From Goodreads
Seduce the teacher.
Meet the cousin.
Make a deal.
Steal the painting.
Andrea Anderson has no clue of the thoughts churning around in the dark and dangerous ex-con’s head as he enters her classroom. In fact, she’s momentarily lost for words. Not in her entire teaching career has she had a student who looked quite like Stu Cross.
A widow at just twenty-eight, love is something Andie hasn’t considered a part of her life for a very long time. However, when lingering touches turn to whispered words and hot, searching stares, she begins to wonder if maybe she should take a leap of faith.
But Stu is in her class for a reason, and it has nothing to do with love. He’s there to burrow his way into her life and repay a debt, otherwise his family will suffer. Andie is the first person to show him true kindness since he left prison, and though he doesn’t want to mislead her, he doesn’t have another choice.
Before long, Stu can’t tell whether or not he’s acting anymore, and his feelings for Andie could throw all of his carefully crafted plans into complete and utter disarray.
My Review
4.5 "Steal My Heart" Stars!
It's official: It's impossible for L.H. Cosway to write something I won't absolutely adore. Each and every one leaves me with so much satisfaction, and reaffirms her place on my auto-buy/favorite authors of all time list.
Okay, on to the review. Thief of Hearts fifth book in the Hearts series, but it is not necessary to have read any of the other books to fully appreciate this one. They're interconnected standalones, and while I love getting to see characters from previous books, I wouldn't be at all confused coming in blind.
This book focuses on Andrea, a widowed 28 year old adult educator (like school for adults that never finished high school, not...well, a sex educator, which was where my mind went at first), and Stu, an ex-con with one more job left to do before he goes clean.
The pair of them had off the charts chemistry, and while I am usually not a fan of student/teacher romance, it worked so well here. The flirting, temptation, and constant threat of being caught made it so intense!
It was like some little Cupid baby had shot him with a love arrow and all of a sudden Stuart Cross was hot for his teacher.
Speaking of intense, I had no idea that stealing art would be so fast paced and interesting! The process was fun to read about, cunning and exciting.
The pacing was phenomenal, the side characters to die for (can I just say that I am dying for Trevor's book?), and it was such an emotional and fun ride. My favorite parts though, hands down, were Andrea and Stu.
You'd think this story would absolutely drown you in angst, what with the young widow and the ex-con, but it wasn't like that at all. Oh, there was definitely some heavier and more emotional moments, but overall their issues were acknowledged as part of their lives and history and they moved on. It didn't rule their lives, and I can't even begin to describe how refreshing that is in romance.
People like you give people like me a soft place to fall. Otherwise we'd just be cold and hard. That's how I was before I met you.
Andrea was so easy to connect with, and I loved her voice and dry humor. She was brave and intelligent, and I enjoyed her views on life.
Stu....um, perfect bad boy right there. I love a good bad boy with a heart of gold, and Stu was everything you could ever want in that. He suffered from dyslexia, and my heart just goes out to any character that has difficulty reading. He pulled on all my heartstrings!
This opposite attracts romance was fast paced, funny, emotional and addictive. I highly recommend!
Thank you to WordSmith Publicity for my ARC
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