Giving Chase (The Chase Brothers, Book 1): Chase Brothers Series, Book 1 [Versión Kindle]

I was browsing through Amazon's kindle store when I came across the Chase Brothers. I bought the first two right off the back (one was free so I only paid for one). Once I started this series it was great. I fell in love with each and every Chase brother, their parents, and their significant others. Giving Chase is Maggie and Kyle's story, but starts out with Maggie and Shane. Shane bumps into poor Maggie and starts this book and series, he makes it up to her by taking her out and he seems like a total gentleman, except he forgot to let Maggie know that he had no plans to see her exclusively. Maggie falls for Shane and realized quickly that he is not the man she thought he was, and then Kyle comes in and sweeps her off her feet. You are introduced to all the Chase brothers, their parents, and a future Mrs. Chase. Polly, their mom is one of my favorite characters and you will fall in love with all five feet of her. Maggie has a mom and sister from hell and a stalker ex-boyfriend that was never really her boyfriend (this brings in the action part of the book). This was my favorite book, maybe because it's the first, but I love Maggie and Kyle. This is a must-read series.

I will say that there are some parts that were just like 'really' (as in a little out there and corny)and you'll know it when it comes to it, there's a part like that in all the books.

Chase Brother Series:
Giving Chase: Maggie and Kyle's story
Taking Chase: Cassie and Shane's story
Chased: Olivia and Marc's story
Making Chase: Tate and Matt's story

I read about 2-3 books a week. I love to read and love a juicy romance novel. But how on earth this book got four stars I'll never know. Sure, Maggie is a spunky character but I have no clue why she's first introduced to us as a dowdy school teacher and then turns into a sex kitten almost overnight. Was the author trying to say that the right man brings out something wild? Except she only got brazen with the Chase boys- BOTH OF THEM. Dating Shane then Kyle made her want to dress up. Pretty pathetic message that you can only look good when you're interested in a man. I don't believe for a second that Shane would be ok with his brother poaching Maggie since the theme through the book is that he sort of made a mistake letting her go. Plus, it seems to me that Petal is a small town where everyone knows each other pretty well except, somehow, the Chase boys, who are the hunks of the town, aren't as well known personality wise to Maggie and her friends (even though they all went to school together... Now I don't know about you but I find it odd that crushing on a guy in your small town wouldn't allow you to know someone better- even from afar). The storyline has a lot of holes in it and feels completely contrived. The dialog is forced. Maggie falls for one brother right after another. Her mother and sister are evil but not believable and half the female population in the town look down upon Maggie as not being pretty enough or running with the right circles. I'm not even going to get into the whole stalker storyline because it was a terrible attempt at a catalyst. I found myself asking why I bothered to continue to read this book. I honestly can say I HATED it. Thank god it was free for the Kindle and I didn't waste my money. Now I only wish there was some way I could get the hours spent reading it back!

Maggie has spent her entire life in the shadows of her mother and sister's beauty. Nothing she's ever done has been good enough so she's quit even trying to please her family. Unfortunately, the years of mental abuse have Maggie doubting her own appeal and unable to stand up for herself - until she confronts Shane Chase over his lack of manners.

Kyle Chase has never paid much attention to Maggie. He'd been a few years ahead of her in school and generally goes for the more flamboyant women. He sure notices Maggie when she rakes Shane over the coals, and he can't believe his eyes once he sees her after her friend Liv gives her a make-over. It's just too bad that his brother Shane's also interested in her.

Shane may be the local sheriff, absolutely gorgeous and a member of one of the most prestigious families in Petal, but there's no way Maggie is going to allow him to get away with chiding her when he's the one who backed into her and caused her to spill food on her clothing. What she doesn't realize is that her chastisement of Shane sparks the interest of all of the Chase brothers. The following day Liv gives Maggie a make-over that has the Chase boys sitting up and taking notice. Maggie accepts Shane's apology and even goes out with him a few times but he's still hurting from his ex-fiancé's betrayal and not ready to exclusively date only one woman. Kyle allowed Shane his chance with Maggie. When he blows it and Maggie is once again available, Kyle makes his own interest in her known. While Kyle and Maggie's relationship grows, so does the danger from a third man who believes that Maggie belongs to him.

I absolutely love Lauren Dane's GIVING CHASE! While Kyle and Maggie's relationship is a joy to read about, it's really Maggie's developing self-esteem and the way she finally stands up for herself that had me eagerly devouring the pages. The way she tells off her mother and sister is simply delightful and I wanted to applaud her. The entire Chase family is a marked contrast to Maggie's dysfunctional family but their acceptance quickly wins her over. All the Chase boys are drool worthy and I can't wait to see what happens next in this promising series. Ms. Dane's GIVING CHASE is sure to be a hit with readers everywhere. It's definitely a book you'll want to add to your keeper shelf.

GIVING CHASE is the first book in a four book series entitled CHASE BROTHERS. The stories are each about one of the four small town brothers and the women who will be lucky enough to capture his heart.

Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)