ROMANCE

How To Handle a Heartbreaker

by Joss Wood
Harlequin Desire. (Texas Cattleman’s Club: Fathers and Sons, Bk. 2). Dec. 2021. 224p. ISBN 9781335735294. pap. $5.25. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
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Wood’s entry in the “Texas Cattleman’s Club: Fathers and Sons” series (after Janice Maynard’s An Heir of His Own) is an age-gap romance between a police officer and a property developer. Hayley Lopez is asserting her independence from her family while studying to become a lawyer devoted to helping the underprivileged. Billionaire property developer Jackson Michaels is set on creating his new development in her hometown. Superficial characterization creates conflict between the leads without adding much to the romance. Wood creates tension with characters who are continuously at odds; she resolves the tension by having them change without showing why or how they do so. The writing is technically fine but fails to ignite the passion between the characters.
VERDICT Readers looking to pick up plot threads might find it worthwhile, but newcomers to the series will not find it a good starting point.
Reviewed by Brigid Black, Lucius Beebe Memorial Lib., Wakefield, MA , Nov 19, 2021
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