A Spot of Trouble: Sidesplitting Enemies-to-Lovers Romantic Comedy (Turtle Beach)

Violet is the proud owner of the only dalmatian on Turtle Beach. That is, until Sam Nash comes to town. Violet and Sam meet and have a kerfuffle based on mistaken dog identity. Violet is also the police chief’s daughter and Sam has just become the fire marshal for the island. Little does he know there’s a huge rivalry between the police and firefighters over the annual softball game. As sparks fly over the sports rivalry, different types of sparks fly between Violet and Sam.

This book is supposed to be loosely inspired by the Disney classic 101 Dalmatians. Although the dogs were certainly lovely and a very sweet part of the plot, the chemistry between the love interests didn’t sparkle in the way it should. The meet-cute seemed bizarrely over the top. Violet accuses Sam of stealing her dog, and rather than try to explain, Sam just stands there and lets the situation escalate to the point Violet calls the cops to arrest the dognapper. Meet-cutes are supposed to be funny and not necessarily realistic, but this opening didn’t make either of them seem particularly endearing. The softball rivalry was another intense source of friction that seemed a little too much.

Overall, this is an extremely light and fluffy read. If the first chapter and the potential dognapping doesn’t put you off, you’re sure to enjoy the story of Violet and Sam and their gorgeous dogs.