A friend gave me this book after she'd read it. Another friend or relative had labeled it one of the "better" romances of this type. There were things about it that I liked and things about it that I didn't like, and also things that I think the author chose to do to advance the story and/or keep it within the page limit.

Mindy was an interesting character. I'm still not sure if some of her behavior was due to her age, due to her upbringing, due to the loss of her mother/compensation by her father, or due to an as yet undiagnosed special need. Some of her behavior seems normal to me: wanting a puppy, enjoying parties etc. But she also has major meltdowns that I'm not sure from where they stem.

Sam: well, he does dismiss a client for sexually harassing a teen waitress and he stands up for Susan to the manager, but he doesn't discipline the manager (or report it to the other owners) when he fires Susan. (This is one of the instances where I'm not sure the author didn't take liberties with the plot for her own reasons.) He puts up with his former in-laws insulting behaviors toward others. He prefers things not change--but life throws curveballs at us all. He promised either his wife or his in-laws (or both) that he'd find someone like Marie (the dead wife) to raise Mindy. At long last, he realizes that much of Marie's behaviors stemmed from insecurity and how that insecurity affected how they raised Mindy.

At least he's not the stereotypical perfect hero boyfriend.

Susan: She claims to be a confirmed bachelorette, but I think she wants a relationship even though she doesn't admit it to herself. Fear of a marriage like the ones her parents had seems to haunt her. She does seem to have a good way with children--being able to distract them when necessary (when tantrums threaten etc.), being able to calm them, being able to relate to them. She's not afraid to speak her mind, but she also often blurts out whatever she's thinking without any filter.

I'm just not sure in reality that the relationship between the two would work if this was real life. But then again, opposites do attract, so what do I know. ( )