Book Review: FALLING FOR HER FIANCE by Cindi Madsen

Book Review: Falling For her Fiancé
Author:  Cindi Madsen

Publisher:    Entangled Publishing

Category:  Adult Romance

“…I think it’s best we don’t put pressure on ourselves either way.  If it’s meant to be it will work out.  If not…you’ll always be my best friend and I need you as that…”- Dani

“you took a chance on moving out here with Steve.  Why him and not me?”- Wes

“that was a mistake obviously.”- Dani

“but you were willing to risk it.”- Wes

Description via Goodreads:

Danielle and Wes have been best friends since college, so when Wes needs a date for his sister’s wedding and Dani needs a partner for her company’s retreat, they devise the perfect plan: a fake engagement to get through both events unscathed. Adrenaline-junkie Wes can prove to both his ex and his family that he’s well and truly moved on, and serious-minded Dani can prove to her boss that she’s worthy of the promotion he seems to only want to give to a family-oriented employee.

But amid the fake swoons, fake kisses, and forced proximity, neither expects the very real feelings that develop. There’s nothing more dangerous than falling for your best friend…but what if the landing is worth the fall?

Though living in different states, distance has never been a factor in Dani and Wes’ friendship.  Through failed relationships, family dramas and love, they have been supportive of each other.  Wes knew that his ex fiancé Sophie is part of his sister’s wedding entourage, and since he can no longer stand the pitying looks from his family because of the broken engagement, he asks Dani to stand as his fake fiancé.  On the other hand Dani needs badly to get promoted for financial reasons.  And since her family oriented company has an upcoming retreat, she decides to bring Wes to pose as her fiancé as well.

Convincing Wes’ family of their engagement was never the problem because for them, a romantic relationship between the two was inevitable.  In fact, even when the two were in different relationships, their solid friendship was always a cause of jealousy and breakups.  Such was the case with Sophie. 

There was always an attraction between Dani and Wes that they didn’t touch, afraid that a fling would just ruin their friendship.  But things are different now.  Both start to fall for the other but stubbornly refuse to acknowledge their chemistry.  Wes, who was always the braver of the two, eventually tries to act on his feelings but is rebuffed by Dani.  She IS in love with her best friend but honestly believes that Wes still loves Sophie and even encourages him to go back to her.  she finally realizes the truth…but has she lost Wes forever?

Funny, Tension filled, Sexy, Sweet…. This book has all the aspects I look for in a romance.  I could not put the book down, so much so that I finished it in one sitting.  Some parts, especially the ones where both Wes and Dani deny their feelings for the other and try to analyze and compartmentalize their reactions to the other, made me want to tear my hair out.  I wanted to skip chapters just so I could read them being together already!  It was a good kind of frustration that gave me palpitations.  Yet the wait was worth it in the end.  It’s a sweet ending that made me wish for, if not a part two, at least an epilogue of some sort. 

If you like your books lighthearted and fun, Falling for Her Fiancé is right up your alley.  Read it!

You may visit the Author’s site at:

http://cindimadsen.com/

Book Review: THE BOOBY TRAP by Anne Browning Walker

Book:  The Booby Trap

Author:  Anne Browning Walker

Publisher:  Pixel Entertainment

Category:  Adult Romance

Description via Goodreads:

The Booby Trap is a seedy bar where waitresses skirts are high, necklines are low, and customers show up for the eye candy. 

When brainy, beautiful, Harvard Ph.D. candidate Bambi Benson wants to study the women of the Booby Trap for her dissertation, she goes undercover and joins them.

All is going well for Bambi until handsome local celebrity Trip Whitley enters the scene. Hoping to shock his high-society family by dating a bimbo, Trip offers to pay Bambi to pretend to be his girlfriend. She accepts his offer and bides her time, waiting for the right moment to reveal her true identity and teach Trip not to judge based on appearances.

After a series of dates carefully orchestrated for their publicity value, Bambi’s trap is set. But there's one problem: the predator might have fallen in love with her prey.

Bambi needs money, fast, so she can go to a conference in London.  But being a simple student and working as a waitress at The Booby Trap, she isn’t exactly raking it in.  so when local heartthrob Trip offers her money in exchange for being his fake girlfriend for nine months, she reluctantly agrees.

Playing the bimbo is not as easy as it’s supposed to be for an intelligent woman, but though Trip has moments of doubt, Bambi still pulls it off.   Since they spend a lot of time together, their attraction for each other naturally intensifies. Until the day she reveals the truth to him…..on a local television show.   Trip is humiliated but later on decides to give Bambi and their budding relationship a chance to make it real…. But reality can bite one in the ass, especially when there’s someone else waiting in the wings…

Three cheers for the writer who here tries to change the basic assumption that beautiful, cleavage-baring women are all brainless bimbos. Here, the physically gifted women are smart and sassy as well, and it's a change well appreciated. However, the book itself isn't as great a read as I had hoped.

It didn't involve me as a reader into the lives of Trip and Bambi. I felt like a voyeur, an observer, from the outside looking in, watching the inevitable happen yet not quite getting into the emotion of the protagonists. I felt set apart from the story which was disturbing since the premise is very interesting and the flow was pretty good. It just lacked the thrill that I always look for in romantic books. The chemistry between the two is definitely there, just not as sizzling as I expected it to be, which was a bit disappointing. 

Overall, The Booby Trap is still a book worth you time if you like romance and comedy rolled into one.

You may visit the Author’s site at:

http://annebrowningwalker.com

Book Review: ALL HE EVER DESIRED by Shannon Stacey

Book:  All He Ever Desired
Author:  Shannon Stacey
Publisher:  Harlequin
Category:  Adult Romance

"Yours. That's the word I'd use."- Ryan
"What do you mean?"- Lauren
"If somebody wants you to pin a label on my place in your life, Just tell them I'm Yours.  It's that simple."-Ryan
"That simple huh? Mine?"- Lauren
"Yours."- Ryan

Book Description via Goodreads:

A second shot at first love

After college, Ryan Kowalski decided to leave Whitford, Maine, rather than watch Lauren Carpenter marry another man. Now his siblings need his help to refurbish the family-owned Northern Star Lodge and he’s forced to face the past sooner rather than later when he collars a vandal—and learns the boy is Lauren’s son…

The last person Lauren needs back in her life is Ryan Kowalski. With a bitter ex-husband and a moody teenage son, she has enough man trouble already. But her son needs to learn a few lessons about right and wrong, even if Lauren has to escort him to Ryan’s door every day to work off his crime.

With all this close contact, Ryan and Lauren can’t deny the chemistry between them is as powerful as ever. But can a few searing kisses erase their past and pave the way for a second chance at true love?

Ryan kowalski has only ever loved one girl. Lauren, the woman of his dreams, the one who broke his heart by getting pregnant and marrying his best friend.  That was years before.  Now ryan, who owns a successful building business, is back in town where they both grew up to fix his family's lodge, the Northern Star Lodge..but only for a few weeks.....or at least that was the plan until he saw Lauren.

Lauren has always dwelled on the what-ifs.  What if she said yes to Ryan when he asked her to run away with him? What would have life been like? Surely it's better than being cheated on by her now ex husband Dean and being a single mother to a teenage boy struggling with day to day expenses in a small town where everyone knows everybody else's business.  But Ryan is gone, having moved to the big city when she refused his intentions.

Then a Kowalski gets married.  

Ryan's older brother Mitch is getting married to Lauren's good friend Paige (from the book All He Ever Needed).  Which means inevitably they would run into each other.... A lot.  What they never expected was for Lauren's son Nick to be its catalyst.

Ryan catches Nick trying to vandalize the family lodge. Upon learning that he is Lauren's son, he offers for Nick to work off the damages so Lauren wouldn't have to give up her meager savings.  This leaves Ryan with a lot of one on one time with Lauren.  Then the inevitable happens and they fall in love.... But will their 2nd chance at love spell forever?

I have always loved Shannon Stacey.  The characters she creates are fun and strong with great one liners.  Plus i have a soft spot for the Kowalskis from the very first book...they are all interesting, tough and sweet at the same time, which makes me want to meet, or date, any of them.  You can actually exchange one character for the other since all Kowalski men are pretty much made from the same mold...hard on the outside, gooey on the inside.  

Despite the similarities, boredom does not set in when reading these books.  another plus is the chemistry between the two main characters which is explosive with lots of sexy moments. Written with much humour and heart, i am looking forward to reading more stories of different family members in the future, the next of which is Josh Kowalski in the book All He Ever Dreamed.

Happy Reading!

You may visit the author's site at:
http://shannonstacey.com/