Fragile Sanctuary by Catherine Cowles is live!

Get ready to fall for Anson and Rhodes in this brother’s best friend, age gap, small town romance

 

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Blurb

The scowl should’ve been my first clue to stay far away from Anson Hunt. The sexy smirk and the fact that he’s my brother’s best friend? Reasons two and three. Not to mention, he’s the new contractor working on my house.

He’s everything I’m not: grumpy, rude, and more than a little attached to his solitude. It doesn’t matter how many times I try to kill him with kindness; the man simply won’t crack.

Until he sees me shatter.

Because when my world comes crashing down around me, Anson is the one catching me as I fall. And as so-called accidents start plaguing every part of my life, it’s Anson who steps in to keep me safe.

As he does, I can’t help but feel a flicker of heat. And it only takes a single moment for that spark to ignite into flames, engulfing us both.

But Anson’s a man with secrets, and they have a price. When they’re revealed, neither of us will make it out unscathed…

 

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Review

4 stars

The first book in a new series from Catherine Cowles, this is a small town grumpy/sunshine, brother’s best friend romance that is full of chemistry and emotion, and a gorgeous, slow burning love story between two people who have both suffered loss and trauma. It’s a standalone, and a strong start to the series, and I loved it!

Rhodes’ happy world was rocked by the devastating loss of her family when she was a teenager. Taken in by her best friend’s family, she lived her teenage years surrounded by a loving foster mother, grandmother and siblings that became her whole world. Now she’s reclaiming her family home, fixing it up with a plan to live there, and her brother and his construction team are working with her to get the job done.

Anson is an ex-FBI profiler who has faced his own devastating tragedy. Drowning in grief, he fled his old life and is working construction with his best friend’s crew. He doesn’t socialise and keeps to himself, engaging as little as possible, but he’s working on Rhodes’ house when he sees her break down and he rushes to her rescue to comfort her.

I loved the dynamic between these two. Sure, Anson is closed off and broody, but he’s something else entirely with Rho. Sweet, friendly and kind-hearted, she gets to him and he can’t keep away, and as he spends time with her, he slowly starts to come back to life. There are little smirks, kind words and gentle touches, and then there’s the fact that he is uber protective over her… *swoon*. And when it looks like Rho is in actual danger, he moves himself into her cabin, so we get the close proximity aspect as well, and I loved it all!

The romance is a slow burn, full of chemistry, feels and sexual tension, and it builds beautifully, and I loved but watching Anson and Rho fall so easily and so hard for each other.

“Can’t handle being away from you,” he croaked. “Especially not when you’re hurting.” He swallowed hard. “I didn’t want to care about anyone. But you shot that all to hell … You didn’t sneak past my defences, you bulldozed them. Reckless to the bone. And maybe you made me brave enough to be reckless too.”

But it’s not just romance. Yes, Catherine Cowles brings the suspense again. Not only does Rho seem to have a stalker who has it out for her, but the serial killer who Anson tracked in his job with the FBI has started killing again. There’s danger coming from all angles, and Anson will need to throw himself back into the life he walked away from in order to protect the woman he feels so much for.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters are fantastic, their stories are emotional, the mystery/suspense is well done and kept me guessing, and the love story owned my heart. The series set up is fantastic. We are introduced to each of Rho’s siblings, a tightly-knit group each with their own distinct personalities and demons, and I cannot wait to read more about them as the series continues. And more grandma Lolli please, because she’s hilarious!

I listened to this as an audiobook, narrated by Andie Arndt and Zachary Webber, and they do a fantastic job. They both bring SO much emotion – especially when narrating Anson and all of his darkness, and this is a great book to listen to.

Loved this one – 4 stars.

 

Sparrow Falls

 

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About Catherine

Writer of words. Drinker of Diet Cokes. Lover of all things cute and furry, especially her dog. Catherine has had her nose in a book since the time she could read and finally decided to write down some of her own stories. When she’s not writing she can be found exploring her home state of Oregon, listening to true crime podcasts, or searching for her next book boyfriend.

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Find more great reads in our Catherine Cowles Author Spotlight