Comfort Zone

When I read the summary of this story, it sounded so unique that I knew I needed to try it. There was no danger, no minute to minute suspense, but a genuinely interesting story of a divorced female air conditioning tech, Janet, whose adult daughter is getting married. Janet meets Rich when she repairs his A/C unit not knowing that he is the uncle of her soon to be son-in-law. Rich is a detective whose wife had died and he is slowly coming to terms with a life far different from what he had planned. The story held my interest in the day to day issues that they deal with – her ex-husband, her concern for her job and friends, his work as a detective, and their interest and attraction to each other. A very enjoyable read! I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (by paytonpuppy)

Janet Zwingel is a HVAC tech. She meets Detective Rich Taylor fixing his air conditioner. Her daughter Ashley is engaged to Daniel who is related to Rich. Small world. Rich and Janet develop a friendship. Both have battle scars that they have to work through. One is widowed and the other divorced. I enjoyed this book. It has romance and mystery. I loved the characters in the book especially their fathers. Thank you to NetGalley and Wild Rose Press for the E-ARC. This is my opinion.

Janet's life is right now what she wanted it for so long to be. She owns a house, developed a career, and has some savings in the bank. After a difficult marriage, she values her independent life the most. But then, she meets Rich, a widowed detective, and they start a relationship. Will she have the strength to abandon her independence in exchange for couple happiness?
I liked the description of this book. The characters were unusual, at some point, and they are well developed through the story. There are a few subjects that didn't close up, in my opinion, and I would have loved to read a slower epilogue. But the story goes well overall.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I truly enjoyed reading Comfort Zone by Ellen Parker. The story follows Janet who is a HVAC tech and Rich who is a police detective. They are both in their fifties. Both Janet and Rich are strong characters who have faced heartbreak in their previous relationships. Janet lost her husband to gambling and divorce, and Rich lost his wife to cancer. Different experiences to be sure, but both painful in their own way. I appreciated how the author progressed with Janet and Rich's romance in a realistic fashion and I loved the ending. It was refreshing to read about older characters finding their second chance at love and happy every after. There is also a touch of a mystery included in the book that made the story more interesting. I will be recommending Comfot Zone.

My thanks to Backlit PR, Wild Rose Press, Inc., and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give my unbiased opinion on it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and I am voluntarily reviewing it.

First off I really am giving this 3.5 stars. There were things that I loved about the book (i.e. older protagonist, just really dealing with normal life situations, I LOVED Rich's father!). The biggest pet peeve for me, Janet just didn't communicate as well I would have expected at times.

Janet Zwingel is a HVAC tech while on a call she meets Rich Taylor. His air is down during a St. Louis heat wave. He has things to do and it is his off-duty day. He likes order on his days off. As a police detective, he has enough chaos during working hours. Once his air is fixed and Janet is on her way, through some investigating, he discovers that he coached her daughter along with his while the girls were in high school. In fact, his nephew Daniel, is engaged to her daughter. He will also be seeing her again as she is throwing a party the next day for the couple.

This story has some mystery and intrigue but it is basically just about two people in their 50's who come together after life has dealt them some hard blows. Rich lost his wife to cancer two years ago. Janet divorced her husband, Greg over a decade ago, after his gambling problems got in the way. She craves the independent life that she has built for herself. Rich is just now rebuilding his after going through the grieving process.

As someone who is also in my 50's, it was nice to see two older protagonists getting their second chance at love. Their lives are full but can they include someone else into it? I loved the fact that the book was written in a dual POV format. I could really see and understand the characters so much better. I felt, Janet was more complex. There were scenes where I felt she should have confided with Rich about things that were going on in her professional life when she was getting some "warning" signs. I mean he is a detective. But when their professional lives do cross and things develop and stuff happens, she wants to end their growing friendship. I really couldn't understand that. There were no clear answer given for me.

There were also times when I had to re-read sections as I was totally confused. The conversation between them at times were just something that bounced around and hard to follow.

This is a clean romance with just kissing involved between the two.

This a romance/mystery. This book was okay. It could have been developed better. It was a quick clean read.

This book was a bit different from what I'm used to, a slow-paced mystery and slow-burn romance. A nice change. We get a lot of everyday life scenes.

Janet is an independent and har-working woman, focused on maintaining her normal life full of family and friends. She's not really open to change; although it still happens, inevitably, after she meets Rich and <spoiler>one of her friends dies</spoiler>. Not the usual heroine, she comes off as a bit cold.

Rich is a very caring, but private man. He puts an impenetrable barrier between his personal life and his work as a detective, but that may not always be the best strategist.
You can tell he's trying very hard to rebuild his life after his wive's death.

This book is great for a lazy afternoon.