Thank you to Teralyn Mitchell, Sarina Bowen, Jenn Gaffney and the rest of the World of True North team for the advance reader copy of Doubletalk, the sixth story in the Busy Bean series.
It is time now for not just the last batch of Busy Bean books. Today’s drops are the last books in the World of True North World.
“Basketball has always been his one love, until now...
Zeke Armstrong never imagined he’d be back in Vermont, but here he is, living in Colebury and trying to rehab an injury that could mean an early retirement from pro basketball. Running into his former classmate, Mallory Barrett, shouldn’t be a distraction. It shouldn’t mean anything, so why is he accidentally on purpose showing up at the coffee shop where the beautiful writer spends her time?
Mallory Barrett has met a guy. Well, she hasn’t met him yet, except for on the dating app she almost refused to download. “Coby” sparks her interest and gets her jokes–and gives the romance-novel heroes she loves so much a full-court run for their money. When their first date doesn’t work out, she decides to give him another shot . . . just as a man she despises reenters her life. While her interest in the mystery man on the app grows, she clashes constantly with Zeke in real life. She can’t forgive him for humiliating her in high school, yet she can’t deny she’s drawn to him now.
She’s somehow gone from confirmed bachelorette to the tie-breaker between two men. Meanwhile, Zeke has a secret–one that will cost him the game if Mallory finds out…”
Check out my more detailed thoughts below…
- Characters: Mallory and Zeke are the main characters of this story. Mallory is an author who is struggling to write her current work in progress. She lives in Colebury with her bestie Stacy. Mallory is incredibly shy and nerdy. Which often leads her into self-doubt, which is something I think a lot of us readers can relate to. Zeke is a former best friend from childhood. They had a massive fall out and now they are definitely not friends. Zeke plays pro-basketball but is currently on the mend. He is taking some time off this summer for PT and rehab in his home state of Vermont.
- Setting: Doubletalk is set in Colebury, Vermont. The Busy Bean coffee shop is incorporated through Mallory. She considers getting a job there but instead she sits there to write and grabs the occasional coffee with Zeke.
- Pacing: The biggest thing that came with the pacing in this story was navigating how long to keep a secret. Zeke was keeping a secret that I knew would blow up in his face. I like how Teralyn paced this reveal and how the characters came back together afterwards.
- Romance: The way this romance evolves starts with Zeke having always loved Mallory. After losing the friendship they had in their youth, Zeke and Mallory have another chance. I just found I was not connected to this romance that much. There was a huge part of the book the characters were not communicating or Mallory was just being very angry. So I got frustrated in parts.
Doubletalk receives three out of five stars.
You can pick up the story here.
Thank you again to Teralyn, Sarina, Jenn and the rest of the team for the review opportunity. Thank you for reading and supporting my blog!
