Fun and sexy series end
5 stars

This is the book of the third and youngest Barron sibling from Serendipity, New York. If you want to get up to speed with the other brother’s stories and the family backstory, grab Serendipity and Destiny. But you don’t have to as this is a complete standalone and Liza is a new character for this book.

Dare Barron is known as the happy-go-lucky, down to earth and easy-going small town cop. It seems as though he likes everyone - except maybe town drunk, Brian, and the sister that’s always bailing Brian out of jail, Liza.

We’re quick to realise that Dare doesn’t dislike Liza - he’s actually smitten with her. While also being frustrated with her actions. He does come across as all the attributes above but it was nice to delve deeper into his personality and find out all the deeper parts of him. He’s basically a good guy, trying his best to get over past traumas while also wanting to do his best by Liza. I liked that he was himself and didn’t apologise for it - but also that he genuinely tried to learn from his mistakes and admitted when he was wrong. Plus he knew that he wanted Liza and wasn’t afraid to go after her. Le swoon!

Liza was really easy for me to like and root for. She comes from a dysfunctional family and she’s learnt to keep herself closed off and not trust anyone. She tries to keep Dare at arm’s length, telling herself to guard her heart - but it’s not as easy as all that when Dare Barron has you in his sights. Liza was a strong and able woman and I liked her no-nonsense personality as well as her vulnerabilities. She herself has trauma in her past and while it shaped her, I didn’t feel it controlled her. Either way, I was with her and wanted her to get her happily ever after. She deserved it.

Dare and Liza have a lot of chemistry and they give off sparks together and in the reader. There’s a nice amount of sex in our story and it builds up a great intimacy between our couple. They’ve got a lot of things to work out but it was a good build up to happily ever after.

Yes, Liza is older than Dare and yes, this is a trope I’m not a fan of. But it’s only a 3 year difference and once it’s mentioned, it’s done. It’s not made an issue for the couple or the readers so it’s not a problem for me.

There’s some minor peril taking place in the book which added another dimension to the story which I enjoyed a lot. There was a few people that could have been the culprit and I went into full-on detective mode before it was revealed. I was a little off base in the end.

I admit to being a bit confused by the ordering of the Serendipity series. This book focuses on the third of the three Barron brothers. While some sites have this down as the third book, there are also two other books set in Serendipity that go along with this series but were released before this one. Those extra books are nice little extras but I guess the main books are those of Dare, Nash and Ethan and these three are definitely ones you’ll want to (but don’t have to) read as a set.

There are a few things in this book that could be triggering but I felt it was handled with just enough depth to make me feel something, but not so much that it overwhelms or made me uncomfortable. Carly Phillips, as always, manages to weave her romances into very real situations and very real families and does so with such flair that you can’t help but be left with a smile on your face. The ending was delightful and with the news that Tess is also getting her own story, I’m a happy camper. Definitely recommended. ( )

The lack of communication and the constant misunderstands just annoyed me. They both had too many issues and it was hard for me to care. And I didn't like either of them enough to bother trying. I haven't read the other books in the series so perhaps that affects my enjoyment levels. But this one is not a recommendation on why I should. 1.5 stars. ( )

Politieagent Dare Barron heeft al sinds zijn tienerjaren een oogje op de mooie Liza McKnight. Helaas ziet hij haar alleen als ze weer eens een borgsom voor haar broer komt betalen. Bovendien weerhoudt het duistere verleden dat hij met Liza’s broer deelt hem ervan toenadering tot haar te zoeken.

A solid story. Love the Barron family I'd like to see where a few of the loose ends wrap up but over all a good read ( )

Phillips ends her Serendipity trilogy with Dare, the youngest and most open of the Barron brothers. Or so we thought. The truth is, Dare has been harboring a lot of pain and guilt over the death of a teen at a party he attended as a teen. He didn't have anything to do with the teen dying, but he didn't do anything to help or to stop the parents of the mid responsible for creating a cover-up.

Dare has been attracted to Liza for a ling time. Unfortunately it was her brother who caused the boy's death all those years ago, and Dare can't get past his hatred for him.

Liza is used to relying on herself. She works, bails her brother out when he needs it and escapes to the city on the weekends to blow off stream. So she might have a little crush on sexy cop Dare Barron..she isn't going to act on it. She knows better than anyone that you can't trust people and men don't stick around.

But when Liza gets injured, its Dare who takes care of her... they soon realize they have more than attraction between them. But Dare is still tangled up in the past...and so is Liza.

This wasn't always easy to read. Both Dare and Liza had a lot of baggage they needed to deal with. There were times I was frustrated with both of them. I understood, however, why they acted the way they did. Neither was wrong for feeling the way they did. I think Phillips did a credible job of helping them both work through their past issues, and to recognize that they had to forgive themselves before they could be with each other.

A solid read. ( )