This Jessi Wakefield with the Sioux City Public Library and you’re listening to Check It Out.
I want to be up front about this title. This recommendation is on a romance novel. A romance novel that is very steamy at times. So, it’s not for everybody, but it’s not the steam that makes me want to recommend it, it’s the lovely characters and their individual journeys.
Today I would like to share the little romantic gem, Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert.
Set in Nottinghamshire, England lives Chloe Brown a feisty, independent, and clever woman who lives a very solitude life apart from her loving family. You see, Chloe suffers from chronic pain due to fibromyalgia. Her illness was deemed “too much” for her former friends and her former fiancé, and Chloe watched each and every one of them leave her. This mass betrayal made Chloe choose to live closed off life so that she wouldn’t get hurt again.
On the other side of this story is her building’s superintendent, the handsome Red Morgan. Even though they seem to hate the very sight of each other, there’s much more to him than meets the eye. He’s artistic, kind to everyone (except for Chloe), and also very broken. Both are vulnerable, both bear the painful scars of past hurts that keep them from moving on.
What really stands out about this book is the amount of depth Hibbert gave to both of her main characters. It’s one of the first rom-coms I’ve read where the male character is as vulnerable as the female. There were important discussions about chronic pain and abusive relationships, but it was also very cute and fun and lighthearted.
Contact the Sioux City Library to get more suggestions on contemporary romance, as well as other titles by Talia Hibbert.
Support for Check It Out on Siouxland Public Media comes from Avery Brothers.