5 SMOOCHES!

SYNOPSIS:

When Rome Pierce moved to Bear Bottom, Texas, it was his intention to lay low. To not be seen. To find a way to heal his body and soul—as well as his son’s.

Nobody would know by looking at him that he used to play professional football. Not with the Bear Bottom MC cut covering his back, and definitely not with his friendly smile completely obliterated.

No longer is there charm in each smooth word that comes out of his mouth. What’s left is an angry, bitter, scared man that’s terrified one day he’s going to wake up and his entire world is going to be gone.

Nobody knows what drove him to leave the game he loved—nobody but her.

She’s the one person that has helped him make it through the dark days and even darker nights. She’s the bright and shining star in his pitch-black sky.

And he doesn’t even know her name.

He should be afraid that she knows things that not anyone—not even his best friend—knows.

Yet, with each encounter, he gives what little bit of his soul remains, and before he knows it only two people on this earth—one dying, and one too afraid to live—make his life worth living.

Until one day he has to choose—the love of his life, or the life he brought into this world.

Two impossible situations. One decision that would change him forever.

REVIEW:

Each month when I sit down with Lani Lynn Vale’s next book, it’s like a visit with friends—even when she rolls out a new series full of new characters. The Bear Bottom Guardians MC series is a new series, but as is generally the case with Lani’s work, it stems from another series. This series isn’t necessarily a spin-off of the Heroes of the Dixie Wardens series, it’s more like an expansion of that series. With each new book Lani releases, she builds upon those worlds, further developing her characters. The result for her readers has been an unparalleled, unique reading experience, and I’m completely hooked. New readers can step in at any point, however, and they’ll be able to ease right in from that series onward.

I think Mess Me Up may be the most gut-wrenchingly emotional story that Vale has written to date. But in true Lani style, she managed to balance all the heavy emotion with some well-timed, appropriately placed humor, a sexy romance and an interesting, suspenseful plot. The hero, Rome, suffered a devastating loss, and Vale took readers along on this man’s journey to healing and love. The road was bumpy, that’s for sure, but this man truly found his perfect match in Izzy. She could relate to his pain in a way that no one else could, and because of that, she was far more understanding than any other woman could have been. While their love story wasn’t exactly easy, it was real and raw, and Vale really brought out all the feels while telling it. Five smooches from me for Mess Me Up by Lani Lynn Vale!

~ Danielle Palumbo

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5 SMOOCHES!

SYNOPSIS:

When I slap the handcuffs on her I’ll be taking her to bed, not jail.

Getting involved with the wrong woman can destroy your life.
I had to move back home and lose my position as Detective to get away from one.
The last thing I need is to repeat my mistake.
I finally have what I want.
Deputy in my home town, surrounded by family and friends—
Life is good.

Then she crashes—literally crashes—into my world.

Adelle Harrington is a pain in my ass.
She’s way too high maintenance for my tastes.
She’s sassy, opinionated, and stubborn as hell.
She’s also the Mayor’s only daughter.
Which means she should be completely off limits.
When she forces my hand and breaks the law, all bets are off.
She picked the wrong cop to tangle with.
I’ve got her in my sites, she’s not getting away
And I’m definitely not shooting blanks.

REVIEW:

As a fan of Jordan Marie’s since she released her first book, it’s a given that if she releases it, I will read it. Initially I was drawn to her intense and gritty MC romances, and I have loved every single one of them. Her writing never fails to move me, to shock me, to make me feel. So, when she made the leap to romantic comedies with this series, I was a bit surprised at first. But that surprise soon morphed into another level of appreciation for her writing abilities. As it turned out, Jordan Marie was a natural when it came to slap-stick style romantic comedies. With that first book, she upended everything I thought I knew about her talent, and I’ve been just as hooked on this side of her skill ever since.

Cocked and Loaded is the fourth book in the Lucas Brothers series—or the Crayon Gang, as her readers refer to this, um, “colorful” family. It’s Black’s turn in this book, and right from the start, I was stung with a sharp prick of old-school comedy when Addie crashes—literally—into his life. That was just the beginning. I laughed and smiled my way through this book at their antics and those of his family. Ida Sue, the matriarch of the family, was right there in the thick of it, butting into his business, uttering inappropriate sexual innuendos or offering one of her infamous, “all natural” remedies. Addie was the exactly what Black needed in a woman after the nightmare of his last relationship. She was smart and so sassy, and she didn’t hesitate to go toe-to-toe with him, giving as good as she got. Their chemistry sizzled in every single one of their interactions, from their witty back-and-forth banter to the heat of the moment.

Cocked and Loaded is another wholly entertaining addition to the Lucas Brothers series. Jordan Marie brought the heart and heat here and colored it with plenty of humor. It wouldn’t be a Jordan Marie novel, though, without a bit of angst and drama, and there was just enough here to make things very interesting. I devoured this book, smiling and laughing my way through it, and I’m already on the edge of my seat waiting for more. Five smooches from me for Cocked and Loaded by Jordan Marie!

~ Danielle Palumbo

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5 SMOOCHES!

SYNOPSIS:

In sickness and in health, to love and to cherish . . .

It sounds so simple, to love someone unconditionally.
To give them your heart.

So why is she slowly eating away at my soul with every unanswered phone call, every unread text, and every door left unopened?

She said yes, and yet, in order for her to be with me . . . I need to let her go.

REVIEW:

As a longtime fan of Meghan Quinn, I think it’s safe to say that I can no longer refer to her simply as one of my favorite romantic comedy authors. With this book, the fourth intensely emotional military romance this year, she’s demonstrated a depth of skill that far exceeds one genre. I was impressed by her writing before these stories, but now I’m giddy at the prospect of what is yet to come from this immensely talented author.

I was absolutely wrecked when I started The Right Side of Forever. Eyes swimming with tears, a lump in my throat and broken-hearted, I immediately started this story not knowing where it would go. My trepidation was warranted given what happened in this duet’s predecessor, The Blue Line Duet. I wasn’t sure how much more heartache I could take, but as it turned out, I could, in fact, take more, and more was exactly what I took.  Continuing down the road on this journey, readers were paused at despair at the end of The Left Side of Perfect, and that emotion largely colors The Right Side of Forever.

I was enthralled with the details and storytelling in The Left Side of Perfect, and Quinn develops her characters further here, digging deeper into their personal histories and emotions. Where she laid a foundation in the first book, she build a structure here. Further down the road in their journey, the characters are in a much different place than where they began. Everyone gets to a point in their lives, whether it be personally or professionally, where realization dawns and a choice or a decision must be made—Oprah called this point in a person’s life their “a-ha moment.” Quinn takes readers inside the a-ha moments of her characters, when oblivion becomes obvious. Finally, the cloud of heavy emotion began to lift, and for a brief moment, my heart soared with hope and raced with possibility. There was still road on this journey to travel, though. In order to give and accept the love they both deserved, these characters needed to confront their demons and heal, and therein is where the pain in this book stems. Once again, Quinn has readers pondering how much you would sacrifice for the person you loved.

One of my favorite parts of this duet is where Quinn eloquently explains the meaning of titles, leaving me floored by their relevance. Where The Left Side of Perfect was the beginning of something huge and life-altering, The Right Side of Forever is where the transformations took place in this unselfish journey to true love. The beauty of this love story was in the pain and then the healing from it. Meghan Quinn did a phenomenal job of capturing this emotion on the page for her readers to experience along with her characters. It was an absolutely incredible love story, and it will stay with me for a long time to come. Five smooches from me for The Right Side of Forever by Meghan Quinn!

~ Danielle Palumbo

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5 SMOOCHES!

SYNOPSIS:

For better or for worse,’til death do us part . . .

The better captured me; she’s who stole my heart.
And made me realize I couldn’t live without this woman.
The worse of her took my breath away–kicked me when I was down and twisted me into a million knots.

When I first met her, I thought she was someone I would never see again.
The second time I ran into her, it was a random coincidence.
The third?
I didn’t know it at the time, but she was the girl I was going to marry.

But life isn’t always perfect. You have to take the better and the worse–even if it means giving her up, having her slip between your fingers, and letting her walk away.

I’m getting married.
This is forever, ’til death do us part.

REVIEW:

I fell in love with Meghan Quinn’s writing in her romantic comedies, and she has written some of my all-time favorite books. Her style is unique and refreshing, and the way she weaves punches of feeling into her amusing and sexy romances has never failed to entertain me. Then came The Blue Line Duet, an intense military romance, where she dropped the humor to focus on the emotion. It was a daring departure from her previous works, and it was wildly successful. That duet was positively captivating in the way that grand, epic love stories should be told.

Like everyone else who read The Blue Line Duet, however, I was left wanting more. Quinn picked up that gauntlet here in The Perfect Duet, and this couple’s romantic saga begins in The Left Side of Perfect. A timeless, sweeping love story, rooted in friendship and in pain, The Left Side of Perfect left me pondering exactly how much someone would sacrifice for the person they love. Quinn takes her readers on a gut-twisting, heart-wrenching exploration of the bounds of true love in this story.

Meghan thoughtfully laid the groundwork of this tale, building it from scratch with fantastically well developed characters who were so relatable, the reader cannot help but emphasize with them. It was evident to me from the first page that this would be a long and difficult journey to love that would be as devastating as it would be beautiful. Rich with many emotions, Quinn brought forth feelings in me that I was wholly unprepared to feel. I ached, I sobbed, I railed at the characters—and the author. I was riveted in place, weeping as I read, moved by every single facet of this story. I was literally blown away by Meghan’s attention to detail here, and those critical elements of the story – the background, the explanations, the memories and flashbacks – all came together like the pieces along the outside edge of a puzzle forming the history, the foundation, of this couple.

Love is rarely ever a straight shot to happy or an easy ride, and Meghan drives that point home with thunderous success in this story. The Left Side of Perfect is the beginning of something monumental and life-altering. Something bigger than the parties involved, and as is the case with all great love stories, it wasn’t easy to take. But I know that what Quinn started here will be worth the heartache and the struggle to get to other side, and I am on the edge of my seat waiting for it. Five smooches from me for The Left Side of Perfect by Meghan Quinn!

~ Danielle Palumbo

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