The Maui Effect by Sara Ackerman
The Maui Effect by Sara Ackerman
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.75 Liked it
Probably spoilers, so sorry.
In my experience, men named Dane tend to be the bad guy in romances. The most recent was Dane in The Unhoneymooners (yuck!) so I wasn’t sure what to expect with this Dane. Thankfully he was not that kind of Dane, (at least for the majority of this book).
Dane is a mega superstar big wave surfer and Iwa is an ecoactivist working to protect a waterfall from an eco-resort. Instant attraction pushes them together and they both have to work through grief and loss to find a way to each other.
I ended up listening to this one on audiobook which I probably liked better than a physical copy because of the Hawaiian word pronunciations. The narrator did a great job and thankfully did not do the “man” voice when speaking from Dane’s perspective.
What I Loved:
Descriptions of the forest and the big waves (since I have never seen either in person)
Their passions for their respective jobs
Iwa and Dane had a sweet tender relationship
Dane’s recovery with his mom
What I Didn’t Love:
I know Dane had to work through some stuff, but he was a real peach emoji at certain points in this book
I kept waiting for the big accident and I wasn’t disappointed
I wish the author’s acknowledgment was at the beginning as it would have given me more context about surfing and her background
Not too much spice for those who partake, but just right to make a sweet story. Overall, a cute contemporary romance.
Thanks to NetGalley for access to the ARC! All opinions are my own.