Dare to Hold (Dare to Love)

I was expecting sooo much more from this book! A book about and alpha male AND a baby on the way....oh yes please! To me, the actual baby (developing in the womb, of course) was hardly an actual part of the story. Yes, Meg's worries involved the baby and the ex was lurking for this reason, but put Scott and Meg together and I thought there wasn't a baby at all. The only time Scott even touched her stomach to acknowledge the baby's presence was near the end when he didn't want to let her go.

And don't get me started on the sex. Did every scene between these two have to include a romp? I often skimmed these parts b/c I couldn't take it anymore. Let's develop that relationship they wanted so badly first before that need is sated. Oh my!

I've read several other of Carly's books and liked them fairly well. Dare to Hold did not measure up.

From the start I’ve really enjoyed author Carly Phillips Dare series but as time has gone on I find myself more wrapped up in these books and enjoying them even more and in my opinion Dare To Hold is the best book in this series to date. I love that these two met under less than stellar circumstances in the last book and that the sparks were flying off of them even though Scott Dare was there to do a job and Meg Thompson was trying to figure out how her life had gotten so out of hand but most of all I loved that from the minute they met there was trust and they formed a bond that neither one could forget. Characters I would love to call friend, an interesting story of falling in love despite trying not to and of course nosy friends and siblings all make this one stellar story in the Dare series.

I flat out loved Scott Dare (sorry friends, I call dibs)! There’s something about a man who is so confident, so dominate, so alpha yet there’s an underlying sweetness about him that softens all of his maleness and makes you want to snuggle up good and tight. Sure he’s a tad overbearing and yes he has a tendency to act on other people’s behalf without their input but no one is perfect including Scott. He’s also not without some baggage that he know is an issue but he’s just not sure how to let it go and deal with the fact that over time he’s changed and what he wants out of life had changed as well.

I admire Meg Thompson for getting rid of her ex-boyfriend and baby daddy and not being weak and going along with what he thinks he has a right to demand. I love that she is a teacher and she puts the kids in her class and at her school first even when she knows it will be burden on her. I like that she realized she needed to stand on her own two feet and made changes in her life to do what was best for her and her unborn child but more than that I respect that she accepted the help that was offered because she knew it was the right thing to do for her safety.

These two have crazy chemistry and when Scott drives Meg home after he comes to her rescue at a club they decide on one night to get their attraction out of their system but instead find it hard to forget. A week later they become crazy involved in more than one way and the more time they spend together the more it is obvious they are headed into what could be dangerous territory for both of their hearts. I liked that both Scott and Meg were vulnerable but for different reasons, that over time they shared their pasts, their relationship woes, their family woes, and that while there was no denying they both enjoyed their sexy times there was more to their relationship than either one of them cared to admit. That’s not to say there weren’t some moments when they both did or said things that hurt the other or that they both didn’t have moments when they ran scared but they communicated really well and most of all they respected each other to understand what the other needed.

Sometimes characters just jump off the page at you and that’s exactly how I feel about Scott Dare but I also loved that he found someone to help him find that fairytales do come true. A love story between two people adamant about not needing love, but realizing that instead of running… it was time to Dare To Hold on to it and made this my favorite book in Carly Phillip’s Dare series.

Review copy provided for an honest review.

4 stars--DARE TO HOLD is the sixth installment in Carly Phillips’ adult, contemporary Dare to Love romance series focusing on the Dare family siblings and half-siblings. This is police officer Scott Dare, and kindergarten teacher Meg Thompson’s storyline.

SOME BACKGROUND: Patriarch Robert Dare kept secret a second family from his first wife and children. Each storyline will focus on one of the Dare siblings; the relationship between the two families of adult children; and a father who is trying to amend for the sins of the past.

Told from alternating third person points of view, DARE TO HOLD follows the building relationship between Meg and Scott. Meg finds herself in a difficult position-single, pregnant, and an abusive ex bent on destroying her life and the child she now carries. Enter Scott Dare, an over protective, alpha male who will claim Meg as his own-but first he must stop the threat against Meg and her unborn child.

Meg has a habit of falling for the wrong type of men-bad boys with attitude and in this Meg believes she has stumbled back into the same pattern with the likes of Officer Scott Dare. Scott wants to prove to Meg that she is not the sum of her past but their one-night stand leads Meg to believe that old habits die hard. When Meg’s ex becomes more aggressive, Scott takes Meg under his protection, and in doing so, will begin to fall in love when it is the last thing he wants to do.

The likeable, engaging and colorful secondary and supporting characters include some of Meg’s fellow coworkers at school; Olivia and Dylan ( Dare to Touch 5) ): Ian and Riley (Dare to Love 1); Tyler Dare-the owner of Double Down Security, as well as a number of other Dare siblings. Meg’s ex Mike, as well as his long suffering parents Lydia and Walter play an important role in Meg’s future choices.

DARE TO HOLD is an intoxicating and enjoyable storyline; a building romance between two broken people whose past controls the present. There are moments of drama, heartbreak, seduction, romance and love resulting in a happily ever after for another Dare sibling and the woman he loves. Carly Phillips’s Dare to Love series is addicting – she will capture your imagination and your heart.