Review: 13 of Hearts by Kay Springsteen

Print Length:  pages

Publisher: EsKape Press (September 20, 2014)

From Goodreads.com: Peter "Rabbit" Kincaid wasn't always superstitious but after several deployments with the US Marines, he's picked up a few quirks. His last tour of duty didn't go so well, and now he's back home recovering from injuries and awaiting clearance to get back in the fight. The fight is about to come to him in a different way. 

Melinda "Lin" Doyle is a two-time US Marine widow on the run from the fallout of an incident that threatens to separate her from her two children. Making their home in a motel where she works for board and half pay, with her oldest child attending school under an assumed name isn't her idea of being Mother of the Year. Then again, neither is being at the center of a murder investigation. 

Rabbit believes everything happens for a reason so when he and the young family cross paths multiple times over the course of a couple of days, he pays attention. Lin would rather the handsome Marine officer take his attention elsewhere before he ruins everything. How can they ever get along when everything they do appears to be at cross purposes?         

                                  

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My Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Once again Kay Springsteen has managed to bring to life the often overlooked aspects of a soldier when they return home from war. In this installment of her Heartsight series, we focus on Rabbit and his struggles as he tries to overcome the PTSD associated with him time in combat. However, Rabbit's struggle is more of an emotional one (nightmares and flashbacks that plague him). This story also has more of a mystery aspect to it that isn't as apparent in the other ones. What secrets are Lin hiding? Why is she constantly looking over her shoulder and planning her next move? 

The relationship between Lin and Rabbit is an intriguing one. She is obviously a woman who is dealing with demons of her own (she lost two husbands in the war), and that coupled with an outside threat to herself and her children, she has a hard time trusting people. I felt as though the author set some pretty high expectations for herself in pairing these two damaged souls, and yet she managed to portray them and their stories in a way that was true to the characters. Their relationship was more of a push and pull sort of romance - Rabbit would try to help, and Lin would pull away. Eventually, things come to a head with a surprise twist that I did not see coming. 

As this story also takes place partly in the shore town of Lookout Island, we get to catch up with old favorites (namely Ashley and Nick as well as Dan, Trish and their children) as well. 

Overall, I highly recommend this story to those who enjoy a sweet and well written romance novel with interesting characters. I would read more from this author! 

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

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                             13 of Hearts is available from Amazon.com