Rolling in the Deep

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

The first Rebecca Rogers Maher book I read was The Bridge, which completely blew me away with its audacious plot of two would-be suicide victims falling in love. Since then I have been a fan of her work, although sometimes I wish she would move from novellas to novels.

Case in point is Rolling in the Deep, which asks the question, what if you got everything you needed but were afraid to go after everything you want? Holly and Ray split a lottery ticket and win the jackpot, putting their financial problems behind them for good. But Ray still doesn't know if working two jobs until he can get into culinary school is his dream or his late mother's. And Holly is still cowed by her bullying ex-husband, who did a number on her self-esteem. Both Ray and Holly spend a lot of time wondering why they were so lucky when there are millions of other individuals more needy or more deserving. Oh yeah, and they also fall in love. The arc of their romance is predictable but sweet, with a bit of “forbidden love” tossed in when they are legally advised to stay away from each other until the financial windfall is processed.

It was impossible not to like both characters, who are decent individuals trying to do their best under unusual circumstances. Holly's ex-husband was a bit of a cliche, as was her sexually active best friend. But the ex-husband's second wife was surprisingly sympathetic, and Ray's brother deserves his own book (I think it's being published in 2016) about his struggles to raise his two daughters post-divorce.

The ending was abrupt, and I would have liked to read more than a brief epilogue about Holly and Ray's life as they gradually adjusted to their financial security. But it's not a bad thing that Maher always leaves me wanting more.

I received an ARC from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.