, brainy and passionate and breathes that life into Dean who before her was hard muscle and brawn, cocksure and headstrong. They change each other for the better, something that was presented in the former Kisses stories but I felt wasn't truly achieved.
Reading this book became a getaway. Working nine and ten hour days, stealing away for a sandwich on a thirty-minute break and opening my Kindle to continue Rachel's everlasting quest for love was a reprieve I felt I didn't deserve. Knowing that she would make it there was half the battle.
On the bottom line, Champagne Kisses is easily Krista Lakes' technically well-written piece. The dialogue flows, the characters grow and flourish, and the plot feels real and engaging. The problems in their characters lives that keep them apart but pining for each other felt well-thought out and encompass the entire story. It really did feel like both characters had to make a big decision, that something huge was on the line.
All that and a plot on the side too, for which I found myself grateful. The love story is first and foremost and the secondary plot definitely secondary, but the second builds up on what the first is. It's hard to mention without spoiling anything, but both aesthetically and technically, this Kisses novel is my favorite. All in all, it's relatable characters, engaging main and secondary plots and meaningful conflict made it a great ride.
Looking forward to more from Krista Lakes, as always.
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Top reviews from other countries
Tricia
Likeable characters and good storyline
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 14, 2014gsc984
I laughed and I cried more than once
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 2, 2013