ARC Book Review–> Moments in Time #4- Defining Moments by Dori Lavelle

Title and Author: Defining Moments by Dori Lavelle
Print Length: 101 Pages
Series: Moments in Time
Publication Date: 29th August 2014
Language: English
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Book Review:
Melisa has seen too much sadness, felt too much grief and despair and lost hope many times in the past but she has always managed to fight her way back to happiness only for it to be taken away again. Finally married to Heat, her first love, Melisa felt that life had, at last, started showing happiness to her and maybe, just maybe she had overcome all her difficulties but just as she is trying to reconnect to her long lost son and find peace with Heat, her first husband whom she had buried years ago comes back to haunt her. Will Melisa be able to come back unscathed this time or is this event the final straw in pushing her over the edge of despair and hopelessness?

There is so much happening in this book. While you are enchanted by the beauty of the cover which gives the soothing feeling of that first honeymoon and makes us sigh in anticipation of the next holiday that we have planned, the blurb also makes it difficult not to get intrigued by the story.

I have loved all the previous books in the Moments in Time series but without doubt this one is my favorite. While you can read Defining Moments as a standalone, I will advise you to read the books in order so that you are able to know the characters’ history.

The story is new and fresh. Dori throws well calculated and strategic twists and turns that make the reader gasping in surprise and totally invested in the book till the end. Even after finishing the story, I felt like I was still inside the book and could still feel the happiness of a well deserved happily-ever-after that Melisa and Heat got.
Dori’s writing style is simple yet very fresh. She keeps the readers’ interest maintained in the story and also manages to keep us hooked til we have finished the book. It is a record with her that I have had to finish all her books in one sitting! The settings, people and the emotions; all are so admirably and expertly developed and portrayed that everything looks real and I felt like I was right there seeing and feeling everything felt by the characters. I cried, laughed, felt angry and then pissed and finally liberated with Melisa and Heat. I felt angry with Scott first and then sorry for him. Melisa and Scott had a good life which he threw away.

*SPOILER ALERT*

“…She and Scott might not have had a future together,… Maybe he had been wrong. Maybe she hadn’t been the love of his life. What if there was someone out there who would have proved him wrong? Now he would never know…”

Crying and feeling like he had been cheated of a happy life, I also realized the importance of time and trying to live each moment to the fullest. As Melisa thinks,

“Some tragedies couldn’t be stopped, and there was no point wondering about what could have been. They had to take the gift they had been left with…”

The characters in this series have become like family to me. They feel connected to me. I feel their pain, their happiness and their strength to endure all difficulties and yet seek happiness. Kudos to the author for creating such memorable and real characters that will stay with me forever.

I absolutely loved Melisa and Heat. They complement each other and are the perfect partners for each other- understanding, supportive and completely in love with one another. They deserved a happy life together.

*END OF SPOILER*

All in all, this is one of my favorite books and I strongly recommend this series as well as Defining Moments to you. 5 on 5 to it from me and I hope to read more from Dori in the future. She is a talented and promising writer and now on my list of favorite authors. 🙂

I received an ARC from the author and I am very thankful to her. The above review is my honest and unbiased opinion and in no way influenced.

Buy From: Amazon US {Releases 29th August}
*Just 0.99 for a short time!

***Reading order of the “Moments in Time” series****