It was the cover of Allison
Temple’s COLD PRESSED that caught my attention. Bearded, long-haired
hipsters are my thing right now.
COLD PRESSED is book 2 in the new-to-me Seacroft Stories series and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Oliver, the former lawyer,
and Nick, the former firefighter, have a lot going on individually: one has a
new career, one has old family troubles, both are recovering from past failed
relationships. Since neither is quite ready for a new love, they settle for a
no-strings-attached arrangement. Naturally that’s not going to work.
What I enjoyed most about
this novel was the maturity Oliver and Nick exhibited. They were adults acting
like adults. When a misunderstanding threatens their budding relationship, I
was worrying it would be one of those “if only they talked about it”
situations, but they did talk about it and moved forward. Major props to the
author for having the men behave like that. Their lives were complicated
enough, they didn’t need artificial conflict.
Speaking of complications,
if Oliver hadn’t been so hung up on his ex, he might have figured out the
direction of his new business sooner (and seen Avery coming). I liked where he
ended up instead, a much better fit for him.
Hayden needed a swift
kick in the proverbial butt, but as mother of teenagers, I know that’s easier
said than done.
Overall, the writing was
easy and casual. The burn and pace comfortably slow, nothing here was rushed. Recommended
read if you’re looking for realism and not every question being answered by the
end.
