Housewife Blues and Chihuahua Stories

Book Info
Kindle Edition, 400 pages
Expected publication: May 1st 2014 by Harlequin MIRA (first published April 29th 2014)
ASIN B00GPDYKOS
edition language English
other editions (1)
Source:Netgalley EARC

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BOOK SYNOPSIS

Ever hear of wanderlust?

Every other weekend, Stella buys a ticket on the next flight out of town and leaves her life behind. Home is a place with too many memories, and departure is the sweetest possible distraction.

As soon as she arrives at her destination, Stella visits the airport bar. She orders a drink and waits for the right guy to come along. A bored businessman, a backpacker, a baggage handler just off shift. If he's into a hot, no-strings hookup, he's perfect. Each time is a thrilling escape from reality that gives the term layover a whole new meaning.

When Stella meets the enigmatic Matthew in Chicago one weekend, she hits some serious turbulence. Something about him tells her she's not the only one running from the past. The connection between them is explosive, and for the first time, one taste is not enough for Stella. But returning to find a gorgeous man waiting for her is the easy part, facing the reason she's there is a whole other matter.

My Thoughts

All of us at one time or another have hit a place where we wish to leave our real lives behind, especially when memories of the past overshadow any joy we feel in the present. Stella is a divorcee with a 16 year old son who becomes more like his father every day, slowly driving her to the brink of despair at ever connecting with him again like when he was younger.

Typically when one thinks of a woman with a 16 year old son one imagines her to be fairly settled into her daily routine and in some ways Stella does fit this mold, however in others she blows it right out of the water.

Not one to shy away from her sensuality Stella has come up with a way to satisfy her need to escape by taking weekend flights where she allows herself to be picked up in the airport bar, enjoys a hot encounter with a stranger and then flies home to her home in Pennsylvania where she then works diligently at her job until she finds herself once again flying out of town. This pattern repeats over and over until the weekend she meets Matthew in the Chicago airport and they find themselves unable to deny wanting more than just a mutually satisfying sexual hookup.

As Stella allows herself to care more and more for Matthew the pain from her past starts to heal, but the fact his relationship with his ex-wife and two daughters seems to mean more to him than his feelings for Stella causes friction.

A story of a woman searching for a way to fill the hole in her heart she refuses to admit is even there. There is laughter, tears, joy and sorrow that add up to a healing long overdue for Stella. Not your normal erotic romance read but one that allows the characters to connect with reader emotionally as their secrets unravel one by one taking us to darker territory than expected before a questionable HEA.

[EArc from Netgalley in exchange for honest review]