3.5 Stars
Romantic suspense and forced proximity go together like peanut butter and chocolate; Adriana Anders proves that during her series starter, WHITEOUT. The most intense stuck-together/survival romance I’ve read in a long time. I mean, it’s set on the SOUTH POLE!! This book throws you in the deep end right off the bat with a violent and compelling first chapter. It was so intense it took me months to get through chapter one! I knew I needed to be in the right frame of mind going in.
What I liked: I loved that there is no way that Angel and Ford would have gotten together IRL. Ford is the ultimate grouchy/socially awkward hero and I did love him. But there was no way he was ever leaving his nerdy research ice caverns without a catastrophe like the one that threw him in Angel’s path. Their miscommunications and sexual tension were delicious.
I also was 100% here for the survival details. You can tell Ms. Anders did Research with a capital “R” and it paid off. It was the hottest day of the year so far while I was reading this book and I still felt cold reading about Antarctica in the winter and the lengths our characters had to go for survival’s sake. Speaking of the writing, I adored Ms. Anders’ descriptions! She’s a very gifted writer and I am looking forward to exploring her backlist.
What I didn’t like: While, yes, the book was intense and action-packed, there was almost too much action. There wasn’t enough on-page time with Ford and Angel connecting. We, the reader, found out what happened to Angel’s leg and what sent her to Antarctica, but Ford didn’t. Ford delved a little bit into his back story, but I still didn’t think it was enough for the main characters to feel that soul-deep love they professed to have at the end. Their story felt incomplete, like the author was trying to do too much and the romance suffered.
In addition, the last 20% of the book felt like almost a different story sloppily tied into the main book.The whole premise was a little disjointed and hard to follow at times. Another (petty) side note: Angel Smith was the heroine’s name? Really? And everyone just accepted that? Okay.
Overall, I really did enjoy the book and would recommend it to readers of romantic suspense! You’ll be hanging on the edge of your seat while flipping pages. I just wanted fewer dangling plotlines.
**I received a free copy of this book in order to provide an honest review**
Romance Reader 