Book Review: Catastrophe Queen by Emma Hart

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One hot mess. One hot boss. One too many hot encounters…

Catastrophe Queen, an all-new hilarious office romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Emma Hart is available now!

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It’s not you. It’s me.

No, seriously. It is me. Not only does my name literally mean “unfortunate,” but that’s the story of my life.

Everything I touch turns to cr*p. An apartment fire—that I swear I was not responsible for—means I’m living back at home with my s*x-mad parents. Yay, me!

Which is why I need my new job as personal assistant to Cameron Reid to get back on my feet. Three months in this job and I can move back out and, hopefully, remember to turn off my flat iron once in a while.

Ahem.

On paper, my job is easy. Make coffee. Book appointments. Keep everything in order.

Until I walk in on my boss, half-naked, wearing nothing but the kind of tiny white towel that dreams are made of.

Now, nothing is easy—except our mutual attraction. But he’s my boss, and you know what they say about mixing work and pleasure: unless you do p*rn, it’s just not worth it.

Or is it?

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Download your copy today!

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

There was no doubting that I was blushing this time around. You could fry eggs on my cheeks.

 

“Eddie! Nobody wants to see those gnashers! They’re bad enough in your mouth when you smile like a serial killer!” Aunt Grace shouted, reaching over with the straw from Mom’s glass of water and prodding the dentures with it.

 

You mean my tall, thin, blonde-haired, blue-eyed colleague who could charm a condom onto a monk?

 

I wanted to check him out like a library book.

 

I was so single that my vagina had pretty much sewn itself up in anticipation of never getting laid again.

 

She insisted on you coming in so she could check you out and ask you everything including the size of your penis. She said, and I quote, “Never marry a man with a small penis.”

 

I wore my second-best dress which happened to be a little black number that gave me the confidence of a thousand witches ready to rise against humanity.

 

You are the dramatic one… You got one small cut from the broken mug this morning and declared that you were bleeding out.

 

My Review:

 

While reading this highly amusing and cleverly penned tale, my reading was frequently interrupted with giggle-snorts and full on laughing aloud. This was my introduction to the highly comedic Emma Hart but I was a quick convert to her cult. I was totally enamored with her agile wit, snappy writing style, and adorable characters.   Mallory had a sassy and keenly observant nature but was a Calamity Jane type and a hazard to herself as well as objects and others nearby, as she was accident-prone and a trouble magnet.   She also had a wickedly keen sense of humor, a flair for drama, a vivid imagination, a highly eccentric and loquacious family who excelled at squabbling, and a crush on her handsome new boss who appeared more than able to hold his own with her during exchanges of clever quips and verbal sparring. The storylines were highly appealing and pleasantly engaging while the writing was crisp and cunningly comical. I adored every well-chosen word and grieved reaching the final page.

 

Excerpt:

I took my coffee from the counter and scanned the room for an empty table. There wasn’t one, which killed my chances of wasting more time before I went home.

With a sigh, I checked my phone for the time and headed for the door. I was going to end up at home earlier than I’d planned, and I needed to check with my mom to make sure there wasn’t anything kinky happening somewhere in the house.

I’d considered bleaching my eyes enough in the last few weeks, thank you.

I was fairly sure I was safe because my grandfather and great aunt were coming to stay to celebrate Grandpa’s eightieth birthday. It was still a miracle my exhibitionist mother shared DNA with either of them. Unlike her, they were reserved, polite, and didn’t flash their flesh in the hopes of getting out of a speeding ticket.

Really, it was no wonder I was a walking disaster.

I pulled up my messages and clicked on my mom’s name. My thumb was poised to type the burning question of whether or not it was safe to come home when I glanced up.

And saw the car screeching to a stop, mere inches from me.

I screamed and stepped back. My heel caught on the curb, sending me toppling backward, and both my coffee and phone went flying. My cup slammed against the sidewalk, splattering hot liquid everywhere right as I managed to save my phone from certain death by concrete.

My heart was beating so fast it should have exploded, and adrenaline raced through my veins. I gripped my phone against me so tightly that the edges pressed painfully into my skin.

Oh my God.

I’d just almost died.

Maybe slightly dramatic, but I probably wasn’t far wrong. I didn’t even know I’d stepped into the road. When had that happened? Had I really been in that deep into my own little world that I hadn’t even checked for traffic?

Dear God.

How was I still alive?

The back door to the sleek, black car that somehow hadn’t run me over swung open. From my vantage position on the sidewalk, the first thing I saw was a pair of shiny, black shoes attached to legs wearing perfectly-pressed, light gray dress pants.

I dragged my gaze up from the feet, over the door of the perfectly clean car, and stared at the most beautiful man known to humankind.

Thick, dark, wavy hair covered his head, curling over his ears. Lashes the same dark shade of brown framed impossibly bright-blue eyes that regarded me with a mixture of shock and concern, and my ovaries about exploded when he rubbed a large hand over full pink lips and a stubbled, strong jaw.

“Miss—I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”

Scrambling to my feet as he approached me, I tugged down the leg of my pants and grabbed my pursed. “Yes. I mean—it was my fault. I wasn’t paying attention. I’m sorry.”

He let go of the car door, showing broad shoulders and just how well that gray suit was tailored to him, and picked up my coffee cup. “All the same, I think we can share blame. Are you sure you’re not hurt?”

Just my dignity, and by this point, I was running low on it anyway.

I shifted, taking a step back. “I’m fine, really. Thank you.”

“Can I replace your coffee? Give you a ride anyway to apologize?” His expression was so earnest, his concern so genuine that I almost gave in.

Almost.

I had almost walked into the front of his car, then proceeded to embarrass myself in front of everyone on the street.

“No, no, it’s fine. I’m not far from home.” I clutched my phone and purse straps a little harder. “Again, thank you, but I should be going.”

He nodded as if he understood. “Uh, miss? Did you drop something there?”

My eyes followed the direction Mr. Dreamboat was pointing. On the side of the road, tucked against the curb, was a pair of white, cotton panties with flamingos on them.

My white, cotton panties with flamingos on them.

Swallowing, I met his bright eyes and shook my head. Dear God, please don’t let me blush. “No. I’ve never seen them before.” I backed up a little more. “Thank you for not running me over.”

Mr. Dreamboat grinned, his eyes brightening with his smile. “I’d never be able to forgive myself if I’d been responsible for running over someone as beautiful as you.” He glanced toward my panties, then winked at me.

There was no doubting that I was blushing this time around.

You could fry eggs on my cheeks.

So I did the only thing any self-respecting, twenty-five-year-old woman who’d just almost been run over, tripped, and dropped her dirty panties could do.

I ran.

But only like two blocks, because I was in heels, and I had the fitness levels of a hippo.

Then I grabbed a cab.

About Emma Hart

Emma Hart is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels and has been translated into several different languages.

 

She is a mother, wife, lover of wine, Pink Goddess, and valiant rescuer of wild baby hedgehogs.

 

Emma prides herself on her realistic, snarky smut, with comebacks that would make a PMS-ing teenage girl proud.

 

Yes, really. She’s that sarcastic.

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13 Replies to “Book Review: Catastrophe Queen by Emma Hart”

  1. I’ve seen this around and wasn’t sure, but the cover is gorgeous and your 5-star review has swayed me.

  2. Amazing review and excerpt my friend I really need this book in my life it really looks and sounds absolutely amazingly fantastic fun book. I am really glad you fully enjoyed reading this book DJ, thank you so much for sharing your awesome post and for putting this book on my radar.

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