MORE THAN THIS by Shannyn Schroeder

More Than This by Shannyn Schroeder
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

NetGalley free read

Quinn is a straight laced English teacher who decides to take her first summer vacation (deciding not to teach summer school) to break out of her routine. Her sister Indy and best friend Kate talk her into spending the summer breaking out of her shell and taking chances by making up a list of things she will have to do out of her comfort zone. At the same time Quinn's casual flirtation with bar owner, Ryan, start to change. He's drawn to her and even asks her out a few times. Ryan reminds Quinn of her philandering bar tender ex-husband, so she blows him off.

Quinn thinks Ryan couldn't possibly be interested in her for more than a good time and move on. Ryan doesn't even know he wants more form Quinn. Mostly because his Irish Catholic family and his two bars keep him really busy. But the more time he spends with Quinn, the more he wants to be around her. He decides to help her with her list with the idea that he can be her summer romance, which is one of the items to complete on her list.

Although Ryan and Quinn become sexually involved, Quinn's inability to take chances, even to the point of deviating from her list, which is supposed to teacher her to spread her wings, keeps her from realizing Ryan is exactly what she's been looking for. She's so focused on the list and her decision to have a baby on her own, she doesn't see that Ryan could be the beginning of the family she's always wanted.

There are a couple of really cute and funny moments. I realized right away that Ryan's friend Griffen and Quinn's sister Indy would end up being a story of their own, whether in this book or in a future book. And it looks like it will be the next book by this author.

Negatives: I almost gave it only two stars because I did have a problem with how uneventful completing the the list items were. I think the author missed an opportunity to make each completion funnier and more meaningful to Ryan and Quinn's budding relationship. The idea that she's being passed over for a promotion and the job she really wants because she good with the harder cases is terrible and I've been there, but that story seemed to be dropped to easily to me. The mention of Ryan's sister Maggie being rapped doen't happen until much later in the story and seems to come out of left field. I felt like the author brought up the date rape happening in the bars to connect this to his feelings about what happened to Maggie. Yet, we only have a moment of time with Maggie at one family dinner, which Quinn attends. I felt certain they would connect group of guys doing the date rape to Quinn's ex-student, who didn't seem to know how to leave her alone. Again, this storyline was dropped into nothingness. Also, the ex-husband kinda disappeared. I was certain he would get in the way again somehow.

Positives: I gave it three stars because I loved Quinn and Ryan. Maybe I haven't met him yet, but wouldn't it be nice to have a guy want you so badly that he wouldn't give up even when you couldn't get out of your own way. I liked Indy and her pushing her sister to be more open to life and holding her up when she didn't know what to do next. I liked even though Colin was probably still a screw-up, he was there for his brother when he was about to let Quinn go.

I know it seems like there are more negatives than positives. But it was a quick read. Sweet story and I would definitely read the sequel.

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