Just One Look

Escape to New Zealand, Book 14

By: Rosalind James

Narrated by: Emma Wilder

Length: 19 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Luka Darkovic has some tackling skills. He hadn’t planned on using them to bring down a runaway dog the size of a Shetland pony, especially not when his neck is already buggered. At 33, a rugby forward protects his vertebrae.... He’s even less happy when the dog’s incompetent owner turns up in his hospital cubicle the next day with a plan to fix those vertebrae. He prefers his life simple and his neurosurgeons drama-free. And definitely less distracting.

Dr. Elizabeth Wolcott just needs a reboot. Or possibly a life. The last place she intended to look for it was New Zealand, site of her most humiliating adolescent moments, yet here she is. As for adding more humiliating moments? No, thank you. She’s already responsible for the world’s biggest, hairiest, and least obedient dog. She’s not even going to think about a rugby star with a broken nose and a face that crumples when he smiles, not to mention too many supermodels in his past. She is disciplined. She is professional. Also, she is realistic.

Did she mention that he was the love of her adorable blonde stepsister’s life?

©2021 Rosalind James (P)2021 Rosalind James

Better and better

James’ books just keep getting better and better. Her Escape to New Zealand series started out as more traditional Harlequin-type romances -still well written- but she has grown phenomenally.
Her books have excellent characterization - their flaws and complications make them interesting and she can write about them and their stories with a degree of emotional intelligence that is incredibly satisfying. I really love reading a series that links characters from book to book and James excels at this, too. The main linking thread in this series is the men are NZ rugby players but do NOT look for RomCom fluff or stories manufactured around current social issues - Triple Yay!

Wilder is an excellent narrator and is just perfect for this series. It’s like the book and narrator reflect and amplify off each other in a wonderfully magical way.
Can’t recommend this enough. Be prepared to go on a 19 hour marathon because you won’t want to stop.

So Good

Whenever I see that Rosalind James has a new book being released, I know that I'm in for a treat. Add Emma Wilder's narration and it's the icing on the cake. As with all of Rosalind's stories, Just One Look took me on a roller coaster ride of emotions. I smiled, laughed, and cried. Elizabeth and Luka were such endearing characters. I loved how they both blossomed and became more confident as their relationship grew. It was also wonderful seeing couples from previous books, especially Nyree and Marko. What a lovely surprise that turned out to be. As always, Emma's narration was perfection. She brings a story to life and is able to individualize each character so that you always know who is speaking. Wow, what a talent! I anxiously await every story by Rosalind James, but the Escape to New Zealand, New Zealand Ever After, and Portland Devils series are my favorites. Thank you, Rosalind, for giving us such heartwarming and thoughtful stories. Emma, it was a joy to hear that this book was produced by Wilder Audiobooks. I hope you both continue to bless us with your amazing gifts for many more years.

they just keep getting better

This New Zealand story just might my favorite of the series. A woman neurosurgeon who moves to NZ for a "reboot" gets tangled with a champion rugby player and the sparks fly. Emma Wilder is an outstanding narrator as always.

Her Best Yet!

Yes, this is book 14, and it pays to read the others first, but this one is the best. I really needed this book as an escape, and it worked. (health care worker coping with hospital in crisis) I laughed out loud, enjoyed the steamy parts (a little more steamy than her other books), and really enjoyed the character development. Although you always know that the guy is going to get the girl, it wasn't obvious how it was going to end, and both characters had strong and weak points. She does an excellent job of portraying the single minded doctor.

A wonderful story and audiobook!

Another amazing story by Rosalind James. Her characters, Luka and Elizabeth are so wonderfully written, with complicated real lives, that I found their story so engrossing. Rosalind James gives us a two very different characters, both struggling to prove themselves. Elizabeth is an American neurosurgeon who has traveled to New Zealand to work for a year to try to change her life. Luka has played professional rugby for a number of years, and is now facing down the effects of injury on his career. They are both almost hyper-focused on their careers. I found both Elizabeth and Luka to be interesting and compelling characters. I enjoyed watching them meet, awkwardly start a rather steamy relationship, and then begin to rely on each other. Along the way they begin to realize their lives are so much more than what they each had anticipated once they allowed themselves to open their hearts and fall in love.

The reader will meet up with several characters from previous books in the series, which is always a treat. My favorite new supporting character is Webster, Elizabeth's clumsy and lovable dog.

The audiobook version of this story is a wonderful listen! Emma Wilder has to be one of my favorite narrators, because she really brings this story to life for me. I was so immersed in the story while I listen to her narration! I highly recommend both the audio and book versions of this story!

I received a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated for my review, and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

A Favorite

Rosalind James is an excellent author. I have enjoyed reading every one of her books so far. This is one of my favorites. I fell in love with Elizabeth right away. And Luka stole my heart. These two have quite the story. I read the book as well as bought the audiobook. I couldn't wait to listen to it! It's one to enjoy time and time again. I laughed (out loud) and cried (real tears) of both joy and pain. Definitely one of those stories that just absorbs all your attention. It's hard to put down/pause when needed. So good.

Emma Wilder is an excellent narrator. Her performance is emotional and the book rolled like a movie in my head. One of my top favorite narrators.

Luka and Elizabeth

Narrated by Emma Wilder, this is a long one. Over 19 hours! Ms. Wilder does such a good job of getting into the author’s head and expressing her words so well. Five stars for the narration! Below is my original review of the book, in case you want to read that :)

Every book I have read by this author is engaging. She is so expressive! This book is Elizabeth and Luka’s story. Both are highly rated professionals in their own areas. Both have personal issues that create the backbone of the story. For Elizabeth, it is whether she can love or be loved. Learning to give and receive love is so basic, yet so absent in some families. Elizabeth has been described as cold-blooded, so it is with pleasure that we see her evolve. Luka is a big, manly man, yet we see his sensitive side, too. A rugby player coming to the end of his playing career, he is a good citizen and willing to risk it all. These two come together in such a fun way (unexpected, I know, from what I have written so far)! I enjoyed the secondary characters, especially Marko and Nyree. I also loved Webster. This story has it all, including many in-head conversations that explain so much. Ms. James is great at delving into issues and exposing their underbellies, giving backstories and character thoughts straight from her own expansive mind. What a treat to visit inside the author’s head and see how she thinks!

I love this series!

Just one look the 14th book in the escape to new Zealand series is another great story to add to the collection. Although this could be a stand alone book it's so great to see the characters from previous books making appearances. These are 2 people brought together by circumstance and would otherwise not be a match by any means. But together they're able to make each other stronger and accept things they can not change about other people's ideas or expectations. Rosalind always has a way of describing New Zealand so you can actually see it as if you were standing on the coast looking either to the sea or the mountains. I love her books and would definitely recommend it to anyone with more than 5 stars if they had it.
And I'm such a huge fan of Emma Wilder. Her New Zealand accents whether make or female or even child are so amazing and now I'll add the southern American accent to the list. Her interpretations of the story lines are great be it sad or happy or any other kind of emotion she nails it.

The Audio Was Even Better

I really enjoyed the ebook, but the audio version was so dope. Emma Wilde's performance kicked the emotion up to a completely different level. I even heard Elle's southern drawl thrown in a few times. I loved listening to this book. The narration moved easily from male to female America to NZ. I really hated for it to end. I have a few of Rosalind James books on audio, and finishing Just One Look makes me want to go listen to them again.

This book was so emotionally charged. Luka and Elizabeth could be considered "damaged" I suppose. I only saw them as trying to live with the pain and trauma from their pasts.

Their journey wasn't smooth in order for them to get to the level they both had achieved in their professions. Their personal journeys, including the one they took after discovering one another was not smooth either.

This story was not depressing. It had its moments of being sad, of being able to feel the hurt, fear, pain, and anger both Luka and Elizabeth experienced. It also had the moments of peace, joy, happiness, along with the feelings of love, support, and friendship.

Each Rosalind James book I have read has left me feeling connected to the characters, feeling like I was either experiencing their emotions, or at minimum, being able to emphasize with them. The sex scenes always have this underlying sensuality, even when the characters are being a bit more intense.

There are so many romance books being cranked out that "tell" a story. This book makes you "feel" everything that happens on Luka and Elizabeth's ride to their HEA.

"I received a free copy of this audio book in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated for my review, and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinion expressed here is my own.”

Rosalind James continues to deliver

I just listened to Just One Look and getting ready to listen to it again as I loved it so much!

Not the best in this series

This book has all the ingredients of being really good, and most of this series are amazing. Rosalind is one of the best writers in the genre that I have discovered. However I just did not feel the chemistry between Luca and Elizabeth. Both of them had come from disfunctional family backgrounds, however Luca's lifetime of family problems was apparently dealt with in just one family meeting. Elizabeth had more issues and her behaviour was pretty strange at times and sometimes not very likeable, It did not make sense that with such high intelligence, and with a loving grandmother in her life until relatively recently, the question of therapy for her obvious social issues was not raised. However it seems love apparently does conquer all, because with Luca she not only found total acceptance, but also a large and welcoming social group. Which means that her wellbeing now rests entirely on her relationship with Luca, which is not exactly the best solution. I also did not enjoy the flashback moments of Luca in bed, and in love, with a previous girlfriend. Really put a damper on the romantic vibes!

Just Brilliant

Elizabeth and Luka. Both damaged emotionally but such a great story seeing them grow and build a relationship. I was willing them on all the way. Rosalind James writes such wonderful characters. You really get inside their minds and understand their back stories and how they think and feel. I cried quite a few times. The intensity, the sadness and mostly the romance. Emma Wilder does a terrific narration. A fantastic love story which I will listen to again.