Foolish Hearts by Synithia Williams
Jackson Falls #4
Contemporary Romance
August 24, 2021, by Harlequin
ARC
Reviewer: Melinda
Foolish Hearts is the 4th in the Jackson Falls series, it’s loosely tied to the previous books but it can stand alone without any issues. I’ve loved this series because it’s just been incredibly soapy with messy characters and complex family drama. I love that Synithia Williams has allowed her characters to be dramatic or troubled or overly angry because those kinds of characters feel more realistic to me. I don’t love perfect characters because I can’t understand them at all.
Ashiya is the cousin of the Robidoux family that had been featured in the first 3 books. She inherits a multimillion-dollar company when her grandmother dies and is in a bit over her head as she’d only run a small thrift store before. Her ex, Russell, is sent to help her out, and while Ashiya is delighted at this, he is…not. They had not ended things on great terms as Ashiya went back to her ex.
The chemistry these two have is off the charts. Russell tries to resist as he’s not interested in rekindling things, and one of the things I love about Williams’ writing is that she develops both characters so well. Because we get to see and understand both of their reasonings about the relationship so completely. He was extremely hurt before when Ashiya went back to her ex and does not want to repeat that experience. And Ashiya regrets what had happened before, that we get to understand those regrets and behavior is really a testament to the writing.
The soapy aspect to this book is that there is also family and corporate drama playing out with Ashiya’s extended family as she tries to understand those dynamics. We get corporate drama with some embezzlement. And to top it off there’s a complicated mystery in Russell’s past that he’s trying to solve about the disappearance of his brother from 15 years before.
All of these different threads come together and are woven throughout the book. It’s fast-paced and steamy, exactly the type of book I want. This whole series is just not one to miss.
Content Notes: death off-page, kidnapping
Grade: A
Leave a Reply