Write By Your Side by D. J. Van Oss – Review

Posted September 10, 2017 by Phyllis Helton in Book Reviews / 0 Comments

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Write By Your Side
by D.J. Van Oss

Series: Golden Grove #3
Published by Blue Penny Press
Publication Date September 15th 2017
Genres: Clean Romance
Pages: 292

Synopsis:

It was the story of their lives...

Ellie Chambers had always wanted to be a writer, ever since she could remember. Now she was a successful thriller author, although it had come at a price. Two prices, actually. The first was the fallout from a hastily-signed (and horrible) contract with Margo Rollings, the Publisher Who Wouldn't Die. And the second was Sam Price, her former writing partner and almost-fiance.

Sam Price had dreamed of being the next Hemingway, not the hack ghost writer behind the popular "Lottie Long" cozy mystery series. But days spent with his dad as a sought-after finish carpenter in quaint Golden Grove, Iowa gave him little time for much else. And now an unforeseen catastrophe in the form of Margo Rollings, his former publisher, has left him with the ultimate lose-lose proposition: Write another book with Ellie or face a ruined career.

Can Ellie and Sam put aside their differences in order to save their careers? Or is there something even more important between them worth saving?

I would like to thank Author for giving me this copy of the book. This gift did not influence my opinion or review.

Also in this series: Call It Chemistry: A Golden Grove Series Small Town Sweet Romance

I have to confess that many second chance romances drive me crazy. They have some unrealistic plot about how the one crushed the heart of the other when they were in high-school and 10 years later (why always 10 years?), they are still deeply in love but unable to forgive. Ugh!

D. J. Van Oss did not do that with this story. Though Sam and Ellie were “almost engaged” before they had their falling out, and though they have spent the past 4 years avoiding each other, the author did a great job in making it all seem realistic and not childish. Kudos to him for that.

I have also read other stories about writers, but never have I learned as much about the writing process as I did here. And in an interesting way that was very natural. I never knew there was such thing as a character thesaurus!

I have come to expect a fun sense of humor in books by this author, and was not disappointed. The story was quite humorous. The idiom wars that Sam and Ellie had, as well as the book ideas they tossed about were great. It had at least a few laugh out loud moments.

The characters of Sam and Ellie had a depth that went well beyond their physical descriptions. I felt like I got to know them, their hopes, dreams and insecurities. The secondary characters were also interesting. The emotions of the characters were expressed in such a way that I felt like I was experiencing them.

All in all, this was great story and one that I can heartily recommend.

About D.J. Van Oss

DJ Van Oss Author

D. J. Van Oss writes sweet and sunny romantic comedies with an emphasis on second chances; kind of like the book version of finding an extra pack of icing for your cinnamon roll. He’s also the author of five humor books under the name Dan Van Oss.

When not writing you can find him working in the yard, walking the dog, or staying up too late watching BBC mysteries while eating honey peanut butter straight out of the jar.

He lives in the country suburbs of Iowa with his wife and three step-daughters. His writing partner is Jack, a pretty-boy golden retriever who grunts when you rub his ears.

Facts about D.J. Van Oss

I played keyboards at a World Series MVP’s wedding.
I once owned a 1939 Chevy. (I like old cars.)
I also design book covers at www.covermint.design.
I recorded a CD of piano solos called “Bedtime Piano”.
Growing up I had pet hermit crabs, gerbils, and newts, all of which got out of their cages.
I’ve lived in all three cities that have a “Tulip Time”. (Pella, IA, Holland, MI, Orange City, IA.)

Why He Writes What He Does

I’ve always loved old romantic comedy movies with Cary Grant, Myrna Loy and the like. The comic timing was perfect, the scenes a little crazy but so well put together, and all without having to go beyond a G rating. I feel there is still a desire for those kinds of quality but clean stories, so that’s what I try to write.

Favorite Book or Character?

It’s always the latest book, isn’t it? ? But I do feel that Write By Your Side flowed the best for me, probably because it features two writers and is set in the fictional Iowa town of Golden Grove. Lot’s of chances for small town flavor.

My Notes

I have read everything that D.J. Van Oss has published so far. His books are consistently very good with a sense of fun and humor sprinkled in (as you can tell from reading what he has in his bio). I can strongly recommend that you give his books a read.

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