Lured In: A Fishing for Trouble Novel by Laura Drewry

Lured In is the second book in Drewry’s series about a small, remote fishing vacation lodge, the Buoys, owned by the O’Donnell brothers. In this story, the heroine, Jessie, has lived there since she was 17 and has almost single-handedly kept the place running. The only problem is that she is terrified of water so she lives a pretty isolated life in this remote location that is accessible only by boat and helijet. The youngest O’Donnell brother, Finn, has long had a crush on Jessie, but he’s afraid of making any move on her so he just is her very good friend. When the star of a popular fishing program who once had an affair with Jessie decides to come film at the Buoys, she decides that it’s time that she learn to overcome her terror of the water and Finn is just the guy to help her. What I liked about this book is that the romance between Jessie and Finn develops on a realistic trajectory. They’ve been friends for years and, in the process of helping her to overcome her fear of the water, they realize they love each other. There are a few complications, but nothing that is unrealistic to the characters or impossible to overcome. The O’Donnell brothers truly love each other, but they relate to each other the way guys seem to do in romance novels with lots of jokes and playful physical abuse. I always enjoy friends-to-lovers romances, maybe because that’s how it developed between me and my husband, but also because I find that the most realistic way to understand romance instead of these novels where the two meet each other and immediately feel some sort of physical electric connection. I really liked Finn - he’s just a good guy. Both he and Jessie have complicated personal histories and hang-ups, but he’s more open than she is and was willing to open up to her about his past and then to express his feelings to her. The setting is interesting - this remote fishing lodge in the Pacific Northwest. There is no one else there except the family, the love interest of one brother, Jessie, and the cook. It sounds pretty bare as far as modern conveniences. You either like to fish or you’d have very little to do there. It doesn’t appeal to me and I find it hard to believe that they could make a financial go of it, plus I can’t imagine the logistics of bringing everything in to run their lodge and feed guests by boat. It’s obvious that the next book will be about the oldest brother. I wonder how Drewry will bring in some female character for him to fall in love with. I know I’ll be reading it to find out. The story follows an arc of build-up of the romance which is then consummated and they’re a match a little past the midpoint. There are then some financial complications introduced that shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone. That all gets resolved very quickly and easily with somewhat of a deus ex machina development by the end of the book. I received a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.