Also posted on my blog at: http://redhotbluereads.blogspot.com/2014/01/rome-by-jay-crownover-review-and.html 
 Rome is home from his military service and he's not doing so well. He's ticking everyone off with his bad mood. But his life takes a turn when Cora dumps a beer on him, and he ends up at the bar. So begins a new friendship, a sorta-job, and a maybe relationship with Cora who bails him out of a drunken night on the town. 
 I liked how these two started their relationship unsure, rooted in physical attraction, but thinking there was more there between them. Cora's directness meshes well with Rome's sense of integrity and they decide to see if there is more to their relationship than just physical attraction. I liked that Cora had to really make things happen here, and I loved how they accepted their circumstances. 
 Cora is really awesome with how she helps Rome mend, especially when it comes to his family. She's not afraid to take chances, until it comes to telling Rome she loves him. She's still dealing with the pain of a past break up and when her angry words break Rome's heart, everything goes to hell. I love the realism of these scenes. Jay Crownover gets a good emotional head of steam at this point and just keeps building on it. 
 There's a great storyline around the bar and its owner, Brite, bringing things together to a very dramatic and heart wrenching conclusion. Rule and Shaw also play a role in this and I loved having the gang all together, because that's really the draw for me in this series -- the dedicated friendships between the characters. . 
 Overall, a very nice read for me. Loved that some of the conflicts from earlier in the series were resolved. I really like this series. I couldn't put Rome down until I got to the end.