5 Star Review of Lean on Me by Nicola Haken
Anyone for a Pot Noodle?
This is the third book from the Take My Hand series (a firm favorite of mine!) and quite unusually focuses on the story of the supporting characters from the first two Take My Hand books, Rachel and Jared. These quirky and colourful (!) characters feature a lot in the first two books and I was already charmed by both of them before reading this! You wouldn’t believe my short lived disappointment when I realized I’d have to wait to find out what happens to Emily and Dexter. However my reflex reaction on reading the synopsis was stuff them for now, lets have us some Rachel and Jared.
Their story comes at a cleverly placed break in the main story of Dexter and Emily, when the main two characters disappear to America. At the end of Hold on Tight I was left with a certain curiosity as to what had been happening back in London whilst Emily and Dexter were absent. In many series, the secondary characters usually have a nice spin off book or series themselves but that is usually introduced after the main characters get their HEA! But that’s where I LOVED Nicola’s thinking! Rachel and Jared’s story is perfectly placed in the series and after finishing the book you are effectively left with two cliffhangers and two contemporaneous stories, neither of which are effectively fully finished! Book Four has a lot to live up to! I think this is a brilliant concept and a refreshing change for me as a reader!
Their characters developed slowly but wonderfully through the book and although a few surreptitious hints in Hold on Tight suggested things were developing back in London, no one could prepare you for just what was in store for these two.
I love Rachel, the wild potty mouthed, tattooed bird in a wheelchair. I have a feeling if I were to ever meet her in the street I would totally not see the wheelchair but be amazed at the person it holds! Refreshingly, unlike many other female book leads, she was far from emotionally scarred or disturbed. I wholeheartedly admire her determination to be as normal as possible and I think this is what endeared me to her in the first place. Emily had been her rock for so long but she was unwilling to allow her life to change in her absence! Her wit and guile had me in stitches in parts but I also felt a deep connection with her and her emotions in the less happy moments too. She may come across as a hard hot-headed alpha female but not too far underneath the hard exterior she was a living breathing feeling human being too. And yes I did cry with her on an odd occasion too! Her grit and resolve to be independent despite her challenges amazed me and I feel that she again was such a refreshing change from the sometimes utterly annoying indecisive angst ridden female leads out there! And she likes pot noodles too! Rock on Rach!
Jared too develops from the cocky womanizer he is in the first two books. The essence of this book delves into the fact that he has been hiding a secret from everyone that in fact fully explains him and his behavior. Again his secret isn’t some deep dark angst ridden psychological cause but in essence quite a heartrending reason. When I fully understood why he is like he is my heart melted and I forgave him pretty instantly for being him!
I also loved Cindy the new “girl on the block” too! Hope she features again in this series ☺ – I won’t spoil it but you definitely need to read it just to find out more!!
It has been quite a while since I have enjoyed reading a book as much as this and the story isn’t a smooth mushy road of happiness and flowers (although there are a few of those too!) but an emotional journey of discovery and acceptance. Rachel and Jared can learn a lot from each other and I look forward to their reunion with Dexter and Emily in Book Four!
Bring it on!
Five AMAZING STARS!
