The Two of Us by Victoria Bylin

The Two of Us by Victoria Bylin

Let's begin with the summary:

After two broken engagements, nurse practitioner Mia Robinson is done with dating. From now on, she only trusts herself and God, and she's focused on her eighteen-year-old sister, Lucy, and caring for patients. Just as she applies to work for an international aid organization, a phone call from Lucy, who's pregnant and running off to marry her twenty-one-year-old boyfriend, throws a wrench into all of Mia's plans.

Jake Tanner may have recovered from the physical injuries he sustained on the job as a police officer, but his heart has yet to heal from losing his former partner in the tragedy. He's poured himself into starting a camp for the sons of fallen officers and mentoring Sam, the adult son of his deceased partner, who's asked him to be his best man at his wedding.

Mia is expecting a mess when she arrives to sort out the situation with Lucy, but she wasn't expecting Jake. And Jake, who can't help envying Sam and Lucy, doubts he'll ever experience their happiness for himself. But maybe Jake's courage and Mia's caring spirit are just what they need to bring them a lifetime of healing and a forever kind of love. . . .

And now, my review:

I liked the element of the hero who has trouble hearing. Generally, main characters aren’t at a disadvantage, and this element made me root for him from the beginning.

Early on, I found some elements that weren’t in keeping with male POV, regarding a secondary character, so those jarred me out of the story. And there was some “telling” and some redundancy in the narrative, which weakened the writing. And the dialog seemed too “on the nose” at times. This author writes strong sensual tension.

I liked the thread with the mother and son while she suffers from Alzheimer’s. Theirs was a beautiful dynamic. The author also tackled PTSD and triggers, which are deep topics. 

The story lost my interest around one-third of the way in, but I look forward to checking out this author's books in the future, because I've enjoyed her writing in the past. I wish her all the best.