Wholehearted

After being utterly entranced with book one in Cate Ashwood's 'Hope Cove' series, it was no wonder that I was excited to jump back into this little town in Maine. I really fell in love with Hope Cove, and its sense of unity and family. The people seem to care for one another, and I liked the small-town rhythms.
Declan hasn't lived in Hope Cove for very long, but he's fallen in love with it. He moved there from Austin, and he still hasn't gotten over what happened to him in the police force there. It's why the only two people who know he's gay are Mack and Oliver. When Declan answers a call and finds Lucas practically dead on the end of the pier, with the word FAG scrawled in his blood next to him, it trips all of Declan's protective and caring instincts. Not to mention, Lucas is beautiful. Too bad he's a bit of a brat with a major chip on his shoulder when he wakes up.
Lucas can't believe this guy he wakes up to in the hospital. Nobody is this nice and good. Certainly not anyone Lucas has ever known before. Lucas left home as soon as he could, not having much in common with his family, and certainly never telling them he was gay. He's been working on the fishing boats, most recently a lobster boat, where he was brutally assaulted by five other guys for being gay. Lucas just wants to forget about it and move on. He's been adamant from day one that he didn't want to press charges. Unfortunately, in an assault as severe as Lucas's, he doesn't get to decide whether to press charges or not, the State of Maine does.
This was another fun escape to a lovely little town I've grown to love. I wasn't as enamored over Declan and Lucas's story as I was with Mack and Oliver. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it, I did. There was a little too much insta for me, although if you enjoy that, then you'll love this book. It definitely qualifies as a sweet romance with a little drama and a lovely ending. Now I'm looking forward to the next book.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews

This is the second book of the Hope Cove trilogy but can be read as a stand alone since the main characters resolve their relationship and have their HEA. However, the secondary characters are so good that I’ve already bought and read the third one.
This one didn’t have the intensity I expected from the blurb and I didn’t feel strong emotions for these characters. That could be because I loved the first book so much that it raised my expectations too high. I did enjoy this one and don’t regret buying it.