Made for Us by Samantha Chase

Who-ee. I got a pre-pub version of this book and I can only hope that the editors they get to review this deal with the POV issue. Good God. I counted up to three different points of view on single pages. We jumped around to each character so much I had trouble keeping up with who was thinking what and what was going on. It made me as seasick as Zoe ostensibly was by the wavy painting in the entryway closet. Better editing would have bumped this up to at least a two-and-a-half book for me. Probably more but it was so bad in the beginning of the book... hopefully this gets straightened out before it goes into print.
Anyway, Zoe has moved to North Carolina to get away from Arizona and to live by the beach. She's just had all of her clients summarily taken away so that she could work with the firm's big client, Aiden Shaughnessy. See, he's the kind of man who wants things done his way and only his way. Good thing that Zoe's able to stand up to him. Except when she's not. Zoe never  really became a full character. I think she was supposed to be this strong business woman, a match for Aidan, but she was mostly fairly wishy-washy. And Aidan. Well, Aidan was a jerk. A big one. And I didn't see any indication that that was really going to change.
If this were my first Samantha Chase book, I probably wouldn't read any others in the series. But, luckily, I have read Wait for Me. Also, the friends-to-lovers trope is like catnip and I really want to see what it takes for Aidan's brother, Quinn, to realize that his best friend, Anna, is in love with him.

Turkey Trot

Okay, it was running one mile and walking one mile. But it counts. I live in a great little town where over 50 people showed up for a fun run, bringing around 30 dogs. My own dog, close to 12-year-old, not only ran the whole time, she was more than a little disgruntled when we started walking. On the one hand, I'm grateful for a healthy older dog. On the other, I wouldn't mind if she slowed down just a little bit.

Kiss the Bride by Lucy Kevin

Image linked from Good Reads

The Wedding Dress
Anne Farleigh's life is about to change and investigator Gareth Cavendish is the one to do it. But how can he break this beautiful dressmaker's heart?
The Wedding Kiss
Rose Martin is about to get married to a dreamy doctor. So why does best friend RJ, the gardener at The Rose Chalet, make her heart go pitty-pat?
Sparks Fly
Angelina is a life organizer and she's just been hired to get Will Scott's life in order. His ex-wife hired him when she read that Angelina's clients had a habit of getting married right after she worked with them. Angelina knows Will's ex wants him back, which makes it just that much harder for her to ignore the feelings he's producing in her own heart.


Oh, Dear God-in-Heaven. If this hadn't been a NetGalley book, I would have stopped after the first story. Mary Sue was beyond TSTL. Between that and the lightning-fast romance which made absolutely no sense with the characters we were given, I was ready to give up on the story. 
The second story was okay but the third story, again, was one that I would have DNFd if I had the chance.
If you like stories with little "on-screen" sex and characters that are just a bit twee, you will like this story. Otherwise, steer clear.

Her Sexiest Mistake by Jill Shalvis

Image linked from Goodreads

When I saw this book on NetGalley, I was instantly excited. New Jill Shalvis! Except that it's not. It's a re-release from 2005. And it's not as good as her more recent works.
Mia Appleby is trying to be the perfect woman. She's trying to overcome her past where her mother and sister concentrated so hard on finding a man that they couldn't get ahead in life. But when the book opens, Mia is running away after waking up in the bed of teacher Kevin McKnight.
Through the course of the book, we see Mia juggle stress from work, stress from Kevin's pursuit, and stress from the goth-y niece who shows up on her doorstep one day. But we don't really see her grow. And there's not really a sens of Kevin being anything but perfect. Unlike her later books, I really didn't care about these characters and couldn't wait for the book to be over. To be honest, if it weren't for being an ARC, this book would have been a DNF for me.
Will I stop reading Shalvis books? Dear God no. But will I recommend this one? Probably not.

So Tough to Tame by Victoria Dahl

Image from Goodreads

Dahl has been one of my favorite contemporary writers for quite some time and I've even <gasp> bought a few of her books new in the past few years (much preferring library and used books).  But this latest series has been nothing but infuriating. I had high hopes for this book but it didn't start off well.
Walker Pearce is a real cowboy. Even down to the part where he's sleeping with his boss's wife. Well, he's sort of trying not to, but he's actually just been fired so now he can start sexxxing her up. But the thrill is gone so... maybe he won't now. What the what? This is the hero we're supposed to be impressed with? Maybe the heroine will be somebody better.
Charlotte, Charlie, Allington has had something go wrong her in her life. Something that caused her to come home to Jackson Hole where she was once part of a promising clique of girls. A clique that now delights in looking down on her. And doesn't she feel sorry for herself? Yes, yes she does. Because we get to hear about it through her POV. Nope, not really loving her either.
And unfortunately, the description of Jackson is off as well. I'm sure if you didn't live close by, you would enjoy the description. But actually knowing the town... Meh.
So Charlie is rebuilding a life, Walker is helping her while she helps him. Just not a book that I connected with.
But I love Dahl and I can't wait for her next series. Hoping it's better than this one.

At the Duke's Wedding-multiple authors

The first three stories were... okay. The last did not interest me at all. I rounded up from the two and a half stars that I would have given it if Goodreads did halves. I saw this listed on the Kobo site and was intrigued by the blurb. I had a little extra time and money and went for it.
I've read novellas around one event before and have enjoyed them. This one wasn't as well done.
The first story is "That Rogue Jack" by Maya Rodale. Henrietta Black is resigned to being a spinster companion for an irascible old lady. But right now she needs to get the Duke's ancestral ring from Jack, Lord Willoughby but he's not only a rake. He's something of a wastrel.
It was a hate-to-love story that felt rushed. I realize that this is a novella but it was still awfully fast.
"P.S. I Love You" by Miranda Neville came next. I like Neville but this one was... not her best. It's a Cyrano story where the man behind the letters takes a lot of liberties with the supposed woman he loves. Luckily, she figures it out pretty fast so that part held up but... meh.
"When I Met my Duchess" by Caroline Linden rounded out the trio that I was able to read. The Duke from the title figures out that he wants to marry his intended's vivacious sister. But he sort of blackmails her into it. Blergh.
I was already falling out of this book when I hit "How Angela Got Her Rogue Back" by Katharine Ashe. It's  a time-travel story. Don't love those to begin with and this one just stretched my suspension of disbelief too far. This was a DNF.

You know, looking back, this really was just a two star book. Novellas tend to be underdeveloped just because of their length but these were especially not good.

Under the Mistletoe by Jill Shalvis

God, I love Jill Shalvis. Every book of hers is a must-read and I wait for months for new stories to come out. Which is why I'm so bummed to say this novella was only a "meh" for me. I got it off of NetGalley and was so excited to see a new Jill Shalvis that I didn't look closely.
Novellas are generally not enough time to develop good characters and that development is usually pulls me into a story. I read the story quickly, wanting to know what happened with Chloe, Tara and Ford's (from "The Sweetest Thing") daughter. It's an okay story and earned the three mile rating more from getting to catch up with other characters in the series than the romance between Choe and her beau, Nick.
Will other Lucky-Harbor-lovers enjoy this novella? More than likely. If you haven't read the rest of the series... I would definitely start with "Simply Irresistible" and go from there.

Too Dangerous to Desire by Cara Elliot

I just have to get this out of the way. The Sleuth Hound? You've got a book for the

Irish Wolfhound (cool name) and Gryff, which must be like the dog? And then the Sleuth Hound? Because he stole things? Or searched things out for the government? Maybe I missed the explanation but, come on, this was a silly name.

Otherwise, this was a really fun story. Elliot has kept up the tempo of this trilogy, not falling down at the end like some other authors are apt to do.

Sophie Lawrance is in trouble. She's being blackmailed over some papers that could lead people to believe that her father was dipping into the church's coffers. The blackmailer's are wanting a particular piece of paper but they'll settle for money in the meantime. 

That piece of paper also affects Cameron Daggett, Sophie's childhood love, who left her when she wouldn't elope with him. 

Since then, Cameron has picked up some skills that will help Sophie get out of trouble. He feels that his soul is too dark to be in love with Sophie, but he can't stay away.

Close Enough to Touch by Victoria Dahl

Victoria Dahl is one of my favorite contemporary authors. "Lead Me On" was a great example of using a nontraditional hero (one who is covered with tattoos) and heroine (one who is very attracted to the burly, brawny, biker type. I really need to re-read that book).

This book is the same. Grace Barrett is a makeup artist, one with purple hair (as we are reminded about over and over in most of the advertising for this book.) She's running away from Hollywood and her troubles there. Cole Rawlins is a cowboy who was also part of the Hollywood scene; he also ran.

And that's my trouble with this book. I didn't connect with eithe Cole or Grace. In fact, for three-quarters of the book, I absolutely disliked Grace. We don't get any explanation for her actions until the end. I wondered if I was suffering from not allowing the heroine the same latitude I might give a grumpy hero, something Podcast 31 from Smart Bitches Trashy books discusses. However, I would have given Grace that same latitude had I known her situation earlier in the book. As it was, I only finished the book because it was an ARC from NetGalley.

And I'm glad I did. Victoria Dahl is a skilled wordsmith and writes hot, hot sex scenes (not always to my taste, but I know they're well-written.) Will this book be a favorite? No. Will I continue to read this series and all of Victoria Dahl's future writings? Hell, yes.

Summer Nights by Susan Mallery

Annabelle Weiss is a librarian in need of a bookmobile. She has decided to raise money by doing The Dance of the Horse at the next town festival (they have one every (or nearly every) month).  She's got ten weeks to get it down but she needs some help. Because, well, she doesn't exactly know how to ride a horse and, really, she needs a horse that has been trained to dance.
Shane Stryker knows horses. He also knows that he's been burned in the past. His ex-wife was a flamboyant woman who loved attention, especially from men who weren't her husband. His first glimpse of Annabelle is of her dancing on a bar so he assumes that she is more of the same. But as he works with her, he starts to discover that's not true. Of course, that's only after he sticks his foot in his mouth a few more times.
We get some more mayhem with Shane's mother ordering all sorts of exotic animals including pigs, elephants, and ponies (Shane <i>hates</i> ponies).
I probably wouldn't recommend this book as a stand-alone (there are <i>way</i> too many characters for that, although Ms. Mallery has come up with a <a href="http://foolsgoldca.susanmallery.com/who.html">Who's Who</a> of Fools Gold that can be helpful. It's a fast and easy read that will delight Susan Mallery's Fools Gold fans.

Summer Days by Susan Mallery

Rafe Stryker has some troubles. His mother loaned a man $250,000 for a ranch that the man didn't own. She isn't really interested in prosecuting but it's his name on the line. To add to the troubles, the ranch is the one where he grew up with his two brothers and sister; they were dirt poor. It was a hardscrabble existence and Rafe doesn't want to be reminded of those times. But maybe some good can come out of it. After all, the swindler's granddaughter (the actual property owner)isn't hard to look at.
Heidi Simpson grew up with a carnival (different than a circus, no animals)and only wants to stay in one place. She has grown to love the town of Fool's Gold and her friends there. She loves her goats and she loves the land that she can barely afford. Now Rafe's threatening to take it all away. He's certainly a looker though. Can she manage to untangle her feelings for him long enough to save her ranch?
Update: Read my review for "Summer Nights" the next book in the series

Good Girls Don't by Victoria Dahl

A break-in at a family restaurant usually has siblings circling the wagons. But the Donovans are a little different. Tessa is the youngest but she has been desperately trying to hold the three of them together for years. Ever sine their parents died, Eric has been raising both Tessa and their brother Jamie ("the irresponsible one.") The bickering between the two brothers threatens to tear the family apart and ruin a pending business deal. It seems that Jamie went home with the daughter of Roland Kendall, got caught by Roland, and may or may not have let her see the alarm code, thus creating more suspects for the break-in.

Luke Asher is on the scene as a detective investigating the crime. He's a friend of Jamie's who is rumored to have impregnated his partner. He and Tessa are immediately attracted to each other and when she asks him to dinner, Luke immediately accepts. Of course, Jamie and Eric aren't too happy about this but Tessa doesn't seem to care. She's too busy telling little white lies to keep her family whole. She doesn't want a reationship... but she can't seem to let Luke go.

I'll put it out there. Tessa irritated me. Alot. She had some issues stemming from her parent's death but it wasn't explained until the end. And really,, even with those issues, it doesn't explain why she's willing to risk the family business just to cover up for a brother who is old enough to take care of himself. Enable much? I like characters to have flaws but this Tessa is beyond annoying. It really took the entire experience of reading this book down a couple of notches for me. It is probably the least favorite of my books by this author.

That being said, I love Victoria Dahl and am looking forward to the rest of the series.

Secret Passion of Simon Blackwell by Eloisa James

Okay, I've read a LOT of reviews from people who loved this book, so it might be worth a try. 
Simon Blackwell has been hiding himself away since (from the back cover) a "cruel twist of fate changed [his] life irreperably." He came out of mourning only for his aunt's birthday and helped to save the life of Annabel's (honorary) nephew. Thinking that Annabel is the nephew's mother, he reams her a new one. When the boys actual mother, Annabel's best friend, shows up, he is seduced by her beauty. But he is still attracted to Anne. Enough to accidentally seduce her. He doesn't want to marry her but he does the right thing. Annabel has to somehow work to win Simon's heart... because he's already won hers.
Too dark and grim for me. I like stories with a moral but frankly, this one was mostly ruined by the back cover blurb.