Books
Love in a Nutshell

by Janet Evanovich
St. Martin's Press, January 2012, $27.99

Kate Appleton is down on her luck, in this first collaboration between Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly. Appleton is divorced, jobless, and seeking refuge in Keene’s Harbor, Michigan, where her parents have a summer home. She dreams of fixing it up and buying it back from the current leaseholder, even without a penny to her name and lots of repairs to be made. She takes a job at the local microbrewery (despite a personal aversion to beer) in order to help owner (and eligible bachelor) Matt Culhane find a vandal who is trying to sabotage Matt’s business.

As readers will surely be hoping, soon Matt and Kate are unable to deny their attraction, even though it’s a bad time for romance for Kat, who needs to get her own life on track. Can the two find the person behind the vandalism and overcome the differences that divide them? I bet you know the answer.

While the premise is a bit short on mystery, and the action less thrilling than farcical (Kate is at one point rescued from a quickly filling vat of beer), readers of light romantic suspense and mysteries will find that the whodunit is the perfect excuse for this couple to spend lots of time together. Evanovich and Kelly have created great romantic tension. And when their characters start to turn up the heat, the crafty authors put more obstacles in their way, heightening the enjoyment and excitement for readers.

Kate is determined and sassy, with a touch of vulnerability, and beer goggles won’t be needed for female fans to appreciate the caring, stand-up guy Matt. We see them circling around each other, trying to find the right time to connect. With chemistry like this, the reader will eagerly wait for the stars to align for Kate and Matt—oh, and to find out the culprit, too.

Roseanne Wells

evanovich_loveinanutshellDorien Kelly and Janet Evanovich brew up romance with the debut of beer biz partners, Kate and Matt.

 

Teri Duerr
2406

by Janet Evanovich
St. Martin's Press, January 2012, $27.99

Evanovich
January 2012
love-in-a-nutshell
27.99
St. Martin's Press