Review: Two of Hearts by Christina Lee

Two of Hearts
By: Christina Lee
Paperback, 304 pages
Published May 5th 2015
by NAL Trade
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A gripping standalone adult contemporary romance about finding yourself while taking a second chance at your first love…

Dakota Nakos was always the resilient, strong-willed achiever. But when her father dies and she’s entrusted with the family’s casino, she feels vulnerable, scared, and more than a little emotional —not exactly the best time to see an old lover she’s never really gotten over.

Dakota once meant the world to Shane Garrity. Then suddenly he left town to train as a U.S. Marshal, and their love for each other crashed into a memory. Now he’s come home for her father’s funeral, and one look at the girl he left behind stirs up both memories and regrets, and reignites a fire he feared he’d lost forever.

Dakota may be the same driven girl she always was, but she’s also changed in ways neither could have anticipated. She’s not just a young woman searching for own identity in the Native American community in which she was raised, but one questioning her new life outside her father’s shadow. Above all she wonders if Shane can push past her weakened defenses to rekindle what they once had, or whether the intense blaze between them will ultimately reduce her heart to ashes.

I've read a few books by Christina Lee and I must admit this one was a bit different. Her main character is Native American. This book was revolved around her Native American community, their religious beliefs and values. So I must admit it was a bit harder for me because I couldn't relate. Plus the main character Dakota just lost her dad and that kind of topic is very hard for me. However, despite all that the story was interesting and it kept me going.

The death of Dakota's father shook up the community pretty bad. Now that her dad was gone the community was giving her and her mom a hard time with their business. Throughout all this, her father's death also brought back home Dakota's old beau Shane. He wanted to show support to Dakota and her family and also to find out who killed her dad. There is one thing I should say this should be considered a mystery/suspense along with romance. Because this book revolved a lot around who murdered Dakota's dad. That's one thing I felt needed to be more specific.

Though Shane brought a lot to the story, it was overwhelming for Dakota having him around. They had a past together which had no closure. Their chemistry wasn't as strong as the ones I've read in her other books. So in my opinion that could have been a bit more spiced. Maybe the author wrote it that way because whose thinking of sex just after losing their parent. I don't know but this story lacked a bit more chemistry in the sexy department.

So to sum this up, Dakota lost her dad and her old boyfriend came and they rekindled their love. Was it good? Yes. Was there chemistry? Yes but not as strong as in her other books. Did the characters grow throughout the story? Yes. I give Two of Hearts a 3.5 stars. Though this book wasn't my favorite, it won't stop me from picking up another book from her. Because she is a great writer.