Review ~ Wild Abandon by Jeannine Colette

Book Description:

When you fall in-love it’s forever

But sometimes forever comes with a price.

I never meant to meet Nathaniel Teller. It was by accident, on a Tuesday, that I walked into his bar. He was solemn, intense and hiding a secret behind those stoic green eyes.

I never intended to fall in-love with him. We were supposed to be just friends. But I fell for him hard, deep. There’s no turning back.

I never thought his past would be so dark. And if I thought I had any chance of being in his future, I was wrong. Because his past is his future.

And I need to walk away.

Buy Links:

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/293xpWw

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2937lIQ

Our Review:

Reviewed by Donna ~ 5 stars

“Napa is for lovers, not loners.”

I adored everything about this book, from the visceral scene setting, to the intense emotion, to the ebb and flow of angst, to some fantastic characters including the secondary’s, to the amount of research into Napa and wine that must have gone into making this such a believable story and for me personally, a journey through the Napa Valley experiencing everything along the way.

“What screws us up the most in life is the picture in our head of what it’s supposed to be.”

The story of Crystal and Nate was one addictive read and one that I couldn’t put down, a story where I thought I knew where things were going (and I did to an extent) only to be blindsided the next. But this was an incredibly beautiful and moving story, one that will touch even the toughest of hearts but none the less, a story that tugged on every single emotion and had my eyes leaking a few times too…not only from sadness but also from some great comedic moments too. Nate and Crystal’s relationship was that of a fine wine, it takes its time to mature, to develop, but it is complex, it tantalises and it leaves a lingering, lasting memory.

“Sometimes, planning for the future only leads to disappointment. It’s what we do with the present that matters. And, right now, I’m really enjoying today.”

Crystal Reid was a woman that had had her heart broken once and now she is woman that has her lists and the man she meets needs to tick every box, she has become a serial dater and is addicted to dating apps. Her dating experiences are much the same as the state of her life…crap, and so she decides to have a fresh start from everything…from memories, from life, from dating the same old pool. So on a wing and a prayer she ups sticks and relocates to Napa to stay with her best friend. This would be one journey she would never forget.

“Olive juice.”

Nate Teller was the barman/manager at the local establishment, Henley’s. Nate was very closed off, broody, intense and attached. Nate meets Crystal while she is waiting for her friend and despite his frostiness in the first instance they seemed to hit it off, but in a friends only capacity. Nate is already in a relationship and as much as he doesn’t want to even be friends with Crystal she has that effect on everyone around her and her personality is infectious, even the most closed off are spread wide open.

“I would never rewrite my past. But if I could change my future, it would be to have you in it.”

Crystal was a free spirit, she was a talented cello player and had a heart of gold and as part of her new start she gets a job at a rundown vineyard that gave up the ghost years ago. Ed, the owner, was old, had family problems and since he had lost his wife and his daughter had gone off to university he had lost his vitality and his enthusiasm with anything pertaining to the vineyard, however, he didn’t bank on the mini tornado called Crystal.

“You and me – we’re white grapes. Protecting ourselves from the outside world. But you, Crystal, when you’re done growing, you will thrive and make a spectacular wine so rare that you’ll break a collector’s heart one day.”

As I said above, this was such a beautiful and touching story, I loved Ed as well as Crystal and Nate and all secondary characters had a huge part to play in bringing this story to fruition. I loved the dialogue, the banter between friends and had many chuckles as well as tears. This was a great all-rounder and one that will pull on every single emotion, from love to laughter, from frustration to OMG, to tears and joy, it had everything. There was nothing I would have changed, the flow was perfect, the build was perfect, the dialogue was perfect, the plot was perfect, the epilogue was perfect…see we have a pattern, for me it was perfect.

“I can’t be with someone, knowing I’m their second choice.”

“And I can’t be with you because I’m afraid you’d be my first.”

Yes, they have secrets, yes it takes time to build up that trust, some secrets I saw coming, some I didn’t, but nothing was superfluous, everything made sense, everything was answered and I have to mention this one scene…their first time...OMG, perfection…I had tears. So there you have it, perfect, perfect, perfect and more perfect, means for me this book was awesome. So it was well deserving of my five shiny stars. Jeannine Collette is a new to me author, but she will not be a stranger, I now need to go and check out what else she has written.

“I’d rather live a half-life with Nate than not live with him at all.”