Book Review: Out of the Blue by Caroline Clemmons

Summary:

Deirdre Dougherty never cursed at anyone, much less put a curse on the potato crop of her remote Irish village. She’d rather take her chances with the Atlantic lapping at the bottom of the cliff than the mob intent on burning her as they have her cottage. Deirdre leaps . . . and plops down over 160 years later in a Texas lake. She doesn’t understand how she’s ended up with the man from her recent visions or why he has the same name as the saint to whom she prayed. She’s in danger of falling for the handsome policeman who rescued her, in spite of the fact that he thinks she’s lying to him. How can she convince him her story is true when she’s finding it difficult to believe the tale herself?

Police Detective Brendan Hunter wants answers. Who shot him and killed his partner? Why? And why does Deirdre know details of the event? Her story has to be a colossal fabrication or else she’s a beautiful psycho. Either way, he wants her gone before he becomes even more fascinated with her. But he can’t let her out of his sight until she confesses to how she learned details no one but he and his late partner knew.

 

Review:

This was a fun read!  It is a romance but has a little mystery to it too, and the allure of time travel adds another layer of intrigue.  I sat down to read "just a few pages" this morning and ended up reading for over two hours...actually that happens quite often to me with thrillers but very rarely with a romance novel. 

The story is engaging and the characters are relatable.  I especially liked Blossom.  I've noticed that so many romance novels follow the same guidelines:  step one: meet cute; step two: one partner doesn't like the other and has to overcome feeling of dislike which are usually mixed with attraction; step three: flirting; step four:  overcoming an obstacle that stands in the way of the couple getting together; step five:  "getting together..."; step six:  sometimes another obstacle; step seven:  happily ever after. 

Out of the Blue does follow some of those steps but in such a way that I didn't realize it until I was finished reading and reflected back on the book.  The time travel makes this one fun and the mystery of Brendan's shooting adds a lot to the story.  I also liked that while a romance novel, Out of the Blue was surprisingly light on bedroom scenes and heavier on the characters falling in love.  This was the first Caroline Clemmons book I've read and I plan on reading more.

Just One Gripe:

Deirdre uses the word "lovely" too much.

The Best Thing About This Book:

This book is more than just a romance novel.  The story is compelling and the characters are endearing.

Appropriate for a younger audience:

No

Score:
Characters:  4/5
Plot:  3/5
Setting/Imagery:  4/5
Originality:  3/5

Ending:  4/5

Total Score:  18/25

*I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an impartial review.