Originally Published: 10-24-2020
Closer to You is the 3rd book in the Cousins part of the Callaway Series by Barbara Freethy!! So book 3 in the Callaway Cousins and book 11 in the Callaways Series! I know, confusing!
Please also know that on Amazon, this book is book 4 instead of book 3.
Book Details
This is Ian Callaway’s story. He’s the genius/scientist in the family and the one that’s most closed off, personality wise.
He’s also the older bro to Mia and Kate.
This story takes place in San Francisco as well as Tahoe, where a science conference takes place.
There he meets up with Grace O’Malley, daughter to Seamus Donelan, another scientist.
This story takes us onto another adventure/mystery that needs to be solved.
And this time it’s Ian’s turn to solve that mystery.
Ian is the odd man out in his family. He’s the brainiac/scientist/genius instead of being a firefighter like all the others. So that makes him a different personality than his brothers and cousins.
I found several book covers for this books, all way too similar, but different. And while this book is a full length novel with only 290 pages in the hardcover, there’s no cliff-hanger to worry about.
There’re a couple of sexy scenes with details to watch out for.
This book is classified as a contemporary romance.
Book Summary
Closer to You takes the same pattern of storyline and gives it a fun spin!!
Ian gets a package from a mentor, and fellow scientist, and is asked to take it to his daughter, Grace who’s living in Tahoe.
Ian’s already heading there for a conference, so it’s not a big deal.
But when he sees Grace O’Malley, a difference side of him comes to life.
This one then has a “gets stuck in a snowstorm” feel to it as well.
Grace O’Malley is the estranged daughter of the mentor that Ian visited while he visited his family in Ireland (that happens in book 2.5 or 3, depending on where you look).
Seamus desperately wanted to give his daughter a gift and he know that he would need to go the round-about way to get it there because she refused to speak to him.
So Ian’s tasked with taking it to her.
And he drops it off at her house in Tahoe, right before a snow storm hits them and strands them together.
Meanwhile, Grace, a elementary school teacher, is taking care of her friend’s son as she was called away frantically to go to her husband who’s been injured while serving his country.
So Grace is dealing with the questions of a small boy who’s wondering about his father and mother and if they’re ever going to come back home.
And then Ian shows up and it brings in a whole lot of other things.
Ian, being a scientist like her father, brings in a whole lot of insecurities and issues that Grace had as a child. Especially the anger at her father for choosing science instead of the family when she was a child.
You see, her mother left her father after years of fighting and Seamus choosing his career instead of his family. And moved them from Ireland to San Francisco. A huge change and a powerful impact on who Grace became.
So she has a ton of anger all built up and takes some of it out on Ian. She also doesn’t really want to have anything to do with Ian but when he’s stuck with him for a night, she knows she needs to be civil.
And then as they get to know each other and things that keep happening keep bringing them back together, she realizes that he’s nothing like her father. And he sees that he needs to have a life too, outside of his work.
As they spend more time together, they fall in love. And yes, it has a happily ever after ending!
Conclusion
This is a fun story, an intense suspense story that’s riveting and entertaining. The story was more about the mystery than about the romance, even tho the romance was a huge part too.
The characters were engaging and enjoyable. Yes, this story followed the same pattern, as the majority of this series, but it was still a great addition to the series.
Now Freethy did tie this story into the series with realistic scenes and interactions with the other characters, like seeing miracles that can happen at Christmas and that family is everything!
It’s a great addition to the Callaways Series! And in this case, a great continuation to the cousins in the bunch!!
