Off to the Races: horses, races, and romance

Off to the Races by Elsie Silver is the first book in the Gold Rush Ranch series. Vaughn Harding has taken over running the Gold Rush Ranch after the sudden death of his grandfather. He has always tried to keep a professional relationship with his employees. It has been fairly easy to keep his distance until she walked in his life. Billie Black is young but talented. She’s mouthy and takes no crap from anyone and Vaughn can’t stop thinking about her. Billie needs to prove herself as a horse trainer. When Vaughn gives her what seems to be an impossible task: training a skittish horse named Double Diablo, Billie is determined to prove him wrong. The friction between them causes a spark, a spark they can’t afford to turn into a fire. There is a lot at stark for both Vaughn and Billie. Will they risk it all for love? 

Off to the Races is a steamy romance. The attraction between Vaughn and Billie is instant but their irritation at each other overrides their desires until they can’t fight it anymore. Both Vaughn and Billie are fighting against family reputations and scandals. I enjoyed Billie’s interaction with Double Diablo as she sees what others haven’t seen or chooses to ignore. Vaughn had a lot of growing up to do as he often acted like a man child who was playing boss. I love how Billie went toe-to-toe with him and called him out. The other character I enjoyed was Hank Brandt, a mentor to both Vaughn and Billie. Overall, I enjoyed Vaughn and Billie’s story but I’m not sure if I was interested enough to continue with the series. I may pick up the other books in the future. If you enjoy a steamy romance with a ranch and horses, you might enjoy Off to the Races. 

Off to the Races is available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook

Princess and the Player: a steamy strangers to lovers romance

Princess and the Player by Ilsa Madden-Mills is the second book in the Strangers in Love series. A masquerade ball at an exclusive club where anonymity is a must. Tuck Avery, an aging wide receiver in the NFL, celebrates his 35th birthday with his friends at Decadence, the premier club in New York. Even though he doesn’t want to be there, one particular princess catches his eye. Francesca is there to forget. Forget that that night was supposed to be her wedding day. Forget that her fiancé cheated on her. She just wants to forget. With no names, no faces, they have one amazing night together, with the promise that’s all they will have. But fate has other ideas. Francesca learns that her prince is the wealthy football player that lives in the penthouse of her building. If the tabloids are to be believed, she wants nothing to do with him. Unfortunately, she has one problem: she learns she is pregnant. As their paths keep crossing and their attraction to each is obvious, can the princess and the player have a happily ever after? 

Where do I start? Princess and the Player is a steamy strangers to lovers romance. As I closed the final chapter of this story, I was unsure how I felt. I enjoyed the story but I found myself extremely frustrated at the stubborn bullheadedness of Tuck and Francesca. At one point, Francesca gets upset that Tuck had her investigated DESPITE knowing his past. Any one in his position and wealth would investigate people they are trying to get close to. It sucks; however, I understand it is in order to protect himself, not just financially but psychologically as well. Tuck is a tortured person with a trauma filled past. And yet, I felt as if Francesca was constantly trying to claim her past was far more tragic. While both pasts were traumatic, this isn’t a competition. Plus there are some timeline issues that I’m sure were for dramatic effect but it didn’t work for me. That being said, I truly did enjoy this story and I look forward to reading more in this series. If you enjoy a steamy romance, you will enjoy Princess and the Player. 

Princess and the Player is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Curvy Girls Can't Date Quarterbacks: an emotional young adult romance

Curvy Girls Can’t Date Quarterbacks by Kelse Stelting is the first book in The Curvy Girls Club series. Rory Hutton has struggled with her weight for a long time. She’s been called a big girl, “plus sized” and forced to try every diet imaginable and she can’t stand it anymore. On the day Rory gets devastating news from her doctor, Merrit Alexander, Emerson Academy’s resident Mean Girl, runs her mouth off that fat people simply need to lose weight. Rory snaps and it leads to the worst decision of her life. She bets Merrit that she can get Beckett Langley to ask her to the homecoming dance. Beckett is the school’s star quarterback with a line of girls just waiting to date him. She has had a crush on him for as long as she can remember. With the help of her fellow curvy girls, Rory sets out to get Beckett’s attention. Once she does, she learns the real Beckett. The Beckett who is more than just a great quarterback, a Beckett who feels deeper than anyone thought possible. As their relationship progresses, Rory realizes she has one big problem: Beckett doesn't know that their relationship is based on a bet. How can she tell him the truth without risking losing the first and only guy she loves? Can she prove that curvy girls deserve a happily ever after too? 

Why did I wait so long to read this book?!?!? I added it to my To Be Read list and forgot about it. Until an ad for the book popped up and reminded me. I started reading and could not put it down! I read well into the night as I was hooked on Rory and Beckett’s love story. If the story premise sounds familiar, it should. A similar storyline is the plot of the 1999 teen comedy, She’s All That. However, this story takes a deeper and more emotional turn than the movie. I was angry during the first 25% as a curvy girl and woman who has always struggled with her body image, my heart broke for Rory. I felt Rory’s pain and frustration. I laughed, sighed and grinned during the middle 50%. Beckett and Rory are perfect for each other. And I ugly cried, sobbed really, at the final 25%. It is a great story about how it can take just the right person to break through the self-doubt to find the confidence and beautiful sexiness you always hoped was there. Yes, it is a Young Adult novel with a bunch of teen drama and immaturity but there are life lessons to be learned that even adults can learn. I look forward to the rest of the series! I highly, highly, highly recommend Curvy Girls Can’t Date Quarterbacks. 

Curvy Girls Can’t Date Quarterbacks is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Steal My Heart: can a friend with benefits become Mr Right?

Steal My Heart by Savannah Kade is the first book in the Against All Odds series. Cara Larkin has waited patiently for Mr. Right. She has a checklist of the qualities she is looking for in a partner. Everything else in her life is on track. She’s about to make partner in her firm, she owns her condo and she has the bestest friends. All she needs is Mr Right. While she waits for Mr Right, she has Mr Right Now. Cara has the perfect friends with benefits arrangement with Walker Booth, who has proven to be the best lover she has ever had. Then she meets Clark Fuller, Mr Right. He has everything she needs. While Clark marks off a lot of the items from her checklist, she still feels something is missing. A twist of fate will show Cara that there’s more to Walker than meets the eye. 

Steal My Heart is a friends to lovers story that claims to “steal your heart, then your sleep. And lastly leave you ready for book two.” At first, I found the beginning to be slow. I wasn’t sure I cared for Cara. I could easily see that Clark was not the one for her and Walker was the better catch. However, having finished one book and not ready for sleep, I picked up Steal My Heart again, hoping it would relax me to sleep. Nope! The story hooked me and I read well into the night. There were many steamy moments. There were touching emotional moments. And moments I wanted to shake sense in Cara to open her eyes and truly see Walker! As I closed the pages on Steal My Heart, I was certainly ready for book 2. This story did not disappoint. I highly recommend Steal My Heart. 

Steal My Heart is available in eBook

Eggnog, Extortion and Evergreens: when a man dies in a the ER, is it a natural death or murder?

Eggnog, Extortion and Evergreens by Tonya Kappes is the fourteenth book in the Campers and Criminals Cozy Mystery series. The Christmas season is a busy time for Mae as she fills her time with the first annual Winter Festival and the slow season at the campground. However, curvy roads and freshly fallen snow hides hidden dangers as Mae gets into a car accident and falls into a coma. Mae is lucky as she wakes up with a few bruises and a concussion but the patient next to her wasn’t so lucky. Randy Lenz, a local businessman, dies from what seems to be natural causes. As Mae recovers and struggles with swirling memories of her past, present and a nagging feeling that Mr Lenz was murdered. Can she fully remember what she heard that night? Can she convince anyone else that there’s a crime to be solved? 

This story opens with a scary scene as Mae is rushed from the accident site to the ER and she drifts into and out of consciousness. Of course, overhearing a suspicious conversation about the patient next to her brings her from her coma. This story definitely had a different feel as Mae’s friends and loved ones are seemingly keeping her in the dark. Why? Mae soon finds out and she springs into action as only Mae can. I thoroughly enjoyed Mae and her determination as she heals and shows how strong she truly is. I also enjoyed the more loving way Hank is treating Mae. I smiled as he seemed to reveal a more tender side. I look forward to reading more of the fun adventures in Normal. I highly recommend Eggnog, Extortion and Evergreens as well as the previous books in this series. 

Eggnog, Extortion and Evergreens is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Claiming Carter: a steamy forbidden romance

Claiming Carter is the first book in the Waverley Wildcats series by Jennifer Bonds. Austin Reid has it all. A star quarterback with amazing talent, good looks and any woman he wants. The only thing he is missing is a national championship. When the team’s kicker is injured and the home opening game is three weeks away, he needs to find a replacement. He does so in an unorthodox way. He recruits one player from the women’s soccer team. Kennedy Carter is no jersey chaser. In fact, she hates football and football players. She is focused on finishing her degree. But with the possibility of a full-ride scholarship, she can’t refuse. Sparks fly between them from the get go. And the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to ignore the building fire. Can Austin convince Kennedy that he is not a typical football player? 

I love the game of football. I look forward to every season with anticipation. I also love a good football romance story. Let me say that it’s hard to find. Claiming Carter has it all. It is a sweet, steamy romance with fun, witty banter and personal growth. I loved both Austin and Kennedy as individuals and as a couple. I enjoyed a glimpse, even a fictional glimpse, of a football team behind the scenes which most football fans will never see. Even when the story was predictable, it is a romance after all, but it has the great romantic moments and the grand public gesture is so incredibly sweet. Overall, I loved this story. I stayed up well into the night in order to finish it. I look forward to reading the rest of the series. If you enjoy a sweet, steamy sports romance, I highly recommend Claiming Carter. 

Claiming Carter is available in paperback and eBook

She's Up to No Good: a sudden trip leads to life changing events

She’s Up to No Good by Sara Goodman Confino is a story of a sudden trip that leads to life changing events for two women. After four years of marriage, Jenna is blindsided when her husband asks for a divorce. With time on her hands and her life at a crossroads, she agrees to accompany Evelyn, her eccentric maternal grandmother, on a road trip to the family’s seaside Massachusetts hometown. As they hit the road, Evelyn begins a story of her star-crossed teenage romance with a young man named Tony. A story that she has hidden deep in her heart for seventy years as the events had changed the course of her life. When they arrive, Jenna meets Joe, Tony’s great-nephew. As their new friendship grows, Jenna begins to gain the confidence to find a new perspective and put her broken life back together. She learns that healing can come at the unexpected moments in a woman's life. 

I purchased She’s Up to No Good as a part of Amazon’s First Reads program. I love stories that intertwine past and present relationships. It was described as a “funny, poignant, and life-affirming novel about family, secrets, and broken hearts” However, a few chapters in and I was bored. I didn’t care for Jenna and Evelyn. Jenna is so annoyingly whiny for a woman who is supposed to be 34 years old. Evelyn is described as feisty but it comes across as downright mean. She doesn’t care who she hurts or manipulates. I did not find any of the situations funny that were supposed to be “funny.” If anything I was cringed more than I laughed. The story is also way too long. Sixty-two chapters of drawn out drama and family secrets. Overall, I was bored and did not care for either woman and her personal journey. I do not recommend She’s Up to No Good. 

She’s Up to No Good is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook