Review: Provocative Attraction by Altonya Washington
Provocative Attraction by AlTonya Washington Published by Harlequin on May 1, 2016
Genres: African American, Contemporary, Fiction, Romance
Pages: 224
Format: Paperback
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
Second-chance romance Viva Hail always dreamed of a world far away from her struggling Philadelphia roots. It ended up costing her the man she loved. Now Rook Lourdess is back in her life in a big way. As her personal bodyguard, the world-renowned security expert sweeps her off to his chalet in Italy, rekindling a desire that could forgive the mistakes of the past. Rook is finally ready to put his obsession with Viva behind him. But when the celebrated actress becomes an eyewitness to a dangerous money-laundering operation, he's her best hope of survival. What better cover than the Hollywood star running off with her ex-lover? Will their reignited passion offer a chance to write a new ending, or is Rook giving in to a temptation that could break his heart once again?
My love for Altonya Washington’s work is well known and this book is no different. Provocative Attraction is now my favorite book in this particular series. Washington is phenomenal at weaving mystery into a great love story and in this Kimani romance, she gives us just enough.
Viva Hail and Rook Lourdess were together for four years before Hollywood made Viva an offer she couldn’t refuse. Years later, she’s back in their hometown of Philadelphia and when a dangerous money-laundering operation hits close to home, Rook becomes her personal bodyguard. Swept away to his chalet in Italy, will they be able to work past their issues or will the door be closed on their love forever?
Viva and Rook both still had very intense feelings for each other, that much was evident. The money-laundering investigation aside, they both felt that they had secrets they needed to confess in order to make the relationship work again, but that may potentially destroy their love forever. In my opinion, they both over exaggerated their issues. Rook had an anger problem, that much we knew for sure. However, once he spilled the details to Viva, I was left wondering what else there was to tell. Rook had made it such a big deal that I had braced myself for a lot more ugliness than revealed. This is not me saying that there wasn’t cause for concern, it’s just that Rook scared me with his own fear of permanently losing Viva again.
I always try not to post too many spoilers but it’s too hard, especially about books I really loved :).
Aside from the romance, the operation was a major part of this story. However, it’s not over as yet. The names of the head people in this operation weren’t revealed but I believe that will be rectified in the upcoming book. My money’s on Linus and Paula taking center stage in the next book. There seems to be a lot we don’t know about these two.
Provocative Attraction is a story of past regrets, tension, and second chances. Fans of Altonya Washington will appreciate this book. Pick it up and let me know what you all think!
P.S. This is a bit random but the synopsis of the books says that Viva had struggling Philadelphia roots but in the book it says hat both Rook and Viva’s parents had a fair amount of money to their name. So which one is incorrect? I would assume the synopsis.
Natalya is the author of All The Things I Never Said, a soul-stirring collection of short stories, prose and love letters for the soulful wanderers, the brokenhearted and the hopeless romantics.
You can follow her rantings and occasional sparks of brilliance on Twitter @NatalyaMuncuff.
- Review: Kiss of Life by Louise Lennox - July 21, 2021
- Release Blitz: Kiss of Life by Louise Lennox - July 13, 2021
- Review: The Alpha’s Affair by Dria Andersen - June 7, 2021
