Blog Tour & Review: Sea of Love by Melissa Foster

Title: Sea of Love   

Author: Melissa Foster 

Series: Love in Bloom: Snow Sisters & The Bradens #7; Love in Bloom: The Bradens #4   

Published: December 2013, World Literary Press   

Format: E-copy, 283 pages 

Source: Publicist  

Lacy Snow hadn’t been
looking for love when she met strikingly handsome and seductive Dane
Braden. But how could she ignore the six-foot-three darkly handsome God
who tagged and researched sharks for a living—and made every nerve in
her body tangle into an overly sensitive knot? Even her fear of sharks
could not suppress their intense attraction.

As the founder of
the Brave Foundation Dane Braden travels from port-to-port educating and
advocating on behalf of the mammals he adores—and spends his nights
finding solace in the arms of strangers. The last thing Dane was looking
for when he met Lacy Snow was a relationship, and the last thing he
expected was to fall in love.

Fifteen months—and hundreds of
flirty emails, steamy phone calls, and sensual video chats later—they
reunite, and the two take passion to a whole new level. But when Lacy’s
phobia meets Dane’s past love life, and an unexpected tragedy strikes,
their steamy romance is upended. Dane and Lacy are forced to face their
deepest fears head-on and try and navigate their own sea of love.

My thoughts: Oh, this series just keeps getting better!!! Now, I will be honest and say that I didn’t read the first three books, the Snow Sisters series, where Lacy was first introduced, but that in way detracted from my enjoyment of this book. I really believe that each of these books can be read as stand-alones, but do see how they work well when read sequentially in the series and I will certainly be going back and reading the ones I’ve missed as soon as the opportunity arises.

I really enjoyed Dane and Lacy’s story.  Their story is different from the others that I’ve read so far in this series in that they were already in love when the book started but life had kept them apart for 15 months. Now, after months of communicating via email, phone and skype, they finally come face-to-face. Boy oh boy, absence sure does make the heart grow fonder and there’s no lack of passion in their case!

I liked that both Dane and Lacy were dealing with some pretty major issues in their journey to their HAE and at times, I honestly didn’t know if they would get there. Between Lacy’s fear of sharks and Dane’s second guessing of his relationship because of his job made their journey a difficult one. But, there were also some really tender, heartwarming moments – Dane reaching out to Lacy’s sister to find a way to help Lacy overcome her fear – how sweet!

Once again, my ever-favorite patriarch makes an appearance and it seems that he’s always there to offer guidance when his kids need him the most. He’s that sounding board, willing to listen to his kids and offer support without ever telling his kids, now adults, what they should do. I think I love his character even more because it’s rare that you find this type of role in a male character and yet, I find him to be real and sincere.

I read romance books because I fully admit I’m a sucker for a happy ending. I know the guy is going to get his girl, but I love the journey that the characters take to get there – that’s what makes each story so different. Melissa Foster seems to create such different, unique stories for each of her characters. I’ve read three of her books so far and each has such a different feel to it and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of this series.

Books in the 9-book Love in Bloom series:

 
Snow Sisters                                 The Bradens

     1. Sisters in Love                       4. Lovers at Heart

     2. Sisters in Bloom                    5. Destined for Love

     3. Sisters in White                     6. Friendship on Fire

                                                               7. Sea of Love

                                                               8. Bursting with Love

                                                               9. Hearts at Play

*** Both Sisters in Love and Lovers at Heart are currently free on Amazon US.

More information about this series can be found here:

‘Love in Bloom’ Series

About the author: Melissa Foster is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling and award-winning author.
She writes contemporary romance, new adult, contemporary women’s
fiction, suspense, and historical fiction with emotionally compelling
characters that stay with you long after you turn the last page. Her
books have been recommended by USA Today’s book blog, Hagerstown Magazine, The Patriot, and several other print venues. She is the founder of the Women’s Nest, a social and support community for women, and the World Literary Café. When she’s not writing, Melissa helps authors navigate the publishing industry through her author training programs on  Fostering Success. Melissa has been published in Calgary’s Child Magazine, the Huffington Post, and Women Business Owners magazine. 

Melissa
hosts an annual Aspiring Authors contest for children and has painted
and donated several murals to The Hospital for Sick Children in
Washington, DC. Melissa lives in Maryland with her family.

Visit Melissa on The Women’s Nest, Fostering Success, or World Lit Cafe. Melissa enjoys discussing her books with book clubs and reader groups, and welcomes an invitation to your event.

Authors Links:  Website   |   Twitter   |   Facebook  |   Pinterest   |   Goodreads