It wasn’t my expectation to fall into bed with the woman who won me at the bachelor auction.
I was only doing my grandma a favor, not looking for more than a shared dinner with the winner. Then again, I wasn’t expecting someone as hot as Isla to be my date.
She makes it clear that she’s down for a night in the sheets but bolts, leaving me holding my junk—literally. Which I figure, in the end, is all fine and good because love burned me before, and I have no plans to repeat that soul-crushing heartbreak.
I took a much-needed vacation from the handyman business I own with my brothers, Rent A Husband, only to return to find out they’d hired Isla, making me her boss.
And now I have to see her every day, and it’s getting harder to pretend I’m not still drawn to her. But I burned that bridge the night she was briefly in my bed, and any lust she had for me has turned to hatred.
Which is for the best because she has a new boyfriend, which is all the motivation I need to stay away from her. Until it’s not.
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I am so glad that Everly Ashton returned to the Abbott Brothers series! I really loved Lucas and Cami’s story, and it’s been a few years — I wasn’t sure if we would see the other Rent-A-Husband guys find love, but here we are!
Travis and Isla first meet when their grandmothers set them up at a bachelor auction (aka the Buy a Boyfriend title). Not wanting the bidders to know his true identity, Travis goes by his middle name, Eddie, for the auction, and that his hobby of carpentry is his job. The two go on a great first date, but then as things get hot and heavy back at Eddie’s house, Isla bolts… leaving Eddie, who is already feeling a little insecure about returning to the dating scene again after a bad breakup, dejected and rejected.
The following week, Isla starts a new job as the admin at Rent A Husband handyman service, but the third Abbott brother is out of town on vacation. So when Travis returns to the office, they are both *shocked* to see the other one. Add in her having a boyfriend when he returns months later from setting up the company’s second office, and Travis and Isla get off to a rocky start!
I thought the reason why Isla bolted from Travis’ apartment that first night was kind of lame (it was embarrassing, but nothing I think necessitated that kind of swift exit without an explanation). But I get that led to Travis being a grade-A jerk to Isla when they cross paths again in the office. Once they were able to get past that, this was actually quite a sweet second-chance romance. It’s relatively low-angst, with no third-act breakup. Travis gets caught up inside his head there for a while, and there are some strained weeks between them, but it’s resolved with a sweet gesture that ties up the story with a pretty bow at the end.
As I was reading Buy a Boyfriend, I went back and forth between the ebook and the audio, perfectly narrated in duet by Lee Samuels and Vanessa Edwin.
One thing that I would have liked to have seen more of was the grandmothers. They had such a strong part in setting up Travis and Isla in the beginning and then just… disappeared? Travis’ grandmother showed up a few times later on in the book, but Isla’s grandmother was nowhere to be found. She was briefly mentioned once as being part of the senior center where Isla is part of the book club (the same center that the auction was held for), but when discussing her family background with Travis, she didn’t even mention her grandmother. It was a plot hole that I thought could have been better filled. And I think there was a missed opportunity for the grandmas to meddle before Travis and Isla got together again.
There were a few other points that I thought could have been explored more (like the run-in with his ex and the suddenness of the epilogue), but overall, I thought this was a entertaining story with solid characters, a cute secret relationship/second-chance romance, and an entertaining cast of secondary characters.
I can’t wait to learn what’s going on with Josh and Nova! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Everly Ashton
Everly Ashton is the pseudonym for a USA Today Bestselling Author duo writing sexy rom-coms for Kindle Unlimited. Head to her website at EverlyAshtonAuthor.com to join her newsletter for access to exclusive giveaways, bonus scenes and other fun stuff!!
A woman who’s waiting for her love to return home …
A man who doesn’t believe he deserves her.
Love You Always, an all-new brother’s best friend, age-gap, small town romance from USA Today bestselling author AJ Alexander is now available!
I’ve been in love with my brother’s best friend, Brady Thomas, since I was old enough to know what love was. It didn’t matter that he was older than me or that my brother would disapprove, there was no changing the way that I felt about him. I planned to keep my feelings a secret, telling myself it was nothing but a silly crush. Then Brady did the unthinkable, he kissed me before leaving without a word.
That one kiss changed everything. Instead of getting the happily ever after I dreamed of, I spent months waiting for any hint that our kiss meant something to him. That he felt something, anything close to what I feel for him, but the only thing I got was the silent treatment.
Now, a little over a year later, Brady is back in town stirring up all the feelings I’ve been trying desperately to forget. The moment our eyes lock across my brother’s bar I feel the walls around my heart begin to crumble. But I refuse to make the same mistake twice.
If Brady wants a chance at my heart, then he’s going to have to fight for it.
I spin around and lock eyes with Brady. What the hell is he doing out here?
“Is some guy giving you a hard time?” he asks, pulling his arms out of his jacket and draping it over my shoulders. “I can go knock him around a little for you.”
I giggle softly. “No, he’s kind of dense.” I pull the sleeves of his jacket over my hands. “Besides, it’s not his fault. I doubt he even knows I exist.”
How ironic. I wonder how different the conversation would be if he knew that the man who sent me running from the party was him.
“I doubt that.” Brady’s eyes soften as he pulls me into his chest, burying his nose in my curly dark brown hair.
“It’s you,” I whisper as I wrap my arms around his waist, squeezing him tightly and hiding my face in his chest.
“What about me?” He pulls back slightly, tucking a few loose strands of hair behind my ear.
“Nothing. Forget I said anything.” I drop my head and try to pull out of his arms, but his hand tightens along my waist.
Brady grips my chin between his thumb and index finger, lifting it slowly. His forest-green eyes stare down at me, searching for the answer to his question.
“Em, you can tell me.” His eyes swirl with adoration and something else, something that I’ve never noticed before.
It can’t be. There’s no way.
I shake my head to clear my thoughts. “Not this, Brady.”
“Yes, this,” he pleads. “Tell me.”
I close my eyes tightly, unable to deny his request but not knowing how to begin. How do you tell someone that you long to be with them? That they are the air you breathe and the heartbeat deep inside your chest. That you have no idea when it happened, but you can’t bear to spend one more day without letting them know how you feel. How deeply and irrevocably in love you are with them.
I open my mouth to respond but clamp it shut tightly. Panic swells in my chest at the idea of him not feeling the same way for me. Of ruining whatever this tentative friendship is between us. I love Brady. I will always love him, but is it better just to keep things the way they are now? No. I can’t do that. Not now. Not with him leaving with a chance that he’ll never be back. I don’t want to live my life with regrets, wondering how things could’ve been if I had been brave enough to tell him how I felt about him.
“Brady,” I whisper as I rise onto my toes and wrap my arms around his neck before leaning forward. My lips brush against his once before I pull back and gather my courage. “I love you.”
His eyes darken as a low rumble escapes his throat. Then, before I can react, he leans down, crashing his lips into mine. We both groan as Brady nibbles and sucks at my bottom lip before running his tongue along it.
“Emersyn,” he groans as he threads his hand in my hair, gripping the coarse hairs near my scalp tightly and pulling my head back to get a better angle, possessing me in a way I never imagined was possible.
Every nerve ending in my body sizzles with anticipation as his hands slide down my body, cupping my ass. I want to give him everything in this moment—everything that I am now, everything that already belongs to him.
We break apart, gasping for air, and he pulls me closer to him and nibbles down my neck.
“I’ve dreamed of this for years,” he whispers against the soft skin of my neck before brushing his lips softly against mine. “But I never believed…”
“What in the fuck is going on out here?” Beckett bellows as he slams the back door shut hard behind him. “I come out here to check on my baby sister, and I find my best friend molesting her!”
Sunny Shelly’s Review: 3 Stars
Emersyn has always had a crush on Brady, her older brother’s best friend. There is a wide age gap between them (15 years), but eventually, Brady stopped looking at her like a little sister and began appreciating her for the young woman she was becoming. But because she was his best friend’s little sister, Emersyn was hands-off. Plus, he’d always felt like he wasn’t worthy of her affection. But now that he’s retired from the military and back home, Brady has decided he is all in to winning her heart.
I felt like I was dropped into Love You Always in the middle of a story. There were a lot of pieces that I’m guessing happened in other books by AJ Alexander, because I felt like I was missing background points and the relationships between some of the characters. Love You Always is an interconnected standalone, but I really think in this case that having read the other books would have helped.
That said, I was still rooting for this couple to get together. At times, I thought that Emersyn, at 22, presented more mature than Brady did at 37. He kind of screws things up with her over and over again, and I was starting to get whiplash. I thought that the concept of this story had a lot of potential, but the execution could have been better. There was a lot of telling happening (and A LOT of inner dialogue from the main characters that seemed like… filler?) but not much in the way of showing. The repetitive back and forth between Emersyn and Brady dragged on until the last 15% of the book, and I would have liked to have seen more interaction between the characters. Definitely more of them as a couple.
Overall, I was just hoping for a little more out of this story. I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
For more information about AJ Alexander and her books, visit her website:
After losing his wife and infant son, Dallas Montana has been living a secluded life in a remote cabin away from, well… everything.
He never anticipated having guests.
More importantly, the cabin only has one bed.
But everything changes during the blizzard.
His entire world pivots when he meets her.
Leaving Martina Carver out in the cold goes against his protective nature. Even if it makes him face his deepest darkest fears.
But once the snow melts and realization sets in—that Marti comes as a package deal—loving her may not be worth the price it would take to conquer his demons.
Sometimes, though, it takes one broken person to fix another.
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Available in ebook and paperback.
Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars
Oh. My. Goodness. I’ve read all of Samantha Christy’s books set in the Calloway Creek world, so I was quite familiar with the tragedy that took the lives of Dallas Montana’s wife and infant son. And I was so excited when SC announced that the Montana siblings would be a series because I was *really* looking forward to seeing Dallas fall in love again.
I knew it was going to be a rough story. I knew it was going to be emotional. I knew that this sad, mourning, recluse of a man was going to have to make some major strides to overcome the fear and grief that had him paralyzed in place and living as a recluse in a secluded mountain cabin. And Loud Unspoken Memories was PERFECT in every way! Marti complemented Dallas so well!
The tears I cried while reading this book were worth it! I was a sobbing mess, but seeing Dallas come out on the other side of his grief and creating a new life with Marti — who has lost almost as much as he had — was worth the wet pillow!
*Chef’s Kiss* In this beautiful story, SC explores the nuanced layers of grief, hope, resilience, healing, and so much more!
Next up is Blake, Calloway Creek’s own runaway groom. And I really hope that there is a book coming for Allie and Marti’s brother, Asher!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
She’s the one night stand I never forgot. And now her dad is about to marry my mom.
It has to be some kind of cosmic joke, right? For once, I feel like I’ve got my life together—good job, great friends, a fresh start in a new place. I’ve been on my best behavior for ages. At last, everything’s coming up Javier.
Until the moment I walk into my stepdad’s house and meet his daughter.
I should say: I meet her again. Madeline and I have already met. It was one night, two years ago. A quick, casual hookup that had no right to be as mind-blowing as it was. I haven’t stopped thinking about it–or her–ever since.
But our parents are getting married, so under no circumstances should we sleep together again.
Or… again. Or one more time after that, just to get it out of our systems.
Madeline’s funny, fiery, and so gorgeous with her pink hair and nerdy tattoos that I can barely look at her without breaking into a sweat. But she has too much going on to be interested in commitment, and God knows I’m a bad boyfriend candidate.
Once the wedding’s over, we’ll be normal stepsiblings who don’t have sex with each other, and Thanksgiving won’t be awkward at all.
I’ve seen The Three Night Stand referred to as an “idiots-to-lovers” story and that made me laugh because it is a great description for Javier and Madeline. A few years after they had a hot and heavy one night stand, they are shocked to discover that their parents are about to get married… now making them stepsiblings. They dance around and ignore their feelings for one another for a long time, and I just wanted to reach through my kindle and knock some sense into them both because they complement each other so well. So yeah, The Three Night Stand is a wonderful, slow burn, idiots-to-lovers story!
This story has some real depth to it, as Javi is recovering from an addiction. He also has a rather traumatic background; I thought that those points were handled well by Roxie Noir, and nicely woven into the fabric of the overall story. Madeline is a quirky heroine, and I loved it when she let her nerd flag fly.
There are also many appearances by the Wildwood gang; I love the strong sense of found family among the group and the support they all give to one another. The Three Night Stand was spot-on with its witty banter, steamy moments, connection between Madeline and Javier, and everything in between!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Roxie Noir:
Roxie is a romance author by day, and also a romance author by night. She lives in Los Angeles with one husband, two cats, far too many books, and a truly alarming pile of used notebooks that she refuses to throw away.
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For as long as I can remember, Lachlan West has been my brother’s best friend and the love of my life. Trouble is, he kissed me four years ago and then never spoke to me again.
I was doing great pretending he doesn’t exist until I was assigned to write an article about former college athletes and I learn that the sexy single-dad is my first interview.
Determined to wow my editor with an amazing sportsball piece. (Have I mentioned I know nothing about sports?) I head to Ember Falls, ready to face my fears—and the man I love.
The grumpy quarterback turned fireman wants nothing to do with me or my article. Yet, somehow I persuade him to let me follow him around for a few weeks, and even if he said yes just to get rid of me, I’ll take it.
But the longer I stay in his small town, the more complicated our story gets. The boundaries we set fall to the ground—along with our clothes.
He holds me like I matter, touches me like I’m cherished and kisses me like he loves me.
We both know I have to leave Ember Falls, and he’ll never follow—I only wish I could write a different ending to our story.
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I loved everything about Lachlan and Ainsley’s secret crush, always-been-you romance! It was full of heart, heat, and emotions, yearning and longing, and a short-term fling that you just know is going to ruin both of these characters when Ainsley’s time in town comes to an end! There is such a rich history between Lachlan and Ainsley, and I really got the sense of who they were to each other as friends once upon a time, before they shared a kiss four years ago and stopped speaking.
Lachlan is a troubled character — he’d given up his dreams of playing pro football to raise his daughter, Rose, because he is so terribly insecure after all the women in his life left him. After much push and pull, he and Ainsley stop dancing around their secret feelings for one another and agree to a situationship while she’s in town working on a story about Lach and his Ultimate Frisbee teammates. (Seriously? That, as a sport, was awesome!)
But when you are madly in love with someone who lives eight hours away, is there any hope for continuing a relationship? Well, because this book has a HEA, yes. Yes, there is. And it was lovely to see Lachlan and Ainsley get to that place! I look forward to finding the rest of the Disc Jocks find love in the Ember Falls series!!! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Corinne
Corinne Michaels is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of romance novels. Her stories are chock full of emotion, humor, and unrelenting love, and she enjoys putting her characters through intense heartbreak before finding a way to heal them through their struggles.
Corinne is a former Navy wife and happily married to the man of her dreams. She began her writing career after spending months away from her husband while he was deployed–reading and writing were her escapes from the loneliness. Corinne now lives in Virginia with her husband and is the emotional, witty, sarcastic, and fun-loving mom of two beautiful children.
In this fun, sexy college romance, a transfer student finds herself living in a house full of football players—and falling for the one she knows she shouldn’t want.
Everleigh
Transferring to UC Santa Mira is supposed to be my ultimate college experience—until housing falls through at the last minute. So when I overhear a group of guys complaining they need another roommate, I jump at the opportunity.
They’re just football players. Even if one of them makes me weak in the knees, it doesn’t mean anything unless I let it. And I won’t.
We want different things. Wanting each other doesn’t change that.
Nico
It’s my senior year and final season with the Santa Mira Dolphins. The last thing I need is a distraction, but that’s exactly what this girl is. Ever is too leggy, too gorgeous, too thoughtful—and a whole lot of too much that gets under my skin.
I guess I get under hers too. I can’t help myself.
We live together. That alone makes it a bad idea…but I never could resist a little trouble.
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End Game is a fun, sexy college romance between college football star Nico and down-on-her-luck Everleigh, who ends up sharing a house with Nico and some of his teammates after her off-campus housing falls through.
Nico is your typical college jock: he doesn’t do commitments, kind of has a big ego, and is a big playboy. But he can’t shake the feelings he’s developing for Everleigh, and that scares the crap out of him. On the other side, Everleigh sees herself as a Plain Jane, and can’t fathom why the popular football star would ever want to be with her.
End Game is a super slow burn. There is definitely a lot of back-and-forth between Nico and Everleigh, and they have some heavy makeout sessions along the way, but the real getting together for this couple doesn’t happen until about 85% into the book. And it was kind of refreshing that there is no miscommunication between the two of them and no Third Act Breakup. Their biggest obstacles are how they both can’t seem to get out of their own ways, and are both incredibly insecure and scared when it comes to telling the other how they feel.
I really enjoyed getting to know the other roommates/friends in this book and look forward to seeing them find love. Especially Gavin and Sienna!!!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Monica
Monica Murphy is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling romance author. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and have sold over two million copies worldwide. Both a traditionally published and independently published author, she writes young adult, new adult and contemporary romance.
A native Californian, she lives on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere with her husband, son, their goofy dog, and three cats. When she’s not writing, she’s thinking about writing. Or reading. Or binge watching something.
Lennox Kennedy is beautiful, loud and the love of my life.
She’s also my ex-girlfriend.
The first time I saw her after ten years apart, I slammed into the plexiglass minutes before our game was set to begin. The second time I threw up. But third time’s a charm apparently because as my fiancée and I walked into an appointment to meet the woman hired to plan our nuptials–there she was again.
Obviously, I did what any smart man would do–I called off the wedding.
I don’t have a plan per se, other than winning back the only girl I’ve ever loved.
As a future hall of famer and one of the best centers hockey has ever seen, I know a thing or two about winning, but convincing Lennox Kennedy to give this hockey boy another chance might just be the challenge of a lifetime and this game I’m playing may turn out to be nothing but a pucking disaster.
I love a second-chance romance set years after a couple’s breakup — and Aiden and Lennox’s story was all that and more. It is a delicious it’s-always-been-you romance!
It’s been a decade since they split up, and even though Aiden is now engaged to someone else, Lennox has always been the one that got away. There are two “ooof” moments when they cross paths for the first time in years, and I cringed on Aiden’s behalf both times. But it’s that third time that gets really awkward because Lennox is the event planner his fiance wants to plan their wedding.
Determined to win Lennox back now that she’s been dropped back into his life, Aiden calls off the wedding… and sets out to prove to her that they should have been together all along. Does all go smoothly? Of course not! But the bumpy ride is entertaining! They easily fall back into the friendship they had, with witty banter and some super sweet moments.
Hockey Boy isn’t all flowery romance; there’s a strong mental health rep in the storyline that I felt was handled well and made both characters relatable.
I look forward to the rest of this series! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Brittanée Nicole:
Brittanee is an author who lives in Rhode Island with her husband and two children. Her town is a character in itself in all of her books.
When she is not writing she enjoys spending time outdoors by the water with her children, reading at the beach or by the pool (or really anywhere), dancing with her friends, singing Karaoke, spinning, bike riding and boating.
Some of her favorite authors are Sophia Kinsella, Elin Hilderbrand, Liane Moriarty, Mary Higgins Clark, Meghan Quinn, Daphne Elliott, Amy Alves, Claire Kingsley, Melanie Harlow, Christina Lauren, Sally Thorne and Sarah Adams. (Clearly, she has a problem and can’t pick favorites.)
A sizzling and swoony single dad, forbidden, billionaire romance from USA Today best-selling author Marni Mann …
Captivated. Addicted. Mesmerized.
All the things I felt the minute I saw Addison Lark. The last thing I’d expected was to fall in love at a strip club. But Addison was the woman of my dreams. It didn’t matter that I spent an obscene amount of money just to talk to her. The fiery redhead made me feel things I’d never felt before.
But she didn’t want anything to do with me. And she left without a backward glance. Making me crave her even more.
Imagine my shock when we unexpectedly met again, presenting the most unexpected problem—Addison Lark was forbidden.
But did that stop me? Did that stop us?
I’d made a promise to start living my life, and I wasn’t going to let that woman walk away for a second time.
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Sizzle! I am so glad we got to meet Ridge Cole in The Heartbreaker, book #4 in the Spade Hotel series!
I equally loved seeing Ridge The Dad in scenes with his darling little girl, Daisy, and Ridge The Hot DILF in the scenes with Addy. Their meet-cute happens in a strip club (during a bachelor party, where Addison is working to make extra cash to pay off her student loans), but Ridge and Addison have an immediate connection at first sight that went beyond just a physical attraction to one another. She really didn’t see anything happening between them beyond that one night they spent together after going for ramen, but life had other plans for these two because her day job soon crossed paths with her nighttime side gig…
Even though she turned out to be the last person he should have been dating, Ridge relentlessly pursued Addison. It took a lot for her to agree to go out with him; I felt like she had much more on the line than he did. Addy had a great connection with Daisy, and I liked seeing that develop further. Ridge also had a lovely co-parenting relationship with Daisy’s mom, which was refreshing to see. There was enough for Addy and Ridge to work through without throwing in unnecessary ex drama.
Overall, The Heartbreaker was a wonderfully sexy, billionaire single dad forbidden romance that kept me captivated to the very end. I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Marni
USA Today best-selling author Marni Mann knew she was going to be a writer since middle school. While other girls her age were daydreaming about teenage pop stars, Marni was fantasizing about penning her first novel. She crafts sexy, titillating stories that weave together her love of darkness, mystery, passion, and human emotions. A New Englander at heart, she now lives with her husband in Sarasota, Florida. When she’s not nose deep in her laptop, working on her next novel, she’s scouring for chocolate, sipping wine, traveling, boating, or devouring fabulous books. Want to get in touch?
Single dad Garrett Haven doesn’t have time for dating. With a teenage son and a high-stakes job in law enforcement, he has enough on his plate.
Besides, he risked his heart once. He has no intention of doing it again.
Until he meets her.
Harper Tilburn brought her passion for baking to the small town of Tilikum to take over her aunt’s bakery. Anything else will have to wait, at least until her bad luck curse runs out.
Her dating hiatus is essential, and she’s sticking to it.
Until she meets him.
The sparks that fly between Garrett and Harper are instantaneous—their attraction undeniable. And suddenly, the practical, responsible sheriff’s deputy is throwing caution to the wind, boldly pursuing Harper, determined to make her his.
But when the cold case Garrett is investigating takes a chilling turn, he fears the perpetrator will strike again—and Harper will be his target.
With his career—and his life—on the line, he’ll sacrifice everything to protect the people he loves, and catch a killer before it’s too late.
Author’s note: a buttoned-up sheriff’s deputy gets thoroughly unbuttoned by a sweet as sugar baker. A hero who falls hard and fast, a heroine you’ll root for, a teenage son who will steal your heart, page turning suspense with a shocking twist, and heartwarming found family vibes with a big HEA.
What can you expect from Garrett and Harper?
A hot single dad who falls hard (and fast!)
A quirky, superstitious heroine you’re going to adore
A teenage son who will steal your heart
Heart-pounding, page-turning suspense
Touch-her-and-unalive vibes
A super swoony romance that will give you all the feels
Heartwarming found family
Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars
Oh, Sugar Cookies, this book was so entertaining! Return to Tilikum and all of it’s small-town goodness and crazy squirrels with Temptation Trails, book 3 in the Haven Brothers series.
Harper is new in town, having arrived in Tilikum to take over her aging aunt’s bakery. She’s had a string of bad luck for the past (nearly) 7 years after breaking a mirror. I loved that through-line with Harper, and how so dang unlucky she was. At least, until she met Garrett, the handsome town sheriff. Neither one of them are looking to get into a relationship, which is what makes their relationship so great. There are some tough conversations that these two characters need to have, and those scenes are well-written.
I also really loved the friendship that Harper developed with Garrett’s son, Owen. The teen goes through a change of his own throughout the book, and really blossoms as he becomes more at ease with himself. I loved how he teased his dad about liking Harper, and how protective he becomes of her as the book goes on.
Amid the swoony romance, there’s the suspense storyline. As Garrett is investigating a cold case, it seems as if the killer is preparing to strike again, with Harper as his victim. Will Garrett be able to save the woman who is quickly becoming his everything?
Jason Clarke and Rose Diorio were fantastic with this story! Not only were they wonderful as Garrett and Harper, but they did a fabulous job with the other characters as well. I especially loved the way Jason was able to go back and forth between the villain and Garrett.
I am so hoping that Owen grows up to get a book of his own in some future spin-off, next-generation series!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Truly Madly Deeply, an all-new enemies to lovers, grumpy/sunshine, standalone romance and the first book in the Forbidden Love Series from New York Times bestselling author L.J. Shen is now available!
Conceited, unattainable, and downright delicious, renowned Michelin-starred chef Ambrose Casablancas has one passion in life―food.
Women are a distraction, and he doesn’t do those. Especially Cal Litvin, his baby sister’s best friend. Her entire existence is a complication; she’s awkward, eccentric, infuriating…
And, much to his chagrin, hotter than his kitchen.
Ambrose has a lot on his plate: a new restaurant to open, a multimillion-dollar property deal to execute, and a violent stalker to tame.
Then Cal shows up at his doorstep, looking for both a job and salvation after their messy goodbye. His resolve, like his patience, is ebbing each day she works at his restaurant.
Because Cal is no longer a doe-eyed girl.
Now? She’s the woman he’ll do anything to conquer.
***
Quirky, compassionate ball of sunshine Calla Litvin can’t catch a break, and not just because she swore off running. Back in her hometown to nurse her mother’s broken heart after losing her father, she finds herself jobless, hopeless, and penniless. She hopes to rekindle her friendship with her former BFF, but Dylan is attached at the hip to her cruel brother―the one Cal’s been secretly crushing on since middle school.
Falling for the bad boy the second time around would be a mistake of gargantuan proportions.
Keep Reading for a look inside Truly, Madly, Deeply!
Age Eighteen
If someone told me an hour ago that I would be pinned beneath Row Casablancas, partially naked and writhing against the hood of his black Mustang, I would have guessed he’d gotten himself into some kind of trouble and had resorted to drugging me and harvesting my organs to make a quick buck.
Row didn’t hate me. He didn’t love me either. I would guesstimate his feelings toward me were somewhere on the spectrum between look at this adorable little moron and shit, I forgot she existed.
I was his baby sister’s best friend. The awkward klutz who suffered from bouts of verbal diarrhea and extremely questionable fashion sense.
Fine. I didn’t suffer from the questionable fashion sense. I owned it. Sue me for celebrating my individuality.
I always figured he liked me in the same way people liked puppies—because they were cute, dumb, and adored the ground you walked on, even if you were a terrible human who peeled clementines in public places. But I digress.
Harboring a small, totally manageable crush on your best friend’s brother was a cliché. However, I was obsessed with the nineties, an era that celebrated true and tested formulas. Ergo, pining after him fit me like a tattoo choker.
In my defense, Row made it impossible for my adolescent self not to lust after him on account of him: 1) being six foot four inches of lithe, corded muscles, having floppy onyx hair, and a jawline stronger than my lifetime of New Year’s resolutions combined, and 2) having the entire bad-boy vibe down to a T—including a sports car, athletic genes, witty one-liners, a dimpled smirk, and unlaced combat boots with tight-fitting jeans stacked upon them.
To sum it up, he was a morally gray hunk who was a total red flag—my age group’s favorite color scheme. So, yes. Of course I, too, wanted to be ruined by Dylan Casablancas’s older brother. Who didn’t? Our entire high school worshipped at his altar. Fenna McGee once even made a sticker that said, I’m not saying that Row Casablancas and God are the same person—but have you ever seen them in the same room?
Point was, Row’s tongue was currently shoved so far down my throat, we were playing tonsil hockey. His ballistic missile–sized erection pressed against the buttons of my yellow plaid skirt, threatening to snap them and send them past the Milky Way. And all I could think about was how I was doing Dylan dirty.
Bile coated the back of my throat. Dylan hated it when her friends fell at her brother’s feet. She’d make gagging sounds every time someone we knew flirted with him, which made what was happening right now completely inexcusable. But I was semi-drunk, exceptionally raw, and uncharacteristically reckless. Plus…Dylan was so used to seeing Row ruining her friends like it was an Olympic sport, what was adding one more into the mix?
I was also a people pleaser, and I really wanted to please Row. So I made complimentary moaning sounds I’d learned from the Pornhub University of Fake Orgasms. This included head lolling, enthusiastic panting, and girly gasps.
Row took this as an invitation to move to second base, coiling his calloused fingers around the front of my throat and flattening me against the hood of his car. The hood still exuded heat from the engine, and I wondered if I’d sport second-degree burns tomorrow morning. My butt cheeks were squeezed together to accommodate his lean waist between my thighs, my heartbeat thrashing against my eyelids like an angry woodpecker.
We were parked on a rocky cliff overlooking the glacial-tipped Maine mountains. The ocean stretched like a tight, black sheet across the horizon. The briny scent floated into my nostrils, and goose bumps coated my arms.
It felt so good and yet so wrong, I didn’t know whether to burst into giggles, tears, or flames.
Stop this right now, Cal. Dylan is going to strangle you.
Actually, my BFF was more the type to steal my clothes and go on a killing spree. Dylan Casablancas was creative, innovative, and delightfully hilarious. I loved her so much. She deserved better than this.
Row’s hand snuck under my beige turtleneck and my yellow plaid vest, cupping my left boob as his mouth trailed along my jaw, leaving wet, hot kisses in its wake, making my spine tingle. His lips were sinful, his tousled hair as soft as silk between my greedy fingers.
Dammit, I’m only human.
We were grinding against each other, and I was in awe of how different his body was from mine. Hard to my soft. Tall to my short. Tan to my pale. He was doing everything right. The way he swirled his tongue over my sensitive spots, drawing happy whimpers from me. The way his thumb rubbed the tip of my hard nipple, making it tingly and sensitive and desperate for more, felt like some kind of dark magic.
“Fuck, you’re beautiful.”
What a terribly un-asshole-y thing to say. Then again, Row never directed his infinite wrath at me. Probably because I was like a sister to Dylan.
There was a bonfire happening in the moorlands below the cliff where we were parked. A farewell bash for us seniors before we all scattered away to our respective colleges. Row had dropped by to pick Dylan up—he was in town for a couple weeks, visiting from his fancy culinary school in Paris—but Dylan had wanted to stick around a little longer. Meanwhile, I’d wanted to go home, eat pickled eggs, and binge-watch Riverdale.
Yet we’d ended up on the notorious Make-out Mountain, where couples went to lose their virginity, and sometimes lacy thongs, without being interrupted.
Row and I were friendly. He was always protective of me. I’d asked him to drive up to the cliff so I could take one last look at the ocean before I moved to New York. I definitely hadn’t planned on attacking his mouth with mine like a rabid raccoon when we’d both stared at the yolky sun crawling up the sky.
Yet…it had happened. It had happened, and now I was in his arms, the cold recipient of his kisses and licks and roaming hands. I froze, yet again feeling guilty about Dylan. She’d forgive me, surely. It wasn’t like he was her boyfriend.
Row ripped his mouth from my skin, staring me down through a disapproving scowl. “Are you still alive?”
“Hmm-mm.”
“Should I stop?” His fingers immediately loosened around my waist and back, and I suddenly remembered what had made me want to have sex with him in the first place.
“No!” I wrenched him closer and pressed my lips to his, doubling down on that rabid-wildlife conduct. “You…you can’t stop.” But maybe he should? My mind and my body were definitely not in sync.
“Sure I can.” His mouth moved over mine again, his voice velvet and smoke. “Consent is a real thing. Google it.” I was blushing so furiously, it was a medical miracle my head didn’t explode. His mouth grinned against mine, teeth grazing my bottom lip. “Fuck. You’re so sweet. So innocent. I want to eat you out.”
“I want to eat you out too.” Wait, what? That didn’t sound right. Having social anxiety and literally zero filters when I was nervous sucked.
“Do you, now?” I could hear the smirk in his smartass tone.
Dammit, Cal. “Not, in, like, a cannibalistic way—”
“Show me, then. Use plenty of examples. I’m a slow learner.” He growled, deepening our kiss. Our teeth brushed together, and a wave of pleasure rolled along my spine. My skin was cold, but my insides were ablaze. I pushed my palm against his groin over his black jeans. I couldn’t believe I was touching him, really touching the guy who literally made women melt into a pool of hormones just by glancing at him.
He ripped his mouth from mine, eyeballing me hard. We stared at each other, panting. I had no idea what I was doing.
Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars
Roe is my favorite kind of hero! Bitter, prickly, grumpy… and secretly in love with the one girl he can’t have.
Row and Cal are such broken characters. They each have past trauma that left them shattered and unable to trust easily. And it is that trauma that draws them together, because there is a very thin line between love and hate, and Row doesn’t hate Cal at all. There is such growth from both of these characters as they face their fears and find the strength to move forward.
One of my favorite things about this book was just how hopelessly in love Row is with Cal, even all these years later, and his inner monologue every time he interacts with her. He comes across as a major jerk in order to protect his heart from breaking once again, but it’s just always been her for him. And she can’t fathom a world where he could be into someone as odd and quirky as her.
The playlist that Shen included with this book — each chapter is marked by a classic 1990s song — was the soundtrack of my college days. I loved that little extra and found myself humming each song with every new chapter.
This book has quite a few trigger warnings, so check the content list provided by Shen before diving in. It’s dark and gritty, but a gripping story and I was so satisfied by the time Row and Cal got to their well-deserved HEA.
I am so excited to see what comes next in the Forbidden Love series. I really liked the connections and friendships between the group of characters, and would love to see them all find their HEA. I am especially shipping Kieran and Dylan!! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
For more information about L.J. Shen and her books, visit her website:
A hot single dad who falls hard (and fast!)
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