Language of Love (To Love a Wildcat #5) by V.L. Locey

 Life was so much easier for Margarite Lancourt before she had set eyes on Petro Shevenko. Her diploma to teach hearing impaired children would be in her hand within a year. Then she would find the right man, the right neighborhood, and bear the right children. Her deafness was not going to get in the way of her aspirations. But were they her dreams or her mother`s?

Now that she has met Petro, the Wildcats sexy new acquisition who has an unquenchable thirst for the wild side of life, Margarite`s nicely mapped out life is in chaos. Can she tame this unruly Russian Wildcat? Or will his family demons drag him, and Margarite, back into the darkness the couple have struggled to break free from?

So far, Language of Love was the most disconcerting book of the To Love a Wildcat series. Why, pray tell, would I give 5 stars to a book that was confusing to read at times? Because it was meant to be discombobulating. Language of Love is told from Margarite’s point of view, which is that of a deaf woman falling in love with a Russian man who speaks VERY limited English. I don’t think I’ve ever fully appreciated just how much I rely upon my sense of hearing as I did while reading this book. While this is not the first book I’ve read in which one of the main characters was deaf, Ms. Locey created such a “real” character in Margarite that I could feel her frustration when certain events caused her to lament her deafness. Margarite’s strength of character is awe inspiring. Her determination to stand by Petro, despite her mother’s objections and in the face of his personal demons, demonstrated how deep her love for him ran and just how strong her convictions were.

I will happily admit that I, too, misjudged Petro and his playboy ways. I feared that Margarite was setting herself up to have her heart broken when (not if) he cheated on her. And while her heart does get bruised, it’s due to the typical growing pains of two people becoming a couple and Petro having to learn that he could and should lean on her when he needed help. While we only experience the story from Margarite’s point of view and her inability to hear Petro’s conversations with his grandmother and his teammates (even in his limited English) limits how much we know of what is going on, his behavior toward hear screams of adoration and, eventually, love as well. Accommodating Margarite’s deafness seems to come naturally to Petro, such as when he puts her hand on his guitar so that she can feel the vibrations as he plays; it’s as if he wants to make sure she’s tuned into him so that she knows he wants her to be a part of what’s going on at the time. His attempts to learn English and ASL also illustrated his intentions toward Margarite. That the two had seriously hot sex was an absolute bonus.

As usual, I felt the end of Language of Love arrived much too quickly, but Ms. Locey does a wonderful job of weaving the books together in such a way that while they can be read as standalones, those readers who have been following the series can catch up with old friends. So I take comfort in knowing that I will get to see how Margarite and Petro’s relationship continues to develop in future installments of the series, which also gives me hope in keeping up on Oscar’s relationship. But then again, if the coach and team owner can have a book, can’t we have one for the team’s physician as well? A girl can dream can’t she?

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