Stormswept (Shannon Curtis, Pan Macmillan)

Fans of The Bold and the Beautiful won’t be disappointed with Momentum’s tie-in with the popular daytime soap. Stormswept sees Hope Logan and long-time friend and former flame, Oliver, travelling to Australia for a fashion shoot. Oliver has pined for Hope ever since an unfortunate incident with her mother, Brooke, broke Hope’s heart. When they find themselves conveniently stranded somewhere in the Whitsundays—minus most of their clothing—it’s the perfect opportunity for Oliver to convince Hope that he deserves a second chance. Shannon Curtis’ second tie-in novella for the series embraces the clichés of both TV soap and romance genres; it reads like Mills and Boon-esque fan fiction. What surprises are the gentle humour aimed at the convoluted love and the genuinely sweet love story between Hope and Oliver. Romance tropes are in full force, but even these are laced with fun. Perhaps the biggest letdown with the story is that we all know there’s no such thing as a finished love story in The Bold and the Beautiful, which makes the requisite happy ending impossible to trust.

Kat Mayo is Booktopia’s Romance Buzz editor and blogs at bookthingo.com.au

Category: Reviews