The Last Place You Look by Aurora Rey is a delightful small town romance that highlights the importance of believing in yourself no matter how challenging life can be at times.
Nothing in this world could have prepared Julia for the heart-wrenching humiliation she would have to endure when her wife of eight years walks out on their marriage to be with her personal trainer. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the worst part of her divorce because she doesn’t have a job and another place to live in the city so Julia has no choice but to return to her hometown in order for her to have a place to stay and a way for her to earn a living.
Taylor Winslow has been carrying a torch for Julia since the tenth grade and her love for Julia never faded even though she didn’t see or speak to Julia in the last ten years. When Julia moves back home, Taylor believes that she can capture Julia’s heart and have the love that she has been waiting for all these years. There’s just one problem… Julia isn’t interested in settling down with anyone ever again thanks to her emotionally distressing divorce. Julia intends to just live her life to suit herself and date as many single lesbian women as possible with no strings attached.
Taylor knew that being Julia’s wingwoman and confidant would place her in the friend zone forever but she was willing to accept that role rather than get her heart broken.
Will Taylor and Julia be able to overcome their fears and insecurities in order for them to truly own their talents and bring their dreams to life? Will Julia find love in the last place she expected to find it?
The Characters
Julia Pierce has returned to her hometown after a messy and embarrassing divorce and she works at her family’s winery. Taylor Winslow makes and sells furniture wholesale and she is still single as a dollar and she is more than ready for things to change where her lack of a love life is concerned. Julia and Taylor have a lot of big dreams that they’re afraid to take chances on and they also have their own deep-seated insecurities and flaws to deal with but I must say that their flaws have made them all the more endearing to me. Julia and Taylor’s hearts are in the right place and they are truly fun-loving and down-to-earth women who were definitely made for each other.
The Writing Style
Aurora Rey has transported me to Julia and Taylor’s world with her engaging and entertaining writing style. She has brought the small town of Kenota to life for me and I couldn’t stop myself from falling deeply in love with Chris, Jack, Julia’s family, Amanda and Taylor’s fur baby named Waylon. I also loved the way this author portrayed Julia and Taylor’s innermost thoughts and emotions because I was able to see things through their point of view and it was easy for me to understand what made them tick.
The Pros
I just love how the author portrayed Julia’s painful experience of dealing with a divorce and starting over from scratch back in her hometown and the way she eventually bounced back and embraced her natural talents. I also had the pleasure of swooning over such a wonderful woman like Taylor because she is an old school romantic at heart and she makes beautiful furniture (I don’t know about anyone else but I am a huge sucker for women who are good with their hands. Wicked wink!)
The Cons
I really wished this story was longer to be honest.
The Conclusion
I must say that this story will always have a special place in my heart because I adore books that have priceless life lessons in them and this story has them in abundance. If you enjoy stories that portray two gorgeous women who slowly fall in love in the quirkiest way ever coupled with nosy and well-meaning neighbors and family members, then this is definitely the story for you!
Excerpt from The Last Place You Look by Aurora Rey
“Julia Pierce?”
Julia closed her eyes for a second. It was only a matter of time before she had to run into someone, but seriously, did it have to be twenty-four hours after arriving? She turned in the direction of the voice, a fake smile firmly in place, and found herself face-to-face with Taylor Winslow. Fuck. “Hey.”
Taylor smiled. “I’d heard you were back.”
“Yeah.” She’d probably also heard the story behind it. Reason number two hundred to hate small towns.
“It’s been a while.” Taylor’s expression appeared to be a cross between curiosity and pity.
Julia glanced down, only to be painfully reminded of her appearance. Why was the universe so cruel? “Yeah.”
Taylor could have left it at that, wished her a good day and left her to her own pathetic devices, but no. She angled her head slightly. “I’d heard you were back, but I wasn’t sure whether to believe it.”
Julia ran her hand up the back of her neck, only to remember her hair, in one of those messy buns that was supposed to look sexy but never managed to on her, was as much of a disaster as the rest of her. The thin thread of what remained of her composure snapped. “So, I’m guessing you’ve also heard the why.” Taylor winced, making her regret the snarkiness of her tone.
“Only that you’d broken up with Erica.”
It struck her that Taylor knew—remembered?—Erica’s name. But investigating would prolong this conversation and, at the moment, she just wanted to escape. “You heard correct.”
“So, what are you working on?” Taylor nodded toward the shelves. “I mean, not that you have to tell me. You just looked a bit lost and I thought maybe I could help.”
Seriously? Not only did she have to bump into Taylor—looking fucking gorgeous, by the way, in carpenter pants and washed out gray Bandwagon Brewery tee—she had to do it while looking like a hot mess and advertising how clueless and helpless she was. She should say no, thank you and walk away. But even as her pride screamed for her to, the rest of her, the part who’d slept in the oppressively stuffy bedroom, reconsidered. “I’m trying to repair a window screen.”
Taylor smiled. Or was it a smirk? “Have you done that before?”
“Not technically.”
She seemed to consider for a moment. “I don’t want to step on your toes, or imply you can’t handle it, but would you like some help?”
God, this was mortifying. But it was Taylor. Even though she’d gone from sort of cute to drop-dead gorgeous in the last ten or so years, she’d always been nice and not one to gossip. And, honestly, Julia was pretty desperate. “I’m not going to say no if you’re offering.”
The smile grew. Maybe Taylor’s hesitation wasn’t about being judgy but something else entirely. “I have an appointment soon, but I could come by this afternoon if you’re free.”
Oh, she was free. “That would be great.”
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Bits and Bobs
ISBN number: 978-1-63555-575-2
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Aurora Rey Online
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