Sunset in Central Park by Sarah Morgan

If you’re looking for a sweet summer read, then look no further.  Sarah Morgan’s Sunset in Central Park is the perfect book for the beach.  This book won’t get you on the edge of your seat or keep you guessing about the ending, but it’s a light read and has a really cute relationship between the two characters, Frankie and Matt.

This was my first time reading something by Sarah Morgan.  Unbeknownst to me at the time this is the second book in a romantic series.  I realized a couple pages in that something seemed like it was missing and went to Google to figure out if this was part of Sarah Morgan’s From Manhattan with Love series. Regardless, I didn’t feel that not reading the first novel detracted from Sunset in Central Park in any way.  It only made me curious about the book I had missed and had encouraged me to seek out Sleepless in Manhattan. Morgan did a great job of creating a standalone book within a series, which I always appreciate from authors.

The From Manhattan with Love series follows three young women: Eva, Paige, and Frankie.  Sunset in Central Park is Frankie Cole’s story.  When Frankie was fourteen she watched the devastating collapse of her parent’s marriage and now, over a decade later, she still bears the scars.  Even after watching one of her best friend’s fall in love Frankie still believes love is for the weak and stupid.  Matt Walker, Paige’s brother, has grown up with Frankie and knows all about her hang-ups.  Matt has always had feelings for Frankie, but after uncovering some of her secrets, he discovers that his feelings for her have grown out of control.  Now he has to convince Frankie that love does exist, and that he’s the one for her, before she pushes him away.

There’s no mystery or murders in this novel.  Sunset in Central Park is one of those bare bones romance novels that focuses on nothing more than the relationship between its two characters.  While I usually prefer my romance novels with a little more oomph, there’s something really relaxing about not sweating, or tensing, or stressing out while reading (something that those mystery romance novels tend to make me do). 

The characters are loveable, the dialogue was realistic and quite funny, and the whole story was romantically cliché in the most wonderful way.  The intimate scenes were written really well and definitely heated up the storyline.  I read this book in a matter of hours and enjoyed every minute of the read.  Reading this novel didn’t make me blush, overheat, or cry.  It didn’t push me to the edge of my seat desperate to know what happens next.  It was just a pleasant afternoon read, and sometimes that’s all you need.