Without Promises

3.5 stars Without Promises is the second standalone book in the ‘Under The Pier’ series by Delancey Stewart. And, even though it is the second book in the series, it’s my first by this author. I have to say, I struggled a little bit as there are some references made that are obviously covered in book 1 (Without Words). Without Promises is about Trent McNeil, a part-time firefighter/ bar owner, who’s also a trust fund kid and Amy Hodges, a pharmaceutical agent on the cusp of changing careers. They meet at Trent’s bar and he is attracted to her and wants to get to know her better. Amy has a lot of hangups from her past. Trust being one of them. She agrees after some little persuasion to have a no commitment fling for summer before she knuckles down and starts med school. But what started as a fling so became more… a lot more. While I liked the story well enough, I didn’t love it. The characters were good, but not great, they felt a little stilted at times. Trent especially. Yes, he was super sexy… eventually, when the story called for it. He was supposed to be this big alpha man, but he came off as a bit wishy-washy to me with no backbone to stand up to his overbearing and interfering mother. Amy’s future seemed to be set out for her, but with money worries, she didn’t appear to be as ready as she should be. Her head wasn’t truly in the game. I guess you could say I didn’t connect with the characters or the story. It all just lacked lustre for me, so maybe that’s why it felt like the author was writing the story to a set timescale for when certain things should happen, i.e, the first kiss, first time they had sex. And for a story about a fling that was supposed to be ‘all about the sex’, it took its time happening. Yes, there was more to it, and the characters but it just didn’t gel for me and that makes me sad. Maybe once I’ve read the first book in this series and came back to this one I’ll feel differently.

This was an enjoyable read. As with other books I've read by this author I really enjoyed the writing style, character development, and story pace. The biggest difference with this book is the characters. I liked them but I didn't love them. Trent comes across as this strong alpha firefighting bartender but when it comes to his family he has no backbone. Amy is a woman with a plan but she seems to lack the self confidence to pull it off. Still I found I enjoyed the overall story and I couldn't help but cheer for Trent and Amy to find their way. I would recommend this one.