Dare To Take - Book Review

By Carly Phillips

Synopsis

A one night stand.
A secret.
A mistake they tried to forget.

On leave from the army, Tyler Dare is just looking for a little fun, but his best friend’s sister is off limits. Yet unable to deny how sexy and alluring she is, he finds it all too easy to succumb to a night of passion and heat that ends the next morning in the worst way possible.

There are just some guys you don’t touch–even someone as innocent and inexperienced as Ella Shaw knows that. But when her brother’s best friend is up for grabs and willing, she can’t resist. After all, she’s wanted him for years…

Now, Ella is stranded on a tropical island with a hurricane bearing down, and only Tyler can save her. It’s his chance to make amends for the past and show the woman he’s never forgotten that he’s coming after her . . . in more ways than one.

Review

Years ago, Ella followed her heart and made her way into Tyler’s bed. Immediately regretting his actions, he tells her it was a mistake, causing her to flee his room and him to flee his house. Since then, things have been awkward between them; Tyler is wracked with guilt over how he behaved while Ella feels she wasn’t good enough for him. Tyler comes to Ella’s rescue when she’s mugged and left stranded overseas without a passport. Forced into close quarters, Tyler finally finds the courage to apologise for his behaviour but quickly learns just how badly she was affected by his actions all those years ago. He sets out to fix his mistake by replacing their bad memories with good ones.

Both Ella and Tyler are slightly broken and both have issues with their fathers. Ella believes she’s not worthy of being loved and Tyler believes he always runs away from difficult situations. Tyler works hard to show Ella that her poor history with the men in her life isn’t on her, but on the men themselves, and when Tyler finally opens up about his perceived failings to the people that matter, he’s able to let go of the past and look toward the future, hopefully one that includes Ella.

DARE TO TAKE is the sixth and final book (I believe) in the Dare To Love series, but it’s the first book I’ve read, both in the series and from this author. It can be read as a stand-alone, but if you haven’t read the series, you will get lost in the sea of Dare family members. It’s told in dual POVs and I occasionally noticed some repetition between the two POVs. I sometimes felt the story didn’t flow smoothly, especially in regards to their inner monologue, which also involved some repetition.