Trying It All by Christi Barth – a Review
Description:
Order. Attention to detail. Never leaving anything to chance. These are the qualities that make Riley Ness such a terrific federal agent . . . and a pain in the ass to everyone else. The only time Riley lets loose is when he’s hanging out with his closest pals. So when he’s thrown together with gorgeous, flighty Summer Sheridan, Riley’s brain tells him she’s a ticking time bomb—but his body doesn’t want to play by the rules.
Riley has to be the most irritating man Summer has ever met. The brooding hunk thinks he needs to teach her a few lessons about real life, while she’d rather show him how to enjoy it. But her BFF’s all but engaged to Riley’s best friend, and besides, their intense physical chemistry is all too real. Summer just needs Riley to try to meet her halfway and take a chance with the one thing that matters: his heart
Review:
Trying It All by Christi Barth is the 4th book in her Naked Men series. I have read most of Christi’s books, but for some reason I had not read this series. But Trying it All read very well as a standalone, and I loved the book; which makes me try to find time to go back and read the first three books. The Naked Men series revolves around a group of friends who have stood together from high school, death defying situations and to their current day successful careers ; the title is from their blog which they display their honest opinions.
It was a great beginning, 10 years before, where their bus crashed over the mountains leaving them with no hope of rescue. Riley Ness is our hero in this book, and he blames himself for the accident. Knowing what happened made it so much easier to understand the men, what they went through, and their loyalty to each other. Since I had not read the first three, it was a godsend. Thank you, Christi.
Now in the present, Riley is a federal agent for the NTSB, who is hell bent to always plan ahead for work and for play. Riley is intense and sometimes annoying with his persistence to make sure everyone is protected and plans for every eventuality in whatever or wherever. Summer Sheridan, our heroine, has also had a terrible tragedy as a teenager, having been shot while In high school, and actually died for over a minute. But Summer is the complete opposite of Riley. She refuses to plan; she wants to live for the moment, even if she is reckless. Of course, Summer and Riley hang around the same friends, but they hate each other, and do everything in their power to avoid one another. Best laid plans do not always work out.
One day, when passing each other and making their normal sarcastic comments, Summer accidentally slips off the sidewalk into oncoming traffic. Riley acted quickly and lifted Summer to safety, and in that moment with him holding her so close, the chemistry between them burst into a flame of fire. Riley kisses Summer and nothing will ever be the same for both of them.
What follows is a wonderful, fun and at times exasperating story , as we watched two people who are opposites fall in love. It was such a great romance with hot sexual chemistry, and they were both so good together. The fact that they were likeable made the story fun to read. Yes, sometimes you wanted to smack one of them occasionally, but as their love becomes real, slowly they realize that they also complement each other, helping the other get past their anxiety. Christi Barth does such a fantastic job writing their romance, and blending in the friends surrounding them. This was such an enjoyable read.
Besides Summer and Riley, I loved all the other characters, such as Chloe, Griff, Logan, just to name a few. Just when they begin to know that their love is real, the past has a way of coming back to haunt them. Summer is spontaneous and reckless, and a scared Riley will run; determined to live and not let things go, will keep Summer at a standstill. Will they find a way to compromise and make their relationship work?
Trying it All is another fabulous romance by Christi Barth, who never fails to give us a wonderful story and couple. I loved this book. I suggest you start with the first book in this series, as I will plan to go back to read the earlier books.
Reviewed by Barb
Copy supplied for review
