What was the book about?
Alex Adams is living a quiet and content life on St. John, one of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Her past is in the past (mostly), and her future sounds a lot like her present: work at the bar she co-owns and enjoy the friendship of her co-owner Liz. When Riley James, a newly retired teacher, enters the bar as part of a wedding party, both her life and Alex’s are turned upside down.

Featured Tropes:
Debut novel; Mature characters; Love at first sight; Paradise island; Instalust.

Book Strengths:
Without drowning the reader in descriptions, Moody gives an exciting feel of the heavenly scenery and makes it easy to imagine being on St. John with her characters. Riley and Alex are really sweet and you can’t help but want them to be happy. Bonus points for creating characters in their late forties.

I also loved Riley’s best friend Kara and Alex’s family. For some reason, the author gave many of her characters first names that start with a K (besides Kara and the two brides, both Alex’s brothers have names beginning with K and they’re married to women whose both names start with J). It’s neither a weakness nor a strength, just strange.

Book Weaknesses:
As debut novels go, this is pretty good. The big reveal takes a little too long to occur, overshadowing the romance a bit. The writing is clumsy at times, with repetitions which make the book feel longer than it is, and a few instances of telling too much and not showing enough, but nothing that can’t be fixed as the author grows into her writing.

Character Chemistry:
The chemistry between Alex and Riley is huge. It’s lust at first sight, and while neither woman is the one-night-stand type (Alex a tad more than Riley), they don’t want to resist. That irresistibility leads to highly hot sex, and steamy scenes that get better and better as the story moves along.

Heat Rating: 5

Wrap up:
A sexy instalust romance with deeper meaning than a summer fling.