Author: Claire Boston
ISBN: 9781760301064
RRP: $3.99
The Texan Quartet is a series of ebooks by West Australian author Claire Boston, which started with What Goes on Tour & All That Sparkles and will end with Into The Fire in February 2016.
Under The Covers brings back all of the characters we have grown to love from the earlier books; Libby, Adrian/Kent Downer and Kate, Imogen and Chris, Piper, George and his parents. This book is the one which sees George move out of the roles of helpful friend and into the spotlight. He is well built, well mannered and well off; and he knows how to charm the ladies. He has had his share of liaisons but in his line of work it has always been a worry wondering what they saw in him. He is the complete package but he is also well connected, with access to one of the worlds biggest rock stars. There has never been anything serious and he’s okay with that.
Elle is our leading lady and she’s not brand new to the scene, we met her briefly in All That Sparkles when Imogen helped her out with an outfit for an interview. The two have kept in touch since and we meet Elle just as her dreams are about to be realised…. or shattered.
The story opens in a brand new cafe, one that captured my heart, on opening day. Elle has worked hard to get to this point and she is opening her very own business, a bookshop cafe. Things aren’t quite going to plan, which is to be expected really, and Elle is beginning to fear failure.
Imogen has come in with a group of friends – I’m sure you can work out which ones – to support Elle on opening day. They see that she is getting a little snowed under and all pitch in to help, because that’s what these friends do for one another as we have come to appreciate.
Elle has come from a troubled past, she’s still skittish, wary and determined to make a life for herself and her son while relying on no-one. She is out to prove herself, to herself.
I really enjoyed the unfolding of this story. George is a Mr Fixer, he isn’t happy unless he’s helping someone and he has always been that way. He has also been pretty successful at getting what he wants. So what happens when what he wants is the damsel determined to do it on her own and not let anyone, especially a man, fix things for her?
George realises early on that his normal approach is not going to get him anywhere with this intriguing woman he can’t get out of his head. He is quite set in his ways and it isn’t going to be easy for him to step back and refrain from fixing things but something tells him that it will be worth it.
Elle has been through a lot, she is a determined, resourceful and independent single mother about to embark on her new life as a business owner – in a business that I dream of no less. It hasn’t been easy but she has put her all into making this work to provide safety and security to her five year old son.
A fresh start in Houston for Elle meant starting from scratch – no assets, no cash, no friends and no support. She has been slowly working towards her dreams and is now sharing an apartment block with quite a few other single mothers that she is building friendships with. Even before Houston Elle hasn’t had a strong support network since living her family in California without a single word since.
To find herself becoming a part of this fabulous group of friends who are completely supportive and will drop everything if they are needed is a little overwhelming for Elle, she didn’t know people and friendships like this really existed.
Boston has brought to life an extremely topical issue in Under The Covers and shown that you can extricate yourself, it’s not easy and often the guilt will remain with you but escape is possible.
A quick read that was topical, romantic, heartwarming and like coming home to old friends; even though some scenes may be confronting for some readers. I can’t wait to see what Boston has in store for us in The Texan Quartet 4.
Under The Covers is book #44 for #Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2015.
For more about Claire, you can find her in all of these places: Website, Blog, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads and YouTube.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!