Ashley Bowman is having a bad week. Reeling from the death of her beloved grandmother, she returns to the Florida Keys only to learn that a heartless Miami developer has gotten hold of the crappy vacation rentals she calls home. Ashley has one day to clear out before Roman DÃaz destroys the only place in the world that matters to her. Chaining herself to a palm tree in the bulldozers’ path seems like a good way to stop him . . . until she realizes she should’ve brought food and water. And pants. Also, it would help if the evil developer weren’t so ridiculously hot.
The last thing Roman DÃaz needs is some sun-kissed blond protester getting her picture in the newspaper and messing up his plans. He bought the property fair and square, and the resort he wants to build on the site is the key to realizing his highest ambitions. But when a hurricane blows through, Roman has to hustle Ashley to safety if he wants to protect his reputation—and that means giving in to her unreasonable demands.
Roman needs to learn a little compassion, and Ashley’s decided to teach it to him . . . even if she has to drag him all over the Eastern Seaboard to do it.
In Roman Holiday 1: Chained, we meet our main characters. Ashley, has recently lost her grandmother and along with the one person who tied her down to earth the place she had considered her home.Â
Her grandmother sold the vacation rental that Ashley was hoping to inherit one day to a Miami developer named Roman Diaz. And she never told Ashley a thing about that or the sickness that eventually took her life.Â
Without thinking anything through, Ashley chains herself to a tree on the property demanding that Roman stop the destruction of the resort she considers home.Â
Roman isn’t quite sure what to make of Ashley. He’s fought for the things he has in life… his fancy suits, his fancy car and this oceanfront property that will make him … or break him.
I love that Roman and Ashley are on completely different wavelengths … Ashley looks at Roman and sees a mean money grubbing land developer too straight-laced to see beyond what the land that the resort is on is worth. Roman looks at Ashley and sees someone who has never had a care in the world, someone who flits through life without any drive.Â
When these two finally butt heads in person I loved every second of it, and when Roman finally gives in to the demands of Ashley in order to get her off the property it was perfection.Â
Roman Holiday 2: Hitched – In this installment, we join Roman and Ashley shortly after she conned him into giving her a ride to her friends place… only she didn’t specify where her friend lived and Roman didn’t think to ask, so now he’s stuck with her for an extended trip. Hauling her trailer… on his fancy truck. Let’s just say that while this installment is filled with some hijinks, we’re getting to know both Ashley and Roman a bit more. Knox does a wonderful job of giving the reader more information about the characters. They are mostly in their own heads, but you can easily get a good sense of who Roman is. Although he has some secrets to reveal, it is clear he likes order and no emotions. Even his relationship with Carmen isn’t about how he feels for her, it is about the order and structure it provides him in his life.
At the exact opposite end of the spectrum is Ashley, who acts rashly and doesn’t really think things through. Â Ashley lets us see that despite her bravado, she’s actually a bit sensitive to what people feel and think about her. After going through life feeling like no one chooses her, she’s devastated to know that her grandmother quite possibly felt that way as well. But she’s not prepared to give up Sunnyvale.Â
In Roman Holiday 3: Blindsided, Ashley is desperate for a way to get Roman to give up his plans to demolish Sunnyvale and she’s got him completely out of his element now. Roman and Ashley are still at the swamp with her friends. I felt so bad for Roman and believe it or not, this episode only made me like him more. Don’t get me wrong, he needs someone like Ashley around to show him that life doesn’t have to be perfectly controlled and everything in order but by taking him to the swamp, she is basically throwing him right into the deep end of the pool.When Ashley, in her desperation threatens the progress of his project he has no choice but to agree to a crazy road trip with her, because he needs this property to move forward with no hitches… so he can get the things he’s determined to have… Carmen, Heberto and security.Â
Ruthie is doing something wonderfully unique with these novella length stories and I’m so incredibly excited for it. You’re going to want to jump into these as soon as you can because, as she always does, Knox creates unique and captivating characters that will have you frowning in sympathy one minutes and cackling with laughter the next.  She pulls you in, making you care about these people that you just met by adding the simplest of details and giving you snippets of their story. She knows how to get a reader invested in her story.  The unwilling friendship that is blooming between Roman and Ashley is wonderfully paced and we’re definitely enjoying the ride!
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