Mistakes Were Made by Lucy Score

As a literary agent, Zoey Mood's career relied on her last client, her romance writing best friend, Hazel Hart.  Zoey had been relieved of her New York office and apartment while banned to Pennsylvania in a rural town where everyone knows everyone and everything about each other.

  

Her new landlord, Gage Bishop who's also an attorney and construction worker, made his upper apartment available for the attractive, yet entirely obnoxious newcomer.

Zoey had a mental list of things she needed to take care of including make enough money to survive, publicize Hazel's new book successfully, and not date any men.  Her taste in boyfriends always backfired.

Quite the opposite for Gage.  He has solid work and wants to settle down with the right type of woman.  

The best relationships can happen as a surprise, when you don't expect it.  All you need is two single people who don't really realize what is good for them.  

This is where Zoey's spontaneous and goofy nature collides with Gage's orderly and carefully planned life through funny and ridiculous events, which allow them to get to know each other.  They attempt to fight off the growing feelings because neither believes they are compatible.  But maybe the differences are more attractive and sustainable than they previously thought.

Many laughs will bring the results!

Happy reading,

Dawn    

 

The Secret Life of Sunflowers by Marta Molnar

A fabulous contemporary/historical romance!  As an auctioneer in New York, NY, Emsley Wilson's life is on auction.  Her grandmother, Violet, passes after a "free bird" life in painting and social connections.  

Emsley inherits Violet's New York brownstone and a blue box with an old painting and a pile of yellowed letters.  The initial intention is to sell the home along with saving her auction business, ditching one of the partners who wants to ditch her, and meeting the real estate attorney Violet suggested.

Can we add a little more to Emsley's to-do list?  Of course.  

Bram Dekker, attorney, meets with Emsley to help her with legalities.  He wears a wedding ring, so Emsley doesn't understand his interest in her.  He's gorgeous, kind, and respectful, but he has a ring on.  

In between cleaning the house, and everything else. Emsley takes a minute to transport us back in time through the old letters in the box.  The letters are written about Johanna Bongor-van Gogh. 

The story is rich in contemporary and historical romance along with such an interesting background of Vincent van Gogh.  I may have to pick up his biography to see how close the information is.  It also exemplifies the fight women take up to be recognized.  

I hope, if you pick up any of the books I review, this is one of them!

Happy reading,

Dawn

 

Vicious (Sinners of Saint Book 1) by L.J. Shen

 L. J. Shen must be a greatly talented writer.  A reader can love a character and hate a character, but how can they change your opinion in a few hours of intense reading?

Emilia is the woman I love in the story.  She is artistic, loves to paint, will do anything for family, and works her behind off.  Originally from California, she relocated to New York City under the threat that her parents would be fired from their job and kicked out of their apartment if she didn't evacuate what she knew as her only home.

The hateful character has an appropriate name, Vicious.  That's what he is, and it appears impossible to make this rotten, evil person into a likeable part of anyone's life.  He's the one who made the threat along with teasing and acting mean to Emilia when she was a kid. 

 

Vicious and his childhood friends build a billion dollar business and it happens that he sees Emilia at her cocktail waitress job and lures her to temporarily work for his business.  She accepts under obligations to her sisters health.  Why else would she endure his horrible nature again?

The ironic thing is, they both fight their growing attachment to the other.  What could be right with Vicious making his evil layers peel off one by one?  What sob story can he have that will actually explain his couple of decades of torment to a woman?  How can Emilia, whom I constantly root for, let Vicious back into her life? It's not his money or connections.  

This romance is a page-flipper, and I dare you to put it down as L. J. Shen untangles a messy relationship!

Happy reading,

Dawn

    

People We Meet On Vacation by Emily Henry

 Vacation is Poppy's favorite activity.  She does it on a whim, cheap or expensive, she writes about it, magazine and blog, and now she can't figure out why it's "just not the same".

Once a year her best friend, Alex, and her picked a low-budget, out-of-the-ordinary trip.  Spontaneous and whacky are the the best ways to describe everything they do, yet two years ago the trips together ended and they haven't talked.  No discussion of why they ended.

Poppy lives in New York and writes for a travel magazine and considers it her dream job.  Although, she's lost a bit of that carefree, happy attitude that exotic places have brought her.

Alex lives in her hometown in Ohio. He's bookish, quiet, and a teacher at their old high school.  

She misses her best friend and takes the chance to send a text, hoping he'll reply positively.  Maybe they could try one of those fantastic, cheap vacations like old times.  

The question is:  How can they jump into another vacation without talking so long and rekindle the missing thread of their happiness in life?

The key is what happened two years ago.  If they discover the problem, can they enrich their relationship and take it another step?  I hope so!

Happy reading,

Dawn

How to Judge a Book By It's Lover by Jessica Jiji

 Had to giggle throughout this story relating an aspiring author's jumps and dives into and out of publishing!

Laurel is a busy lady with her job as a dog walker, attending a critique group, and writing and re-writing her novel.  She is determined to move on and get her story, Napoleon's Hairdresser, published.  Editing chapter 38 is her current project, along with appeasing her family who want her to get a real job.   

Her critique group is filled with an odd variety of writers, most supportive, some just odd.  Perfect and perfectly critical of her life, Lauren's sister is a thorn in her side.  

Lauren acquires a new client, Anderson Gallant.   Along with a lively boxer dog, he has a connection with a local New York publishing house.  He falls for Lauren quickly, as long as all attention is on himself, and guarantees a publishing contract. 

Initially, she is absorbed in Anderson's life, thinks everything is wonderful and all dreams will come true as long as she changes herself to fit and restructures her novel.  Change nearly everything and it will be successful.  

No matter how fast-paced life gets, stop and pay attention to whatever is overlooked, including the man she stood up on a blind date.  He, Irwin, only thinks of her well-being, can compromise, and supports her misdirected writing.  Irwin may be a lot more enjoyable than the superficial living experienced with Anderson.

I hope Lauren looks at reality and picks the right man to bring her into a happy and romantic future.

Happy reading,

Dawn

 

  

By A Thread: A Grumpy Boss Romantic Comedy by Lucy Score

A delightful read for the oncoming summer!
Dominic Russo works on a ton of problems which gives him a hard shell.  He's determined to be nothing like his father, a playboy with all women.  He steps into the job his dad had at the family fashion magazine.  Let's not forget that Dominic hasn't been with a woman for a year.      
Ally speaks her mind in a humorous manner.  At least I find it funny.  She probably thinks she's saying it like it is.  Suddenly, fired from her main job of many, a glorious woman steps in and tells her to show up for work at her business.
Dressed up in her resale clothes, they still look stylish, Ally shows up for whatever job is waiting for her.  
She has to work with Dominic!  It's his mother who hired her.
Immediate disdain is slung between the two.  It creates fuel for an unexpected attraction.  How can that be?
The banter between Dominic and Ally is laughable.  They both realize there's an undercurrent of lust going on that they pretend doesn't exist, and it adds fuel to their emotional side.
All Ally's time is devoted to her many jobs. Dominic is apprehensive to exhibit a personal side.  So where does this leave the festering "I want to jump you" portion of their minds? I'm greatly amused along their trip to accept a love they try to demolish.

Happy reading,
Dawn

The Overdue Life of Amy Byler by Kelly Harms

This book was written for single mom's, but anyone can love it!
Amy Byler, mom of teenage son and daughter, needs a break and didn't even know it.
Amy's husband left for good three years ago until he came back to town.  John shows up at the local drug store without notice. He wants to be seen as Amy thinks about hiding out in the aisles.
John only hid out in Hong Kong with his young girlfriend, and now wants to reclaim his children and maybe his wife.
Amy's besties have another idea.  Local friend and New York friend plan a week off from everything for Amy in New York.  It's called momspringa!  Suckered into being wined and dined, new makeup and clothes, and new men to try on, and no children, Amy originally went to New York for a librarian convention.
The convention has its own surprise in the form of a Hot Librarian.  Maybe that should've been the title.  His name is Daniel.
Amy feels the heat that hasn't kindled her heart for years over this one.  Not to mention all her blind dates.
So now Amy has her ex, John, the Hot Librarian, Daniel, and some other quite captivating men in her life.
Just when I think I know which man has surrounded her heart, the scene changes.  Quite a cute and exciting story as to how Amy gets her life back with the approval of her children!

Happy reading,
Dawn
 

The Best Man by Kristan Higgins

This is a great story to read when you just need total happiness.  Higgins crafted a masterpiece of drama, tension, and overwhelming love.

The vineyards of New York supply a beautiful and dreamy setting, although Faith Holland and Levi Cooper have to resolve inner issues in order to truly appreciate the colors and scents of the valley. 

Faith’s biggest upset is she was left at the altar by a perfect man-he would prefer another perfect man.  Better to find out before the rings are exchanged. 

Levi never liked Faith, or so he says, until he’s a lonely Chief of Police with a bitter memory of a three month marriage.

Many small family issues pull Faith and Levi together and apart repeatedly.  And they aren’t the usual problems.  

It would be so much easier if everyone just said what was on their minds, but that only happens in the movies-definitely not in a romance novel.

This is a novel I wish hadn’t ended as Faith and Levi were so richly characterized that I didn’t want to say goodbye.  Faith had a sweet innocence that Levi’s alpha character wasn’t sure how to handle, so they learned about each other at a turtle’s pace along with the help of Faith’s leg-humping helper dog (that’s a hint about another of her things to deal with), a nosey yet caring family, and lessons on communication.

I’m already checking out what other books by Kristan Higgins I can get ahold of-fast.

Enjoy, Dawn