I blame Kristen Ashley for my foray into the motorcycle romances. Her Chaos series coupled with Sons of Anarchy had me taking unnecessary detours past my local Harley Davidson story just on the off chance I might meet my book boyfriend come true. This also had me taking a lengthy detour away from stories like The Will, stories I like to call the quiet romance. I use that term because my first Kristen Ashley novel was Lady Luck and it was the first time I read a novel where the hero was over 40 and beyond hot (admittedly Tate's motorcycle did help). So I have been gone, off dreaming of Tack, Shy, and Hop and any other man with his legs wrapped firmly around a hog, until now. And after reading The Will, honey it feels good to be back.
Josie returns to Maine for her grandmother's funeral and discovers that her grandmother has done something very untoward, she has relinquished Josie to a man, Jake Spear. Jake is a divorced dad of three and on paper does not fit Josie's standard of a suitable mate. But deciding that her grandmother would never lead her astray, Josie decides to extend her stay at Lavender House and give Jake a chance.
I read quite a few reviews before reading The Will and I was surprised to see that a common factor amongst readers was that they did not like Josie at the beginning of the book. They found her cold and detached and her language to be very off-putting. I completely disagree; Josie is hysterical. I would read her dialogue and just get so tickled by the things she would say to people. I should preface this and explain that I spent over a decade as an English teacher, so her jargon did not bother me in the slightest. I did not find her cold at all, in fact I thought she was a rather "stand-up broad." After she insulted Jake's business and he called her out for being judgmental, she did not let 24 hours pass before she went to him to apologize, most women I know will not do that. Even though everything about Jake's life was completely opposite to what she was accustomed and preferred, she still kept an open mind and allowed him and his children to invade her space. I loved Josie, even at the funeral when she seems overly critical of the people in attendance, I liked her. Not because she was judging them but because she is sitting at her grandmother's funeral trying to fight the feeling of that loss. I love the image of her crying and hiding behind her big sunglasses and oversized hat, knowing that Jake is watching her the entire time. And that is what readers should understand about Josie is that the speech, the clothes, the manners, all of it is a mask.
Now Jake. There is so much that can be said about Kristen Ashley's men and Jake Spear is no different. He's an alpha male. He's a boxer. He's a dad. He's an alpha male (it bears repeating). The one thing about the men in her books is the way they set their sights on a woman and then proceed to know that woman in every which way so they can read her and understand her needs without her saying much at all. In fact, they usually insist the woman shuts up (usually making her do it with kisses or saying "babe"). Jake has all of that and then some. He is understanding and caring and so ridiculously honest with Josie. On their first date, Josie asks questions and rather than dismissing her questions Jake asks her how much of the truth she can handle ("How real do you want it?). That is beyond sexy.
The one complaint I have about returning to my "quiet romances" from my adventures in motorcycle heaven is the crying gag at the end. It never fails, every time I read one of Kristen Ashley's contemporary romances I get near the end and the tears fall. It doesn't matter if it is a tearful speech, a sentimental gift, and heartfelt goodbye, or a letter read posthumously from some endearing relative. It all just breaks me down and The Will did just that with all of those things. I am looking forward to reading this again, mostly because Jake is too enticing to be only enjoyed once.
