Wow, who knew I'd end up liking this? Never judge a book by its first few chapters, indeed. I almost DNF-ed it considering the heroine really 4 Stars!
Wow, who knew I'd end up liking this? Never judge a book by its first few chapters, indeed. I almost DNF-ed it considering the heroine really annoyed me but I was patient enough and guess what, the book got better a few chapters ahead until the end.
Then You Happened was a unique book to devour. It gave me a Nicholas Sparks and Jude Deveraux kind of feels with its calm and quiet countryside setting shadowed with a wistful writing style that made me feel like I was actually there.
When Tatum "Tate" Knox lost her husband Fletcher, she was not only left with a misery but with a mountain of debts to pay in order to continue their small ranch from running. She met Jack Sutton when she was in the process of hiring him as her ranch manager. Their first few encounters weren't pretty though as they bickered because they just can't stand each other. As the story progressed, Tate realized how badly she needed his help. Jack obviously had the expertise to save her sinking livelihood. But other than that, she didn't realize that she was slowly falling for him. What started as a steamy sexual attraction between them became something else. And while their feelings advanced into a whole new level, they discovered that they've been keeping secrets from each other, ones that may ruin them.
It's my first K. Bromberg read and I definitely loved her writing style. Hands-down beautiful! It actually made me want to read her previous books such as the Driven series which I have been eye-ing for such a long time. K. Bromberg's way of narrating the story was truly compelling that it was hard for me to put it down despite the fact that, as I mentioned, the heroine got on my nerves the first few chapters.
It wasn't really easy to like Tate at first. At times I got so frustrated especially the way she initially treated Jack. The way she dealt with her failures and her sadness were also a bit of an annoyance. She was an immature character. But then I slowly warmed up to her when I understood everything she went through especially at how the people at Lone Star made her the star of their daily gossip. Ugh, that must be really aggravating! Tate's character improved quite remarkably though and I was glad. It was worth my patience after all.
Jack, on the other hand, was a very likeable character. He may seem to be an arrogant man but he has soft sides that will make you melt deep down inside. I loved how he was patient with Tate and how he was there on her side, protecting her in times of challenging situations.
The romance was very well-done. It was a combination of sexy and sweet and I loved it. There was also a set of family dramas thrown into places that made me cry. It was, as a whole, an emotional and un-put-downable book. If you fancy country romance reads, then you must give this one a go.
This is my first P. Dangelico read and I should say the writing was totally a winner. The characters, the setting, the banters-- oh, definit3.5 Stars!
This is my first P. Dangelico read and I should say the writing was totally a winner. The characters, the setting, the banters-- oh, definitely a surprise!
You Can Have Manhattan starts when Sydney Evans, the general counsel for Blackstone Holdings, was offered by her boss and owner of the company Frank Blackstone a marriage of convenience to his son Scott Blackstone. Frank has a terminal illness and he worries that his son won't be able to handle the company when he passes away so he has to delegate the responsibility to Sydney as the CEO. But the employees would be skeptical about her abilities for the position so he convinced her to marry his son so she can have the power to enforce to everyone that she is certified for the role.
Sydney didn't like the idea because aside from the fact that she will marry someone without an ounce of love, she personally disliked Scott who's known for his reformed playboy and party animal image. Scott, on the other hand, doesn't like her because for him she is like an ice princess. Cold and heartless.
I loved the enemies-to-lovers and arranged marriage trope in this book. And the fact that this is an adult romance is an added bonus. Sydney is 34 years old while Scott is 38. I rarely read books with this age range so it's refreshing for me. When it comes to the chemistry, there was certainly a lot of it between the main characters. And the every day banter-- it was fun that it made me smile at times.
What made me rate the book lower though was because I found the plot a bit common. I've read this kind of plot and series of events before which made the whole story quite predictable to me. However, all in all, it was a sweet and sensible romantic read. I loved the slowly but surely romantic progression as well. Sydney and Scott didn't fall automatically in love at first. In fact, they didn't even feel attracted towards each other, but their love meticulously bloomed in a well-paced progress and this is something that I appreciate in this book.
"They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but sometimes the trouble follows you home."
3.5 Stars
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,
"They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but sometimes the trouble follows you home."
3.5 Stars
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but that's not the case for Andie Marks because just when she was about to get married to her fiancé, she was notified that she's not allowed to wed someone because she's already married to the sexy cowboy named Mack whom she met and had a one-night-stand with two years ago in Las Vegas.
Ooops. I really loved the premise of this book. It also started funny which absolutely sold me. To add icing to the cake, Mack is one hot specimen. A rare specimen.
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If only the heroine, Andie, was not annoying, I would have enjoyed it even more and might have given the book 4 stars. But the woman was so self-centered, whiny, and a bit of a brat which really irked me most of the time. Good thing Mack was so perfect and there were lots of funny and hot scenes and oh, the settings-- Las Vegas and Baker City, Oregon were also beautifully described.
It's my first time to read an Elle Casey book and I really loved her witty writing and her great sense of humor. Plus, she gave the side characters complex traits and personalities.
Favorite part of the book:
The vows. Really laughed out loud with this! :'D
Overall, Shine Not Burn was a fun, lighthearted, sexy romance book that will leave you laughing. It's a great book to take your stress away for a while. :)