My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

She’s still looking for that happy ending where someone will pick her up, pledge undying love and whisk her away to a new-build semi in Surrey. The sort of world Hayley and I inhabit, the semis and happy endings normally end on our faces.

I know what my sisters are like and this could possibly still be a very elaborate joke. Those cows told me for years that my real father was Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and that he had to leave the actual country to be a Watcher because he was so ashamed of me.

‘We’re just going to get you into a deep state of relaxation…’ All I can think is that when I’m that relaxed I will most likely break wind. I hope the lotus and white musk will be able to mask that.

My Review:

This was a fun, dynamic, and energetic read that kept me wildly amused and gleefully giggle-snorting with abandon. The writing was crisp, breezy, sweary, and delightfully snarky while the sharp visuals conjured were diabolically humorous and colorful in every sense of the word.

In the previous installments, Lucy’s character was the most eccentric of the five sisters. Lucy was the fiercely independent, feisty, and predictably unpredictable free spirit/firecracker and youngest of the Callaghan clan. So I was doubly impressed with the insightful observations and emotive underpinnings permeating the unfamiliar sense of vulnerability Lucy was experiencing as she struggled to regain a sense of self during her period of memory loss following a head injury. Having lost twelve years would be quite unsettling for anyone but Lucy had packed a lot of living her best life and unusual adventures and eye-opening experimentation into those years. I was fascinated and deliciously entertained by each new development.

This being the last of the series, I am experiencing a sense of rueful melancholy, I will greatly miss this irreverent, divinely inappropriate, and tightly bonded family unit. They were good fun and their hijinks provided me with not only smirk-worthy entertainment but several unusual entries of British vernacular to my Brit Words and Phrases list. Many of which I cannot add to my reviews for fear of being censored, but this installment has produced the current publishable new addition of gurn, which Mr. Google indicates is to grimace or make an ugly face. I would expect nothing less from the lascivious Lucy.

Give It Arrest
by Laura Barnard

My Rating:

Laura Barnard lives in Hertfordshire, UK, and writes romantic comedy or ‘chick lit’ as it is so often described. In her spare time, she enjoys drinking her body weight in tea, indulging in cupcakes the size of her face, and drooling over hunks like Jamie Dornan, Ryan Gosling, and Leo Dicaprio.

She enjoys wearing yoga pants and reading fitness magazines while sitting on the sofa eating chocolate. She’s a real fan of the power nap and of course READING!

She writes not to get rich or famous, but because she LOVES writing. Even if one person tells her they enjoyed her book it makes the midnight typing worth it!

Favorite Quotes:

I’d never slept in twelve-hundred-dollar pajamas and I didn’t think I was ready to pick up the habit. What if I could never go back to oversized T-shirts and sleep shorts after this was all over? I didn’t want to ruin myself with unsustainable luxury.

I can’t not buy them, Rex. They deserve a home. They deserve to give love in the manner in which the creator of the quilt intended… And that’s why I have twenty-four quilts.

Santas were in every corner, some danced and sang if you walked by them… I couldn’t even begin to absorb the splendor… She even had that leg lamp from A Christmas Story on the side table in the living room and that bowl of eggnog with the reindeer antlers from Christmas Vacation. The woman was a marvel.

That boy was blinder than a bat with its head up its own ass.

 My Review:

I will never tire of Penny Reid’s divinely amusing and smirk-worthy tales. Her style is sweetly salty and deliciously steamy, although this one was a clever slow burn that finally culminated with such volcanic combustion I struggled to catch my breath and felt a trickle of perspiration despite being in the chilly room. The characters were well nuanced, quirky, multi-layered, and highly appealing. I adored them and reveled in their banter, insights, and sharp and witty humor. I am eagerly anticipating more of this new series and curious as to the direction it will be taking.

Publication Date: October 26, 2021

Publisher: HQN Books

The holidays have never been her thing. But Christmas in Rose Bend has more than one surprise in store…

Grieving ER nurse Nessa Hunt is on a road trip with her sullen teen half-sister, Ivy, and still reeling from her mother’s deathbed confession: Nessa’s dad wasn’t really her dad. Seeking answers, they arrive in Rose Bend to find a small town teeming with the kind of Christmas cheer Nessa usually avoids. But then she meets the innkeeper’s ruggedly sexy son, Wolfgang Dennison.

Wolf’s big, boisterous family is like a picture-perfect holiday card. Nessa has too much weighing on her to feel like she fits—even though the heat between her and Wolf is undeniable. And the merriment bringing an overdue smile to Ivy’s face is almost enough to make Nessa believe in the Christmas spirit. But with all her parental baggage, including lingering questions about her birth father, is there room in Nessa’s life for happy holidays and happily-ever-after?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

And to answer your question, yes, we do take Christmas seriously. Because it’s serious business. Peace on earth and goodwill toward men is not something you half-ass, Nessa Hunt. You use your whole ass.

A dull ache started at the back of Nessa’s head, one that usually coincided with Ivy’s tone. The tone that warned, I’m about to go into a full-out preteen hellish mood that all the berserkers and centurions in Fortnite won’t be able to save you from.

The other woman smiled widely, showing all her teeth, and even if the rest of the group hadn’t reacted as if this woman carried the strain for the next zombie plague, that smile would’ve had Nessa leery. Shark smiles— from people who grinned so huge you could count every tooth in their mouth— could rarely be trusted.

God, only a dinner party with Kanye West and Taylor Swift could possibly have been more awkward.

A couple of years ago, some enterprising soul replaced the ex-mayor’s box of decorations with penis-and-ball-shaped ornaments. Hilarious! We’ve all been secretly waiting for Penisgate to happen again. You can’t make this up, my friend.

She can throw a verbal smackdown that would leave a person crying and sucking his thumb.

My Review:

Shame on me, this prolific storyteller has one-hundred-and-one books listed on Goodreads and this is my first time reading her clever craft. The characters were likable and realistically flawed, yet resilient while struggling with individual issues. The story hit all the feels with the angst well tempered with amusing humor and volcanic and gasp producing sensual steam, although the latter came much later in the tale. The storylines were relatable and easy to follow with generous servings of family drama, wry humor, a supposedly no-strings holiday romance with a short shelf life, and small-town community holiday festivities – and this little berg was really into Christmas. Ms. Simone’s Christmas tale provides a bit of tasty spice and is a higher octane alternative to the more chaste and commercially packaged seasonal eggnog out of the carton Hallmark moments broadcasting nonstop this month.

Love in a Pickle, an all-new standalone contemporary romance from L.B. Dunbar, is LIVE in Kindle Unlimited! 

When a mysterious silver fox becomes intrigued with this small town’s most disliked society woman, he finds she’s more than a little trouble and possibly a whole lot of heart.

Scotia Simmons. The name says it all—ornery, judgmental, mean—but underneath a woman like that is typically a shattered heart. Locked within her secrets, this fried pickle princess has used her unkindness as a shield of protection against the loneliness. However, menopause and a one-night stand can change a woman’s perspective on things. Who knew it would take a man the likes of him to push her strong will to its limits?

Chester Chesterfield. The name has more than one meaning—generous, quiet, private—but within one man is a multitude of personas. The gruff oil mogul has a wounded heart (and a big secret) that holds him hostage from the man he’s meant to be. His past defined him, or so he thought. He never imagined it’d take a woman like her to push him over his carefully constructed edges and show him love has no boundaries.

When you’re in a pickle, it’s time to relish what—or rather who—stands before you and accept that even over forty, a second chance at love can be a big dill (every pun intended).

‘Love in a Pickle’ is a full-length contemporary romance, can be read as a standalone, and is book #9 in the Green Valley Library series, Green Valley Chronicles, Penny Reid Book Universe.

Grab your copy TODAY!

Read the Green Valley Library Series of Standalones for F-R-E-E in Kindle Unlimited!

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

“What a strange name. Mrs. Pickle,” I mock. The image of an elderly woman with gray hair curled tight like an old-fashioned perm, wearing a floral dress that looks like an antiquated housecoat and gnawing on a dill pickle comes to mind. In my head, she bites into it like she hates dick.

He’s locked up tighter than a Bible-thumping virgin.

Expectation is the work of the devil. When you expect something, you are sure to be disappointed

Naomi found us shirts— the Sun, the moon, and the Earth— for the three of us to wear. We can form an eclipse depending on how we stand next to one another.

My Review:

This was a massive surprise. I knew from previous outings that Ms. Dunbar could bring the heat but my mere perusal of this tale actually produced perspiration in a cool room. I may also have been gasping. Despite the couple’s subatomic sensual chemistry and age-defying stamina, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to warm to Scotia as she was actually rather vile.   Scotia had a well-earned reputation, as she was short-tempered, snide, snarky, and mercurial with everyone.   She was a small-town socialite and while she had finally come into her own as a businesswoman and rich widow, she had become as salty and sour as the pickle products she produced.

Scotia had married up for security and social standing, but that didn’t go as planned due to her husband’s proclivities and peccadilloes; he had repeatedly broken her heart. He had his reasons. She wasn’t his type. But when Scotia fell into an exhilarating fling with a scorching hot local entrepreneur who turn out to be quite the chameleon, she began to thaw, in all areas.   Trust was hard to come by for both but their mind-blowing carnality and visceral connection was a surprise to each, as well as a source of confusion, obsession, and wonderment to them both. They became besotted. I enjoyed their insightfully and wittily penned journey and Scotia’s gradual transformation was as amusing as it was satisfying. Combined with the clever threads of intrigue woven in between the sizzling mattress Olympics and I found this an engaging read.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

He handed me one of the two to-go cups of coffee he held. “I got it like you like your men… Blond roast with cream and sugar,” he said before turning sharply and heading to the bus.

He blinked slowly and yawned so big I could see a filling in his molar.

You’re doing it again… Looking at me like I’m a fluffy bunny you want to take home and feed carrots to.

 My Review:

Sizzle and snap, I was about to call the fire marshal for fear my Kindle would detonate. Holy smokes, these two sexy hunks did a bang-up job of keeping me entertained with smirks in ample supply while steaming up my tablet with their fledgling love affair. The storylines were active, easy to follow, witty, insightfully penned, and flowed at a steady pace with a likable, endearing, and realistically flawed cast of characters. This was a quick, tasty, and satisfying amuse-bouche to keep the appetites whetted for more to come.