I don’t do a lot of re-reading, but when life gets me down, and I need a little comfort food for my soul, Wild Man is my go-to book. Brock Lucas is very good man. (Full disclosure, Brock Lucas is my favorite Kristen Ashley hero, fight me.) He’s an undercover cop that takes on missions and puts himself in situations no one should have to endure. In Wild Man, he’s investigating our heroine, Tess O’Hara’s ex-husband. Tess’s ex is a very bad man, incredibly bad, and he almost broke her spirit. Luckily, she found her way out and now spends her days making cakes as sweet as she is!
If I had to pinpoint the book that turned me on to “seasoned romance” it would be Wild Man (sidenote: Wild Man has never been marketed as a seasoned romance, but Ashley has a knack for writing more mature characters that steal my heart.) Both Tess and Brock are older, they’ve been through failed marriages, Brock has children, they’ve lived life, made mistakes, and learned hard lessons. This means they are comfortable in their own skin, they don’t mince words when it comes to their feelings, there’s no beating around the bush, being coy, playing games; they say what they mean. I find that incredibly refreshing to read, and it makes this book entirely relatable. Not relatable in that I’m an undercover cop or I have an ex-husband who is also a drug lord; relatable in that I’m a grown-ass adult getting along with the business of grown-ass life, even when it’s hard. Tess has been through some shit, shit that could’ve destroyed her but she is resilient and strong. She is my favorite Kristen Ashley heroine because, in spite of her hardships, she’s still a big cupcake of sweetness with a massive swirl of frosting and fairy sprinkles on top.