Picture Perfect Lie by Marquita Valentine Series: Kings of Castle Beach #1
Published by Selfpublished on March 25, 2018
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 300
Format: eBook
Source: Kindle Freebie
All Campbell Faircloth wanted was a safe place to call home.
All Knight King wanted was to leave his hometown behind.I never expected to end up in Castle Beach, surrounded by a family who believes that I’m not only their brother’s wife, but the mother of his infant daughter.
I can’t tell them the truth—Knight and I met only three days earlier, during a layover in Atlanta.
He was headed out to fight in a war that hardly anyone talked about anymore, and I was headed back home to a family who pretended that I didn’t exist.
He helped me with my baby.
He kept us safe while we slept.
We shared lunch and dinner… and I spilled all my secrets to him.
Then he gave me an address, along with an offer I couldn’t refuse.
***
Six months later he’s back to bury his brother, and my lie is about to be exposed.Only Knight doesn’t say a word.
He goes along with the charade, and each day we spend together, pretending to be husband and wife, it’s getting harder and harder not to believe in our lie.
Could our picture perfect lie turn into a picture perfect forever?
A new element in the latest edition of COYER was buddy reading. I was lucky enough to get Sophia Rose (Delighted Reader) to buddy read with me. We had several books in common on our TBR shelves so we let random.org make the decision for us. Picture Perfect Lie by Marquita Valentine was the winner. And I think it’s safe to say it was a winner of a read for us both. 🙂 Here’s our chat…
Picture Perfect Lie was such a sweet story! I was immediately smitten with Knight when he quickly stepped into help Campbell with her infant daughter, Hazel, while waiting out weather delays and cancellations at an airport. Yes, we later learned this was his thing but it still renewed a little of my faith in humanity that he’d go out of his way for someone in need. What did you think of Knight and his and Campbell’s meeting?
I fell for Knight when his immediate response was not irritation, but sympathy. It didn’t even phase him that there was a fussy baby involved. I’m a marshmallow for men and babies. I did have the stray thought that he was too good to be true, but later we learn that he had his own issues going on. On Campbell’s part, I approve that she hesitated to trust a stranger and especially knowing her past experiences, but she engaged me from the beginning that she set her own pride aside and did what she had to do for Hazel. She didn’t blame Hazel for coming along and complicating her life and she took responsibility for her choices though thankfully she had learned and wouldn’t repeat the past mistakes.
I’m very intrigued with Knight’s family history so I’ll continue the series in hopes of learning more. I also adored the fact MValentine wove together a few of my favorite romance elements – big, tight-knit family, small town, military, and a guy with a baby. It did make me very sad that Campbell’s family was so awful. I couldn’t imagine being in her situation without the support of family. But then Knight’s family swooped in. I liked how they were so accepting of Campbell and Hazel even though Campbell and Knight were perpetuating this lie. I know Campbell felt guilty over the deception but it felt fated that Knight sent her to his family, especially considering all they had endured. How did you feel about the deception and Knight’s family wrapping their arms tightly around Campbell and Hazel?
I am a sucker for a big group of family or friends surrounding a romance pair and loved how Knight’s family had been battered with loss and struggle, but were still that tight-knit family you described.
That deception was a ticklish spot for me, but I think because it wasn’t her own idea and it was doing good on both sides by getting Knight’s mother past her grief and giving Campbell a chance to get her feet under her, that I just went with it. Actually, I had a sneaky suspicion that Knight’s mom had figured it out and thought it a good thing because it might bring Knight home again.
The author didn’t shy away from showing the hardships of being career military. Incidentally, I think that was the first time I’ve ever seen the work of the USO volunteers and facilities highlighted like that. Did you feel the author wrote that element about Knight well?
MValentine certainly did not shy away from illustrating the negatives of being career military but balanced it with positives as well. Not having lived that life, I don’t have a comparison but her descriptions seemed realistic to me. I kinda bet MValentine grew up in a military family or is married to a career military guy. So yes, I did feel she wrote the military aspect of Knight well. And this was definitely the first time I’d seen the work of USO volunteers and facilities written about. I had no idea. It gave me warm fuzzies though.
I appreciated how Knight and Campbell dated via Skype. I think it was rather an ingenious way to get to know each other since Knight was in Kandahar. I adored the fact he felt so certain they were meant to be even if he did let some doubt creep in at times. Obviously I’m a fan of fate and true love. 😉 But it felt genuine. What did you think about Knight and Campbell’s relationship and how it developed?
Yes, the way they started texting and writing emails made me believe they were in it for the long haul before they figured it out. I think I swooned when she was sending pictures of Hazel and Knight was chatting at Hazel on Face Time as well as Cam. The way they were open with each other about their pasts and their current situations made me really see them as a couple even if they were thousands of miles apart.
I was really taken with how Knight’s sister, Quinn, jumped right in to support and help Campbell. I laughed at some of her lame nick names and remarks and her quirky fashion. What did you think of Quinn? Oh and the mysterious guy Tate she was so het up about?
I adored Quinn. She went all out in her support of Campbell and in embracing her and Hazel, bringing them into the fold. Quinn was warm, funny, and I felt like she just knew Campbell and Hazel were special since Knight had sent them…like a twin sense or something. I’m so very curious about Tate and what went down between Quinn and Tate. MValentine dangled that little mystery in front of us, didn’t she? I suppose I’ll have to read the next book to find out. 😉
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
About Brandee @ (un)Conventional Bookworms
Brandee is a mom of 3 and a soon-to-be empty nester. She is also an avid reader, a genre omnivore, and a compulsive one-clicker - but she's in recovery. Besides being a reader, she's also a writer and hopes to divide the vast quantities of spare time she'll soon have between reading and finally publishing her first book.
Oh my gosh! I really want to read this book now!
I had such a good time reading this and chatting about it with you, Brandee. Thanks for asking!
What a fun joint review/buddy read. I read MV many years ago and enjoyed the story. I should take a look at some of her stuff again. THANKS!