THE CHASE by Erin McCarthy

A Fast Track Novel, Book 4
Publisher: Berkley Sensation
Date published: April 5th, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-425-24014-4
Contemporary Romance
Mass Market Paperback
Reviewed by Dawn
Obtained by Publisher


Kendall Holbrook is determined to make it in the male dominated NASCAR racing circuit. She is determined to win at any cost. What she doesn’t anticipate is being paired up with her rival, Evan Monroe…the one man who made her question her dreams ten years before. She can’t deny they have chemistry off the track but will happen when Kendall has to choose between her heart and her dreams?

Evan Monroe is at the last leg of his career. If he doesn’t accept this racing sponsor, he can kiss his career goodbye. Being paired with Kendall has him tied up in knots. She is still downright aggravating, irritating and so damn sexy, it makes his head spin. Sparks fly and passion goes into overdrive as Kendall and Evan find out if racing for the finish line is more important than listening to their hearts.

First thing I want to mention is that I LOVED the first three books in this series (FLAT-OUT SEXY, HARD AND FAST & HOT FINISH). They were fun, sexy and quite enjoyable. I was eager to read the fourth book and when I started it, I was totally confused. THE CHASE feels like a totally different book than the first three. The writing was stilted, characters were one-dimensional and there were a few plot twists that had me scratching my head in disbelief. I know this author can do much better and wondered as I struggled to finish this story, where did my favorite author go?

THE CHASE has two former flames racing for the same team and I would have loved to see how this was a conflict for them & what went on behind the scenes. The relationship with former characters in the first books was glossed over and felt like it was story filler. Plus there were so many sex scenes it felt like that was the entire story (sex, fight, make up sex, etc). I know Ms. McCarthy can write wonderful stories and sad to say, THE CHASE isn’t one of them.

If you are looking to see how Evan and Kendall’s story plays out, I would recommend asking for this at your local library instead of buying it. It just isn’t worth the money to shell out at a bookstore. I was disappointed in this latest edition in the NASCAR series but am optimistic this was just a one-time issue for this author. I am hopeful the next story will be much better than this one.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.