Boy Toy

by Sarina Bowen and Tanya Eby

Release Date:  August 14, 2018

Genre:  Romantic Comedy

 

Blurb:

Liam
The moment Sadie Matthews walks through the daycare center door, I feel my world tilt in her direction. Again. I fell for her when I was fourteen, and I’m still not over her. Problem: she still thinks of me as a teen she used to babysit. But I’ve learned a few things about pleasing a woman in the last fifteen years. I can’t wait to show her how good it could be. I need to move quickly before I lose her again. This is more than a game to me, but I still plan to win.

Sadie
I’ve just survived the worst year of my life. As a single mom of twin toddlers, I don’t have time for a man. I barely have time to finish a thought. Who knew that Liam McAllister would grow up to be so devastating? He’s everything my husband was not: tall, built, and willing to have a tea party with my girls.

I can’t possibly get involved with him. He’s too young for me. Too handsome. But he’s so persuasive…

 

 

Review:

Let’s get the basics out of the way.  This is the third book in the Man Hands series, but it can be read as a complete standalone.  Each book focuses on a different couple.  Just don’t be surprised if after this book you immediately go and get the other books in this series.

This is a light, fun, funny, sweet romantic comedy.  I love this book and love this series.  These two authors are a perfect match to bring us a delightful book.  Not only is it sweet and funny, but it’s sexy and swoony.  There is also a little realness aspect of the situations that adds to its charm.  I do think this book should come with a warning….beware of sexy man who is great with children, expect lots of drool and swoons.  The kids and Liam’s interactions with them adds so much more to this book.  This becomes a part of the story.  Many times kids are such a peripheral part of a story, when in real life they play an integral part.  There is a little bit of an age difference.  Honestly, sometimes that creeps me out, but in this book it really doesn’t play that much of a factor.  Their interactions are believable and mature.  Both us as readers and Sadie are persuaded that age doesn’t make a difference.  If you are looking for a fun, easy read, that will have you swooning and laughing out loud then definitely check out this book.

 

 

Excerpt:

I messed up. Big time.

These are my thoughts as I rush into the bathroom for the world’s fastest shower. The hot spray of water judges me as I hastily wash Liam off my thighs.

A better mother wouldn’t let this happen. I shouldn’t have a younger lover. If I didn’t, he wouldn’t be so deliciously appealing. I couldn’t lose my mind, wake him up out of a sound sleep to ride him like a pony. And then collapse beside him in peaceful, sated slumber.

Seriously, how did I let that happen?

You know how, my hormones scold me. Because he’s the hottest thing you’ve ever tasted.

Oh yeah. That.

After showering I get dressed at top speed. Poor Liam is currently shouldering all my parental responsibilities. Throwing on yesterday’s sundress, I pause for a moment to pop a birth control pill, because that’s one thing I won’t goof up.

Then I hurry downstairs.

The sight in the kitchen gives me heart palpitations. But not because there’s flour dusting much of the countertop. Rather, it’s the hot, shirtless guy holding my toddler and making a dump truck sound as Amy tips the measuring spoon over a bowl.

“Yes! Well done, little miss,” he says, relieving her of the spoon. “Batter up!” he says, easing her to the floor and catching Kate, who’s trying to climb him like a tree.

Aren’t we all.

Liam easily rests Kate on one of his perfect arms, measures a half teaspoon of baking powder one-handed and then hands the spoon to Kate. “Beep beep beep,” he says, making the sound of a truck backing up. “Look out below!”

Kate dumps the spoonful into the bowl and giggles.

“Awesome. Who wants to add the milk?”

“My do it!” Amy yells.

Boy, I need another minute of alone time to compose myself. Because I love this picture a little too much. I love Liam’s ease with my girls. I love how calm he is at the center of toddler-induced mayhem.

It causes a little pain in my heart as I allow myself one more comparison to my former life. The truth is I never once saw Decker elbows-deep in kitchen chaos with a kid on one arm. Starting breakfast with twins in tow? He was more likely to captain a NASA expedition to Mars than he was to do this simple Saturday morning thing.

I feel like crying for no reason at all. Clearly I’m on some kind of emotional overload. Maybe coffee will help.

Sliding into the kitchen, I go right for the coffee grounds.

“Mama!” Amy says. “Wiam making pancakes.”

“That is amazing,” I say in a wobbly voice. “What a lucky girl you are.”

“Sorry about the mess,” he says, casting a glance in my direction. And I know he doesn’t just mean the flour on the counter, but the bigger mess of waking up naked in my bed.

“You know,” I say with a small sigh. “Messes shouldn’t scare me so much. It’s going to be fine.”

Liam’s smile is so filled with relief, that I now feel like an ogre. This man wants to make pancakes with us on Saturday morning, and I said no to that before? I’m clearly insane.

“Which frying pan should I use?” he asks, casting an eye on the cookware hanging from the rack over the sink.

“Oh, no. You want this.” I pull a double-burner griddle out of a lower cabinet.

“Oooh,” he says. “Mommy has the fancy pancake griddle.”

Kate giggles. She’s gazing at Liam as if he invented fun.

And in my life, I guess he did.

Here’s the tricky thing about being a shrink—sometimes you notice that you’re doing something that’s exactly contrary to the advice you’d give your patients.

I’m having one of those moments right now.

If I had a single mom in my office telling me there was a lovely guy in her life who was kind to her kids—and yet she was giving him the stiff arm? I’d tell her: “Be kind to yourself. Don’t push away the good people in your life, especially if you think you don’t deserve them. Let people surprise you.”

I’m such a hypocrite.

Also, I need caffeine.

Ten minutes later I’m sipping from a mug of coffee, but Liam’s is cooling on the countertop. The man has his hands full right now as he puts pancakes on the griddle with “help” from my daughters.

“How about a few of these?” he asks, holding up a bag of chocolate chips. Meanwhile, Kate waves the spatula around like a ninja. “A guy needs to make smiley faces in his pancakes sometimes.”

Good. Lord. It’s a miracle I’m not just a puddle of my former self right now. This is some serious mommy porn I’m watching. Shirtless guy feeds toddlers before eight a.m. I walk over to the high cabinet where I keep the ramekins. “We could make smiley faces with dried organic currants,” I say, just to be a pain in the ass.

Liam makes a face of disgust as I take the chocolate chips from his hand and pour some into a ramekin. “Joking! Here.”

He gives me a big, hot smile. Okay, it probably wasn’t meant to be hot, but I feel flutters down below.

“Choc-it!” Kate yells, grabbing for the ramekin.

“Easy,” Liam says with a laugh. “That’s for my artwork. Come here and I’ll show you.”

I set the table and pour the sippy cups of milk. And Liam manages to serve up two smiley pancakes—one for each girl—at exactly the same moment, in exactly the same size. This is a man who knows his way around toddlers.

“Not cut it!” Amy yells when I approach her plate with a knife. She picks up the pancake in two hands and takes a bite right out of the side of its face.

“Okay, right.” I back away. Forks are optional today, then. No big deal.

Liam takes advantage of this moment of quiet to quickly pour six more pancakes onto the griddle. He leans over his work, dotting them with chocolate chips.

I step closer to him and put a hand on his lower back. “Thank you,” I whisper.

“For trashing your kitchen?”

“No.” He glances at me and I give him a shy smile. “For being so amazing all the time.”

His eyes get very warm, and I just want to stay right here in that blue-eyed gaze as long as I can. “This might be a good time to confess that I didn’t make smiley faces on my own pancakes.”

“No?” I look down at the griddle. Side by side, two of them have a different design—little bullseyes in their centers. “Those are…?”

“Boobs,” he whispers. “My inner fourteen-year-old has a dirty mind. He can’t shut it off sometimes.”

“Drink your coffee,” I whisper, handing him the mug. “Sit down. Let me finish these for you. Or go put on a shirt because my inner fourteen-year-old has her tongue hanging out all the time, too.”

He gives me a wicked, wicked smile and then runs upstairs to find his shirt.

 

 

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Let Me Be Your Last

by

Lynsey M. Stewart

Synopsis:

Gem Brown had it all. A successful husband, two gorgeous boys, and a life mapped out. Until doubt started to creep in.

Suspicion can drive you mad.

But suspicion can also prove you right.

The day Gem found her husband teetering on the edge of ecstasy, his mistress on her knees before him, provided her with…clarity. She would never trust a man again.

But four years later, through the strength of friendship and the love of her kids, Gem feels ready to start taking chances.

And then comes Josh. He’s a match made in heaven (or was it Loveisintheair.com?). Epic dates, swoon-worthy grand gestures, and a promise of happiness threaten to test her never-trust-a-man-again mantra.

But is Gem ready to fall in love again? Will Gem and Josh ever start testing the theory that high levels of sexual tension often lead to earth shifting sex? Can Josh help her to heal old wounds, or will ghosts of the past fail to let her go?

‘You are easy to love, Gem. It’s others that make it difficult.’

This novel contains strong language and graphic descriptions of sex; therefore this novel is only suitable for 18+

This is the fourth book in the Music and Letters series but can be read as a standalone.

Review:

This is the last book in the Music and Letters series but it’s the first book that I have read.  Let me start out saying that I thoroughly enjoyed it.  This book can be read as a standalone.  I did not feel like I was missing anything since I have not read the other books.  Now that I’ve read this one I will definitely go back and read the others.

Gem is a divorced mother of two that is trying to find her way with raising two boys, dealing with a difficult ex, and letting herself love again.  Josh is sweet, sexy, swoony, and most importantly willing to find a way to make it work.  I love how this book deals with real issues.  This book addressed real obstacles that single moms deal with when trying to date, as well as how the new man also navigates those obstacles.

This book is about life, love, friendships, and finding happiness.  You will have all the feels with this book.  You will laugh and cry.  You’ll want to hug the characters and punch others.   There is angst, hope, and some steamy sexy times.  If you want a heartwarming, feel good book then definitely check this one out.

Author’s Bio:

Lynsey M. Stewart enjoys writing stories about characters that experience a few bumps in the road before finding their happily ever after (also known as contemporary romance with plenty of heat…) She lives with her husband, her soulmate and muse, along with their gorgeous, precious, ridiculously independent little girl. Lynsey began writing after being inspired by great books, amazing writers and wonderful stories that she couldn’t stop thinking about long after reading the last word. If she’s not writing you can usually find her with her head in a book or singing along to music. She’s hopeless, but she enjoys pretending to be Adele every once in a while.

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Title:  The Fine Art of Faking It

Author:  Lucy Score

Series:  Blue Moon #6

Genre:  Romantic Comedy

Release Day:  July 13, 2018

Blurb

A fifty-year feud.
One failed smoke bomb matchmaking scheme.
Two enemies turned fake lovers.

For the past fifteen years, Eden has worked her ass off to overcome high school. She’s cornered the tourism market in Blue Moon offering visitors a place to stay in her hippie, dippy hometown. Business is booming, she’s close—but not too close—to family, and she’s got two dogs to keep her company. Life is perfect. Almost.

She also has the misfortune of sharing a property line with the crush who broke her teenage heart.

Davis spends his days gently wrestling control of the family winery from his father’s semi-retired hands. He doesn’t have time for things like dating and love. Especially since he never got over hurting his dream girl in a fog of teenage stupidity. Now, they’re neighbors… and the latest generation to carry on their families’ ridiculous, fifty-year feud.

When the Beautification Committee resorts to an unprecedented—and disastrous—matchmaking scheme, enemies Eden and Davis have to team up to bring them down. But will their fake relationship get too real?

Author’s Comments on Trope:
Enemies to fake lovers to friends to lovers. Rom-com to the max with a prickly, grudge-holding, thirty-something heroine who is nobody’s doormat and the ultimate nice guy looking for a second chance. Boom.

Review

I feel like I need to start this review with a disclaimer.  I’m a HUGE fan of the Blue Moon series and of Lucy Score.  The Blue Moon series is one of my top 5 all-time favorite series.  So obviously I was VERY excited to see another book in this series.  If you’ve read any of this series before, we get to visit some old favorite characters and meet some new ones.  If this is your first visit to Blue Moon, don’t worry.  You will not feel lost.  But I do need to warn you that once you visit Blue Moon you will want to stay!

This is the first breakout of the Pierce/Merrill family in Blue Moon.  This book feels a little different to me (not in a bad way), but it is still very much a Blue Moon book!  This time we get to know Eden and Davis.  Eden owns the local Inn and Davis runs the local winery, both just outside of town and next door to each other. There is a feud between their families that goes back generations.  This feud has affected not only Eden and Davis individually, but decisions they made and the paths they took.  Despite the feud the Beautification Committee has their own ideas and agenda.  Now, if you are new to Blue Moon and have no idea what the Beautification Committee is, there is no way for me to briefly explain.  Just read the books and trust me that it’s a group of well-intentioned people that you both want in your community and glad that they are not.  In typical Blue Moon fashion when you throw in a feud, the Beautification Committee, sparks (both literal and physical), a community event, an attempt at revenge, and many antics, you get a hilarious, fantastic, over-the-top rom-com.

I love this couple, both individually and as a couple.  They are both struggling to break free of pasts and expectations.  Eden is strong, smart, and stubborn.  Davis is sexy, kind, and swoony.  This book is so much wrapped into one explosive, rainbow-dyed bundle. It is hilarious, heart-warming, and steamy.   I don’t want to give anything away, because I want you to experience Blue Moon and this book yourself.  I cannot recommend this book and this series enough.  I cannot recommend ANY of Lucy Score’s books enough.  She is one of the few authors that hits it out of the park every single time.  If you love a well-written rom-com with heart-warming characters then this book needs to be your next read.

               

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“If you’re looking for forever, why aren’t you looking at me?”

Title: Because Forever
Series: The Avenue #2
Author: B. Cranford
Release Date: July 13, 2018

Everyone should have a chance at forever . . .

Twenty-Five Years. That’s how long Odette Peterson called Austin Andrews her best friend. Until he let his mouth ruin it—in more ways than one.

Five Minutes. That’s all it took for their friendship to fall apart, leaving her heart a little broken and her life a little emptier.

One Hour. That’s the amount of time she agrees to give him to try and find his way back into her good graces. Not that she thinks for even one minute that it might work.

It won’t, because . . .

Forever. That’s what Odette’s looking for. Someone to spend her life with; someone who’ll see her as more than just one of the guys. And there’s not a thing Austin can do to stop her.

Except maybe tell her that he loves her . . .

The main thing I love about B. Cranford’s books, including this one, is that they all feel different from most romances I read.  They feel different because the characters are more real and their flaws are more believable.  The characters are flawed not in the dramatic way, but in the aren’t-we-are-all-a-little-flawed and no-one-is-perfect way.  I can relate to these characters and their situations, and that is refreshing.  This book is about Austin and Odette (Aussie and Odie).  They have been best friends their entire life.  They have supported each other and they have fought like any best friends.  When Odie decides to date someone, it leads to a fight and re-evaluation of feelings.  This is a beautifully written book of how best friends learn to become more to each other and learn how to really love each other.  This book is endearing, emotional, and just a beautiful story.  You get so much with this book.  There is funny banter, sweet moments, stressful situations, and sexy times.  I love both of these characters, individually and as a couple.  They are just perfect together.  I also cannot express how much I love the siblings and their relationship with each other.  Every time I read about any interaction the siblings have with each other, I want to be a part of that family.  If you want a fantastic, heart-warming, all-the-feels kind of book, then this one is definitely one to read.

— Free with Kindle Unlimited —

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Chapter One

Odette Peterson was three sheets to the wind.

Sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of her coffee table, with cherry red boxing gloves on her hands and a glass of wine precariously cupped between them, she was blinking madly and wishing for . . .

Austin.

No, she wasn’t going to say his name or think his name or spell his name or anything. Not anything. Because she was mad at him.

Fit to be tied.
Up in arms.
Seeing red.

Well, the red she was seeing was possibly the gloves, the wine or maybe her hair, reflected back at her in the window that looked out over a currently empty street.

Whatever, she was pissed at him. Still.

And just to make sure that anger stayed at the right temperature to stop her from caving and calling him—her best friend since she was seven years old and he was eight—she decided to listen to the voicemail he’d left the day after he’d ruined everything.

But first, she had to put the wine down, remove the boxing gloves and . . . something else. But what?

Pick up the phone, Odette. She nodded her drunken thanks to the voice in her head. And then, having negotiated all three steps with only one near-fumble of her glass and one slurred curse word, she cued up the message.

“Odie, come on. You’re being ridiculous and you need to talk to me. All I said was that you were better than him”—

She paused the message with a wobbly-but-righteous tap of her finger to the screen before giving Aussie a piece of her mind. “You stupid idiot, you didn’t say I was better than him. You said I was smarter than that and acting like a dumb girl.” She scoffed. Then added an eye roll for good measure. And if the eye roll was so pronounced she swayed in place, then fine. That just meant she was committed to her anger.

A second righteous tap and Aussie’s voice filled her ear again. “And you are. I didn’t mean to upset you, Garfield, so just call me back. You know you want to forgive me. And you know I’m right about Meatball McGee.”

“His name is Mike, not Meatball. And you’re not right. You’re, you’re, you’re–calling me?” She stared at the screen of her phone, a picture of Austin—eyes crossed, tongue poking out, sandy blond curls flopping all over the place—and decided she was going to answer.

For the first time in weeks, she was going to talk to him.

ABOUT TIME | THE AVENUE #1

“…an emotionally charged book that makes you feel all sorts of happy!” — Angela, Shameless Book Club

B. Cranford is a proud Australian living in the USA, a lover of books, breadsticks and bed, and the mother of two children who are far too similar to their father for her liking. A lifelong reader, she dove into the romance genre on the recommendation of her best friend and hasn’t looked back since. Her debut novel, The Brightest Star, a second chance romance with (she hopes) heart and humor was released on July 13, 2017, which just so happened to be her birthday. Because if you release a book on your birthday, you get twice as much cake, and that can only be a good thing.

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