Wait for It

CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

​Title: Wait for it
Author: Mariana Zapata
Publication date: 12/07/2016
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services
Kindle Unlimited: Yes
Cliffhanger: No
Rating: 4.5

Amazon blurb
If anyone ever said being an adult was easy, they hadn't been one long enough.

Diana Casillas can admit it: she doesn't know what the hell she's doing half the time. How she's made it through the last two years of her life without killing anyone is nothing short of a miracle. Being a grown-up wasn’t supposed to be so hard.

​With a new house, two little boys she inherited the most painful possible way, a giant dog, a job she usually loves, more than enough family, and friends, she has almost everything she could ever ask for.

​Except for a boyfriend.

Or a husband.

But who needs either one of those?

My Review
This is a new-to-me author, and overall, the book was a pleasant surprise.

The writing is solid. Pacing, dialogue, character development...all as it should be. I love that the whole story is nearly 100% character driven. This one doesn’t rely on fancy plotting and twists and turns to keep the reader’s attention. It’s all about character growth, of which the hero and heroine have plenty.  

Diana is a great heroine. She’s put together in a way that no one under 30 has a right to be. She’s a character who stepped up in a difficult situation and became a mom to 2 kids who weren’t hers biologically. (She’s their aunt by biology, but she’s a mom at heart) Dallas is pretty much the perfect romance hero. He’s tall, dark, sexy and kinda brooding, but also coaches little kids’ baseball. Swoon.

I will say that fans looking for lots of sexy times need not apply for this one. This is a great slow burn romance.   

For nitpicks, I only have 2:

1. Did I mention this was a slow burn romance? Well, it’s a SLOW BURN. Like, seriously, it’s slow as Christmas. I aged 5 years between page 1 and page 662. I think maybe, just maybe, it could’ve been edited down a bit.
2. The dog. There were only a couple mentions of the dog, who is said to be 160 pounds. I have a 120-pound dog, and let me tell you, a dog that size makes his presence KNOWN in a house. Why write a dog into the story if you’re not going to really make it a part of the action?  

But overall, my quibbles are minor. I liked the book, loved the author’s style. I’d read more from this author, and really, what better compliment can a blogger give than that?  
 
Does this book contribute to or help crush the romance stigma?
Crushes it! This is a totally believable, slow-building romance that was well-written and not at all “fluffy”. (There’s even a scene where the hero helps the heroine get rid of head lice. How’s THAT for realism?)     

Other reading suggestions
Considering the quality of this one, I’d check out the remainder of Mariana Zapata’s backlist.

But if you’re looking for a good, light and funny (and fairly clean) “hot guy next door” story (with a great dog character), try Kristan Higgins’ Too Good to be True.  In new adult romance, I highly recommend Neighbor Dearest, by Penelope Ward, which is a great blend of angst, humor and sexy times (and there’s also 2 great dog characters). For more reads that incorporate dogs in a creative and well-done way, try pretty much anything by Jennifer Crusie and the Animal Magnetism series by Jill Shalvis. ​

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