Chalkboard Romance
By Melissa Keir
ISBN# 9781631050466
Author’s Website: http://www.melissakeir.com/
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Heidi
Lauren Walsh is still hurting from her ex-husband’s cheating and the way he constantly crushed her self-esteem. Now she throws all her efforts into her work; teaching. But her friend and co-teacher, Melanie thinks it’s time Lauren puts herself back out there and to jump into the dating pool. She convinces her to sign up for an exclusive dating service, The Playhouse.
Mac Thomas is a big time news correspondent who has reported all over the world; anything to not have to focus on his loveless marriage. Now his wife has passed on and he’s staying closer to home to care for his son, Todd. But his sister secretly signed him up for The Playhouse as well, not telling him until his perfect date had already been setup!
Mac and Lauren go on their date, and feel instant sparks. But Lauren is too afraid of getting hurt, and leaves Mac, refusing to give him a way of contacting her. So imagine their mutual surprise when Mac picks Todd up from school to discover the women Mac has been searching for since she left him, is actually his son’s teacher!
Now Mac will do anything to get Lauren to give them a real chance. But a relationship with Mac, could very well cost her the job she loves.
I absolutely loved the concept of this story. A chance meeting that leads to a steamy romance, but then having to choose between love and work. But unfortunately, this story had several flaws for me.
First of all, I didn’t like how quickly this couple fell for each other. The sex seemed to come into play too soon, which I realize is a common occurrence in this genre, and something I was willing to try and overlook. But I also found the sex scenes to be too brief, they were finished almost as soon as they started, making Mac come off as a minute-man!
I also really would have liked to have seen the characters be more developed. They seemed one-dimensional and I really had a hard time relating to them, and I just couldn’t ‘feel’ their romance.
The book does make you think about teachers and the restraints that are put on their personal lives. I thought the principal dating a fellow teacher in this story was worse than Lauren and Mac dating, considering this school allowed teachers to teach their own children!
This wasn’t a bad book, but it missed the mark for me and I had just been hoping for more.
