Review: Hit and Stay

 Title: Hit and Stay
Author: Ninette Swann
Publication date: May 23rd, 2012
Publisher: Resplendence Publishing
Jake Harrison has a bad habit of swooping in to the rescue. Once burned, twice shy, the detective prefers to do the saving... and the leaving. But when he finds socialite Andrea Wadsworth collapsed in the street, he wonders if this time he won't be able to get away so easily, especially since his past is coming to find him.
 
Andrea Wadsworth thought she had everything she ever wanted—an ambitious and gorgeous fiancé, stability and looks to kill. One suspicious phone call leads to her life's undoing and she finds herself on the run from all she once adored, the only person able to help her is a complete stranger: The smoldering Jake Harrison.
 
Together they unravel an unlikely political plot, but in this game of love and loss, and with all the betrayal surrounding them, will they ever be able to trust again?

Rating: 3 stars*
Right from the very first page, this book grabbed my attention and refused to let go.
I was expecting a little bit of boring introduction in the book before getting to the good stuff, but this book didn't waste any time and dove right into the action. Written with wonderful prose, Hit and Stay was fast-paced and and gripping and I couldn't stop myself from devouring each page.

This was a very quick and easy read--perfect for those times when you just want to get out of a reading slump or just want something short to read. The pages flew by as I was reading this.
Consequently, because this is a pretty short read, there wasn't time for much character or romantic development.
With regards to the characters, I really liked Jake and Burt. These two were, by far, the most interesting characters in the book; Jake, the ex-detective, because of his fetish for helping out damsels, and Burt, the reporter, for being a very intriguing character--one's life operated in the gray area of the black and white spectrum.
While characters were well described and easy to picture in my head, but I found it hard to relate to them or be emotionally invested in them. Also, I'm just personally not a big fan of insta-love.

The build-up throughout the first half of the novel was great--it kept me interested and eager for a killer climax, but unfortunately, the culmination of all that action and suspense fell a bit flat. The big mystery/problem was resolved too easily and it just didn't seem to match all the anticipation that the first half of the book warranted.

All in all: The novel has its pros and cons, but overall, I thought this was a very enjoyable read. I think that if it had been longer to include some more depth, I would've like it a lot more.

*I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review