Nailed It by Cindi Madsen- a review

NAILED IT by Cindi Madsen-a review

Nailed It

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date October 23, 2017

I’m Ivy Clarke. Bartender, best friend, and disbeliever in love.
And now I’m in over my head, trying to flip a house all by myself.
Thanks, HGTV.

I’m not too proud to admit I need some help. Too bad the only one who can help me is the same man I want to throw out this house’s second-story window.
Jackson Gamble and I can’t be in the same room together for more than a minute without devolving into a sparring match.

Except for that one time…

But enough about that. Jackson’s looking for forever, and I don’t believe in love, remember? Get in. Renovate. Get out. Keep my heart firmly in tact.
Because it’s much easier to fix up a house than a broken heart.

Full of humor and dripping with delicious tension, Nailed It proves that every heart can be ready for a little rehabilitation, if only you’re willing to open it up.

•••••••••

REVIEW: NAILED IT by Cindi Madsen is a stand alone, contemporary, adult romance story line focusing on building contractor Jackson Gamble, and bartender Ivy Clarke. We were first introduced to our couple in the author’s 12 Steps to Mr. Right. Ivy is Lincoln Wells’ cousin; Jackson is Savannah’s brother.

Told from first person point of view (Ivy Clarke) NAILED IT follows the acrimonious relationship between bartender Ivy Clarke, and building contractor Jackson Gamble. Ivy is hoping to ‘rehab’ and flip the house where her fondest memories of childhood began but our heroine struggles with the overwhelming amount of work, and a lack of funds to complete the job. Enter carpenter and contractor Jackson Gamble, Ivy’s ‘one week stand’, and her best friend’s brother. What ensues is the building relationship and love between Ivy and Jackson, and the fall out as Ivy struggles with her inability to trust, and her mother’s history of broken relationships.

Ivy Clark wants nothing to do with relationships, love or a long term commitment. Her mother’s history of different men, in and out of our heroine’s life, leaves Ivy struggling with an inability to trust or ever fall in love. Ivy has her own ’12 Step’ program she follows to ensure that her own happily ever after never occurs but she battles the loneliness of an empty bed, and a series of hopeless one-night stands. Jackson Gamble is hoping to settle down but the woman that calls to his heart refuses to acknowledge her attraction to, and the palpable sexual energy between them. As Jackson slowly works his way into our heroine’s heart, Ivy believes their time together expires with the sale of the house.

The relationship between Ivy and Jackson is a second chance romance. Years before Ivy pushed Jackson out of her life when their relationship began to take on something more permanent. Months of caustic back and forth banter would lead to a temporary truce as the couple battle their attraction working together. The $ex scenes are mostly implied or fade to black.

NAILED IT is a sweet story of romance; of one woman’s struggle to rise above her mother’s past; and one man’s battle with his attraction to a woman too jaded to give love a chance. The premise is cute and endearing; the characters are lively; the romance is delightful and charming.

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one 12 STEPS TO MR. RIGHT

Copy supplied by the publisher

Reviewed by Sandy

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12 Steps to Mr. Right by Cindi Madsen-a review

12 STEPS TO MR. RIGHT by Cindi Madsen- a review

12 Steps to Mr.Right

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date September 26, 2016

12 steps to finding Mr. Right, composed by dating coach extraordinaire Savannah Gamble

1: Admit to being powerless over your attraction to the wrong type of guy. (Like Lincoln Wells, who broke your heart after an unforgettable one-night stand.)
2: Believe Mr. Right is out there.
3: Take inventory of past mistakes. (See step #1.)
4: Make a list of qualities you want in a man. (Avoid charming baseball players/reason you made these rules in the first place)
5: Take charge of your own life.
6: Learn to love yourself.
7: Sort the hookup guys from the relationship guys. (Avoid a painful brushoff after an amazing night together.)
8: Never, ever settle. (Even if the chemistry is off-the-charts.)
9: Don’t believe you can change a guy. (Once a commitment-phobe, always a commitment-phobe)
10: Communicate your needs.
11: Open your heart & love fully. (Still working on this one…)
12: Don’t ever, ever stray from the steps.

••••••••••

REVIEW: 12 STEPS TO MR. RIGHT by Cindi Madsen is a stand alone, contemporary, adult romance focusing on dating coach Savannah Gamble, and former baseball player Lincoln Wells.

Told from first person point of view (Savannah) 12 STEPS TO MR. RIGHT follows ‘board certified’ dating consultant and coach Savannah Gamble as she struggles with her attraction to former friend and one-night stand Lincoln Wells-the man who triggered Savannah to ‘write’ the 12 Step Program for women in the dating world. Linc’s return to Atlanta Georgia comes with renewed heartbreak for our heroine as the memories of the past continue to control her current way of life.

Five years earlier Savannah fell for her best friend Ivy’s cousin Lincoln Wells, and following a drunken one-night stand Linc walked away without a backward glance. Fast forward to present day and Linc has returned to Atlanta Georgia, his baseball career never amounting to stardom, and hoping to reconnect with our story line heroine. As Linc continues to pursue Savannah, Savannah adheres rigidly to her 12 Step Program and is unable to get past the heartbreak of the past. Savannah’s strict adherence to her rules of dating make some for uncomfortable moments throughout the story as she is constantly applying the rules to her own relationships, and isn’t willing to step away or give benefit of the doubt.

The romance between LInc and Savannah is very slow to build as our heroine refuses to accept that Linc has changed; Linc is a man who is unaware of Savannah’s hurt, or what it is he did to destroy her faith in all men. The $ex scenes are implied and fade to black.

We are introduced to Savannah’s brother Jackson Gamble who has some sort of history with her best friend Ivy. Ivy refuses to acknowledge Jackson’s existence, and in this there is plenty of tension that adds to the already tense relationship between Savannah and Linc. Savannah’s extended family of aunts, as well as her own mother, complicates the matter as they see our heroine as a lonely spinster, without any prospects to settle down.

12 STEPS TO MR. RIGHT has moments of fun and humor; heartbreak and romance; realization and letting go but I did have some difficulty liking the heroine with her strict adherence to her own set of rules so much so that it affected her own relationships, and oft times that of those she coached. The 12 Steps seemed more like laws to be enforced rather than suggestions for a happily ever after.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

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