Review: Natasha Boyd's "Eversea."

4 Hearts Review: Natasha Boyd's "Eversea."

Amazon UK:    http://amzn.to/1hCw7ke

Amazon.com:   http://amzn.to/1iHK5N0

Synopsis:

An orphaned, small-town, southern girl, held hostage by responsibility and self-doubt.

A Hollywood A-list mega-star, on the run from his latest scandal and with everything to lose. 

A chance encounter that leads to an unlikely arrangement and epic love affair that will change them both forever. 

When his co-star and real-life girlfriend is caught cheating on him with her new director, A-list hottie, Jack Eversea, finds himself in sleepy Butler Cove, South Carolina. Jack hopes the sultry southern heat in this tiny coastal Lowcountry town will hide him not only from the tabloids and his cheating girlfriend, but his increasingly vapid life and the people who run it. He doesn’t count on meeting Keri Ann Butler. 

Keri Ann has relied on herself so long, dealing with her family’s death and the responsibilities of keeping up her family's historic mansion, that boys and certainly the meager offering of eligible boys in Butler Cove, have never figured into her equation. But fate has other plans. Suddenly face to face with the man who played the movie role of her favorite fictional character, Jack has Keri Ann yearning for everything she has previously avoided ... and Jack must decide whether this funny, sassy girl is worth changing his life for, before his mistakes catch up to him.

Review: Surj Harvey

"Eversea" was such a light hearted, fun read that gave us the story of a hot shot Hollywood A-Lister and a small town southern girl.... star crossed lovers doomed from the start? Yes this story was cliched, a little formulaic but who cares, it was brilliant and I completely fell in love with the characters. 

... we were star crossed lovers that should never have met. But we did. And in that game the evil

jester called fate liked to play, we were attracted in an instant. The potential for love... 

for eternity... was, in a split second, acknowledged, catalogued, realised, and set on a collision

course with never. I could almost hear the snort of derision. Aint never gonna happen. 

Jack Eversea was hiding out in Butler Cove, trying to make sense of a life he'd lost control of a long time ago. Being a film star wasn't all it had cracked up to be and in this sleepy seaside town, Jack found an escape, a solace he hadn't realised he needed. But how long before the vultures started circling.. wanting their pound of flesh? Jack was desperate to maintain his anonymity but that could prove difficult considering every man and his dog knew that beautiful face. Well it was his lucky night when he walked into the local diner only to be greeted by his serving waitress Keri Ann. I loved her reaction to seeing Jack. On the surface she appeared relatively calm, impervious to his fame and even came across as a little sarcastic but inside she was screaming like a school girl because she knew exactly who he was. Her reaction was brilliant and I felt it mirrored how I would behave if I was in her shoes:

Had I been singled out? Did the Devil look up and see one sensible girl left 

and decide on tactical warfare to bring me into line?

A mutually beneficial agreement made that night saw this couple spending more and more time together in the days that followed and what started off as a purely platonic relationship was fast turning into more. The sexual chemistry between these two was undeniable but what made it all the more powerful was the raging internal war each of them had going on. Past experience proved to Keri Ann that love had the ability to cause unimaginable pain, something she wouldn't put herself through again. And to top it off, she knew all the bullshit that surrounded Jack and that was something she didn't want to put herself in the firing line of. With Jack, he was dealing with yet another scandal in his personal life and he knew, he couldn't hide forever. But his feelings for Keri Ann were something he'd never experienced before. She was a breath of fresh air, she was grounded, normal, honest and saw the person he really was and not the A List facade he presented to the world. Would he be able to walk away when Hollywood came knocking because it was only a matter of time!!!

"What do you want me to say? I'm sorry I'm so fucked up I sold my life, 

my soul and my future to the devil?"

His hand left mine, and he pressed it palm down in the center of my chest.

"If I'd know you were in my future, I would have chosen differently."

This was not going to be an easy or straight forward love affair and so the butterflies continued their break dancing in my belly. Boy was I willing for this couple to just get it on because as I flipped each page, the intensity of their connection just kept building and building until it reached fever pitch and even I was ready to explode!!!  And that scene in front of the fire... holy mother in heaven was I all hot and flustered after reading that!!! 

I couldn't help but go weak at the knees when it came to Jack's character. He was sexy as sin and hot as hell.. just the way I like them.. mmmmm!!! On the surface he appeared cocky, arrogant and very self assured but peel back the layers, and he showed a vulnerability that made my heart hurt for him. Life in the lime light could really be a bitch but it was the story behind his tattoo that finally broke me. This man was one hell of a tortured soul. Don't get me wrong though, this was not the Jack Eversea pity party.. not by a long shot. 

Keri Ann's character absolutely brought the humour to this story and she was laugh out loud hilarious. Her inner monologue was pure class and some of her lines had me howling: 

I was just minding my own business and someone lobbed a grenade into my life—

in the form of Jack Eversea.

With her past the way it was, Keri Ann's experiences when it came to life and relationships was limited but that didn't make her any less of a brilliant heroine. She had a real strength to her character... a strength she didn't realise and to top it off, she always put others before herself. How could anyone not like her? 

The secondary characters were also kick ass and Keri Ann's best friend Jazz was just brilliant.. a true friend that only ever had Keri Ann's best interests at heart. 

The writing in "Eversea" was brilliant and I honestly felt that I had been transported to the little town of Butler Cove. I could visualise the various settings: Keri Ann's home, Jack's beach house, the pool, the attic... it was like I was a fly on the wall watching some of those scenes play out... what better way to read a book!!! I also loved that despite this being quite a light hearted read, the twist at 80% really did add another dimension to the story and I truly felt the rug being pulled from under me. I knew it would come but I honestly didn't expect it to hit me as much as it did. The expletives that came out of my mouth were not pretty and boy was I angry. 

All in all, I loved "Eversea" and the will they? won't they? element definitely had me gripped. Unfortunately, this book does end on a cliffy but book #2 "Forever Jack" is out so guess what I'm going to do now? Yup, see you all on the flip side. 

I rated "Eversea" 4 Hearts