Customer Reviews

Touchstone

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

BACK COVER: Leaving her hometown of Mirage, TX, is the hardest decision Rachel Austin has ever made. But after losing her parents, and then her family's home, staying would be too painful. Leaving, though, means saying goodbye to Houston Bookout and the magnificent love they have shared since childhood ... a love that is, for the first time, not enough. Alone in New York City with little more than her breathtaking half-Cherokee beauty, Rachel gets the break of a lifetime. Rocketing to the top of the modeling world, she soon has money and fame beyond her wildest dreams. Life seems perfect-until she discovers that all the attentions cannot erase her lonely longing. Not until she comes close to losing everything can Rachel see what truly matters - and the one thing, the only thing, she really needs ...

If you have read and enjoyed any of Sharon Sala's/Dinah McCall's previous books, you'll love this one, too! Heart-melting romance, gut-clinching emotion, and a hero to die for!

Houston and Rachel have loved each other forever. Then Rachel loses everything that she held dear. Her parents and her home. All of her live she has been poor and now she is homeless. Houston wants her to be his wife and to take care of her but he too is poor and Rachel can't handle that. Rachel leaves with $2000 in her pocket and heads to New York city to be a model she hopes. Well luck is on her side within a few months she is discovered and becomes a successful model. However, there is a fan who is obsessed with her and will do anything to get revenge on her for not noticing him...Now when Rachel had almost lost everything she realizes the only important thing is her love for Houston.. Read the story and see what it takes to gain the trust back of a man Rachel loved and have your heart melt.

I read this book almost without putting it down! The love between the H/H was so deep and complex, and done so well. I felt so completely taken by Rachel and Houston and their efforts to overcome what could have been a total disaster. Her leaving and her accident--his complete devastation at her going and then stepping in to help her thru. What a guy! I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a gripping love story!

Touchstone is an average book to read. There were no surprises and everything was pretty much spelled out as the story went along. Houston and Rachel are luke-warm characters and I couldn't seem to get into what Rachel was all about. Character development was at a minimum in this book, with Rachel being cast as the stereotypical, self-absorbed person. This selfishness was too blatant to garner much sympathy from the reader. She lives her life under the premise of: life-has-been-so-hard-on-me-and-you-are-the-only-good-thing -that-happened-to-me-so-I-am-leaving-you, and that logic escapes me.

Literary-wise, everything that happens seems to be just the next step to further the plot. There were very few extraneous events, and those that do happen, come across as wholly unrealistic and contrived. The choices that Rachel makes would land her in jail, or homeless somewhere. With no money, no job, no portfolio, no apartment, and no friends, she would never survive more than a few days in New York City. The circumstances that she finds herself in stretch the realm of credibility a little too far.

Unlike other criticisms that I've heard about this book, I like the time we spend in the villain's point of view. Psychology is not my strong point, so I do not know how accurate the ideas, thoughts and actions of this person were, but they added spice to the story and kept my interest keen. What is this person going to do, and why are they thinking that way? Once again, though I liked some of the characters, and the plot had some redeeming factors, overall, I felt that everything which happened was a little too convenient and a little too unrealistic to be a great read.

Touchstone is one of those romances that grabs you by the emotions and won't let go. I read all 400 pages in one day--it was that good. The hero, Houstin, was strong and caring. The heroine, though confused, wasn't "too stupid to live." The reader understood her problems. The only part I disliked was the amount of time spent in the villain's point of view, because he was extremely deranged. Great story!

Dinah McCall is one of those authors you MUST have on your readers list. You just know sight unseen and reviews unread that you will be buying a book that will fulfill all those reasons you read. Be assured that Touchstone is one h--- of a satisfying read as Rachel, the heroine makes it safely to New York where she found and fortune and a man who became obsessed with her beauty.

I have read all of Sharon Sala's books and eagerly await the
next. The characters are real and I love the strong will of
some of the female characters. You can't go wrong with these
books. There are not too many books I will reread. These are
in the privileged class of books I hang onto.