Wilful Desire: Heart’s Ease Book 5

Victoria
Barbour
Genre: 
Contemporary

The same evening Will Walsh proposes to Mae Mercer, he receives a phone call from his base with the news he’s been accepted to attend an elite Navy school. Mae gets upset over this because it interferes with her wedding plans and  breaks off the engagement, telling Will  that she will only marry him if her father can walk her down the aisle. Mae’s father is ailing and she knows he will die soon — so with these words she tries to make Will stay and marry her. It doesn't work. Will chooses the Navy and doesn’t come back for two years. When he returns home he is determined to woo Mae back and convince her to marry him at last.  

Will and his family are delightful characters and it is enjoyable getting to know them. The story moves along at a nice clip and is a fast read. Mae is a quirky lady with a huge chip on her shoulder for which she blames Will. There is much emotional pushing and pulling between Mae and Will so there is much tension throughout the novel. Mae rehashes why she will never marry and her tirade gets old after a while.  This is not a particularly "feel good" kind of story, but paints an accurate picture of how life in the service can be.  There are several situations that are not believable, however, and this takes away from the initial story. The ending resolves nothing and is somewhat confusing.  The descriptions of the world and characters make this an interesting book to pick up, though, and fans of the Heart's Ease series will enjoy this installment.

Belinda Wilson