Review of Baby It's Cold Outside by Addison Fox

Published:  Nov. 2011

     I first picked up Baby It's Cold Outside because it is set in Alaska.  I'm obsessed with Alaska lately because I believe I need to be an Alaskan Mob Princess.  I don't actually want to do any mob-type stuff; I just like the name.  I digress.  BICO was more than the setting and more than the cheesy quick read that I guessed it would be.

(Blurb from Goodreads.com)   After a frantic call, Sloan McKinley travels to the heart of the Alaskan wilderness to be there for her best friend, who's just inherited property in the small town of Indigo. The last thing she expects is to be lured by the town's matriarchs into their annual contest to get their grandsons married off.

But Sloan can't deny the appeal of the rugged local men-Walker Montgomery in particular. Soon she finds herself falling in love with the wild outdoors...and with one of Indigo's most beloved residents. There's just one question that remains: is the town's most confirmed bachelor ready to get caught?

     I enjoyed the friendship that Sloan and Grier have and the new friendship they form with Avery, the hotel worker who seems to be so much more.  I really enjoyed the tension between Grier and Mick and I'm looking forward to the series installment about Avery.  She is smart, nice, and capable, but she lets her past keep her stagnate.  I want to know more about her.   I also want to know more about Grier and why/how she ended up in Alaska.  Why not contest the will from New York? 


     I didn't love Sloan as the protagonist.  I found her to be a bit...unbelievable.  I don't know why a girl that freely tells men off in the beginning of the novel would then put up with the antics of Walker.  I didn't understand that attraction or why she would continue to return to him for more drama.  Without giving away the ending, he does have some redeeming qualities, but it took much too long to see them.  I felt like Sloan knew something more about him that I didn't get to see.  There was a lot of sexual and emotional tension between Sloan and Walker that wasn't based on any interactions that I saw in the novel.  He has baggage, as we all do, but I didn't find myself caring about his baggage.  Sloan does have a lot of baggage, but I wanted to know more about hers and I wanted to see her work that out before turning to a man that may or may not be a nice person.  


     The people living in Indigo are quite fun.  I liked the grandmothers and the quirky men of Indigo that sweetly long for love.  I enjoyed the brief descriptions of the Alaskan setting and the contest, which I would normally find annoying, didn't take up too much of the plot.  It was a background for other more interesting situations.  That was a smart decision. Overall, I enjoyed Ms Fox's novel and I will be ready to read the next book in the Alaskan Nights series.
  
3 1/2 of 5 Stars