Originally Published: 10-12-2020
Tender is the Night is the 2nd book in the Cousins part of the Callaway Series by Barbara Freethy!! So book 2 in the Callaway Cousins and book 10 in the Callaways Series! I know, confusing!
Book Details
This is Kate Callaway’s story. She’s cousins to the characters in the first 8 books and sister to Mia in book 9/1.
She’s also twins with Mia, the youngest of Sharon and Tim Callaway. Tim is a younger brother to Jack Callaway, the father of the crew who’re the main characters in the first 8 books.
This story takes place in San Francisco and ends up taking the characters to DC.
Kate is an FBI agent, and only been working for right around a year, so a newbie.
Kate has been stationed in DC and has come back to San Fran for her cousin’s wedding and to help her boss with a cold case.
Devin Scott is an ex-agent turned PI. He left the agency because he couldn’t let the death of his friend and partner go. So he left to be able to focus all his time and energy to finding the perp who killed Samantha.
Kate is assigned to help Devin.
They are like fire and water, constantly bickering and getting into it with each other. Makes for fun and dynamic scenes and dialogue.
There’re a couple of sexy scenes with details to watch out for.
This is the only book cover I was able to find. That’s most likely because this book was published in 2016.
This book is classified as a contemporary romance.
Book Summary
Kate gets assigned to help Devin with the cold case that has left Devin spinning and reeling from the death of his friend and partner.
Devin comes across as crazy and obsessive. He can’t let Sam’s death go unpunished and he doesn’t think they have the right guy.
Kate comes in with fresh eyes and a positive attitude that helps Devin to see things differently.
And as they work the case and the clues that they find, they grow closer together. And as they grow closer, she realizes that he’s a devoted, caring and loyal friend.
As they dig into clues, their lives end up being in danger. And that is a ton of suspenseful and intriguing scenes that gives us twists and turns in the plot line.
And you’ll never guess who the actual perp is. And it’s not revealed until right near the end when a few pieces come together.
Kate and Devin clash and fight and challenge each other until that chemistry turns into passion and sensual scenes that are way too sappy!
And of course, to follow the same pattern as the rest of the series, Kate and Devin have to figure out how to make their relationship work when they live on different sides of the country.
Now the majority of that part is off page, but we do find that they commit to each other and the story does end happy.
Kate and Devin do figure out who killed his partner and they do find that they’re perfect for each other. But as they do that, they work thru each other’s issues and help each other.
Devin is obsessed with this cold case. Kate is controlling! But in the end they fall for each other!
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 the wedding that happened where everyone comes to it!
A great addition to the Callaways Series! And in this case, a great continuation to the cousins in the bunch!!
