The Best Goodbye

The Best Goodbye is book #13 in the Rosemary Beach series. I don’t normally like series that go beyond 3 or 4 books, but in this case Abbi Glines knows to make them standalone novels, where knowledge of previous characters is always a plus, but not necessarily required. When I want a nice, steamy and southern read, then this is usually what I go for, and Abbi generally does not disappoint. The Best Goodbye is about River Kipling aka Captain, a character we’ve briefly been introduced to in the previous books, and who happens to be Blaire Finlay’s brother. He’s in town coordinating the opening of a restaurant, and for some dark reason, one of his servers, Rose Henderson, has a hold on him. And this is unlikely, because he hasn’t loved or felt anthing for anyone in 10 years… However, it’s no coincidence that Rose elicits those feelings from him… I liked the fact that The Best Goodbye was a little further removed from the other Rosemary Beach novels, and that the storyline was slightly different. I also liked the fact that this time, it wasn’t only the female character that had a dark, messed-up past, but also the male character. In the previous books, male characters used to be the rich knight in shining armor, but in this case, River is just as damaged as Rose – even more so, actually. I believe Abbi Glines really wants to improve her storytelling by introducing deeper vs. superficial characters and storylines. While some of her signature traits, such as the dual POV, remains, she experiments more and more with stylistic writing (flashbacks, hints through in-story storytelling etc…) and puts a lot of effort into polishing up her content: the steamy scenes are just as good as always, yet, they feel less crude and well, more polished. I believe The Best Goodbye had a really good idea to it, yet, the execution of the plot failed on some aspects. I believe the whole plot/intrigue was given away too soon: it really wouldn’t have hurt to keep the suspense around a little longer, and not to give away Rose’s reason for being in Rosemary Beach right from the start. I mean, I can’t even quote anything out of the book since it would give it all away… I was also a bit disappointed at the story’s believability: not necessarily the things that happened 10 years ago, but the fact that River wouldn’t recognize Rose was a bit over-the-top. I also feel that while Abbi Glines put a lot of thought in the character’s past and present, the book ended too abruptly without giving the reader a glimpse into the future. Many questions remains, as the end was probably a bit rushed. But still, I enjoyed reading this book – it’s the kind that really reels you in (yes, even if I had the above concerns), and even despite a “low” 3.5 star-rating, I believe it is worth checking out.

River and addy\’s story was nice and sweet but most of the story line was the back and forth of river not knowing who addy was and how much he missed her but she was right in front of him the whole time. Once river did realize who addy was he then did the whole back and forth on should he be with her or not. I skimmed through a lot of this book because some of it just seemed liked it was just being repeated in the next chapter. Hopefully the next one will be longer and better developed, especially for the price.

Another great book by Abbi Glines. Captain is Blaire\’s half brother and he\’s in Rosemary Beach for a little while. He\’s committed to help launch a new restaurant and then he wants to just buy a dive bar somewhere and just be at peace. Rose is a new server in his restaurant but she makes him remember things from his past that destroyed him. She\’s a single mother and she works hard and takes care of her daughter. The book was enjoyable but I thought Abe not being mentioned or in the story was a bit strange considering they are family and the book would have been better if it was longer. River \”Captain\” Kipling is Abe Wynn\’s son and he was conceived when his parents were pretty young. They weren\’t really together anymore and he grew up thinking another man was his father. His mother was pretty crazy and she was really messed up in the head especially when it came to the man he thought was his father. Addison or Addy was a foster child who was moved from home to home. Her own mother left her in a grocery store shopping cart. River\’s mother is cruel and abusive toward Addy and he does everything he can to protect her. His crazy mother made him believe that she killed Addy and he\’s been just surviving ever since. He turned into a paid killer but he would only kill people that hurt and abused children. He retired from that life and now he just wants some peace. He\’s been a player and hooked up with many women but he\’s never let anyone else in his heart because only Addy belonged there. Rose and her daughter has only been in town for about a month. She\’s been searching for River for years and just finally found him. She wants to see what he is like now and if he\’s worth introducing to their daughter Franny. She was in love with River and she was sent away from him and she thought that she was protecting him. She ended up in Oklahoma and she has had a pretty tough life. But she\’s been a wonderful mother and would do anything for her daughter. Captain is nothing like the man she knew and loved. He\’s pretty cold and cruel at times. But once he realizes that Rose is really Addy and that she didn\’t die does he start showing how loving and caring he can be. Definitely worth reading.

I liked Captain\’s book more than I thought I would! It was angsty, sweet, a lil\’ bit sexy… It was classic Abbi Glines & that felt great. The fact that it was also a second chance romance scored major brownie points with me too! I liked Captain/River & Rose/Addy together. I liked the past they shared, how protective they were of each other & I loved Franny. But c\’mon… it took that long for Captain to see through that dye job & glasses facade? I\’m not buying it, especially with the set of \”skills\” that he possessed. And that ending… It was a little disappointing for me. It was too abrupt, there was no happily ever after sex & no epilogue. *insert frowny face here* Not totally looking forward to the next (& LAST) book in the Rosemary Beach series, Up in Flames, (because I am a huge #NanHater) but I will definitely read it, in hopes that I get more Rush & Blaire! Side note: Captain, dude… The love of your life would truly NEVER want to know that you slept with HUNDREDS of girls since you two were together! Never. *shakes head*

Writing all these fantastic books is I credible, writing each one so that they, and each character, links together, is simply the work of an incredibly talented writer! I was a bit sceptical about this book, I\’m afraid to say I wasnt too keen on captain in reese\’s story, but I think I\’ve ended this book just as much in love with him as I am Rush, grant, Mase, the list goes on!! I love the way this book is written, delving into their past along the way! I\’ve been so engrossed in these books, devouring one after the other, the only drawback being that I only have 1 left to read now! I\’m a TA so I\’m on summer holidays, but I havnt been at home for most of it, I\’ve been in Rosemary Beach!!

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