Review: Just My Type by @TaraSivec

May 23, 2019 by · 2 Comments

JUST MY TYPE
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romantic Comedy
Author: Tara Sivec
Release Date: April 25, 2019

A new standalone, romantic comedy from Tara Sivec!

Live in the best small town in the world? Check.
Have the greatest job ever working on my family’s pumpkin farm? Check.
Marry the town pharmacist and have a nice, quiet life with our son? Check-check.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did you say you were happy? LOLOLOLOL!” ~ Life

Ember Hastings never thought she’d be dragged away from White Timber and everything she loved, thrust in the middle of a big city she hated, or have her husband of nine years say, “I can’t do this anymore,” all within the span of three months, yet here she is.

She misses her family, she misses the farm, and she misses having a backbone and caring whether or not the stain on her shirt is chocolate or shit. She works from home doing transcription. Does she really need to shower or leave the house?

Baker Matthews has been bringing everyone down lately with his grouchy attitude. His job is stressful, and sometimes depressing, but he wouldn’t change anything about it. When a glitch with the transcription company he’s using mistakenly sends him notes he wasn’t supposed to see, Baker finds himself laughing out loud for the first time in months.

He’s never met a woman who says whatever she’s thinking and doesn’t fawn all over him when she finds out what he does for a living. Until Ember Hastings comes barreling into his life, calling him Shit Mouth and asking if he has any balls.

But she wants to keep this professional. She made him pinky swear, and you don’t mess around with pinky swears. Baker will have to get creative if he wants to prove to Ember that he’s just her type.

AMAZON

Well, I’m sure if you let your boss stuff his sausage in your omelet, you’ll forget all your troubles,” Brooklyn tells me.
“There will be no sausage stuffing! Stop trying to make sex happen.”

Best. Email. Banter. Of. All. Time.

Seriously. I mean, SERIOUSLY. Y’all! This banter was EVERYTHING.

Whenever I’m in a funk and in need of a guaranteed laugh till I pee myself sort of romcom, I will always reach for a Tara Sivec book. What can I say? The woman always delivers on the raunchy humor, sassy heroines, perfect heroes, and some of the best female positive girlfriend friendships. I love it! And this book was no different.

Ember Hastings thought she had it all, until she lost it all. After a lackluster marriage for which she uproots from her family and beloved home town comes to a screeching end, Ember is left a little lost. She gave everything for the man she thought was the right type for her only to discover that even the seemingly “safe” guys can be a bad bet. Now she’s in a city that she hates, trying to make ends meet as she shares custody of their adorable son. Getting back into the workforce lands her with a transcription job. And then a huge (and most hilarious) tech glitch leads to some even more hilarious email exchanges with a client. And then those email exchanges lead to a meeting and realization that the man that gives her butterflies and makes her laugh over email is just as breath catching in person.

Baker Matthews was one of my absolutely favorite parts of this book. This man. *Swoon* He was perfection. He’s trying to get his gym the ground and gain more exposure. He should be insulted at the notes he sees his transcriptionist had unknowingly included in the file, but he’s only intrigued. A chance email leads to a planned encounter that soon leads to something so much more!

I loved and I mean loved the romance here. Baker is the epitome of a nice guy. This is the type of man you will want to root for. He’s not perfect and he definitely has his own scars, but he’s sweet and caring, and the way that he pursues Ember is sheer swoony perfection. I loved the relationship and banter between him and his sister. I loved the slow burn romance between him and Ember. And I especially loved the way that he develops the most charming relationship with Ember’s son.

There’s also an evil hedgehog, plenty of hilarious moments, and deliciously steamy romance. This book had everything and it had me grinning from beginning to finish. There’s no crazy drama. There’s no stupid misunderstandings. There’s no crazy angst. It was a light-hearted sort of romance with plenty of sizzle that will have you laughing until you cry and totally glued to the pages from cover to cover.

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Review: 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne

January 29, 2019 by · 2 Comments

99 PERCENT MINE
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Sally Thorne
Release Date: January 29, 2019

Crush: a strong and often short-lived infatuation, particularly for someone beyond your reach…

Darcy Barrett has undertaken a global survey of men. She’s travelled the world, and can categorically say that no one measures up to Tom Valeska, whose only flaw is that Darcy’s twin brother Jamie saw him first and claimed him forever as his best friend. Despite Darcy’s best efforts, Tom’s off limits and loyal to her brother, 99%. That’s the problem with finding her dream man at age eight and peaking in her photography career at age twenty—ever since, she’s had to learn to settle for good enough.

When Darcy and Jamie inherit a tumble-down cottage from their grandmother, they’re left with strict instructions to bring it back to its former glory and sell the property. Darcy plans to be in an aisle seat halfway across the ocean as soon as the renovations start, but before she can cut and run, she finds a familiar face on her porch: house-flipper extraordinaire Tom’s arrived, he’s bearing power tools, and he’s single for the first time in almost a decade.

Suddenly Darcy’s considering sticking around to make sure her twin doesn’t ruin the cottage’s inherent magic with his penchant for grey and chrome. She’s definitely not staying because of her new business partner’s tight t-shirts, or that perfect face that’s inspiring her to pick up her camera again. Soon sparks are flying—and it’s not the faulty wiring. It turns out one percent of Tom’s heart might not be enough for Darcy anymore. This time around, she’s switching things up. She’s going to make Tom Valeska 99 percent hers.

AMAZON

If I can just get Tom Valeska to lose his mind over me, I can die happy.

Alright. I have a confession to make before I dive into the review for this book.
*whispers*
I haven’t read The Hating Game yet.
*hides*
*pokes head back up*
Are you still judging me? Because quit it! I bought it immediately when I started this book, ok?! From this author’s magical writing style, I can clearly see what I’ve been missing. But I digress here. What I’m going to be doing, is reviewing my very first Sally Thorne book. And spoiler alert, I adored it!

I’m a scary bitch. He’s a bashful sweetheart with pink cheeks.

Now here’s the thing. Nice guys aren’t usually my thing. And there you go, judging me again. What did I tell you about that? Back to my review, though. So while the bad boy alphas are typically my thing, I couldn’t get enough of Tom Valeska, the alpha male with the beautifully wolfish eyes, sweet tenderness, and understated sexiness. I fell in love with this man through Grace’s eyes. The entire book is in the heroine’s POV, and yet you get such wonderfully developed characters through her eyes.

The first touch of his tongue loosens my knees and I’m grateful that he’s holding me up. I shudder a breath out. He breathes it, changes our angle, exhales it back to me. Air is better from his lungs. Life is better with his kiss. The word mine is now something I need to make him understand.

Darcy is spunky and enigmatic. This is a girl that doesn’t stay in any one place for long. She craves adventure and hasn’t dated any guy seriously. Admittedly, she can come across as brash at times. The way that she almost rabidly lusts after Tom was a touch much at times. She’s loved Tom since they were kids, but the one time she could have had him, her teenage thoughtlessness cost her that chance. And while he’s been as strong a staple in her life as her twin brother, he’s also been engaged to another woman. But now the renovation of her recently passed grandmother’s house that her and her twin inherited bring them together again, she’s not about to waste another opportunity with Tom. Especially since he’s now surprisingly single.

This was a deliciously character driven slow burn of a romance. I loved learning about Tom and seeing him through Darcy’s experience. He’s such a sweetheart that you can’t help but fall completely head over heels for him.

No one else is kissing you anymore,” he tells me in a conversational hush, not breaking our contact. “Your mouth is mine.”

I have to say that only being in Darcy’s head did get a bit exhausting at times. This is a girl that’s always at a ten, and I wanted her to bring it down to an 8 or 7 at times. But there’s also something oddly endearing about her. She loves her friends and she’s completely in love with Tom. I also loved the way that Tom cares for her. I struggled a bit with the relationship she had with her twin brother, but they did win me over in the end.

But one thing is for sure, I fell so hard for this wonderfully quirky and sweet romance. I adored Tom and Darcy together. I adored the friends to lovers trope. I loved their love and couldn’t get enough of it. 99 Percent Mine was a perfectly paced, feel good and lighthearted romance. It was endearingly sassy and swoony. A definite rec for any slow burn lovers out there that love their alphas sweet and their heroines edgy.

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Geri’s Review: Grumpy Fake Boyfriend by Jackie Lau

May 30, 2018 by ·

GRUMPY FAKE BOYFRIEND
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Jackie Lau
Release Date: May 22nd 2018

I’m a pretty simple guy. When I’m not writing a science fiction novel, I’m watching a good movie or reading a book.

Alone. I like my reclusive life.

That is, until my only friend asks for a favor—pretend to be his baby sister’s boyfriend on a couples’ getaway. Her ex is going to be there and she needs me as a buffer.

I should have said no, but Naomi is bubbly, energetic, and beautiful.

She also means everything to her brother.

But now, our fake romance is starting to feel all too real, and I find myself stuck between the promise I made to my friend and risking my heart to the one woman who might actually get me…

 

AMAZON

Grumpy Fake Boyfriend is exactly what I expected—a sweet, low-angst romance with cute banter, and fun, relatable characters.

Will Stafford is the aforementioned grumpy, fake boyfriend who was asked by a dear friend of his to pretend to be his sister’s fake boyfriend for the weekend. Will is many things but he is not a social person at all.

A weekend—a long weekend—with several people I don’t know in a freaking beach house while pretending to be someone’s boyfriend is pretty much the worst thing I could imagine.

But he owes Jeremy big time. So despite his reservations, he agreed to spend time with strangers and pretend to be someone’s boyfriend.

Enter Naomi Kwan. The bubbly, fun, beautiful sister in need of a fake boyfriend. She’s social, and she’s not afraid to put herself out there. A total opposite of Will. But the moment they met, the chemistry between them was undeniable.

We need to figure out our story. How did we meet? How long have we been dating?”

“A month,” I say. “We met through your brother.”

“You’re a writer. I thought you had better imagination than that.”

This was a fun book to read. Mainly because Will’s and Naomi’s inner monologue were a riot. They’re both hilarious. Their banter was cute and despite some personal issues I have with the writing style—first person present tense is not my favorite AT ALL—I was engaged and smiling all the way through. The characters were just so dang fun to read.

Jackie Lau was able to highlight the differences in their personality without feeling like it’s too much of a difference for them to be realistically together. That’s also an issue for me with the opposite attracts trope. Sometimes the two main characters are too much of an opposite that the HEA doesn’t feel believable. That wasn’t a problem here. The author was able to craft Naomi and Will’s personalities and still was able to convince me that they can work together as a couple.

Overall, this was a sweet and fun read. I finished this book with a smile on my face. So if you’re looking for some light, low-angst read, I would recommend this book.

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Geri’s Review: Brooklynaire by Sarina Bowen

February 13, 2018 by ·

BROOKLYNAIRE
Series: Brooklyn Bruisers
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Sarina Bowen
Release Date: February 12, 2018

A sexy new standalone from USA Today bestseller Sarina Bowen.

You’d think a billion dollars, a professional hockey team and a six-bedroom mansion on the Promenade would satisfy a guy. You’d be wrong.

For seven years Rebecca has brightened my office with her wit and her smile. She manages both my hockey team and my sanity.

I don’t know when I started waking in the night, craving her. All I know is that one whiff of her perfume ruins my concentration. And her laugh makes me hard.

When Rebecca gets hurt, I step in to help. It’s what friends do. But what friends don’t do is rip off each others’ clothes for a single, wild night together.

Now she’s avoiding me. She says we’re too different, and it can never happen again. So why can’t we keep our hands off each other?

 

AMAZON | B&N | iBOOKS | KOBO 

I grab a towel off a waiting stack of them and toss it onto the edge. “You can sit and put your feet in.”

She’s wearing a short little knit dress that’s been making me crazy all evening, so it would be easy enough for her to strip off those stockings, sit on the towel, and drop both feet in.

And that’s what she does. She eases one stocking down over a smooth knee and tugs it off.

I don’t want to stand there staring like a middle-school boy. Okay, I do want to. But I don’t want to make her uncomfortable. So I go over to the sound system instead, and I set my phone on the speaker and cue up a really old playlist. One she’ll recognize.

When I turn around again, she’s seated on the towel, both legs hanging down into the churning water. “Ah. Wow.” She looks up at me, her eyes sparkling. “Nice place you got here.”

“Isn’t it?” I toe off my shoes and kick them to the side.

The first song comes on, and it’s a Macklemore tune that we used to play far too often in our first office. Rebecca laughs immediately. “You didn’t! I haven’t heard this playlist in forever. But I’ll bet I still know every transition. Lady Gaga is next.”

“She sure is.”

Rebecca kicks her feet, making a splash. “I have a little confession to make.”

“What’s that?” I loosen my tie and slide the knot out.

“Well…” She grins up at me. “I used to have a crush on you. Back in the early days.”

My hands freeze on the tie silk. “Get out of town. You did not.”

“No, I really did.” Her cheeks are pink. “That first year especially. But you were taken, and you were my boss. Those two things made it pretty easy to tamp down, when you’re a practical girl like me.”

I walk over and drop down beside her, my back to the water, though, because I’m still wearing trousers and socks. “So how does that work, exactly?”

“What?” She gives me a sidelong glance, but then looks away again and won’t meet my eyes.

“How do you stop wanting someone? I’m a practical person, but I don’t see how that makes it any easier. Nothing seems to mute the raging attraction I have for you.”

Her chin turns quickly toward me, and I seize the opportunity to kiss her. And it only takes one kiss—one slide of my lips over hers, and I’m on fire again.

We’re facing opposite directions, so it’s awkward as hell. But I don’t even care. I take greedy sip after greedy sip of her mouth, until she pulls back to stare at me. Her color is high and her eyes are bright and happy. “This is like Twister.”

“It’s better,” I correct. Lady Gaga comes on, just as Becca said she would. “Are we getting into this pool or what?”

Becca kicks a foot in the water. “I’m tempted. But I don’t have a bathing suit.”

“Oh, snap.”

She smiles and shakes her head. “Are you really getting in?”

“We don’t have to.” I’m never going to pressure her.

Her fingers trail across the surface of the bubbling water. “But this is an adventure, right?”

“Right.” I stand up and remove my socks. She’s watching me. And I can’t read her expression. “What?”

“Just wondering what else you’re going to take off.” She smiles.

“Come here.” The order rolls off my tongue.

But Rebecca doesn’t blink. She gets up and turns toward me, curiosity in her eyes.

“You tell me. What am I taking off?”

She puts two hands tentatively on my chest, and I make myself be patient. Everything I ever wanted is on the other side of this moment. I just need us to break through this awkwardness—the “will we or won’t we” tension.

Her fingers find the top button of my shirt. “I’m not getting in the water unless you are.”

That’s a compromise I can live with. I find my lower shirt buttons and work upwards, until we meet in the middle. She pushes the two halves of my shirt apart and runs a hand down my bare chest.

My inner caveman stands up and cheers.

 

I had high expectations for this book because it’s Nate! And Becca! I’ve been waiting for this book since I’ve read the first Brooklyn Bruisers book and Sarina Bowen did not disappoint. I adored this book with all of my heart.

Brooklynaire is a fun, all out swoon-worthy romance with Sarina Bowen’s trademark flair.

Nate and Becca had been in this perpetual will they won’t they sexual tension since the first book in this series. In case you haven’t been keeping up, Becca is the office manager for the Brooklyn Bruisers and Nate is the owner. He also happens to be a tech genius billionaire.

I adored their friendship. The transition from employee to friends and then to lovers was seamless. They shared a history together, and Becca was there from the very beginning of Nate’s company. They went through the usual ups and downs together as well. But one significant event — and this is not a spoiler since it has been revealed in the previous books in the series — stood out and that was the moment when Becca was transferred from Nate’s Manhattan office or basically his inner circle to the Bruisers facility.

To Nate it was self-preservation. To Becca it felt like a demotion, and it was sort shadowed their relationship ever since even though they remain good friends. We finally get to know the reason why this happened and the confrontation that followed was utterly satisfying to me.

Aside from my abnormally high expectation with the romantic aspect of this book, I was also curious about how Ms. Bowen will address the issue of the imbalance of power between these two characters. Nate is the all powerful billionaire and Becca is an assistant. Her livelihood depended not just on her skills but how she deals with people around her. And Nate’s romantic interest in her could potentially have a negative impact on her career and how people would perceive her.

I absolutely liked how the author was able to deal with this very real issue especially in light of the workplace harassment scandals that have now been brought to light. And if you say right now that you don’t want to read anything as controversial or political undertones in your book, then tough! ‘Cause you’re getting it here, and it’s wonderful.

The conflict, the banter, the secondary characters made this book a worthwhile read. I loved Lauren’s cameos. And yes, we do get more hockey talk in this book which is always a bonus. Aaaaand someone or something else gets introduced in this book that OMG made me nerd out so hard. Not only that, it added some comic relief. It was a very clever inclusion, Ms. Bowen. Very clever indeed.

Anyway, read this book, people! It can be read as a standalone yet but I highly recommend reading the first books in the series, just so you can get a feel for how other people sees Nate and Becca.

Sarina Bowen is a USA Today bestselling author of contemporary romance. She lives in Vermont’s Green Mountains with her family, six chickens and too much ski gear and hockey equipment.

In 2016, Sarina became a Rita Award winner! The Romance Writers of America honored HIM by Sarina Bowen & Elle Kennedy with Best Contemporary Romance, Mid-Length.

FACEBOOK | TWITTER | WEBSITE | NEWSLETTER

 

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Blog Tour Review & Excerpt: About that Kiss by Jill Shalvis

February 12, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

ABOUT THAT KISS
Series: Heartbreaker Bay #5
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Jill Shalvis
Release Date:  January 23rd 2018

When love drives you crazy . . .

When sexy Joe Malone never calls after their explosive kiss, Kylie shoves him out of her mind. Until she needs a favor, and it’s a doozy. Something precious to her has been stolen and there’s only one person with unique finder-and-fixer skills that can help—Joe. It means swallowing her pride and somehow trying to avoid the temptation to throttle him—or seduce him.

the best thing to do . . .

No, Joe didn’t call after the kiss. He’s the fun time guy, not the forever guy. And Kylie, after all she’s been through, deserves a good man who will stay. But everything about Kylie makes it damned hard to focus, and though his brain knows what he has to do, his heart isn’t getting the memo.

… is enjoy the ride.

As Kylie and Joe go on the scavenger hunt of their lives, they discover surprising things about each other. Now, the best way for them to get over “that kiss” might just be to replace it with a hundred more.

AMAZON | B&N | iBOOKS

Joe studied her. “I asked you once before, but now I’m going to ask you again. Is there something going

on between you two?”

She tossed up her hands. “Why do you both keep asking me that about each other?”

His eyes narrowed. “I thought nothing was going on.”

“And before today, I could’ve passed a lie detector test on that,” she said.

“What happened today?”

She paused. Not because she had anything to be ashamed of, but because she wasn’t quite sure what had happened.

“Kylie.”

She sighed. “It’s nothing.”

“Try again,” Joe said and gave her the very male universal go on gesture.

She rolled her eyes. “Fine. He . . . finally made a move on me.”

Joe didn’t budge. Not a blink, not a muscle twitch, nothing, but she could’ve popped corn off the electric tension coming off him.

“Describe ‘made a move,’ ” he finally said.

She crossed her arms. “And again, how is this relevant to my case?”

He just gave her that careful stare again and she thought wow, those eyes of his should be registered as a lethal weapon, because she found herself opening her mouth and spilling her guts. “He kissed me.”

“He kissed you.”

“Yeah,” she said. “Do you know that you often repeat what I say?”

“What kind of a kiss?” he asked.

She was momentarily bewildered. “I don’t know. It was a kiss. A normal kiss. A nice kiss.” She cocked her head at him. “How many kinds of kisses are there?”

He just looked at her for a long moment before coming toward her. He backed her to the wall and pressed his big hands on either side of her head.

“There are many kinds of kisses,” he said.

Her breath had backed up in her throat, where her heart had lodged, pounding wildly. “S-s-such as?”

“Such as this one.” And then he leaned in and covered her mouth with his.

At the touch of Joe’s mouth, Kylie’s brain stopped being capable of rational thought. His tongue gave a knee-weakening stroke against hers and she let out a shockingly needy moan as she clutched at him, fisting her hands in the material of his shirt at his chest. Only when he’d thoroughly plundered and pillaged and left her boneless did he lift his head and look into her eyes.

“Wow,” she whispered, fully aware she was still holding on to him like he was a lifeline, but the bones in her legs had liquefied. “I mean . . .” She shook her head. “Wow.”

He nodded. “Yeah. So to be clear, that wasn’t ‘a normal kiss’ or even ‘a nice kiss.’ It was a ‘wow’ kiss. Any questions?”

“Just one,” she said softly. “Can I have another?”

Joe didn’t have to be asked twice. His mouth immediately descended again, his fingers sliding into her hair to change the angle of the kiss to suit him. It was a controlled, alpha thing to do, but she had only one thought—nothing about the usually carefully, purposely leashed Joe was in control at the moment.

And she liked it.

She had no idea how long they went at it because she was in absolute heaven. Who knew that the man could use his preferred silent mode to communicate in a way that she finally approved of?

Only when she was completely breathless and about to strip him down to his birthday suit did she manage to pull back.

“Any more questions?” he asked, also a little bit breathless, which was more than slightly gratifying. Dumbly, she shook her head. His eyes softened and he gently he stroked his thumb over her bottom lip. “And FYI? Gib’s an idiot.”

LANA’S REVIEW

And you kissed me that last time!”
“You were going on about a kiss being nice. But there was nothing nice about that kiss you planted on me in the alley. It was raw and sexy and dirty in the best possible way. You needed to be reminded of that.”
She covered her face. “Oh my God.”
“God had nothing to do with it,” he said smugly.


About That Kiss was everything I had hoped it would be; perfectly swoony with a side of suspense! Jill Shalvis never disappoints. I absolutely adored Joe and Kylie’s story.

Kylie is perfectly quirky and endearing, but a bit of a hermit when it comes to men. An unexpected kiss with the sexy womanizer Joe is not something she’ll soon forget, but she’s trying her hardest. Even though Joe isn’t about to make it easy on her. When a beloved belonging given to her by her late grandfather goes missing, she doesn’t know who else to turn to but Joe. Thus begins a bit of a scavenger hunt with a mystery that’s full of laughs, swoon, and enough chemistry to light up the entire city block.

I’m trying to decide what I want to do with you.”
“What are the options?” he asked.
“Kill you or kiss you.”

I simply loved the two of them together. They were such a fun dynamic of opposites attract. Joe is broody, secretive, and hasn’t given the same woman more than a passing thought before. That is, until Kylie. He has plenty on his plate with demons from the past and a layer of guilt that plagues his present, a father with severe PTSD, and a job that puts him in constant danger. Putting his heart on the line is not something he can do. But he can’t seem to resist the quirky Kylie.

Kylie was so much fun. Between her spine of steel, her disguises on their stakeouts, and her valiant efforts to ignore the chemistry between her and Joe, I couldn’t get enough of her.

The romance is a sizzling slow burn with plenty of laughs thrown in. With a cast of colorful and memorable secondary characters, About That Kiss was a book that put a smile on my face from page one and kept it there until the end. Jill Shalvis is the queen of light hearted romance, and this book was no exception.

GERI’S REVIEW

There are many kinds of kisses,” he said.

Her breath had backed up in her throat, where her heart had lodged, pounding wildly. “S-s-such as?”

“Such as this one.” And then he leaned in and covered her mouth with his.

Image result for hot kiss gif

About that Kiss is another delightful addition to Ms. Shalvis’ Heartbreaker Bay series.

I’ve been looking forward to Joe’s story ever since I found out that Jill is gonna give Archer’s security men stories of their own. And she did not disappoint.

Security expert Joe Malone and woodworker extraordinaire Kylie Masters shared a hot kiss one night, and it suddenly changed everything.

Joe is fine being a bachlor. He doesn’t lack companionship and besides, the extra time he has is better spent taking care of his father and keeping his sister safe. But the moment the kiss with Kylie happened, he couldn’t get her out of his mind.

For Kylie, Joe is way outside her league. And besides, he’s not her type at all. So what if she can’t stop thinking about him or can’t stop fantasizing about kissing him again? She has better things to do with her time, right?

But when Kylie’s precious wooden penguin (the last tangible connection she has from her grandfather), they suddenly find themselves spending time together, hunting for the missing item.

The chemistry between Joe and Kylie is the first thing that really stood to me in this book. It made the book highly addicting and readable.

Both Joe and Kylie have their issues that they both are trying to deal with which makes them all the more interesting characters to me. I’ve always adored Shalvis’ heroines. They’re complex characters and they don’t always do or say the right thing, which I personally loved.

She was an irresistible dichotomy of sweet charm and heart-stopping sexy, and she threw him off guard with every look, be it a smile or a glare. In fact, he kinda liked when she gave him dirty looks, which meant he was seriously losing his shit. And he never lost his shit.”

Then there’s Joe. Ever since he was introduced a couple of books back, Joe has always stood out to me especially with how he is around his sister Molly and the rest of the team. I had high expectations and Jill Shalvis did not disappoint. She gave us a hero that we can swoon over with Joe.

There’s a bit of whodunnit element in this book, which add an interesting layer to it on top of the love story. I enjoyed it. Don’t expect something heavy like a la Nora Roberts or Sandra Brown. This is after all a contemporary romance but it has enough to keep you guessing until the end.

The Heartbreaker Bay series continues to delight in so many ways. I know I say this with every Jill Shalvis book but I CANNOT WAIT for the next book in this series! And Molly and Lucas had sa few “moments” in this book which made me even more for their book, which is UP NEXT!

New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis lives in a small town in the Sierras with her family and far too many assorted quirky characters. Any resemblance to the quirky characters in her books is, um, mostly coincidental.

Look for Jill’s latest, LOST AND FOUND SISTERS on shelves and e-readers now, and get all her bestselling, award-winning books wherever romances are sold.

Visit Jill’s website for a complete book list and daily blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures.

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Geri’s Review: The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory

January 31, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

THE WEDDING DATE
Genre: Contemporary
Author: Jasmine Guillory
Release Date: January 30, 2018

A groomsman and his last-minute guest are about to discover if a fake date can go the distance in a fun and flirty debut novel.

Agreeing to go to a wedding with a guy she gets stuck with in an elevator is something Alexa Monroe wouldn’t normally do. But there’s something about Drew Nichols that’s too hard to resist.

On the eve of his ex’s wedding festivities, Drew is minus a plus one. Until a power outage strands him with the perfect candidate for a fake girlfriend…

After Alexa and Drew have more fun than they ever thought possible, Drew has to fly back to Los Angeles and his job as a pediatric surgeon, and Alexa heads home to Berkeley, where she’s the mayor’s chief of staff. Too bad they can’t stop thinking about the other…

They’re just two high-powered professionals on a collision course toward the long distance dating disaster of the century–or closing the gap between what they think they need and what they truly want…

AMAZON | B&N | KOBO

Alexa Monroe found herself trapped at a hotel elevator with a handsome, charming Drew Nichols. The incident led to a wedding date, a pretend relationship which quickly escalated into something more.

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The Wedding Date charmed me from beginning to end. The best part about this book was easily the heroine! She’s gorgeous and competent as hell but also strong and vulnerable. Alexa Monroe was everything I love in my romance book heroines.

Another element I enjoyed about this book was the development of Alexa and Drew’s relationship. What started out as a disaster (getting stuck at an elevator) became so much more. That’s not to say there wasn’t some awkwardness between them at first because here was and it was charming and cute because you recognize it as part in real life. Loved their chemistry together.

I also loved the fact that both characters are competent at their jobs. Drew is a doctor and Alexa is a mayoral chief of staff. Their careers are part of who they are and I enjoyed reading those parts in the book.

Conflict wise, I thought that it was very well done. Drew and Alexa not only came from different backgrounds, but they also lived in two different cities which was a challenge to say the least. I normally do not like long distance relationships in my romance, but I liked how it was dealt with in this book. Drew and Alexa were very aware of its pitfalls and of course, its rewards. I thought their actions were very real, and it showed the characters’ flaws and redeeming qualities.

The Wedding Date met all my expectations, which I am so grateful for. It’s sweet, charming, lighthearted romance at its best. If you enjoy fake-dating-relationship stories, I highly recommend this book! This is only Miss Guillory’s first book and judging by how much I enjoyed it, I’m looking forward to more books from her in the future.

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Excerpt & Geri’s Review of Maybe This Christmas by Jennifer Snow

September 26, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

MAYBE THIS CHRISTMAS
Series: Colorado Ice #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Jennifer Snow
Release Date: September 26, 2017

All wrapped up . . .

One more game. That’s all that stands between NHL star Asher Westmore and a major career milestone.

But then his brother bashes him against the hockey boards, sidelining him for months. Over Christmas holidays, no less.

If staying off the ice doesn’t drive him crazy, staying with his family will. The only bright spot amidst the mistletoe and twinkle lights: His best friend, Emma, is a physical therapist. And working out with her improves his body and his spirit.

One last time. Emma Callaway was in trouble the minute she and Asher added benefits to their friendship.

How is she supposed to resist a funny, caring guy who makes her toes curl? Her heart was safe while he lived in a different state. Now that he’s back home recuperating, though, it’s only a matter of time before she blurts out her feelings.

Emma’s only hope is that with a little holiday magic, she’ll get the best Christmas gift of all.

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Asher climbed out of the car. “Nah. I’ll hang out with Em tonight. I’m her last patient of the day,” he said, suddenly feeling a little better and eager to get this appointment finished so they could go back to her place for the evening. Without the meds, he was suffering a little more, and she was the only thing that eased his pain.

“All right, man. Take it easy,” Jackson said as he closed the door.

Entering the clinic, he tugged the big, heavy old door closed behind him.

“Hey, Asher,” Jane said, standing as she saw him.

“Hi, Jane. How are you?” he asked, approaching the desk and leaning over it. If he sat again, getting up would be a struggle.

“I’m great. Um, actually, I wanted to ask you…if maybe you wanted to grab a drink at the Grumpy Stump tonight?”

Caught slightly off guard, he laughed. “You don’t hang out there, do you? You’re far too pretty to be slobbered on by all the local single men.”

She blushed. “Thanks. Actually, I don’t hang out anywhere. Single-mom life doesn’t lend itself it to many dates. Not that this would be a date…”

Oh, damn. He felt like an ass saying no to the woman who was obviously putting herself out there…but he wasn’t interested in dating. In fact, since his last semi-permanent situation ended a while ago, he’d been enjoying how things were going with Emma. Right now, she was certainly the only one he wanted to be with. “I…uh…”

Emma appeared in the reception area, an unreadable expression on her face as she glanced back and forth between the two of them.

“Well, the thing is…I promised Emma I’d do that…thing with her tonight,” he said, looking at her to save him.

Her expression softened slightly as she slowly nodded. “Right, you did promise me you would do that…thing tonight.”

He smiled. Saved. Now he could resume getting excited about a full evening with her, naked, with no pressure of a flight out the next day or having to be anywhere at all. The idea excited him beyond the sexy thoughts coming to mind. He looked forward to just being with her, holding her, kissing her, and talking. He’d been so caught up in his own problems the last few weeks, he had no idea what was going on with her.

“Ok, yeah, no problem,” Jane said, busying herself with the papers on her desk.

He felt like a jerk. He turned to Emma for help.

“Um…maybe Asher could get you and Aiden tickets for a game in Denver,” she said.

Perfect. Right there—that’s why he loved her so much. The thought made him pause. Love? Of course, love. She was his best friend.

“Right, Ash?” she said when he’d yet to confirm her suggestion.

“Oh, yeah…no problem.”

Jane smiled. “Aiden would love that. Thank you,” she said, sitting back down at her desk as the phone rang.

Emma’s eyes held a hint of amusement as he followed her into her therapy room.

“What?” he asked.

She closed the door behind them and grinned. “You just turned down a hot date to suffer through dinner at my sister’s house tonight.”

Oh shit.

**Excerpted from MAYBE THIS CHRISTMAS by Jennifer Snow. Copyright © 2017 by Jennifer Snow. Reprinted with permission of Forever. All rights reserved.  

This was another heartwarming, holiday read from Jennifer Snow about two best friends who found love with each other. You know me, I’m a sucker for a good friends-to-lovers story, and Maybe This Christmas delivered on the romance big time.

Asher Westmore and Emma Callaway have been best friends for years. Then they became best friends with benefits, which suited both of them just fine. Asher is a hockey placer for New Jersey while Emma is pursuing a snowboarding career. Then life comes at you fast.

For Emma, that change came when she took a serious tumble during a qualifying snowboarding competition for the Olympics, ending her career. These days, she’s a physical therapist in her small town of Glenwood Falls. Her friendship with benefits with Ash is going strong but lately, she had been feeling adrift. Not really sure whether she should get back into snowboarding or pursue a doctorate in physical therapy. There’s also her relationship with Asher. Emma’s feelings for her best friend is definitely deepening and she’s not quite sure if he feels the same.

Asher is about to hit a huge milestone of his career. He could almost taste it. But a knee injury and a hard hit from his own hockey-playing brother derailed that milestone for him. Now he’s back in Glenwood Falls to recuperate with Emma’s help, of course.

She was the one person in the world he always knew he could count on and the only one he wanted to be with.

While this book can be read as a standalone, I would highly recommend that you read the previous books in the series to get a background of Emma and Asher’s relationship. I don’t think it’s necessary but I think it would enhance your reading experience.

That said, I have not read any book in the series prior to this one but I didn’t feel lost and I was able to pick up the threads of the story very easily.

I enjoyed how Asher and Emma’s relationship transitioned from friends to so much more. It helped that the author already established that these two have an intimate physical connection. At the start of the book, they’ve been FWB for a long time. Years, I think. So it wasn’t a leap in any way.

Despite being friends and then lovers, they both had to deal with a lot of issues not just between them but also with their families and careers.

For Asher it’s dealing with his feelings of resentment for his brother Ben, Emma, and the thought of having to give up hockey. who always seem to achieve every accolade that Asher wants without struggle. Emma herself is dealing with a meddling sister and a father who is losing himself daily.

And speaking meddling…Emma’s sister Jess got on my last nerve.

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I mean, come on! She was positively heinous in her treatment towards Ash, turns up her nose at her sister’s accomplishment, and she makes decisions about Emma’s lovelife and career without consulting her. Sure, I believe that she’s doing it because she loves her sister but gah! It was still annoying. I had to resist the urge to throw my Kindle against the wall whenever she was in the scene because I just can’t deal with her meddling.

Fortunately for me, Jennifer Snow was able to write a really convincing romance between Asher and Emma. Despite some hiccups along the way, they were able to deal with their issues like adults. No unnecessary flouncing, drama or whatever. And Ash proved himself to be a really sweet and caring hero worthy of Emma and that one revelation in particular (which I won’t spoil here) sealed the deal for me.

So if you’re a fan of sports romance and the friends-to-lovers trope, I would recommend this book!

 

Jennifer Snow lives in Edmonton, Alberta with her husband and son. She writes sweet and sexy contemporary romance stories set everywhere from small towns to big cities. After stating in her high school yearbook bio that she wanted to be an author, she set off on the winding, twisting road to make her dream a reality. She is a member of RWA, the Writers’ Guild of Alberta, the Canadian Authors Association, and the Film and Visual Arts Association in Edmonton. She has published over ten novels and novellas with many more on the way.

 

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