Dangerous Curves by Larkin Rose had the potential to be a really good story. It has all the elements that you would expect to find in a story written by Ms. Rose. You have two strong women set in a mostly all male, good-ol-boy, insular, red-neck setting (NASCAR). Both main characters are brash, in-your-face, foul mouthed, but like-able women who would fit well in this setting. I could easily see these characters hanging around or working in the racing pit. In fact, Sellars is a professional racer in the story and Lacy was at one time a photographer specializing in racing. Both characters are dealing with traumatic pasts that affect their present day lives, and both women initially dislike each other, creating the enemies-to-lovers theme Larkin Rose is so good at writing.
This sounds like a perfect Larkin Rose novel, and it should have been. Something happened though, and I’m not sure where. I believe there should have been more editing, both content and line editing. There were some sentences and phrases that I found confusing, and I can remember one place where I wasn’t sure where a certain action had happened.
I know the above sounds bad, but I actually ended up enjoying the story. For me to like a story, I have to connect with the main characters, and I did connect with Sellars and Lacy about a third of the way through. After that, I was able to put aside the bumps in the road and just enjoy the ride. I seriously considered giving this book four stars, but in the end I couldn’t ignore those road bumps and ended up giving it three.
If you are a die-hard Larkin Rose fan, you will like this story. If this is your first Larkin Rose novel, I suggest you read some of her older works first. Ms. Larkin is a very good author, and I look forward to future novels of hers.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an honest review.
Rainbow Reflections 