ARC Review: The Marriage Mistake by Jennifer Probst

The Marriage Mistake

by Jennifer Probst

(Marriage to a Billionaire # 3)

The Marriage Mistake is the third installment of Marriage to a Billionaire by Jennifer Probst.  I must say that this book is the best of the three.  Ms. Probst mastered the art of sexual tension, smexy scenes and managed to add a heart-warming element to the story, not to mention the swoon worthy hero. 

Max and Carina are two people who are career minded.  Max already established in the business world with Michael Conte, Carina’s older Brother.  Carina on the other hand, had just finished her MBA and had come to America to learn the family business.  Because Max saw her as his BFF’s little sis, he felt like he was babysitting and was a bit resentful of this assignment.  However, what he did not expect was that Carina has grown up to be a beautiful, sexy, very independent woman and has been in-love with him for years.   And that, shocked the heck out of him.

I was intrigued with Max and Carina being 20^th century career focused but with a very heavy cultural background.  In the melting pot of New York City, this is realistic and very believable.  How many of us battle between making your career a priority, love life or family life.  Max and Carina managed to get both.  Not only that their story was heartfelt, but had funny banters, family love, extremely high sexual tension and very sexy love scenes. 

The secondary characters were just as great.  Nick/Alexa and Michael/Maggie made their cameo.  Momma Conte was there again and she was a major factor to this love story.  You know what they say, mother knows best.  And the “Book of Spell” that has made its way from Alexa to Maggie and Alexa, made its cameo.  Looks like IT will make its way to the next heroine for Ms. Probst series. *crossing fingers*

Overall, if you enjoy a light read full of romance, heavy with sexual tension and ends with a Happy-Ever-After, this book is for you.  Correction, this series is for you!!!

*ARC provided by publisher

 

Purchase Links: Amazon

ARC review: Rescue My Heart by Jill Shalvis

Rescue My Heart

(Animal Magnetism #3)

by Jill Shalvis

Adam Connelly returns from a successful S&R where he is finally able to get some much needed rest. However, upon his return, Adam is bombarded by all the things that need to be done at the animal shelter that he and his brothers own. Exhausted from lack of sleep and in a bad mood because of injury he acquired, Adam pushes everyone who wants to help him back, telling others not to bother with him. He can handle himself. But when an unexpected visitor comes back from his past, Adam is caught off guard.

Holly, his teenage love, is in his room, asking for a very big favor. Her father has gone missing in the Bitterroot Mountains and there is only one person able to track him down. Unfortunately for Holly, Adam Connelly is the last person she wants to see again. Laying eyes on him could very well break her heart...again.

Jill Shalvis is having a stellar year! With her fantastic Lucky Harbor series, she is able to transfer readers into a whole new world. I used to say that her Lucky Harbor series was my favorite of her work, but with RESCUE MY HEART, she completely blew my mind. Adam is definitely my favorite of the Animal Magnetism series so far.

The thing about Adam is that he is content with himself. He never lets his true emotions show. He experiences some panic attacks that are normal for someone who has spent time in Afghanistan. Small triggers can set him off, causing him to spiral out uncontrollably. Yet he never asks for help. I loved his stoicism because Holly does a fantastic job of slowly chipping away at that icy exterior, revealing a man worthy of love underneath. Adam Connelly is hands down my favorite hero of the series so far.

Similarly, Holly was the perfect blend of cute and feisty. I loved her attitude towards life and that even though Adam pushed her away, she never let that deter her from what she truly wanted. Shalvis has a true talent of creating dialogue between characters that is sure to make you laugh out loud and warm your hearts. It takes a talented author to set a book in the icy mountains and still have warmth and love infused throughout. RESCUE MY HEART is filled to the brim with laughter and good times. It’s the perfect feel-good read!

But despite the humor and the lightness of the book, Shalvis is still able to bring substance to her books. She addresses real-life conditions that can burden a person’s life, yet she looks at it positively, bringing hope for the readers and the characters. With her words, Jill Shalvis is able to bring forth happiness with all of her books. RESCUE MY HEART is no exception. I love it!

*ARC provided by publisher

Review: Whisper Falls by Toni Blake

Whisper Falls

(Destiny #3)

by Toni Blake

For Tessa Sheridan, keeping afloat is her number one priority. With money tight and no means to really make more after her opportunity to be an interior designer fell through, Tessa is in a tight spot. However, the roaring sounds of Harleys next door manage to distract her from her financial problems just for a minute. There she finds not the typical boy-next-door, but the most notorious bad boy biker that has ever set foot in Destiny.

 After disappearing years ago, Lucky Romo is back and the people of Destiny are starting to take notice. Especially the sweet and shy Tessa Sheridan whom he remembers from high school. As he becomes Tessa’s first client, Lucky soon discovers that people are not always how they seem to be and that notion could not be more true if he applied it to himself.

WHISPER FALLS is a story about forgiveness and taking apart first impressions to simply get to know another person better. Appearances are not all that it seems in this book and Blake really captures the beauty of learning about someone in a way that is romantic and revealing, making for a perfect backdrop for a romance to bloom.

 One of the things I love about this series is that Blake often writes heroines who are at a crossroads. They need to make a decision in their life or they have somewhere they wish to reach in their life. I love this because it gives so much room for the heroines to grow. We see Tessa expand her horizons and let more people into her life. And I think the same goes for Lucky as well. He’s so good at keeping to himself but when he makes the conscious decision to be with Tessa, it’s truly a great thing to read about.

I’ve been enjoying this series immensely and feel that Blake is able to bring forth substance to her stories. There’s a life lesson in each of her books and if you’re not reading for the amazing characters or the smoking hot sex, then that’s another reason why you should try this series. A story with substance is never a thing that should be passed up.

Purchase Links: Amazon

ARC Review: Barefoot in the Rain by Roxanne St. Claire

 

(more like 3.5 feathers!)

Barefoot in the Rain

(Barefoot Bay #2)

by Roxanne St. Claire

Childhood best friends, Jocelyn Bloom and Will Palmer almost had a relationship when they were younger, but something drastic happened that changed that fate.

After living with an abusive father, Jocelyn finally spreads her wings and escapes Barefoot Bay where she grew up to work as a life coach to celebrity clients in LA. This job allows her to keep life organized and within her control. If she can’t stop the drama from happening in her own life, then the next best thing is to fix other people’s lives.

 As years pass, Joss tries to forget the one man who has held her heart. Yet years cannot chip away the feelings she has developed all those years ago for the boy next door. When a made-up scandal involving Joss and a celebrity client has taken up the front page of the tabloids, Joss escapes to the one place where she knows the paparazzi won’t follow her – Barefoot Bay.

One step into Barefoot Bay and she realizes the drastic mistake she has made because now she is bombarded with old hurts and heartbreak. There she learns that Will is her father’s neighbour. Even worse is the shocking fact that now her once abusive father, Guy is now sick with dementia. The once aggressive man is almost charming in the way he speaks. It’s almost like he’s a different man. Yet looking at him brings back memories of a bad childhood. How can Joss forgive her father for all his sins? Does the fact that he doesn’t remember his actions make what he did to her okay?

Struggling to overcome her conflicting feelings, Joss also learns that Will is taking care of her father. After the disastrous event that tore them apart, Joss wonders how Will has the heart in him to forgive her father for what he has done to her and their relationship.

BAREFOOT IN THE RAIN turned out to be far more heartbreaking than I thought it would be. St. Claire weaves an intricate and heartbreaking story that had me very interested in finding out the outcome. She set up an extremely delicate situation that put the heroine in a very difficult spot.

There were times when I felt that Joss was a little heartless, but that’s because as a reader, you don’t always get the full experience of her past. St. Claire only gave us glimpses of that dark childhood in the beginning so I think readers won’t always feel the exact same way as a heroine. Yet, Joss was very strong in dealing with the events that happened to her.

Sometimes I felt as if Joss was not only heartless to her father, but also to Will. I think she felt as if Will was picking her father’s side, which left her feeling hollow and alone. But St. Claire does a great job of developing their dormant feelings for one another until it blossoms into something more. I enjoyed this book more than the first one and feel as if St. Claire has a good series on her hands.

*ARC provided by NetGalley

 

 

Purchase Links: Amazon

Review: Not Planning on You by Sydney Landon

Not Planning on You

by Sydney Landon

(Danvers # 2)

 

Tags: Sweet, Claimed, Top Bitch (assuming this means the heroine was a no-nonsense, take charge kinda gal)

This was a hot, sweet, and good ride. It was a quick ride, but a good one, nonetheless. That said, it also had so many elements of what it so prominently selling right now - a book very similar in many ways to the Fifty Shades and Crossfire series. In some ways that was positive, and some ways, it was meh. But I'll get back to that in a moment.

Not Planning on You begins with our heroine, Suzy, an event planner for Danvers International located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, finding out that the uberhawt, ubersexy, all alpha male, CEO of Mericom, Grayson Merimon (Gray for short) will be spending a lot of time at Danvers in Myrtle Beach...much to her chagrin. She is still getting over the heartache of her fiance' cheating on her and putting her heart back together, and while Gray definitely sends her libido into overdrive, Suzy is not ready for a relationship or to give her heart out once again. Luckily, Gray is a very insistent man, and whittles away Suzy's strong layers, getting her to finally agree, not to a date of course, but to a night of some hot and heavy sex to help simmer the temptation that has been wracking both of them. While on their non-date, and prior to the amazing sex that is supposed to occur, Suzy has an accident, breaks an ankle, and finds herself needing to be taken care of for some time. Of course, Gray instantly takes charge, takes over, and refuses that anyone but himself take care of her.

The chemistry between Suzy and Gray jumps off the page from the get-go, and it is clear to see that they are going to set things aflame when they do finally get down to business. Suzy is a very strong, independent woman who knows who she is, what she wants, and what she doesn't. She is beautiful, full of confidence, and loves to dress in a way to show off her assets and style, topped with six inch stilettos. Gray, the dark, hot and brooding CEO, is equally as gorgeous, all male, and the perfect man in all senses of the word. After he gets Suzy back to his home (that he is able to purchase within a day, and with the mindset of making it their home eventually), his perfection goes into hyperdrive. Not only is he richer than rich and the most perfect male specimen to be found, he has a wonderful relationship with his brother and his parents, his manhood is well above average, AND he cooks from scratch. Believable for the reader? Not.At.All. Nonetheless, he takes care of Suzy, and through their time together, they get to know one another very well, and you can see how they are able to fall in love...not because they are beautiful and the sex (that they haven't yet had) is amazing, but because they really do click and enjoy each other's company.

Of course, there is always a problem in perfect-ville. For Gray and Suzy, it's Gray being stalked by a pesky ex-lover. This comes to haunt them in the worst way imaginable and drives a wedge between our hero and heroine. Are they able to survive it as a couple? You'll have to read it to find out. ;)

So going back to how Not Planning On You is similar to Fifty and Crossfire, and how that can be good and how that can be bad, I'll start with the good. It's good in that it gives the reader the perfection of man to dream about and with which to escape reality. Do we all want that? Hell yes! There are so many elements that I imagine women dream about and are enticed by: tall, dark, sexy CEO who is head over heels in love with the woman of his affections, he's rich, he does all the right things, he is blessed with his amazing manhood, AND he cooks! Sign me up, please!! Now the bad. Is it achievable? Hell no! NO ONE can be THAT perfect. Additionally, the hero's name is Gray. Really? Wow! If that doesn't send up a signal, I'm not sure what would. Also, I think the CEO part has become too cliche', and the hero should not be as well off and owning his own company. It would be nice to see that changed up a bit. Much like Fifty, too, the conflict was a bit far-fetched and way too easily overcome.

Not withstanding my minor criticisms, though, Not Planning On You was a fairly quick and enjoyable read. While some could say that Suzy and Gray fell in love too quickly, I actually enjoyed watching them fall in love in a way different than most contemporary novels these days. They didn't fall in love through their lust for one another, but because they actually spent a lot of time together, getting to know one another. And when they did finally get together, watch out! The sheets were set on fire. I also really enjoyed watching Gray fall to pieces when Suzy would say or do something to break down his hard exterior. He is definitely a kitten underneath his Tiger skin, and it was adorable to see. I also enjoyed the peripheral characters, most especially Beth and Nick, who I can only assume might be the main characters in the next Danvers novel. I know I will be reading it to find out.

*Review copy provided by publisher

Review: Weekends Required by Sydney Landon

3.5 Feathers

Weekends Required

by Sydney Landon

(Danvers # 1)

Claire Walters has somewhat of a hectic life. She has to work two jobs in order to keep up with her mother’s medical bills. During the week she’s the plain Jane assistant to hottie Jason Danvers of Danvers International. Every woman in the office seems to have day dreams about him but she tries to keep her relationship professional, so she punches in; she punches out and tries her best to maintain her composure. During the weekends Claire works for a party planning company which specializes in bachelor parties. Her job is to play dress up and jump out of a cake for the special birthday/bachelor boy. Not something she loves doing, but it pays her well enough to cover all the expenses in her life. But one party turns everything around when she pops out of a cake and finds Jason front row and center. She’s not only horrified but knows for sure she will lose her job at Danvers.

When Jason sees his assistant jump out of a cake at his friend’s bachelor party, he cannot believe his eyes. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he would react so wild to what he thought was his plain Jane assistant. In that instant he saw a woman he desperately wants and the only way to keep Claire out of this cake jumping business was to make her work long hard weekends with him; only problem is he’s finding it hard to keep Claire off his mind and soon he finds himself completely captivated by her and willing to do anything to make her happy. What he doesn’t know is by trying to make her happy he’s pushing her away and soon they find themselves in a tug of war between passionate nights and arguments of denial and frustration.

While I found Jason to be a bit dull and mechanical in his words, I did enjoy the way he lost control in his lust for Claire. Also he’s just so damn sweet. And while I found Claire to be a bit annoying when it came to her doubts in Jason, she did show a difference from the “fall to your knees” woman we normally see in contemporary romances. While she did melt for Jason she also knew she had a life to deal with and didn’t let distractions get in her way, distractions meaning having sex with her hot boss. And let’s face it ladies, it is quite a taboo subject to sleep with your sexy boss but isn’t is oh so naughty and hot?!

Weekends Required is your typical Contemporary Romance where the two main characters battle their feelings for each other while indulging in hot passionate love making. If you’re looking for an easy read with some inappropriate flirting under tables and sex up against a wall, this should satisfy your little craving! Enjoy!

* Review copy provided by publisher

ARC Review: Lean on Me by HelenKay Dimon

Lean On Me

by HelenKay Dimon

(Holloways # 2)

I first read this author in the HOLIDAY KISSES anthology last year.  That was the first Holloways story as well.  I thought then that there was something missing on a story that otherwise had good potential.  And that is exactly how I feel about this book as well.

The general idea of the small town girl, Cassidy, that went away and became successful professional climber, then during a media "oops" said some hurtful things about her town.  She is now down on her luck and comes back to town where her stepfather still lives.  Then she reconnects with the then high school football star, Mitch.  He had also gone on to pursue his career and due to injury and just life he is back home.  They never had a relationship then but he always had a crush on her so he goes for it now.  See, general idea I liked it!

And this is where it sort of fell apart for me because I just didn't connect with Cassidy.  Some of the things she did, and how she did them, the positions she put herself in...I just couldn't get it.  Mitch kept having to approach her like he would a scared and cornered animal, almost literally.

Mitch on the other hand was hot and sexy and totally delicious.  He's the reason I kept reading and that I enjoyed what I enjoyed of the story.  He's that perfect guy you want to me.  He's good looking, the town's most eligible bachelor, he has a good head on his shoulders.  But he's also caring and supportive.  I just thought there could've been more to the story and it did fall a bit short of my expectations.  Okay read but not memorable.

*ARC provided by author

Purchase Links: Amazon