Jake, a loner, sets out to study the western birds of Oregon. Unexpectedly, he meets a woman, Delilah, who excites his senses. He'd not wanted any personal relationships because his marriage has recently ended in divorce. Because he did wildlife research, he was rarely home, which created friction in his marriage. He hardly knew his sons, and he wants to get to know his youngest, Matthew. Only eight years old, Matthew feels rejected and alone. His mom doesnÕt want him, and he's not sure his dad does either.

Though not happy about it at first, Jake comes to live with Delilah. Through her persistence and love, he becomes less anti-social and even joins in some of the community events in Burns, the little town he adopts as home during the winter months. Through Delilah's nurturing, Matthew also makes friends and participates with his dad in the events.

The holidays, Halloween through Christmas, make perfect times for Jake to learn the social skills he lacks as a child. But after Christmas, Delilah sees that Jake will never be the man she needs. Both she and Matthew think that Jake will always be a hermit-type person. This fear becomes reality when Jake drives off alone in May to study his beloved plovers.

No one expects Jake to be uncomfortable alone, but he is. He thinks of Delilah and all the good things she did for him and Matthew. He finds it difficult to concentrate on the nesting habits of the plovers. In the end, Jake is reunited with Delilah and lives with her forever.

I found the description of all the characters very believable and realistic. The storyline was well-developed and held my interest even when I wasn't reading it. However, I found quite a few typographical errors which detracted from the story. There were lots of little mistakes scattered throughout.

Since this book was not in the erotica genre, I found that the graphic sex scenes detracted from the story. I think without them the story would have been just as good. Reading these scenes made me question what marriage really is. The sex scenes are numerous and seem overdone, and they edge dangerously close to erotica. The story didn't match the title because it seemed like the sex caused Jake to withdraw from Delilah. Whether that was an intended idea or not, I don't know.

Reviewed By: Julie Thomas-Zucker
© December 2004