Kaleidoscope By Kristen Ashley

When old friends become new lovers...anything can happen.

Sexy, gifted, and loyal, PI Jacob Decker is a tall, cool drink of perfection who had Emmanuelle Holmes at "hello." His relationship with Emme's best friend kept them apart for years, but things have changed. Now that a case has brought him to Gnaw Bone, Colorado, the road is wide open for Emme and Deck to explore something hotter and deeper than Emme dreamed possible. So why is she sabotaging the best thing that's ever happened to her?

It isn't easy to catch Deck off guard, but Emme does just that when she walks back into his life after nine long years. The curvy brunette had her charms back in the day, but now she's a bona fide knockout . . . and she wants to rekindle their friendship. Deck, however, wants more. Emme's always been the one; she excites Deck's body and mind like no other woman can. But a dark chapter from Emme's past overshadows their future together. Now only Deck can help her turn the page-if she'll let him . ..

Every single time I read a Kristen Ashley book, as I read the last words of the last sentence on the last page, I sigh a happy sigh.  Her books embody for me the entire reason why I love and read (and review) romance novels: the happy sigh.  Her books are so good and touch a place in me so deep that they always give me the happy sigh.

Emme and Jacob have known each other for years.  She was the best friend of his girlfriend almost a decade ago, and in being such was by proxy one of Jacob’s best friends too.  They had a connection, a deep friendship and a high level of respect for each other.  When Jacob’s then girlfriend dumps him, he detaches from everyone, including Emme.  Now it’s 9 years later and Jacob is back in Gnaw Bone to investigate a series of robberies.  When he sees Emme again for the first time, he doesn’t recognize her.  Gone are the short hair and the frumpy wardrobe and in is the newer, sexier, more stylish Emme whom he cannot take his eyes from.  He decides then and there (as only a KA Alpha can do) that Emme is his, and he wants to get her away from her current boyfriend (who’s a schmuck anyway) and into his bed.  But Emme has a past; a past that just might ruin the promise of what the two of them can have together. 

I have to start off with my hands down favorite thing about this entire book: Jacob Decker.  How Kristen Ashely manages to make her heroes so alpha, but so endearing and loving and wonderful is a true talent.  So many times (as you’ve heard me lament before), it’s too easy to crossover from alpha male badass to douchebag.  She NEVER goes there.  All of her alphas are determined, they are sexy as hell and they know what they want and get it.  And they do all that without being a douchebag to the woman they love.  They protect the precious gift of her love and hold it close, every single time. 

As you know from the previous Colorado Mountain series books, there seems to be a common theme of danger to the alpha’s woman.  They’ve all been kidnapped, shot, stabbed, buried alive…you name it.  This book has cohesiveness with the other books in the series, but what I really found interesting was that the threat to Emme and Jacob’s relationship is not external really, it’s internal.  This isn’t something that KA does much (which makes me happy), but it was a really interesting twist to Emme and Jacob’s story for me.  The revelations that Emme goes through during the course of the book are interesting to read.  However, unlike the other books in this series, the crime subplot is not as big a part of the story. At least the present day crime isn’t.  It was a nice departure and no less interesting to watch unfold.  And the whole Kaleidoscope thing is so profound and just so lovely…again, happy sigh.

Well, I’m sure you know that something pretty profoundly disappointing would have to happen in order for me to give this author anything less than 5 stars.  She’s just so good at what she does, she could write a book entitled “The Historical Significance of Lint Collecting” and as long as one of the lint collectors was an alpha male lint collecting badass, I’d read it…probably more than once. 5 stars.