Catch of the Day

Maggie is funny. I love Maggie. She has had the worst luck when it comes to love. Now she is pining for a priest! Maggie finally finds a potential suitor and it is the least likely candidate. ( )

Maggie Beaumont is incredibly unlucky in love. Her first serious boyfriend dumped her for another girl without even telling her about it, and for the past year or so she's been carrying a torch for the local priest. Although Maggie has a job she loves (owning and operating the only diner in her tiny town of Gideon's Cove, Maine) and many friends amongst the townspeople, she can't help feeling incredibly lonely at times. In desperation, she agrees to go on several blind dates, but each one is more catastrophic than the last. Just when she's about to give up hope, however, a surprising kiss from an unexpected source makes Maggie think that maybe she's finally met her match.

Once again, Kristan Higgins delivers a fun and fast contemporary romance. I found Maggie instantly likeable despite her flaws -- and she actually does have real flaws, not the "flaws" that chick-lit heroines often have that are actually adorable quirks in disguise. Her obsession with her priestly friend, Father Tim, is a case in point: she knows he's off-limits, but she spends an inordinate amount of time obsessing about him anyway. On the other hand, I didn't get to know and love the taciturn hero, Malone, in the same way. Maggie is utterly bewildered by his behavior for much of the novel, and I can't really blame her. If Higgins had developed his backstory a bit more and given us some insight into his point of view, I would have enjoyed the romance more than I did. But even though I thought the hero was underdeveloped, I still enjoyed this book! I definitely look forward to reading more of Higgins' work in 2013.

Oh, but this was a joy. A standout among Kristan Higgins romances, all of which are arguably charming. But CATCH OF THE DAY just has a little something extra in it. It's hard to pinpoint what, exactly. Is it the setting of Gideon's Cove, which celebrates the eccentricities and tight-knitted community that has been romanticized about American small town culture for forever? Is it Malone and Maggie's atypical romance, which initially smolders, unbeknownst to all, and all of a sudden catches fire? Whatever it is, it carries this whole story so well. I can't wait to return to Gideon's Cove someday. ( )

Kristan Higgins amazes me yet again: I read this cover to cover in one sitting. Maggie and Malone make a very...interesting match. Sometimes I kinda felt sorry for Malone, Maggie has one big personality! I really love the way he handled her.

And really, its about time Maggie falls for him instead of being a lovesick idiot over a priest! The dude was a major flirt though, he should probably tone that down.

Between Maggie tripping all over herself around a man of God, then her crazy interactions with Malone...Kristan Higgins kept me laughing through this entire book. There was also one point when I actually cried a little, Maggie suffered a loss that made me really upset for her.

My laughing and crying aside, I didn't feel quite as connected to this book as I have to a couple of Kristan's other books, but I definitely loved this one and will be re-reading it in the future. ( )

This is the 4th book by Kristan Higgins I've read. Enjoyed this one for the most part, but the story dragged a bit. ( )