I have not read a lot of books with hiking Mount Everest as a focal plotline focus. So when I read the blurb for Completely, I had to download it. Since I had read Madly, I figured that Completely would be good. Add in the Mount Everest angle, and I felt that the book would be gold. Saying that I was disappointed was an understatement.

The plotline of the book was OK. I felt that the book lost steam about halfway through. Everything up to the middle of the book was great. Rosemary’s enthusiasm for hiking Mount Everest came off the pages. That enthusiasm was carried even through the disaster that killed Rosemary’s friends. Then she and Kal slept together and bam, the book lost steam. It seemed to falter when they were in NYC and were trying to figure out what they had. It did pick back up when Rosemary got the go ahead to interview on Kal’s mother.

While this book is a romance, it didn’t come across as that to me until the end. Both characters were lukewarm with each other. They also were second guessing their feelings for each other. That drove me crazy when reading. I didn’t see any sort of relationship with them other than friends with benefits until the end of the book. Even then, their relationship came across as forced.

Like I said above, I liked Rosemary’s enthusiasm for scaling Mount Everest. I just wished that she showed that same enthusiasm for her daughter. I was very bothered by the lack of feelings that she seemed to have for her daughter. Her self-exploration in the middle and end of the book was a nice thing to read. Her near scare on Mount Everest gave her the scare that she needed. She should have known that it is impossible to have a pregnancy result within a couple of days of having sex. Even with her periods being out of whack, she should have known that. So taking a pregnancy test so soon afterward was, in my mind, for Kal’s benefit.

Kal was too Zen. I liked that he was laid back but he was almost too laid back. His laid-backness is was almost cost him a relationship with Rosemary. He also felt flat and almost…dull. I don’t know, I can’t explain how I felt when I read his scenes in the book. His scenes with Rosemary were very tepid too.

Like the characters, I felt that the sex was lacking. I didn’t get the connection from it as I do with other books. What I did like is that the author chose to make it not as graphic as some romance novels. The sex scenes were written very well. But I felt that an important connection was missing on my end.

I didn’t have any complaints other than taking the pregnancy test 3 days after having sex.

The end of the book did seem rushed. I felt that the decisions that were made were done on a whim and not thought through. If I had to take stock on fictional characters staying together, I would say that Rosemary and Kal would lead the list. I didn’t get a sense of ever lasting love from them.

3 stars

My Summary of Completely:

I didn’t care for Completely. While I enjoyed the plot, for the most part, I felt that the characters and their romance were tepid. It was that tepidness and the fact that I could not connect with either main character that shaved points off of my review.

Will I reread: No (but I will reread other books by the same author)

Will I recommend to family and friends: No (but I will recommend other books by the same author)

Age range: Adult

Why: Language, sex

I would like to thank Ruthie Knox, Random House, Loveswept, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Completely

All opinions stated in this review of Completely are mine and mine alone

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**

Ruthie Knox is an author I trust. So when the blurb for her upcoming book does not sound like something that I would enjoy, I still don’t even pause before buying it.
Everything about the description of this book screamed not for me and I am so glad that it turned out to be the exact opposite. I loved this book. The characters were not those I had read before. They were complex and interesting and I really liked watching their journey unfold. The story was told at a slower pace but I think it needed to be. To rush it would have been a disservice to the development of the characters.
I could have done without all of the catch up with the characters from past books. I found the tone of those meetings at odds with the rest of the book but I can understand the need to include them.

Completely by Ruthie Knox is an adult romance. Not because it is sexy and sultry. Nor because it features a 39 year-old divorced mom in a relationship with a 32 year-old man. (Although it is all of those things...especially the sexy part.) Rather, it is an adult romance because of its convincing portrayal of self-discovery, self-denial, and self-reinvention. This a romance novel that feels real. It's also real hot.

You don't need to read the rest of Ruthie Knox's New York series to enjoy Completely but you'll recognize it's characters if you do. Rosemary Chamberlain is a divorced almost-baroness who is attempting to climb the highest mountains on each of the seven continents. Kal Beckett is the guide who survives an horrific tragedy on Mount Everest with her. They're strangers who instantly become something more through immense loss. Completely is the story of what they chose to become next.

I liked Madly, but Completely didn't completely win me over. I found Rosemary to be demanding and selfish at times, and frustrating almost the whole time. I did like Kal, especially with him being a different race. And I liked learning more about sherpas. But overall, this book under-delivered compared to the anticipation I had built up knowing the potential of this author.

Ruthie Knox's romances always push the boundaries of the genre a bit, and this is no exception. Some things work for me, others don't as well - but they might for someone else. Most of the plot is traditional: boy meets girl (on Mount Everest, in the aftermath of a deadly avalanche), boy and girl fall in love but seem to have little in common with which to shape a shared life (he's from Nepal, she's British; he's a bit of a drifter, she's driven). Both are unsure of who they are or who they want to be. There are class differences (she's got a lot more money), age differences (she's older), and race differences (she's white, he's brown -- despite the cover which doesn't fit at all!). These differences are handled with intelligence and aren't belabored.

What is a bit belabored is the heavy emphasis on the heroine's Finding Herself. This is key and important in romance, and too many authors neglect the heroine's development, but at times, it felt it a bit forced in this novel (perhaps it stood out for me because so much of Knox's writing is easy and natural). This wasn't my favorite of her books in the NY Trilogy (that would be "Madly" -- I loved the heroine's anger) -- but it's a very good read, and the previous characters are reintroduced in ways that are natural and satisfying.

I’m a fan of Ruthie Knox and this series, but this offering is one I didn’t like as well as the others. Completely is more depressing than either book that went before. I didn’t really like Rosemary. I thought her selfish and self centered. Kal was a nice guy but really not hero material in the romance area. He seemed unfocused in his life and was in love with a woman who bounced from one focus to another. Of course this was well written and the characters drawn very well because Ruthie Knox is a terrific author. You will learn a lot about Sherpas in Nepal and New York City and some about Mt. Everest. I just never could get behind this romantic couple.

Completely is the third book in the New York series by the ever talented Ruthie Knox and one that comes full circle for the series but also because it is an off shoot of her first book, About Last Night (a favorite of mine).

At first, we might get a little disoriented since the book begins on Mount Everest where we find our female protagonist about to proceed in climbing this famous landmark. But circumstances change when an avalanche happens. A traumatic event for Rosemary Chamberlain especially when it could have easily been her who died. Suffering from shock and a numbness that quickly settles she gladly accepts the help of one their guides, Doctor Doom aka Kal Beckett. Kal's entire life has revolved around Everest, his parents are infamous because of it, his adult goals were focused on helping the people of Nepal especially the guides. But one setback after another has extinguished the fire of his dreams. Now he finds himself in a middle of another avalanche that cements the possibility that he can't really help at all. Meeting, the Princess aka Rosemary in this most unusual circumstances, he finds himself in the middle of another dream. But this time it feels like this one isn't going anywhere especially when they get back to real life. But sparks between Rosemary and Kal are quick to burn but so hard to put out, even harder to maintain. Can they find a way to pursue their dreams without giving up each other?

Completely is so aptly titled because Kal and Rosemary's story is not just a romance in the sense that they fall in love and everything falls into place. In fact, falling in love isn't the problem. It's how to live your life as an independent person yet still be together. It's not a topic that elicits romantic feelings but it really is a valid question and this is the whole journey for Rosemary and Kal. The frustration of real life situations but it's the certainty of that love that makes it worthwhile.

For fans of the series, the connection to other characters in previous books was not obvious at first until other characters start appearing. For those just reading Completely as a standalone, don't worry, the other characters won't take over and you won't get lost. Reading the whole series, however, is highly recommended. Truly, Madly and Completely is a definite experience in real life romance.

If you've read my review for Truly and Madly, then you already know how deep my love for this author's writing runs. Ruthie Knox writes stories about love, family and finding yourself, that may not be unique themes, but they will touch every fiber of your being. Completely was no different. Yet again, Ruthie Knox has expertly crafted a story full of love, passion and hope, one that will speak to many romance readers. 

Rosemary Chamberlain is the heroine of Completely. We know her as Winston, hero of Madly's, ex-wife. I initially wasn't sure how to feel about her because from the snippets we got of her in the previous book, we know that she left her relationship with her daughter fractured and ran off on an adventure. But Ruthie Knox does a beautiful job here at building up Rosemary's character with layers and layers of complexity. She makes you understand her thought process and her motivations. All her life, Rosemary has felt like she was in the background, and married to Winston, she further lost her identity. In an attempt to finally do something for herself, she leaves London and armed with a book deal, goes on an adventure climbing a peak on each continent. Her first stop? Big, beautiful but ruthless, Everest. I truly grew to love Rosemary. I liked that she's not your typical heroine - for one, she's older at 39, and secondly, she is much more athletic and goal driven than heroines I've read in the past. Completely might be a romance novel, but it's predominantly the tale of her find her sense of self again, and her trying to figure out how to balance out all the aspects of her life, including motherhood. She's a gorgeously written character, with every emotion of hers emanating off the pages of Completely. You laugh with her. You cry with her. And most importantly, you root for her. 

When a deadly avalanche crashes all her plans, she is left devastated. This is also when she meets the hero, Kal, 7 years her junior. Kal, typical of Ruthie Knox, is another achingly swoony romance hero. He is absolutely wonderful, and fell for him hard. He is dealing with his own family's tragedy and secrets, and trying to figure out his own life as well as trying to find a way to better the lives of the Sherpa. What made Kal stand out to me was his Nepalese culture. I loved learning about the traditions and the way of life of the Sherpa through Kal. Of course, Kal was more than just his culture. He is a man who is wholeheartedly devoted to his family, and he is loyal to the core. Then there was the absolute gentleness and patience towards Rosemary that absolutely slayed me. He becomes her rock in many ways in Completely, and honestly, they both deserved incredible people like each other in their lives. The connection between Rosemary and Kal is unmistakable from the beginning. What grows between two people who find comfort in each other after a devastating experience is a sensual and touching relationship that had me on a romance high. I love the way that Ruthie Knox writes about love. It's effortless, natural, and does not rely on dramatics to make the relationship flow. The bond between Rosemary and Kal will have your heart racing, but also just a little bit green with envy. 

There's a lot more to Completely than the romance between Kal and Rosemary. The whole book is set around the premise of mountain-climbing, which I had never given much thought to before. It was interesting to learn something new, but also quite shocking. While reading the book, I Googled the Sherpa, and other Mount. Everest disasters out of curiosity. It was fascinating and devastating. I also loved the family and friendship dynamics in Completely. I loved that Rosemary was still on good terms with her ex-husband. I also loved how complicated Rosemary's relationship with her daughter, Bea, was. It's definitely a frayed relationship, but over the course of the book, they work their way through the issues. And of course, I adored seeing Kal's family as well. His mother, especially, was so intriguing with her reputation as being the first woman to climb Everest seven times, as well as her heartbreaking life with her husband. Completely is a short book, but it packs a lot, and it's done exceedingly well. 

You know you are completely in love with a book, a series and an author when you want to weep in sadness that you've turned the final page of the final book. The New York trilogy is that series for me. It's full of heart, passion, sensuality and human emotions. Simply put, it's a series about love.

*2.5 stars*

I'm a huge fan of Ruthie Knox and the New York series, so that fact that I didn't love Completely was a big blow.

I feel like the first two books in the series (Truly, Madly) were so strong that the author felt pressure to perform with Completely but couldn't quite deliver. It felt phoned in.

I'll start with what I liked. I really liked that we got a non-white male MC, which is fairly rare in romance. I mean, diversity is becoming a necessity these days, not something you get cookies for, but I still was happy to see it. I also didn't know much (anything) about Sherpa culture or the Sherpa people before this book. I actually thought that being a sherpa was just a job title and didn't know that it actually refers to an ethnic group with their own language (also called Sherpa). Wow, that seriously blew my mind. I spent a good hour on wikipedia in the middle of the story just learning stuff about this group that I've never known about.

I also thought that the book was well-written. Odd to say, considering I didn't quite like the story, but the author really tried, and the language and word usages were lovely.

That being said, I had issues with the story overall.

The pacing was slooooow. Like glacial slow. The book felt much longer than it actually was, and I kept wanting to put it down and pick other stories up. The other stories in the series had a whirlwind feel, and this one just didn't.

I liked the MCs in theory, but I didn't get a great sense of them as a couple and as people. We learn a lot about them, but I didn't love them together. There just felt like something missing, some spark, some oomph. I didn't quite get inside Rosemary's buttoned up exterior and I didn't quite get Kal's lack of direction or focus. A lot of the drama felt manufactured, and the love just wasn't there for me.

It's hard to describe why a book works and why a book doesn't, but this book just didn't give me that fluttery, excited feeling. While the concepts and ideas were fascinating, the execution was just blah for me.

*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*

This is the first book that I have read from this trilogy and after reading it I look forward to reading the other two that come before this one. The author did an amazing job describing the experiences of Rosemary and her climbing; her words made me believe that I could be Rosemary. If you carefully read this book and follow Rosemary, Kal, and Beatrice you realize that there are things hidden deep within this book. I enjoy reading a book and finding an author that makes you really think about what you are reading; hidden meanings are what make a book a treasure. Thank you NetGalley and Ruthie Knox for allowing me to read and review this book.

Completely, is a fantastic book. Completely has so many meaning in this book. I so want to be Rosemary when I grow up. There was never a dull moment between all of the characters.

In a nutshell, I loved this book. I really, really liked the books that came before it in the series, but this one was so different, and the people were just the kind of complicated folks that make life interesting.

I loved the backdrop of climbing Everest, and the information about Nepal and the Sherpas. That's definitely a new slant on books in this genre. And I adored the unconventionality of Kal and Rosemary's life together. Major kudos to Ruthie Knox for this book.

It was fun to revisit the previous characters from earlier books and to get more closure for them too.

Kal and Rosemary are complicated characters with complicated lives. They need to deal with personal goals, family obligations, family devotion, and their love for one another. It's a scary minefield for them to navigate through, and they don't always do it well. They do, however, do it the blundering way people handle their lives and loves. It's not always pretty. When they eventually find their way, it's just right for them. I wish I had more of this book to enjoy, but I read it all up greedily!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC given in exchange for my review.

I'm a little blown away by how much I connected with this story. Not so much the subject of this book, because I have zero interest or knowledge regarding climbing mountains. But the message behind all of this hit me so hard, that at one point I had to walk away and contemplate. We have our heroine, Rosemary, a near 40 year old woman, who spent her entire life being "wallpaper". She just existed in the background, doing all the things a good mother and wife should do, but waiting to be noticed and to be fulfilled. She's divorced and estranged from her daughter, because she finally took the time do something for herself - and that was a mission to scale the tallest mountain on each of the 7 continents. But on her very first journey, tragedy strikes. An avalanche kills many of the people she came to know, and she meets our hero, Kal, who rescues her and takes her under his wing. A connection is formed. But Kal is facing his own demons. He is a Sherpa/Ice Doctor, but he has spent his life vowing to somehow make things better for the Sherpa, who are treated as nothing more than a means to an end, all in the name of financial gain in an area of the world where their biggest source of income is people who come to conquer the mountain. He absolutely hates that people continue to try to conquer the mountain and that lives are oftentimes lost in doing so. He feels that there are only two types of people who climb - megalomaniacs and the broken. Rosemary and Kal form an immediate connection that neither of them can explain, nor can they proceed until their figure their own selves out. So what really hit home with me was Kal's mother, who spent her entire marriage with a man who was hateful and abusive. She spent all those years trying to manage her husband's feelings, to avoid his hate and abuse for both herself and her children. And we have our heroine, Rosemary, who realizes that she deserves to be loved completely, and not just when her decisions and actions meet the expectations of the people in her life. And we have sweet, beautiful, complicated and tortured Kal, who realizes that it's not a decision for him to love Rosemary. That decision is already made. He's always going to love her. He just needs to figure out how to love her completely. Actually they both need to figure out how to love completely.

While this was a good story, Kal and Rosemary didn't make me love them much. The story of the avalanche and other conflict kept me entertained.

Rosemary Chamberlain, Winston’s (Madly‘s hero) ex-wife and mother of his daughter, is living her dream, climbing mountains and conquering peaks. However, when an avalanche is threatening her first conquest, Everest, she’s helped off the mountain by Kalden Beckett, a Sherpa and Ice Doctor (all terms I wasn’t familiar with prior to reading this story, thanks Ruthie).

Rosemary’s home life wasn’t easy. She felt invisible, a decoration, and when she finally broke free, she decided living through all her dreams was paramount to her happiness. She every has a book deal to share he story of climbing the seven highest mountains in the world.

Kal will do everything in his power persuading climbers from peaking Everest. And if he can’t he’ll make sure they’re safe doing so. He has never peaked it, though his mother did. 7 times.

When Kal and Rosemary find themselves alone in such an intense situation, and getting back home – his, Queens NY and hers, her daughter in Manhattan – they get involved hard and fast, yet still live day by day as if it’s their last together.

When trying to get to her daughter, possibly mending their stilted relationship, gaining back her trust and proving her love, Rosemary finds herself in a car with Kal and his mother, trying to get his mother’s Everest story to include in her book. This part of the story I adored. It was engaging, fun, the dynamics between the three real and touching. It completely enthralled me.

On one hand I love the story so much. It’s a crazy unique situation, it was fascinating reading about a new topic I had absolutely no idea about, I really enjoyed Kal and Rosemary, together and alone.

On the other, parts of it didn’t flow well for me. It might have been me not getting a chance to read it in large chunks of time, but I doubt it. I can’t exactly put my finger on it.

Regardless, I enjoyed the book a lot, loved getting an update on the other couples, and felt it was a beautiful closure for the trilogy. Which isn’t to say I wouldn’t appreciate a little future take of them all.

I wasn't sure if I would like this book, as I don't know much about climbing, but I did enjoy it. The characters really learned about each other and bettered each other. I found that I was even interested in the climbing aspect. I look forward to reading more by this author.

For years, Rosemary Chamberlain saw herself as “wallpaper.” Throughout her marriage, she existed to look pretty. To make a good impression. To serve her husband and daughter. And then, one day, she couldn’t do it anymore, so she left. Newly free of her confines, Rosemary decides to do what she’s always wanted -- prepare to climb Mount Everest and the rest of the Seven Summits.

As the book begins, Rosemary, tired, sore, and freezing, has nearly reached the summit of Everest. Her two years of preparations are finally coming to a head as she and her team rest up before making their final ascent. Then the unthinkable happens -- an avalanche rips through the mountain. Helicopters come to evacuate the climbers, but not before several are killed in the disaster.

Rosemary’s plan has been thwarted and the idea of climbing another mountain doesn’t hold as much allure as it used to. Sherpa Kal Beckett is there to pick up the pieces as Rosemary struggles to go back to her normal life after such a frightening and tragic experience. The two share a steamy night -- fueled by emotions and gratitude at simply being alive -- but is their connection real, or just a product of their environment?

Completely was one of my most anticipated reads of 2017. I loved Knox’s Truly and Madly, and though I thought this would be called Deeply (as a child of the 90s, I am very pro-Savage Garden references), I was very excited to read the conclusion of the series. Unfortunately, while Completely can certainly hold its own in the romance genre, it lacks the spark that made me fall in love with Truly and Madly.

The book is fine. That’s really the best word I can think of to describe it. It’s fine. Not great or mind-blowing, but fine. In comparison with the other two books in the trilogy, it felt rushed and underdeveloped. The connection to Wisconsin was tenuous at best and while I liked that we caught up with Allie and May, their inclusion felt a little... out of place.

The thing is, Rosemary has no connection to Wisconsin. She has no connection to the Fredericks family. Seeing May in Allie’s story made sense -- she’s Allie’s sister, after all. Seeing Allie in Rosemary’s story is different. Allie is dating Rosemary’s ex. And while, yes, Winston is the father of Rosemary’s daughter, it seemed odd that Rosemary would still be so connected to him and his family. Although they’ve been divorced for years, Rosemary’s life was still so interwoven with his, to the point that she visited his girlfriend’s mother (in another state!), telephoned her ex-mother-in-law for advice, and stayed in an apartment that he owned. I appreciate that Knox showed exes being civil to each other, but given the fact that their daughter was barely in this book, their constant contact felt weird.

Knox clearly did a lot of research here. I know next to nothing about Mount Everest or even mountain climbing in general, but Rosemary comes across as very well-informed and intelligent. Knox is careful to avoid stereotypes and to portray the Sherpas respectfully while still drawing attention to the risks inherent in their jobs. It really hit me hard when Kal mentioned that the death counts after an avalanche only include the tourists, never the Sherpas.

Another thing I liked was Knox’s focus on strong women. Now, Allie and May were definitely strong women. So is Rosemary, no doubt. Rosemary, along with a group of other women, has decided to climb the Seven Summits -- the tallest mountain on each continent. Kal’s mother, Yangchen Beckett, is a famous climber who has reached the summit of Everest seven times. In the background of the story, Rosemary’s daughter Bea is in the midst of filming a documentary about May and Allie’s mom, Nancy Fredericks, the brains behind Banksy-style artist Justice.

So, the research was great and the focus on strong women was great, but it’s almost like so much effort was put into those two pieces of this book that there wasn’t time left for the actual plot. So much time and energy are put into developing the main conflict of the book -- the politics of Everest -- that the actual story suffered.

The story itself is very repetitive -- Rosemary and Kal have some good sex, then drift apart, then have some more good sex, and repeat. Similarly, Rosemary and Bea fight, go back to being civil, fight some more, and repeat. Though this book isn’t very long, it could have been condensed to half the length had the repetitive scenes been taken out.

In the end, I’m not really sure what to think. Completely has the charming writing style that I’ve come to expect from Knox, but it’s just missing that spark. While it’s still good (and certainly better than many romances I’ve read), it’s definitely the weakest of the trilogy. I finished the book not entirely convinced that Rosemary and Kal would stay together -- sure, there was an attraction, but a deep, lasting love? Hard to say.

Also, a quick note regarding the cover: Kal is Nepalese. He describes himself as brown. The cover model is undeniably white, which really bothers me. I’m not sure who designs the covers, but they clearly could have gotten a more accurate model to portray Kal.

Final rating: ★★★☆☆

I received a free ARC of Completely from Loveswept (via Netgalley) in exchange for my honest review.

I'm a huge fan of Ruthie Knox/Robyn York and this story is a prime example of why. Completely unique story with a premise totally different from anything I've ever read. I liked the immersion into our heroes world/culture/values - and the opposites attract trope. So well done. That said, I'm not sure I could see these two together in real life. She's from a completely different world then him but seems so easily at home wherever she lands. I'm not a big fan of the conveniently 'perfect for every scenario' heroine - though I liked her anyway. I think this is a wonderful series & overall it gets and A from me. But this title - and my disconnect from the pairing - is probably a B+.

I have so enjoyed this series from one of my favorite authors. Ruthie Knox writes truly smart romances. This story brings us a woman on the periphery of at least two other of the author's books and brings her very complicated story to life! Rosemary and Kal are perfectly imperfect - an art form that Ms Knox does so well! The writing is intelligent and the wit quick and sharp. I wish this series wasn't ending ... maybe Bea's story in another series?

Overall a good romance with a solid plot. Enjoyed it from start to finish.