Review: The Carny by Brooke Moss

Title:  The Carny
Author:  Brooke Moss
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Published:  July 2012
Publisher:  Inkspell
Source:  via Publisher
Buy Links:  Amazon, Book Depository, Kobo

Synopsis:

At a town fair on the coast of Oregon, handsome Native American carny, Vincent Youngblood, bestows an unforgettable kiss on shy, awkward teenager, Charlotte Davenport. Then he disappears without another word, leaving her baffled and enamoured.

Ten years later, Charlotte is still living in the small fishing town of Astoria, while being trained to--reluctantly--take over for her philandering hotelier father when he retires. After all, who else will do it? Her two perfect sisters are busy being married to their flawless husbands and having cookie cutter children, while Charlotte remains single, childless, and every bit as mousy as she was a decade ago.

As Charlotte struggles to climb out from underneath her judgmental parents thumb, the carnival rolls back into town, and Charlotte finds herself face to face with Vin again. He's back to run his father's carnival, walking away from a promising career in medicine he started in Chicago. Will her biased and judgmental family accept her relationship with a man who is not only a Native American, but works as a carny for a living? And what unsavoury secrets bind the well-educated and seemingly superlative Vin to that ramshackle carnival?

After all, you can’t judge a carny by its cover.

Spice Level:  Just right, and absolutely perfect for the story!
Violence Level:  Nothing note worthy.

I was thrilled when I was contacted to take part in a promotional tour for Brooke’s newest release “The Carny”.  I was lucky enough to read her novel “The What If Guy” last year and fell in love with her writing style.  This was one of those books that I couldn’t say no to.

At age 18, Charlotte and two friends are enjoying the carnival.  A chance encounter brings her face to face with handsome carny Vin and one unforgettable kiss that she can’t get out of her head.  Even after 10 years, she can’t get the handsome carny off her mind.

The passing years hasn’t been easy for either Charlotte or Vin.  Life has taken them both down very different paths with lots of bumps along the way.  When yet another chance encounter being them back together can they rekindle that spark from 10 years ago?

I really liked Charlotte, she had a lot of issues to work through.  Her family is controlling and knows what is best for her – at least they think so.  Deep down Charlotte knows she needs to get out from under her father’s thumb and away from her parents home.  I kept cheering for her to take that step, break out of her shell and stand up for herself and what she believes in.

This was one of those books that I devoured in one sitting, staying up well past my normal bedtime because I had to know what happened with Charlotte and Vin – whether the two of them would be together, would her father get what was coming to him, would she finally stand up to her mother and sisters? 

Would I recommend this book?  Most definitely!  It’s an amazing story of a woman who take that step out into the world and follow her dreams.  Will I read more by this author?  Of course!  I can’t wait to see what Brooke comes up with next!