Kara Isaac: Can't Help Falling

By Kelly Bridgewater

A funny, heartfelt romance about how an antique shop, a wardrobe, and a mysterious tea cup bring two C.S. Lewis fans together in a snowy and picturesque Oxford, England.

Emelia Mason has spent her career finding the dirt on the rich and famous. But deep down past this fearless tabloid-reporter façade, there’s a nerdy Narnia-obsessed girl who still can’t resist climbing into wardrobes to check for the magical land on the other side. When a story she writes produces tragic results, she flees to Oxford, England—home to C.S. Lewis—to try and make amends for the damage she has caused.

Peter Carlisle was on his way to become one of Great Britain’s best rowers—until he injured his shoulder and lost his chance at glory. He’s determined to fight his way back to the top even if it means risking permanent disability to do so. It’s the only way he can find his way past failing the one person who never stopped believing in his Olympic dream.

When Peter and Emelia cross paths on her first night in Oxford, the attraction is instant and they find common ground in their shared love of Narnia. But can the lessons from a fantasyland be enough to hold them together when secrets of the real world threaten to tear them apart? Cobblestone streets, an aristocratic estate, and an antique shop with curious a wardrobe bring the world of Narnia to life in Kara Isaac’s inspiring and romantic story about second chances.

From Amazon

My Thoughts:

I read the first book by Kara Isaac, Close to You, and I really wasn't that impressed. With the second book mentioning C. S. Lewis in the synopsis, I really hoped that Isaac would improve on the story. While the writing was the best part of the book because Isaac really understands Deep Point of View and jumping into her character's perspective, she did have a number of point of view shifts in the same paragraph. While the setting is important to keeping the reader grounded, Isaac does a good job at descriptions to settle me into the story. My biggest issue with the story is the ability for Isaac to deliver what she promises in the synopsis. I thought the story would center more on C. S. Lewis and Oxford, but they, like in her first novel, were just a passing item. The story would have worked just fine without the mention of Lewis. I had a really hard time staying focused on the story; I couldn't wait to put the book down and move on. I really wanted to read something else. Even the romance seemed to be childish. I saw no reason that Emilia and Peter would fall in love. Emilia was a shallow character who spent her spare time hunting for wardrobes with an entrance to Narnia in the back. Similarly, Peter  seemed like a bore o me. I really couldn't empathize with either character. While fans of strict romance stories will enjoy Can't Help Falling, I don't think I will be reading anything else by Isaac. I gave her two chances, and I really was bored with her books.

I received a complimentary copy of Can't Help Falling by Kara Isaac from Howard Book Publishing, and the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

What makes you return to a book by an author that you didn't like the first time? Or do you ignore them all together and move on? There are tons of books out there that need to read.

Kara Isaac: Close to You

By Kelly Bridgewater

From Amazon

A disgraced scholar running from her past and an entrepreneur chasing his future find themselves thrown together—and fall in love—on a Tolkien tour of New Zealand.

Allison Shire (yes, like where the Hobbits live) is a disgraced academic who is done with love. Her belief in “happily ever after” ended the day she discovered her husband was still married to a wife she knew nothing about. She finally finds a use for her English degree by guiding tours through the famous sites featured in the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies. By living life on the road and traveling New Zealand as a luxury tour guide, Allison manages to outrun the pain of her past she can’t face.

Jackson Gregory was on the cusp of making it big. Then suddenly his girlfriend left him—for his biggest business competitor—and took his most guarded commercial secrets with her. To make matters worse, the Iowa farm that has been in his family for generations is facing foreclosure. Determined to save his parents from financial ruin, he’ll do whatever it takes to convince his wealthy great-uncle to invest in his next scheme, which means accompanying him to the bottom of the world to spend three weeks pretending to be a die-hard Lord of the Rings fan, even though he knows nothing about the stories. The one thing that stands between him and his goal is a know-it-all tour guide who can’t stand him and pegged him as a fake the moment he walked off the plane.

When Allison leads the group through the famous sites of the Tolkien movies, she and Jackson start to see each other differently, and as they keep getting thrown together on the tour, they find themselves drawn to each other. Neither expected to fall in love again, but can they find a way beyond their regrets to take a chance on the one thing they’re not looking for?

My Thoughts:

I am a huge Tolkien fan, so I couldn’t wait to read a story that took place in New Zealand where all six films where created. But that was not the case with Kara Issac's story.

One of my favorite parts of Isaac’s writing is the dialogue. Isaac does a good job at creating voices for the characters that actually match what the characters would do. Her dialogue shines on the pages of the novel.

The characters had me cringing mostly throughout the whole book. From the first moment Allie meets Jack, she’s determined that he is a fake and hates him without truly getting to know him. She keeps doing these mean things to him. Not things that hurt him physically, but she makes him dress up, knowing that he isn’t going to like it. Jack, on the other hand, fools his uncle and everyone else into believing he is a huge Tolkien fan to try to earn the money to save his parent’s farm. Yes, his motives were pure, but it was still kind of sticky to lie.

Allie and Jack’s relationship reminds me of a teenager learning how to cope with their raging emotions. It goes from hate, anger, childlessness, like, anger, love, hate, and back to love. The relationship is totally predictable, which is normal in a contemporary romance. Their relationship drove me nuts and made me skim through a number of pages.

The item from the synopsis that grabbed my attention was Tolkien. Yes, the story does feature a lot of Tolkien head knowledge and trivia, but the tour, which is the main part of the story, is not really described in the setting. I felt like I was never there traveling to all these places where the Lord of the Ring films were recorded.  The setting has many repetitive scenes filled with a slow moving plot.

For me, Kara Isaac’s debut novel, Close to You is a slow moving, predictable romance with a whiny teenage romance, but the dialogue is top notch for the contemporary romance.

I received a complimentary copy of Close to You from Howard Books and the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

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