Jennifer’s Review: A Brit On The Side by Brenda St. John Brown

A BRIT ON THE SIDE
Series: Calder Castle #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Brenda St. John Brown
Release Date: August 15, 2016

Bea’s English escape plan: 
• Work in a real British castle
• Quality time with bestie
• Figure out what spotted dick really is
• Fall for bestie’s older brother. Hard. 

Bea Gillespie would rather do anything than teach summer school math two classrooms down from her ex-fiancé. So when her best friend, Scarlett, invites her to England for the summer to work in her family’s castle-turned-hotel, she jumps at the chance.

Now Bea’s an ocean away from her problems at home, but she’s got a bigger one. A British one. Scarlett’s older brother, Jasper, is at Castle Calder for the summer, too. And he’s as sexy and smart as Bea remembers. Two years ago Jasper came stateside, and he and Bea shared a hot weekend. But that’s all it was — a weekend. One she purposely didn’t tell Scarlett about.

It didn’t feel like much of a secret until now. As Bea falls for Jasper, what started off as a fling begins feeling more and more like the kind of thing you’d gush about to your best friend. If you hadn’t been lying to her all along.

AMAZON | iBOOKS

I was a moon to your star. Wherever you were, I was painfully aware of your orbit. Painfully being the key word.

This is such an easygoing book, and it swept me away. If you are looking for a book to escape into, this is it. It was relaxing to read this book. I just wanted to sit in a corner window with some English Breakfast tea and disappear into this book. This book is “ace.” *giggles

My Jasper:

My Bea:

Jasper, Jasper, Jasper. I loved him! Jasper is…intense. Jasper is Bea’s best friend’s brother. I would have loved to be inside his head to get his point of view. He was little hot and cold, and I loved the contradiction of him. After Bea and Jasper have a sexual tryst one weekend, they don’t keep in touch, so Bea moves on and gets engaged. After the engagement falls through, she decides to move to England to work through the summer and get her head out of her ass. I loved all of the people in this story, such interesting main and supporting characters.

Bea is still finding herself. She is still confused about her feelings for her ex-fiance. She is confused about her feelings for Jasper. She is confused about her weight. And I felt a bit confused during her whole confusion, but maybe that was the point? I actually struggled casting her because it was difficult putting a picture to her character. I kinda wish she was a little more sassy and threw that sass back into Jasper’s face sometimes. Maybe she was meant to be a little awkward. If so, I got that.

If it’s possible to die of awkward, I’m going to keel over right here, in a borrowed flannel shirt with chocolate on my lips.

There is some angst, but not too much. On personal preference, I usually don’t enjoy the angst, so I gravitated more toward the light bickering and flirty side of Jasper of Bea, and there was enough of that to keep my attention zeroed in on these two.

This was my first book by Breanda St. John Brown, and I think she is an excellent story teller with a side of spicy hotness. Her writing reminds me of Samantha Young, but still has her own unique quality to it. If you are a fan of Samantha Young, you will love this book.