Wednesday, April 18, 2018

Baking Lessons by Katie Allen book review

Why, yes...thank you. I am all about a hot Army vet that is a bit grumpy, but totally alpha. Yummy. A delicious, hot and sexy read. Bust out the fans, this has some steamy scenes!

Hamilton (called Ham by Leah) is the landlord of the building where Leah has her bakery. Hamilton is super hot, but a bit socially awkward. He doesn’t do well around women and because of his weirdness...is a virgin! Honestly, that was a new one for me and I applaud the author. I don’t think you have to guess that he won’t be a virgin by the end of this story. Leah can’t figure out why Hamilton seems to be so stand-offish with her, so she does everything she can to push his buttons. Until she realizes that she looks forward to pushing his buttons and realizes that she might be in lust with him.

It’s just such a fun story in a great setting. I’m a big fan of the authors other books, so I figured I would enjoy this one - I totally did! Buy it. You won’t be sorry.

Hot Response by Shannon Stacey book review

Ohhhhhhhh…..hello…..Mr. Hot Firefighter. *sigh* I read this book from start to finish and was super tired the next morning at work. I keep doing that to myself….but this book was worth it!

I didn’t realize that it was the 4th book in the series, so it can be read as a standalone because I still really enjoyed it. Now I have to buy the first three. Our couple includes firefighter, Gavin Boudreau and EMT Cait Tasker. Something happened in a work related incident that made the two get off on the wrong foot. So, they didn’t really go out of each way to work together again. But of course, you can’t help but run into each other.

Cait was not really looking for a relationship because she has too much going on in her life. Gavin is the youngest on his crew and figures he has a while before he has to settle down. But of course, once they get to know each other, things progress rather quickly. The attraction is hot and the chemistry is off the charts (I love it!). I would totally recommend this as a fun weekend read. If you love romance, you will love this book.

One and Only by Jenny Holiday book review

One and Only is a satisfying iteration of the contemporary bridezilla subgenre." -The New York Times Book Review 

Ok, that tagline made me crack up. I didn’t know there was a contemporary bridezilla subgenre??? 

This is the beginning of a series titled Bridesmaids Behaving Badly. This is definitely a wedding story. Elise is the bride and she is into a DIY wedding. Jane, the main character, has always been responsible and not very flashy. She loves her friend, but is getting desperate to get out of the DIY projects for the wedding. She ends up being tasked to babysit Cameron, the brother of the groom. Cameron is a returning soldier who is suffering a bit from PTSD. They are afraid he will do something wild and reckless that will impact the wedding. Jane has to keep him entertained.

They go from spending the day together, to visiting local tourist attractions, to more. The steamy sex scenes are a plus! The writing is funny, the dialogue flows, the setting is believable and the characters are likable. Even Elise, who many readers will sympathize with the fact that she is stressed from her wedding planning. The story is complex because of all the character development. You really begin to understand why the characters do the things they do.

The author was new to me, so I am glad that I chose to read this book. It was engrossing and I didn’t put it down until I finished. Which really meant that I stayed up way too late to finish this book. I’m looking forward to the next book in this series.

An Uncommon Honeymoon by Susan Mann book review

OMG!!!! I LOVE THIS SERIES!!! I have read each book at least twice. They are just so fun and are a perfect escape. It’s mystery, suspense, action and a little bit of romance. It really is a series for any reader. Clearly, I am in love with the main character because I want to be a librarian spy who goes on adventures around the world (who wouldn’t want that?). If you have read the first two books, you have to read this one. I think it could be read as a standalone book, I just haven’t done that. I think it’s fun to see how the characters and their relationship grows.

In this book, Quinn and James finally get married! I love weddings. It’s fun and full of love. However, they don’t have a lot of time to relax on their honeymoon as their spy services are needed. Quinn and James hatch a plan to rescue children from the Russian Mafia (in Russia) and everything has to go according to plan. The plot has child slave trafficking, drug trafficking and a Russian crime lord. The child slave trafficking is handled seriously and will probably tug on your emotions. Be prepared! The author must have spent a lot of time researching all these different topics because it seems very real.

The dialogue between the characters does not disappoint. The banter between Quinn and James is funny, witty and flirty. Their relationship will just make you want to swoon. James will become your book boyfriend for a while. I can’t say enough about this series and I recommend it to all my librarian and non-librarian friends who are looking for a can’t-put-it-down suspense book. I think you will learn some new things and also appreciate how smart librarians can be ;) Highly recommended.

Smooth-Talking Cowboy by Maisey Yates book review

Ok...this was a pretty good book.  I usually don’t read a lot of contemporary cowboy romance because it is so far removed from my life.  I just can’t really relate.  But it’s a good romance and a well written book.  It is my first Maisey Yates book and I’m glad I took a chance on it. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This book falls into the fake relationship trope, and the author really does make it super fun!  The characters really evolve throughout the book.  The main character, Olivia Logan, has just broken up with her boyfriend Bennett Dodge, who everyone in town thought they were going to marry.  He kept putting off proposing, so Olivia broke up with him.  She sort of broke up with him thinking it would force his hand a little, but it didn’t.  Olivia tried to make him jealous with going out with Luke Hollister, who has always rubbed her the wrong way.  It’s like they can never really have a civil conversation.  Of course, their plan to make Bennett jealous goes awry.

What seems like kind of a lighter read, really contains a lot of character development, detailed settings and a satisfying ending.  The dialogue is smooth and well thought out.  There are some laugh aloud moments, along with some scorching hot attraction.  I’m a new fan of Maisey Yates.