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Blue Hill Brides, Book 1

From the publisher:

Saying “I do” has never been this much fun in this charming new romance from New York Times bestselling author Ginny Baird.

Hope Webb can’t believe her twin sister, Jackie, is begging her to swap places and play fiancée at Jackie’s pre-wedding festivities. Sure, it’s only a business-deal sort of marriage, but Hope is a carb-loving teacher who enjoys curling up with a good book. Jackie is a workaholic whose idea of a good time is a brisk five-mile run at the crack of dawn. The two sisters couldn’t be more opposite.

Now Hope is stuck in the middle of a warm, tight-knit family she can’t help but adore and a groom who turns out to be entirely wonderful…for her.

Hotel magnate Brent Albright knows something is off about his fiancée, but he doesn’t care. Gone is the driven woman with similar career goals, and in her place is someone warm and funny who not only charms his family but him as well. She’s doing everything she can to avoid him, but that’s probably just nerves. Two people about to wed couldn’t know each other less.

Now Brent is determined to woo his fiancée, for real this time, because the more he gets to know her, the more his sweet fiancée turns out to be entirely wonderful…for him.

And that’s when things start to get really complicated…

Each book in the Blue Hill Brides series is STANDALONE:
* The Duplicate Bride
* The Matchmaker Bride

I read this series out of order, but if you can believe the publisher, each book is a standalone. That wasn’t really my experience, so I recommend reading them in order. This is the first book.

There are a lot of characters in this story, but the main characters are Brent and Hope. Brent wants to take over the family business, bypassing his older brother, and he thinks the secret to that is to be married. Jackie is a successful wedding planner in Boston, and she thinks if she is married it will be beneficial to her business. So an agreement is reached; a marriage of convenience. Brent is enough of a romantic to hope that love will follow once they are married, but Jackie is pure business all the way.

Jackie and Hope are identical twins, but while they look alike, their personalities couldn’t be more different. Hope is a school teacher who is laid back, sweet, and doesn’t mind being a size larger than her sister since that means she can eat carbs and she doesn’t have to exercise. So when the wedding Jackie is planning blows up at the last minute, she begs Hope to go to Blue Hill, Maine to stay with her in-laws-to-be just for a day and pretend to be Jackie, like they used to do when they were kids. Hope doesn’t want any part of that, but she agrees to go as herself.

Except when she arrives at the family estate, they immediately assume Hope is Jackie, even her fiancé doesn’t notice anything different. She ends up going with it because it just seems overwhelming to try and fix it. But since Jackie is due the next day, no big deal. But of course that disaster of a wedding just keeps on imploding, and Jackie keeps on extending her stay in Boston, leaving Hope to play Jackie in all the family wedding celebrations for the week leading up to the wedding. And then Jackie misses the wedding itself.

Meanwhile, Hope is falling in love with Brent, her sister’s fiancé, and she is panicking about it. But amazingly, he is falling in love with her as well. You just know this is going to blow up badly, but this is a romance so there will be a happy ending. But it is fun in a tortuous sort of way to get there. There are a lot of laughs in this sweet romance, and I really enjoyed it. (Especially after reading the second book first!)

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE DUPLICATE BRIDE by Ginny Baird. Entangled: Amara (September 29, 2020) ISBN: 978-1682815229. 368 pages.

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Bromance Book Club, Book 4

From the publisher:

One of Bustle’s Best New Books of July 2021

A Popsugar Best Book and Best Romance of July 2021

With his passion for romance novels, it was only a matter of time before Vlad wrote one.

Elena Konnikova has lived her entire adult life in the shadows. As the daughter of a Russian journalist who mysteriously disappeared, she escaped danger the only way she knew how: She married her childhood friend, Vladimir, and moved to the United States, where he is a professional hockey player in Nashville.

Vlad, aka the Russian, thought he could be content with his marriage of convenience. But it’s become too difficult to continue in a one-sided relationship. He joined the Bromance Book Club to learn how to make his wife love him, but all he’s learned is that he deserves more. He’s ready to create his own sweeping romance—both on and off the page.

The bros are unwilling to let Vlad forgo true love—and this time they’re not operating solo. They join forces with Vlad’s neighbors, a group of meddling widows who call themselves the Loners. But just when things finally look promising, Elena’s past life intrudes and their happily ever after is cast into doubt.

This is one of my favorite series and this latest entry is just as wonderful as the previous books. This is one series I’ve actually read in order! The premise behind the series is this group of men, most professional athletes and one country music star, have a friendship unlike most. These men talk, really talk, about relationships and life and they help one another. They also have a book club where they read romance novels, the idea being that they will learn how to be better boyfriends and husbands. It works pretty well for them.

This book centers around Vlad, nicknamed “the Russian” because he is from Russia. He is married to Elena, but none of the men have ever met her. While they all live in Nashville, Elena’s been living in Chicago for six years attending Northwestern University, where she’s almost completed her master’s degree in journalism. So when she shows up at a wedding, Vlad is so happy to see her, until she takes off. They are at crossed purposes here; he wants their marriage to be real, and she wants to move back to Russia to be a journalist. Her father was “disappeared” while working on a story about sex trafficking, and she wants to continue his work. She’s been digging into his story all the while she’s been in school, but with her masters at hand, she is ready to go to work.

Turns out that Vlad and Elena were childhood friends, and his parents often took care of her as her mother died when she was very young, and her father was often away working. When she turns 18, Vlad asks her to marry him, giving her the chance to move to America and go to school. They never even consummate their marriage before she moves away.

But this is not your typical green card marriage. For one thing, they have been friends for most of their lives. For another, Vlad isn’t an American citizen. He’s got a work visa because he’s a professional hockey player, and the rules are different for athletes. But Vlad is in love with Elena, and wants her to come home after she graduates.

Elena overheard something when they were getting married that led her to believe that Vlad was only being kind to her. She feels like a burden to him, and wants to stop having him support her. But right as she was getting ready to go, she gets a phone call from the hospital, asking her to come in. Vlad had been severely injured in a game, and she decides that is one way she can pay him back for all the kindness and generosity he has shown her. She moves into his house to take care of him.

Vlad has several secrets that he hasn’t shared with Elena or his book club buddies, but as he is dependent on his wife and friends during his recuperation, the secrets start to come out, one of which is that he has written his own romance novel. The guys are all excited about that, and even Elena gets to read it eventually.

I love these books because I think the premise is so clever, and I love these characters. Plus the books are all really funny, including this latest. While this is a series and is probably best if at least the first book is read before this one, I think they all stand alone pretty well. Reading this book left me feeling happy all day, and what better recommendation do you need that that! Don’t miss it. BONUS: I spotted this on Adams’ twitter page: “coming soon to Netflix!”

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

ISN’T IT BROMANTIC? by Lyssa Kay Adams. Berkley (July 20, 2021). ISBN: 978-0593332771. 352 pages.

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An absolutely hilarious and uplifting romantic comedy

From the publisher:

Who could have predicted this? Being at the same wedding. In Ireland. There’s a reason one-night stands are one-night stands. You’re not supposed to see each other again, especially not when you’re the maid of honor, and he’s the groom’s brother…

Sarah Anderson has never been more excited about anything in her life. She’s going to her best friend’s wedding. And not just any wedding. An Irish wedding. Goodbye New York, hello rolling green hills and men with beautiful accents and twinkling eyes.

But Sarah should have known that not all guests are fairy-tale princes…

There’s the chinless Uncle Trevor, whose idea of small talk is to claim climate change is a conspiracy.

Then there’s Great Aunt Eileen, who doesn’t talk at all (she’s too busy replacing the hotel cutlery with her own set).

Worst of all, there’s Declan Murphy. Best man. Brother of the groom. And the man Sarah last saw naked.

Is there anything more mortifying than bumping into a one-night stand halfway across the world? Especially as Declan seems determined to embarrass Sarah at every turn. At least when the wedding’s over she’ll never have to see him again.

But, back in New York, Sarah finds the more she tries to forget Declan, the more she can’t shake the thought of that infuriatingly charming smile and the way he wears a tux…

Was he really just for one night only, or might Declan Murphy be The One?

Prepare to laugh until you cry with this perfect feel-good romantic comedy about taking a chance on love. Fans of Sophie Ranald, Sophie Kinsella and Marian Keyes won’t be able to put this down!

The premise here isn’t new, but it works. Sarah has some history that she is determined not to repeat. For starters, her mother had an affair and took off, leaving her father brokenhearted for years. Then Sarah met Josh, and they dated for a year until she told him she was in love with him. Then he dumped her. So Sarah decides relationships just aren’t for her, but she has needs so she sticks to one night stands. Meet a guy, sleep with him, then say goodbye; clean and neat and bloodless.

Sarah’s favorite neighborhood bar is a great place to pick up men. She brings home this gorgeous man, but when she wakes up, he’s still there and doesn’t seem like he wants to leave. He’s talking breakfast, possibly more sex, but Sarah panics and kicks him out, none too gently. She has to get to work and she’s done.

Work is no picnic lately and Sarah is happy to have this vacation coming up. Her best friend is getting married in Ireland, and she can’t wait to escape. There are a week’s worth of pre-wedding activities, and as maid of honor, Sarah will be kept busy. The first night is a welcome dinner, where she is seated with some odd relatives and the groom’s brother, Declan. Who turns out to be the one night stand. And whose mother is doing a little matchmaking and trying to push them together.

Obviously, there is attraction there or she wouldn’t have brought him home to begin with, but one and done means she is not interested. But Declan is, and he pursues Sarah regardless. She is starting to enjoy spending time with him, and ends up sleeping with him again. But that’s it, two and done.

Back in New York, Sarah finds out Declan owns her favorite bar and he’s been noticing her for a while. She is trying to keep her distance but she can’t control her thoughts, or her dreams. Plus she keeps bumping into him and enjoying the time they spend together. But Sarah is very skittish, to say the least. It’s going to take a lot for Declan to earn her trust.

Eventually, they reach their happy ending but not without a lot of back and forth and hurdles for both of them. This was a fun read with a lot of laughs but there is also surprising emotional depth here. There are a lot of characters, probably too many to get to know them all at least minimally, but the main characters are interesting and definitely worth spending time with. I enjoyed this and recommend.

7/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

ONE NIGHT ONLY by Catherine Walsh. Bookouture (July 27, 2021). ISBN: 978-1800195653. 398 pages.

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Highland Falls, Book 1

From the publisher:

Sparks fly between an L.A. career woman and a former Army Ranger in this delightful enemies-to-lovers romance from the USA Today bestselling queen of small-town love stories.

Welcome to Highland Falls, a small town where love is always in the air.

In just a few months Abby Everhart has gone from being a top LA media influencer to an unemployed divorcée living out of her car. So inheriting her great-aunt’s homestead comes at the perfect time. Abby heads to Highland Falls, North Carolina, to spruce up Honeysuckle Farm before putting it on the market for some much-needed cash. But instead of finding a charming getaway, she discovers a serious fixer-upper, complete with a leaky roof, overgrown yard, and a reclusive — albeit sexy — man living on the property.

Ex-Delta Force soldier Hunter MacKenzie has faced war and loss, but nothing has quite prepared him for an outgoing redhead who’s determined to turn his life upside down. Hunter doesn’t want to get involved with anyone, especially a city girl who plans to sell the only place he’s ever felt at home. But the sparks between them are undeniable. Spending time with Abby is easy. Convincing her to stay for good is another matter entirely.

I’ve read the second and third books in this series and really enjoyed them, so I went back and found the first book that I missed. Sometimes the first book in a series ends up being the best, but I actually liked the two that followed better. I think part of that is an author goes into a series knowing they have to introduce a bunch of characters who won’t play a big part in the story, but will in later books. So there are a lot of characters here that are briefly mentioned and sometimes I found that distracting.

Abby and Hunter are the most mismatched pair I’ve read about in a while. They both have tons of baggage but handle it differently. Abby is determined to get past her previous rejection and regain the fame and fortune that was taken from her. Hunter appears to have PTSD (my diagnosis, thank you very much!) and has chosen to withdraw from society completely. He lives on the farm and Abby’s Aunt bequeathed him most of the land and the barn, while leaving Abby the house and the backyard. Neither is thrilled about that but Abby desperately needs money, so she has to take on renovating the house to sell it. It is in very bad shape.

While Hunter was living on the farm, he somehow managed to avoid seeing his family or anyone, for that matter, by never going into the small town where they all live. Apparently he felt it worth his time to travel to the next town to do his shopping – a town where no one knows him or bothers him. At least that was my understanding. He is also an artist, a sculptor, and his barn houses all his creations as he refuses to show them or try and sell them.

Abby is a YouTube star with millions of followers. But when she gets dumped, the ex manages to take it all away from her. She ends up living in her car for a while, works as an Uber driver, and is just barely hanging on when she inherits the farmhouse across the country. Thinking it is the solution to her problems, she is determined to fix it up and sell it. Then she meets Hunter.

It’s pretty much hate at first sight. He hates women who wear high heels on a farm and carry a tiny dog wearing a dress. She hates that he is so taciturn and obviously has disdain for her, but she is a very friendly woman who likes to chatter, something else he hates. But grudgingly he agrees to help her fix up the place.

You can guess what happens but it takes a long time for them to get together. Usually the journey is the most fun, but it sort of dragged a bit for me. Honestly, if I had read this book first I might not have read the next two. Sometimes things happen for a reason, and I’m glad I didn’t read this series in order. There are plenty of laughs here though, and it is a sweet romance with a satisfying ending. By the way, the Kindle version is on sale for $2.99 for however long that lasts.

7/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

SUMMER ON HONEYSUCKLE RIDGE by Debbie Mason. Forever (May 26, 2020). ISBN: 978-1538716946. 400 pages.

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From the publisher:

Don’t drink and text.

Even on the cusp of forty, I had to learn that the hard way. After discovering my best friend, who I was supposed to grow old and single with, got engaged, I drowned my loneliness in one too many Old Fashioneds and woke up with thirty-nine responses from every available man in my phone. Yup, I even texted my plumber…and he turned me down.

Apparently, my liquor-infused text said that while I don’t need a man, maybe I’d be down for a constant sidekick for movies, plus-one invites, and dinner on the table after my grueling shifts as a concierge doctor―till death do us part…and was anyone in?

Through the absolute mortification of thirty-seven rejections, shockingly, I realize two men have said yes. Behind Bachelor Door #1 is Rob, my old high school crush: the comfortable, dependable boy-next-door. Behind Bachelor Door #2 is Darius, the exciting, flashy news reporter about to hit it big. Does this mean I’ll have to get out of my yoga pants and actually go on dates now?

Dax, the local bartender who got me into this disaster in the first place―remember the Old Fashioneds?―can’t believe I’ve given up on finding true love. What does a tattooed, broody twentysomething know about carving out a future for yourself, anyway?

Too bad the further into this hot mess I get, the less I know about who I am. And I’m going to have to figure out exactly what I need if I ever want to find a true happily ever after.

Adorable title, cute cover, I was in. And according to Amazon’s “about the author”, Hammerle, who is new to me, is a “USA Today bestselling, RITA (R) nominated author (who) writes romantic comedies focused on women over forty.” Our protagonist is just under at 39, but that 40th birthday is definitely looming.

Annie has two best friends, one of whom, Yessi, is married and has a child, and the other, Kelly, single and living in her basement apartment. Kelly and Annie are focused on their careers. Kelly sells real estate and Annie is a concierge doctor who recently took over a very successful practice. But she’s on her own and on call to her patients 24/7, and they take full advantage of that. So when Kelly announces she’s engaged to a man that Annie hasn’t met or even heard of, things become strained between the two friends. Then Kelly moves across the state to be with her fiancé.

After that announcement, Annie stays at the bar where they had been playing trivia and gets hammered. The bartender, Dax, is a hot young 27-year-old but he ends up taken the very drunk Annie home. She wakes up with an awful hangover and the young man sleeping on her couch. She also wakes up to the fact that she drunk-texted every man she knows and basically proposed to them. Shockingly, two men said yes.

Even though Annie is pushing 40 and knows she is way too old for Dax, they definitely have chemistry. But Annie is looking to settle down, so she is going to marry for companionship and just has to choose between the two men who said yes.

I really enjoyed this romance because the characters were so believable. I couldn’t help but root for Annie to find her happily ever after. Like Dax, I don’t believe marrying for companionship is ever a good idea, but Annie had to figure that out for herself, as well as mend fences with the friends she brushed off for her patients. This was a fast, fun read and I highly recommend!

7/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

IT’S RAINING MEN by Julie Hammerle. Entangled: Amara (July 27, 2021). ISBN: 978-1649370280. 400 pages.

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Hearts of Alaska, Book 1

From the publisher:

Young pups teach frozen hearts new tricks when a pack of rescue huskies inspire love and romance in a coastal Alaskan town fractured by feuding families.

Taylor Lipin has made it her life’s mission to leave her hometown and its ridiculous, century-old feud with the Porters behind. But when her sister needs help running the family inn, Taylor agrees to return to Helen, Alaska on a temporary, definitely not longer than two weeks, basis. Or so she thinks, until she’s quite literally swept off her feet and into enemy territory by three happy huskies and their drool-worthy owner, Dr. Josh Krane.

Though Josh didn’t grow up in Helen with the rest of his Porter cousins, he’s heard the stories: Porters rescue huskies. The Lipins are cat people. Keep to your pack. But Taylor is too tempting to give up–plus, his dogs love her.

As Taylor and Josh grow closer, tensions in the town escalate and the need for secrecy starts taking a toll. Soon they’ll need to decide whether their newfound love is just a summer fling or if they’ve found their forever home.

As soon as I finished reading the second book in this series (Paws and Prejudice) I sought out this book. It would have been better had I read this one first. Some series are meant to be read in order and I think this series works better that way.

First of all, the cover. The dogs are a major part of both stories, and I love that. The small town of Helen, Alaska has this century-old feud going on between the Lipin and Porter families. The history of the feud is shady, at best, but it supposedly started when one of the families tries to steal the other family’s dogs, and that was it. Porters are the dog people, and Lipins like cats. So cats and dogs!

But when Josh, a Porter, falls in love with Taylor, a Lipin, the families take sides and both are determined to break up the happy couple. They had a few weeks of peace by sneaking around, but once the families find out, all bets are off. Vandalism, threats, family sit-downs and more don’t deter the couple but the families will not stop. Until finally Josh is scared that Taylor could get seriously hurt, so he dumps her to protect her. Big mistake.

The characters, and there are a lot of them, come to life on the page and the setting is, well, small town Alaska and all that I love. Oh, and Josh is half Jewish. I’ve found it interesting to find Jews in Alaska when it seems like most (all) small town romances usually end up with a Christmas book at some point. I love those, but I like finding my people, even if it’s just one character in the story. It means a lot to me.

There are lots of laugh out loud moments here plus some steamy sex and packs of cute dogs, Huskies to be exact. Look at that cover! Completely irresistible, like this story. Can’t wait for the next book in the series (and I hope it’s Taylor’s sister Lydia’s happy ending next!)

7/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

HEART ON A LEASH by Alanna Martin. Berkley (April 27, 2021). ISBN: 978-0593198834. 368 pages.

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It Happened One Summer, Book 1

From the publisher:

Tessa Bailey is back with a Schitt’s Creek-inspired rom-com about a Hollywood “It Girl” who’s cut off from her wealthy family and exiled to a small Pacific Northwest beach town… where she butts heads with a surly, sexy local who thinks she doesn’t belong. 

As seen on E!Online, PopSugar, CNN, EliteDaily, Vulture, Buzzfeed, Bustle, the Nerd Daily, PARADE, LA Magazine, Country Living, USA Today, and more!

Piper Bellinger is fashionable, influential, and her reputation as a wild child means the paparazzi are constantly on her heels. When too much champagne and an out-of-control rooftop party lands Piper in the slammer, her stepfather decides enough is enough. So he cuts her off, and sends Piper and her sister to learn some responsibility running their late father’s dive bar… in Washington.

Piper hasn’t even been in Westport for five minutes when she meets big, bearded sea captain Brendan, who thinks she won’t last a week outside of Beverly Hills. So what if Piper can’t do math, and the idea of sleeping in a shabby apartment with bunk beds gives her hives. How bad could it really be? She’s determined to show her stepfather—and the hot, grumpy local—that she’s more than a pretty face.

Except it’s a small town and everywhere she turns, she bumps into Brendan. The fun-loving socialite and the gruff fisherman are polar opposites, but there’s an undeniable attraction simmering between them. Piper doesn’t want any distractions, especially feelings for a man who sails off into the sunset for weeks at a time. Yet as she reconnects with her past and begins to feel at home in Westport, Piper starts to wonder if the cold, glamorous life she knew is what she truly wants. LA is calling her name, but Brendan—and this town full of memories—may have already caught her heart. 

We started watching Schitt’s Creek not that long ago, during the pandemic, and finished it a few weeks ago. Apparently, I’m in the minority because I didn’t love it. I liked the most of the characters, but I expect sitcoms to make me laugh. I think I laughed just a few times throughout six seasons, so I didn’t find it especially funny. I enjoyed the final season the most so when I saw this book was inspired by the show, specifically the Alexis Rose character, I was intrigued. Bailey is one of my go to writers; I read all her books so even though I didn’t find the show particularly funny, I could see where it would be a good jumping off point for a book.

The main character, Piper, is basically Alexis Rose. She’s a Beverly Hills social media darling, and Instagram is her world. Pretty, vapid, and shallow, as her boyfriend tells her while breaking up with her three weeks after they started dating, about the longest relationship she has had. After the breakup, Piper invites everyone she knows to break into the Mondrian Hotel pool and after being turned in as the ringleader by her “best friend”, Piper spends the night in jail. Upon her return home, her very wealthy movie mogul stepfather informs her that he has had enough. Her little hotel stunt may have cost him the funding he needs for his next film.

Piper learns that her father, who died when she was a toddler, has left her and her sister a dive bar in Washington state. Her stepfather has been paying someone for minimal upkeep but he decides that Piper needs to learn how most people live, and he gives her a bare minimum of funds and sends her off to the small town of Westport for three months. Hannah, her sister, decides to go with her. The girls are close, and Piper is thrilled she won’t be banished alone.

So the general plot is rich girl gets cut off from her money, much like Schitt’s Creek. Piper meets Brendan shortly after arriving in town, and he is not a fan. But as she and Hannah start cleaning up the bar and the apartment above, he starts to help them. Piper is not used to men wanting anything but sex from her, so she doesn’t quite understand why this man is helping her. And eventually they fall in love.

There are a lot of really funny scenes throughout the book, and some really sweet ones, too. When they finally get together, there is some hot sex as well. But for me the best part was how Piper grows and changes, all for the better. There are enough quirky characters to add another layer of interest. Also I had no idea that crab fishing was so profitable. All in all, a very interesting and entertaining romance. Best of all, this is the first book of a new series.

7/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

IT HAPPENED ONE SUMMER by Tessa Bailey. Avon (July 13, 2021). ISBN: 978-0063045651. 416 pages.

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From the publisher:

He said he was looking for a “partner in crime,” which everyone knows is shorthand for “a woman who isn’t real.”

April is kind, pretty and relatively normal—yet she can’t seem to get past date five. Every time she thinks she’s found someone to trust, they reveal themselves to be awful, leaving her heartbroken. And angry. Until she realizes that men aren’t looking for real women—they’re looking for Gretel.

Gretel is perfect—beautiful but low-maintenance, sweet but never clingy, sexy but not too easy. She’s your regular, everyday Manic-Pixie-Dream-Girl-Next-Door with no problems.

When April starts pretending to be Gretel, dating becomes much more fun—especially once she reels in the unsuspecting Joshua. Finally, April is the one in control. It’s refreshing. Exhilarating, even. But as she and Joshua grow closer, and the pressure of keeping her painful past a secret begins to build, how long will she be able to keep on pretending?

“Thoughtful, smart and painfully true.” —Cosmopolitan UK

Dating sucks. April has learned this painful lesson so well that she invents the perfect date and even gives her a name, Gretel. Gretel is everything April is not. She’s confident, has great self esteem, is independent, and of course, sexy. After so many bad dates, April decides to channel her inner Gretel when she meets Joshua.

Joshua is your basic unicorn; a genuinely nice guy. And he falls pretty quickly for April/Gretel, only he doesn’t know the real April, only the Gretel she lets him see. But soon April finds it tiring to be on all the time, and as they grow closer, Joshua realizes something is up. But April is scared to be herself until Joshua proves that he wants the real April.

This is a fun, easy read, perfect for whiling away a Sunday afternoon when it is too hot to do anything else but read. Okay, it doesn’t have to be too hot, it doesn’t have to be too anything, it’s just an entertaining read and yes, I spend a good part of my weekends reading (and my house looks like it!) But what I liked best about this book was the strong female lead character and the humor – there were a lot of laughs here. While some may see it as anti-men, I see it as anti-misogynistic men, and (wo)mansplained in a language anyone can understand. Plus a great cover!

7/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

PRETENDING by Holly Bourne. MIRA; Original edition (November 17, 2020). ISBN: 978-0778331506. 416 pages.

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Hearts of Alaska, Book 2

From the publisher:

It’s up to a trio of adorable rescue huskies to make two lonely hearts in a coastal Alaskan town realize that true love is worth too much to turn tail and run.

Glaciers have nothing on Kelsey Porter when she decides to freeze someone out. After getting burned once, she’s not about to let it happen again. And right now all that icy contempt is focused on one annoyingly attractive and entitled interloper: Ian Roth. Not only is he looking to take advantage of her quaint, coastal community, tainting the small-town charm of Helen, Alaska, but he has committed the one crime she can never forgive–he doesn’t like her dogs.

Unlike what Kelsey believes, Ian loves Helen’s charms as much as she does. That’s partly why he’s determined to open a brewery there, and he’s not about to let anything or anyone stop his dream from coming true. But he didn’t count on the beautiful, prickly woman getting under his skin. Or having to be within hand-biting proximity of her three huge huskies.

When Kelsey’s family conscripts her into helping Ian get his brewery off the ground, she finds herself caught between a rock and a hard . . . muscular . . . man who has a fear of dogs. But the longer they work together, the more she can feel herself begin to thaw. Now she’ll have to choose: let sleeping dogs lie to protect her heart, or mush head-on toward love.

I am always predisposed to like books set in Alaska, and I am happy to say this book delivered. The setting is Helen, Alaska, one of the many small towns scattered throughout the state. But Helen has something special; two families involved in a century old feud.

Kelsey Porter is the daughter of the one of the feud’s chieftains and has been raised to keep it going. Her father offers up her writing talent to the new brewery that just bought his building, and while Kelsey is annoyed with him, she doesn’t say no. But when she goes to the brewery, Ian slams the door in her face.

Turns out he’s afraid of dogs, and even worse, afraid to admit it. Kelsey has three huskies and thinks of them as her children, so she doesn’t take too kindly to anyone who doesn’t love them. But she’s agreed to help out the brewery, and Ian is quite good looking as is his brewery partner. Both men are Jewish, which you don’t find every day especially in small town Alaska. Or pretty much any small town. So I liked that aspect a lot.

Eventually Kelsey ferrets out Ian’s dog fear, and they start to help one another. Things get more complicated when the whole town gets involved with both sides of the feud taking pot shots at the brewery. Things really come to a head (pardon the pun!) when the town finds out that Ian is dating a Porter. He can’t let the brewery fail because of the feud, so he dumps Kelsey. He quickly realizes that was the biggest mistake of his life, but it takes some time for them to work it out and reach their happily ever after.

This is definitely the book to cool off with this summer! It’s a sweet romance and I am looking forward to the first book in the series, Heart on a Leash, that I missed. (As usual.) Luckily, it was just lost on my Kindle but I have it queued up to read next. Look for the review shortly.

NOTE: There is an excerpt available at https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/636309/paws-and-prejudice-by-alanna-martin/

7/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

PAWS AND PREJUDICE by Alanna Martin. Berkley (June 29, 2021). ISBN: 978-0593198858. 336 pages.

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