Happy June Book Review Day!!

This month, thanks to two separate trips, I managed to read SEVEN books. Seven, y’all. And, if you have ever felt like judging me, feel free to judge me this month. I probably deserve it. Five of the seven were steamy, chick lit, beach reads. All so great, but steamy.

And I accidentally ordered a kindle automatic download on Amazon instead of paperback early this month, and four of the books I read were on my phone. I mean, who am I? It was so stinkin’ easy, but I do believe that my dog-eared pages and a book to hold will always have my heart.

This meme, y’all. This has been me all month. I actually told a lady reading The Nightingale (my fave book ever!) on the beach last week that I was there for her when she finished. My family is still trying to decide if they plan to speak to me again. 😉

Okay…LOTS to get through for this month’s book review. Grab your coffee or your cocktail, and here we go…

The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

This is a GOOOOD one!! I have read their books before, and I think that this may be my favorite! Suspenseful, but not anxiety-inducing creepy. The best kind of thriller for me.

Marissa has been unfaithful to her husband Matthew and is desperate to save their marriage. Both are very willing to work on their issues in an effort to check back into their marriage and continue to be loving parents to their eight year old son. Can it really be that easy? What are the underlying issues, and can they be fixed?

Enter Avery…she is a “maverick therapist”. Well, she has lost her license, so she is technically a consultant that takes clients though an intense and invasive ten-session process that is meant to change their current situation. Of course, Avery has her own issues to deal with.

Nothing is as it seems, and the twists and turns are insane. I had to take off a jacket with three chapters left because my stress sweating had reached its peak. Ha! This was such a fun book to read! Perfect for your upcoming summer fun.

Love Her or Lose Her by Tessa Bailey

This is the second book in the hilariously naked “Hot and Hammered” trilogy. As you may remember from last month, I feel in love with Travis and Georgie in Fix Her Up. Love Her or Lose Her still has those two fun characters included, but it mainly focuses on Rosie (Georgie’s best friend) and Dominic (Rosie’s husband and Travis’ colleague in the construction business).

Rosie and Dominic are high school sweethearts and were married just before he was deployed to Afghanistan. After a few deployments, he came home a different man. Sad, but something we hear so much of from our amazing veterans. Their marriage has completely changed, and what was once a fabulous relationship with communication has turned to one of silence and loneliness. Ah, yes…a chick lit book about a marriage in trouble. I’m not sure how she made it work, but it was truly so very sweet. We see these two go to a (hilarious) therapist, see their own realization that they each had a hand in their issues, and then watch as they work to find one another again. It really was very sweet. Listen, if we all want to be married forever, we are going to go through some things. I loved the honesty in this book.

But, y’all…rated R. FYI if that bothers you. As a dear friend of mine says, “it doesn’t matter if they are married”. Ha! So, it’s rated “married R”. 😉

Super cute book! Have I mentioned that I love Tessa Bailey books?

Tools of Engagement by Tessa Bailey

This is the third and final book in the “Hot and Hammered” series. I could help myself, y’all. I just had to read all three. I was too connected to the characters. 😉

Tools of Engagement follows Bethany, the oldest Castle sister that is totally type A and always has herself and everything around her perfect. She desperately wants to go from the family company’s house stager to managing her own flips. She isn’t getting the support, so she decides to strike out on her own.

Wes has just come into town to take temporary custody of his five-year-old niece. As a construction worker for the Castle company, he decides to risk it all and help Bethany with her new venture.

Catching wind of the family drama, the group is pitched a HGTV show about sibling rivalry. This girl loves HGTV, so I totally enjoyed the background goodies as they were filming this show. Bethany and Wes start out as business partners that can barely stand one another to having more of a saucy and steamy relationship.

Here is the deal…Bethany is 30 and Wes is 23. 23, y’all! I’m cool with the seven-year age difference, but not the 23-year-old guy that is portrayed as mature, responsible and ready for commitment. Couldn’t do it. In my head I made him older, so I wasn’t super bugged about it.

When You Are Mine by Michael Robotham

Ugh!!! It is very rare that I am not a fan of a book. It is even more rare that I don’t even want to finish one that I’ve started. This book took me awhile to finish. I actually started it, got bored, read two other books, and then picked this up to finish it. I can truthfully say that the only reason that I finished this book was because I was on an airplane. When it was over and Reid asked how it was, I said “total waste of my time”. Yikes, y’all. Sorry so harsh.

Phil is a Metropolitan police officer on London AND the daughter of an infamous businessman/gangster. She has a passion for helping abused women, so when she discovers that a highly decorated officer is abusing his wife, his children, AND his mistress, she goes about taking him down. The police department clearly starts siding with him, and Phil’s life starts hitting so many twists and turns. Who can she trust? The mistress that she is trying to help is super sketchy and Phil’s fiancé lacks the patience to deal with any of it. My lack of loyalty towards the characters is a clear indication of my interest level.

I mean, it was interesting. If I had read it over the span of a few days maybe I would have liked it? It just came highly recommended to me, so maybe I was expecting too much. Did any of you read this? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

A Not So Meet Cute by Meghan Quinn

This is my first Meghan Quinn book to read, and I will definitely be coming back for more. Very reminiscent of a Tessa Bailey book…sweet, steamy, romantic! And I discovered that her books are instant downloads in my phone, which is DANGEROUS for me. Way to easily accessible for this reader.

A Not So Meet Cute is basically Pretty Woman without the entire prostitution storyline. So, basically, I loved it.

Lottie lives with her mom a block away from the prestigious Beverly Hills Flats neighborhood. She has just lost her job, she is lying to her mom about finally moving out, and she has a sad, dwindling bank account. A serious conversation with her sister on how to fix her current state of affairs turned depressing, so she decided to get some air, walk around the neighborhood, and possibly find a rich husband to take her problems away.

Huxley owns a billion-dollar real estate company with his brothers. When trying to connect and seem more down to earth with a quirky business prospect, he says that he is engaged, and that she is pregnant. Neither are true, and he has a few days to either tell the truth or find a willing participant. In frustration, he goes on a walk to clear his head.

Both on walks, they bump into each other, and a business deal is made. The fake fiancée scenario grows more and more real, and the lines around the business deal start to fade. Aaaahhh! Y’all. This is precious. This is rated R, FYI. But, just so sweet. I laughed out loud on this one and just found myself with a goofy smile on my face off and on. Love the characters, the setting and all the fun.

So Not Meant to Be by Meghan Quinn

So Not Meant to Be is the sequel to A Not So Meet Cute. You know how I love a good sequel, y’all.

This is about Lottie’s sister, Kelsey, and Huxley’s brother, JP. We met them and loved them in the first book, so it was fun to not only continue on their journey, but also see Lottie and Huxley continue on theirs!

This is a classic story on two people that like each other but are trying to act like they don’t until one of them caves and admits it. We all know the premise and I love the way Meghan Quinn writes her books. Here is the deal…Kelsey and JP would both HIGHLY benefit from some consistent therapy. The issues that they both deal with personally are way too big to just hope that the other person helps them fix. The term “you complete me” is great, but only when spoken by a healthy person. If you are struggling emotionally, that phrase can border on co-dependence. Wow, pulled out my minor in psychology there. Sorry, y’all. Clearly, I had thoughts and feelings on this one. 

I liked this book, I did. I just loved the one before, and this wasn’t as good for me. JP is precious, but at times his dominance struck at Christian Grey levels and Kelsey was all cool with that. Um, sister, no ma’am. Clearly, rated R. More so than the first.

I obviously had all of the thoughts on this one, but I did really like it. I couldn’t put it down. And LOOOVED that Lottie and Huxley were a huge part of the story as well.

And…there is one other brother in the mix. We need him to fall in love as well! Come on Meghan! I’m waiting.

My Killer Vacation by Tessa Bailey

What do you get when you mix a “who did it” mystery with a steamy romance? My favorite beach read of the month! Yeah! I loved this book.

Taylor and her brother Jude are excited for their vacation at a high-end Cape Cod rental. That was until they find the homeowner dead in the laundry room. Not the best start to a vacation, am I right? Taylor, an avid true crime podcast fan, digs right in and wants to help figure out this strange story in the peaceful community.

Myles, an ex-cop turned bounty hunter, knows the deceased home owner’s sister and is doing the family a favor on trying to get to the bottom of this mysterious and shocking murder.

Myles and Taylor are polar opposites, they annoy each other, they amuse each other, they help each other with the investigation, and they clearly have traits that can help the other grow. Definitely steamy/rated R in certain parts.

This one was so entertaining! Loved the mystery/chick lit match up! I need to find more of these because I couldn’t put it down. Yeah for long plane rides!!

*******

Whew! That was a long one! As always, I love hearing from you! If you have thoughts on the review above, let me know! AND . . . send me your recommendations! Have a great holiday weekend! XO