More Than Words, Volume 7 by Carly Phillips
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
"Compassion Can't Wait" by Carly Phillips: This is the RITA nominated story from this anthology. Phillips gets around the novella format by having her couple be high school sweethearts. So the emotional foundation was already there, they just had to get over the misunderstanding that separated them. I think it was a good novella. I wasn't left wanting more and I didn't feel like it was bursting at the seams. In addition, the organization, Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation, was skillfully woven in. It was name-dropped a bunch of times, but it felt organic and not preachy. I was left with a lot of admiration for how the organization helps single parents care for their critically-ill children. I'd give "Compassion Can't Wait" four stars.
"Someplace like Home" by Donna Hill: I definitely wanted more from this one. I felt like it ended too quickly. I liked the premise of it and the slow way the hero (baseball player) & heroine drew together. It was also kinda nice to have a hero who was the nurturing type. However, in addition to the abrupt ending, there were also a few loose threads here and there. "Someplace like Home" gets three stars from me.
"What the Heart Wants" by Jill Shalvis: Shalvis is gradually becoming one of my must reads for contemporary authors. I'm kinda bummed this was so short because I loved Jack and I wanted to see more of him. There was only one short scene from his POV. Also, there were repeated allusions to something that happened to the heroine in her youth, but we never get the particulars. I suppose it's not really that big deal, but when the heroine finally mentions the 'horrific experience,' my curiosity went into overdrive. Stupid page limits and word counts. Still, four stars here as well.
Out of the three stories, I liked Shalvis's hero & heroine the best, but overall, I thought Phillips's story was the strongest.
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