My Thoughts in a Nutshell

Unleashed is a fun and contemporary romance, filled with a very important message about life. There are no guarantees in life. Even if you’re happy and healthy today, you could be sick and miserable the next. We mustn’t live every day like it’s our last, or wait until something seems ‘safe’. Rather, we must go after the things that we want and live a life of happiness, joy and be open to the possibility of love.

The Details

Unleashed by Rachel Lacey

Publication Date: October 28, 2014 by Forever Romance

Genre: Romance, Contemporary Romance

What’s the Story?

What happens when you find the right one at the wrong time?

Cara Medlen has a serious case of animal attraction. And it’s not because of all the foster dogs she’s rescued. She’s got it bad for her incredibly sexy neighbor. Her one rule: Don’t get attached. It’s served her well with the dogs she’s given to good homes and the children she’s nannied. Yet the temptation of Matt’s sexy smile might just convince her that some rules are made to be broken.

Matt Dumont doesn’t need his skills as a private investigator to detect disaster on the horizon. Cara is everything he thought he’d never find-gorgeous, funny, and caring. But there’s no way he can start a relationship just as he’s about to move to another state. Talk about bad timing. As their attraction sizzles too hot to deny, they’ll have to make a decision: forget the consequences and let loose, or forget each other and let go…

My Review

As I finished reading Unleashed, my eyes glistened with happy tears. It was a fun, contemporary romance, but was filled with a very important message about life. Twenty-eight year old Cara Medlen has put her life on hold for the last eight years, waiting until she she hits the ten year mark, the point where the doctors can basically declare her cancer-free. She’s only got two more years before she will allow herself to do the things that will undoubtedly make her happy. Until that times comes, she doesn’t want to get too involved in anything or with anyone that would be left devastated if the cancer came back and she were to lose her battle.

Being in remission from cancer doesn’t just affect Cara’s health, but every aspect of her life. She’s chosen a career of nannying over her dream career of being a photographer. She refuses to let any man close enough to her heart and into her life. She fosters dogs that have been abandoned, nurses them back to health and gives them to a happy family and a loving ‘forever’ home, but never takes one in to her own home to be her own ‘forever’ dog. Will she ever be able to stop putting her life on hold until it’s ‘safe’ to live it? Will she ever realize that there are no guarantees in life or love and that she’s wasting precious time not living the life she could be and experiencing the joys that she desperately wants?

Matt Dumont is no better off when it comes to being open to falling in love. He’s in no position to let someone important into his life and tends to have a difficult time trusting people, especially women. Matt is a Private Investigator that specializes in cheating spouse cases, a topic that’s close to his heart after being blind sighted by a cheating girlfriend while overseas serving on the Marines. He’s since gotten over his ex-girlfriend, but he still hasn’t quite recovered from being betrayed by someone he trusted and cared about. Despite his past relationship issues, Matt’s a gentleman to the core and is honorable when it comes to relationships. Which is a particularly annoying yet admirable trait once sparks fly between him and his next-door neighbor Cara.

I loved the dynamic relationship that brews between Cara and Matt and I enjoyed every minute of reading this novel. Unleashed makes you think about the fact that there are no guarantees in life. Even if you’re happy and healthy today, you could be sick and miserable the next. We mustn’t live every day like it’s our last, or wait until something seems ‘safe’. Rather, we must go after the things that we want and live a life of happiness, joy and be open to the possibility of love. There is never a right or wrong time in life to do what you want and let love in, therefore we must strive everyday to try to do those things now and stop waiting.

Unleashed made me want to rescue two dogs (and maybe a cat or two) and give loving animals a ‘forever’ home. One day, when I’m out on my own and have the time and space to devote to animals, I will certainly consider adopting rescued pets. Unleashed is the debut novel by author Rachel Lacey and is the first novel in the ‘Love to the Rescue’ series. I look forward to reading For Keeps, the second novel in the series and will put anything Lacey writes in the future on my TBR list!

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Romance for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review!

About the Author

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Rachel Lacey

Author bio on website, rachellacey.com:

I grew up with a passion for reading and an unquenchable need to write stories of my own. As a girl, my journals and, later on, computers were always filled with snippets of stories and dialogue. These characters got inside my head and wouldn’t rest until I’d written them down. The number one item on my bucket list has always been to publish a novel, and I am beyond thrilled that my dream is coming true with Unleashed.

The first thirty years of my life led me around the globe on some amazing adventures. I’ve been climbed by a monkey on a mountain in Japan, gone scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef, and camped out overnight in New York City for a chance to be an extra in a movie. These days, I’m a stay-at-home mom to my five-year-old son, and the majority of my adventures take place in the books I write. I currently live in warm and sunny North Carolina with my husband, our son, and a variety of rescue pets.