Review of Blue Lines (Assassins #4) by Toni Aleo

[Barbara Ann RS]

This is only the second book that I have read in Toni Aleo’s popular Nashville Assassins series, and, although I’m sure it’s best to read the series in order, I did not have any problem with picking up the series after only reading Taking Shots (Assassins #1). Couples featured in previous books continue to play minor roles in Blue Lines, but Aleo provides just enough of their backstories to help me understand their relevance and connection to the main characters in this book, Piper and Erik, and, with the details she provides, I do want to go back and read the last two books when I have the opportunity.

 

The plot of this book uses the familiar trope of a guy and girl who have lusted for each other from afar and who spend one drunken night together that leads to an unplanned pregnancy.  Even though main elements of the plot are predictable, Aleo does a great job in enveloping you in the tumultuous love story between Piper and Erik.  She’s created complicated characters with depth, and it did not take long for me to become invested in the outcome of their relationship.

 

Erik is one of the most deeply wounded heroes I’ve encountered in quite a while. The horrific trauma he experienced as a child has left him emotionally damaged, and he has erected some pretty thick walls around his heart to keep anyone from getting too close.  Erik is depicted as a “man whore” and his reputation only gets worse after one intense night with Piper, a woman who makes him feel more than he thinks is possible or that he deserves. After their night together, he tries to get as far away from her as possible, and he succeeds until Piper finally gathers to courage to tell him about the pregnancy.  Let’s just say that scene is anything but pretty, and it coincides with his discover that his coveted career is in jeopardy.  A pretend marriage is the only solution he can think of at this point to help redeem his career. Erik is one of the most selfish heroes I’ve met, and his lack of concern for Piper is appalling at times.  At the beginning, I just shook my head, thinking that Piper certainly has her work cut out for her if she thinks she can tame this wild bad boy.

 

Fortunately, Piper has a special super duper sledgehammer that might just do the job, if she is patient enough to wait for Erik.  However, after the way he treats her in the first half of the book, any other woman would most likely have left him in the dust, but not Piper. Because of her family connection to Erik, she has had the opportunity to observe this superstar hockey player off the ice and outside of the party scene over the past two years. She sees beyond the playboy façade that he uses to keep his emotional distance.  She’s been “in love” with Erik from the first moment she saw him, and it’s those strong feelings that help her cling to the hope that maybe, just maybe, Erik will see what he’s been missing with her.

 

In reality though, they know very little about each other, and the baby they have conceived lays the main foundation for any serious relationship they can build. They already have a strong physical attraction that Erik keeps fighting, but they need time to build emotional intimacy and trust if they have any chance of being a family.  I experienced a range of emotions as I followed Piper and Erik’s journey: anger, pity, frustration, and hope, but watching this couple’s change and growth over the course of the book was well worth the read.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review. 

Link to Review

http://sunmountainreviews.wordpress.com/2013/12/10/book-tour-for-bl...