Nothing to Lose

Bailey Montgomery has left her home in Chicago to travel to tiny Perry, Illinois to bury her beloved mother, Melissa. Bailey has always loved living in the big city like her father, but her mother longed for her small hometown, where she moved to after she was widowed. Bailey finds herself overwhelmed by the prospect of closing out Melissa’s estate and when Sarah Stevens reveals herself as a close friend of Melissa’s, whom she affectionately called Missy, and offers to help, Bailey reacts badly. Sarah’s brother, Doug Kenny thinks he knows just how to deal with the mean-spirited Bailey, and he goes over to perform some necessary repairs at the ungodly hour of 6:30 a.m.

Bailey soon realizes that she needs to accept whatever help she’s being offered, especially after her Chicago attorney boyfriend Marc Nelson, refuses his aid, pleading his busy schedule. She makes amends with Sarah and Sarah’s daughter, Mandy, who is a great admirer of Bailey’s from listening to Missy’s stories. Mandy agrees to help Bailey pack Missy’s things and a tenuous relationship is formed. Bailey and Doug continue to be at odds, but the simmering sexual tension between them is quickly becoming too strong to ignore. Which one of these strong-willed individuals will decide they have NOTHING TO LOSE and take a chance on love?

Jamie Hill has written an engaging romp of a tale, which is in turns poignant, witty, endearing and hot! From Bailey’s angst and regrets over her relationship with Missy to Bailey’s and Marc’s hot telephone sex, Ms. Hill manages to run the gamut of human emotions in this short but richly detailed tale. Many readers, as well as this reviewer, will have found themselves in points in their lives where their decisions can alter their futures radically and Ms. Hill has done a marvelous job of realistically portraying a slice of real life that will keep the reader engrossed from beginning to end. The sizzling sex scenes are a plus as well! Bailey and Doug are wonderful characters who made this reviewer laugh and angry alternately, depending on their actions. Any characters who can engender strong responses are great ones, and Ms. Hill has penned a pair who are certainly terrific. The secondary characters, especially Sarah and Mandy, are true to life and entertaining as well, and this reviewer could certainly imagine a return to Perry for more stories featuring them in this future. This reviewer highly recommends NOTHING TO LOSE and looks forward to future offerings from Ms. Hill.

November 2006