You may have seen my post last week about the new release from Cheryl Robinson; Until Ray. I had been supposed to be posting a review at the same time, but due to a mix up, I didn't get the book in time. Fortunately, I've now managed to get my hands on a copy and can share my review.
My Review of Until Ray
Until Ray is a bit of an unusual story, in some ways, it is a love story, although not in the usual sense. Ray comes from a messed up background, his father left when he was small and he has been raised by a mother who seems to resent her son for this. She continually tells him that he is just like his father, who she clearly hates and won't even allow him to call her Mum (sorry, Mom) or even Mother. Although Ray tries and in some ways has his heart in the right place, a relationship with someone with this kind of back ground is always likely to be tricky.
Sarita has issues of her own. From an incredibly sheltered background, in her early 20's she hasn't even kissed a man, let alone anything else. While she might have a fantastic education and be doing very well in her career, her personal life just hasn't begun. Suddenly she is faced with not one, but two admirers. The safe, chosen by her parents, Dr Emerson, and the dangerous and exciting Ray.
I really wasn't sure where this was going to go. Ray isn't a particularly likeable character. Although, I did feel sorry for him at times, he's his own worst enemy and causes most of his problems himself. Sarita is more likeable, but I still wanted to shout at her at times to grow up a little. She really needed to live life a bit, get out from the control of her parents and find out who she was and what she wanted before making any major decisions.
This is only book one in a trilogy, so I assume that we have more to come from these characters. I'm not sure where it's going to go as yet. I'll be very interested to find out. This is a good read that offers something quite different from a lot of the formulaic offerings out there.
