HE'S SO FINE is Book eleven in Jill Shalvis's Lucky
Harbor
series. For me, HE'S SO FINE is all about secrets and
lies,
struggling to trust, and family. Olivia Bentley is a
newcomer to Lucky Harbor and she is hiding her true
identity. Cole Donovan grew up in Lucky Harbor, is
surrounded by friends and family, but struggles with the
lasting impact of devastating secrets. Right at the start
of the book, you know that Olivia is hiding things and
Cole
has issues with secret-keeping and a feeling of betrayal
so
it's only a matter of time before the two clash over
Olivia's secrets.
I like both Olivia and Cole immensely. There is nothing
sinister about the things that Olivia is hiding, but
they're things that are like an emotional lightning rod
for
her. She comes across as a very sympathetic character. I
respect that she tries to avoid emotional entanglements so
as to avoid lying to people as much as possible. Jill
Shalvis also does a great job of going into detail about
Olivia's past and explaining her vulnerability and fears.
When Olivia, who tries her best to avoid connecting,
reaches out to local children and connects with them in a
very personal way, it says a lot about who she really is.
Cole is a super sexy sweetie. If you could dream up the
perfect "boy next door", he would be it. He's nice to look
at, loyal to friends and family, can fix almost anything,
and is sweet and caring. His one flaw is that he has some
trouble letting go of a former betrayal and it colors his
relationships since then. Olivia and Cole are both three-
dimensional characters and I rooted for them as I read
along. Their romance is red hot as well as tender and
incredibly touching.
HE'S SO FINE shows how, once again, the town of Lucky
Harbor pulls together and supports their own -- even
residents who may not have been born and raised there. I
love how everybody supports Olivia just when she needs
support the most. Cole's family provides a stark contrast
to Olivia's -- both her biological family as well as her
makeshift one from years ago. I like that, in general,
Lucky Harbor residents are not a judgmental bunch.
HE'S SO FINE is a great example of how characters can make
a story come to life. HE'S SO FINE is a good mix of
romance, humor, and drama. I look forward to the next book
by Jill Shalvis.
For Olivia Bentley, Lucky Harbor is more than the town
where
she runs her new vintage shop. It's the place where folks
are friendly to strangers-and nobody knows her real name.
Olivia does a good job of keeping her past buried, not
getting too cozy with anyone . . . until she sees a man
drowning. Suddenly she's rushing into the surf, getting
up
close and personal with the hottest guy she's ever laid
hands on.
Charter boat captain Cole Donovan has no problem with a
gorgeous woman throwing her arms around his neck in an
effort to "save" him. In fact, he'd like to spend a lot
more
time skin-to-skin with Olivia. He's just not expecting
that
real trouble is about to come her way. Will it bring her
deeper into Cole's heart, or will it be the end of
Olivia's
days in little Lucky Harbor?