Barefoot in the Rain
Roxanne St.Claire


ISBN-10: 1455508276
ISBN-13: 978-1455508273
Publisher: Grand Central
Line: Forever
Release Date: Oct 30, 2012
Pages: 448
Retail Price: 7.99



Genre: Contemporary
Heat Level: Hot
Rating:

They say you can never go home again . . .

When "Life Coach to the Stars" Jocelyn Bloom is embroiled in scandal, the only place she can hide is the one place she wishes she could forget. She left Barefoot Bay-and the boy next door who knew all her secrets-years ago. Now nothing about the tiny island off the coast of Florida is quite how she remembers it, especially Will Palmer. He's even more gorgeous and tempting . . . and still capable of turning her world inside out.

But what if someone is waiting for you?

To Will Palmer, Guy Bloom is more than the elderly, senile neighbor he looks after-he's the last connection to Jocelyn, the woman Will loved and lost. But the reunion with Jocelyn doesn't go smoothly. Shocked by the change in her father's personality, Jocelyn struggles to reconcile her dark childhood with the sweet, confused man who has grown close to Will. Jocelyn has guided countless clients to happiness-but can she escape the rainy days of her past for a new sunny future with Will?

Series: Barefoot Bay (Book 2)


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Review

Jocelyn Bloom left Barefoot Bay years ago to escape her abusive father. Now she is forced to come back home to hide when a big scandal jeopardizes her life’s work as a “life” coach. Coming back to Barefoot Bay puts her directly in the path of Will Palmer, the one guy that has always been there for Jocelyn.

Will Palmer regrets the last night he was with Jocelyn. After the incident with her father, he was frightened to reach out to her but he has never stopped loving her. So now that she is back in town, he vows to make it right and fight to win Jocelyn back.

When Jocelyn returns she is shocked to discover that Will is taking care of her elderly father who is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. She is furious that Will would even consider taking care of him, especially after the way he treated them both. Even more shocking is that her father can’t remember her and is unusually sweet and tender to her. Her emotions are all over the place and her secret hideaway is making her confront more than she bargained for.

I enjoyed this book. It is different than what I’m normally used to by Ms. St. Claire.  The conflict between Guy (Jocelyn’s father) and Jocelyn is prominent to the storyline. The author takes time to show how Alzheimer’s disease can affect someone’s life. It is hard for Jocelyn to care for Guy after he was physically abusive to her and her mother. She has to come to grips with the fact that he is not the same man he was. He is confused, scared and needs some affection.

Will shows Jocelyn how to open herself up to Guy but once Will learns that Guy hit her when he left town, he turns on Guy. I found it confusing that Will could switch off his emotions so easily. It is not like he didn’t know that Guy was physically abusive in the past. I love the fact that Jocelyn calls Will on it quickly.

Will and Jocelyn’s relationship is put on the back burner a bit. She has resurrected a wall to protect herself. It is hard to get to her and she doesn’t express herself at all, which is frustrating. I don’t know how Will believes that Jocelyn cares for him because she doesn’t show it or tell him anything. He has to break her down repeatedly in order to get the simplest affection from her.

I can’t wait to read Zoe and Oliver’s story. There is something going on there and I want to know what it is.

Reviewed by Samantha