Commander in Chief (White House, #2) by Katy Evans
Series: White House Series #2
Published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform on January 5th 2017
Genres: Contemporary
Goodreads

“I don’t want to forget that for a little while, Matt Hamilton — forty-sixth president of the United States — was mine.”

FINAL DECISION:  I love Matt and Charlotte’s story which is incredibly romantic and at times feels like a political fairy tale but the story requires readers to read MR. PRESIDENT first. Necessary reading for those who read MR. PRESIDENT, this book concludes Matt and Charlotte’s story.

THE STORY:  This book begins two months after the events of MR. PRESIDENT.  Charlotte has tried to get over being in love with the President-Elect Matt Hamilton.  She knew when they began their affair that it would not last because Matt is dedicated to the well being of the country (one of the reasons she fell for him) and the assassination of his father has convinced him that he cannot have a relationship while being President.

Two months without Charlotte has made Matt realize that he cannot be without her.  At the same time, Charlotte knows that she doesn’t have the qualities needed in a First Lady.  But Matt is determined to convince her otherwise.

OPINION: I loved the first book in this series MR. PRESIDENT.  This book was not quite as good primarily because I liked the drama of Matt and Charlotte just falling in love.  In this book, the two of them have to decide what sacrifices they are willing to make to be together.

Both Charlotte and Matt have trepidation in actually committing to their relationship.  For Matt, it means possibly reliving the mistakes of his father who had been president himself, at times ignored his own family and ended up assassinated.  For Charlotte, it means being entirely visible to the public, her life and love open to the possible jackals waiting to attack.  She doesn’t know if she is strong enough to be the woman at Matt’s side.

This is the story of two people making their relationship work. There is never any real challenge to these two being in love and wanting to be together.  The question is a real one in the world — is love enough?

Honestly, however, this presidential romance is really more of a fairy tale. The politics, media and public is too accommodating and easy for the characters to navigate.  That doesn’t mean that I didn’t like the book, I certainly did.  But if you are looking at a realistic look at politics surrounding this couple, you won’t find it here.  Instead, this book is a romantic fairy tale.

The romance and fairy tale quality of this book is a good contrast to the current politics. I loved the intense and open romanticism of this book.  My only warning comment is that the book really requires the first book in the series (this is more like a part 2 rather than an independent book).

WORTH MENTIONING:  The one phrase I’m never going to be able to forget in this book is “big presidential c**k”.  That tells you want you need to know about the sensibilities of this book, you can make your own determination if this book is for you.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  COMMANDER IN CHIEF is the second book in the White House series.  This book continues the romance between Matt and Charlotte and is intended to be read after the first book.

STAR RATING:  I give this book 4 stars and 4.5 stars for both books together.

NOTE:  I received an ARC of this book in order to provide a review.  I was not required to write a positive review.  All opinions contained herein are my own.