Tag Archives: Monica Murphy

MEANT TO BE (The Callahans 4) by Monica Murphy-Review tour

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MEANT TO BE (The Callahans #4) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt tour

MEANT TO BE
The Callahans #4 : Eli and Ava #2
by Monica Murphy
Release Date: October 22, 2020
Genre: young adult, romance

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date October 22, 2020

Ava Callahan.

Love of my life.

Wrecker of my soul.

I would have sworn on anything that what we shared was real.

But she broke my trust. And then my heart. I don’t think I can piece it back together without her, but I’m sure gonna try.

I’m better off on my own, anyways, right? Who needs girls when you have football?

If only I believed that. Look, when you need someone in your life, you don’t want to let her go. And I can’t let go of Ava. I love her. She loves me. Nothing can convince me otherwise. It’s as simple as that. I know no matter what, this girl belongs to me. We may have issues, but we’re meant to be. So I’ll do whatever it takes to get her back.

Even if I have to fight dirty.

••••••••

REVIEW: MEANT TO BE is the fourth instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, young adult THE CALLAHANS erotic, romance series focusing on the second generation of the Callahan family; and the second half of sixteen year old, Ava Callahan and seventeen year old, Eli Bennett’s story. MEANT TO BE should not be read as a stand alone as it picks up immediately after the events and cliff hanger of ADDICTED TO HIM (The Callahans #3).

NOTE: MEANT TO BE is a young adult story line ( characters under eighteen years of age) with adult sexual situations that may not be suitable for more younger readers.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Ava and Eli) MEANT TO BE follows in the aftermath of what Eli Bennett believes is a betrayal by the young woman with whom he has fallen in love. Eli’s family life is a mess but he never expected the world to be witness to their embarrassing fall-out. Blaming Ava sends our heroine down a rabbit hole of disbelief pushing Ava to discover the who and how of what happened and why. As Ava and Eli’s relationship is threatened by outside sources, Eli’s acrimonious relationship with Ava’s brother Jake continues to fester and draw ire from family and friends. What ensues is the continuing and building romance and relationship between Eli and Ava, and the potential fall-out as issues of jealousy, family dynamics, and competition between opposing football teams both on and off the field, threaten Eli and Ava’s tenuous hold on their already struggling relationship.

Ava Callahan has it all but believes herself to be the black sheep in a family of successful athletes and stars. The requisite mean girls push our heroine over the edge, and Ava finds herself on the outside looking in when she has finally had enough. Her relationship with Eli is fodder between friends and enemies, and in this Ava’s brother Jake struggles with his sister’s love for a boy he doesn’t deem worthy but all is not well in the Bennett household, and the fall-out begins to affect the young man Ava loves.

The relationship between Ava and Eli is one of the forbidden. Ava’s parents are not thrilled with Eli’s reputation, a reputation fuelled by her brother’s hatred and distrust of a young man whose family life is spiralling out of control. Eli’s reputation both on and off the football field has followed our young hero into his relationship with Ava Callahan, and in this Eli tries to prove he is worthy of Ava’s love. The $ex scenes are intimate, passionate and intense, without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful energetic and charismatic secondary and supporting characters including Fable and Drew Callahan, Owen and Chelsea McGuire (One Week Girlfriend series): Jake and Hannah (Falling For Her #2), Autumn and Ash (Close to Me #1); Ava’s best friend Ellie; Jake’s ex-girlfriend Cami, and rival football players Diego, Wyatt, Jackson and Caleb. The requisite mean-girls continue to be all up in Ava’s face.

MEANT TO BE is a story of family, friendships, and relationships; a story of rivalry and competition, of heart break and love. MEANT TO BE is a young adult story line with all of the requisite YA plot points including mean girls, jealousy, sex, drugs, drinking and fights. The premise is captivating : the romance is tender and seductive; the characters are young and struggling to come into their own.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Close To Me
Falling for Her
Addicted to Him

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

 

Can you die from a broken heart? Not asking for a friend.
The street is empty. Eli is long gone. I clutch my phone in my hand so tight, my fingers cramp up. He won’t respond to my texts or my calls. He’s ghosting me.
Pain radiates from my chest, a constant, throbbing reminder that Eli just destroyed me with a few choice words. He doesn’t believe me. Worse, he doesn’t trust me. I never told my brother about his parents. I don’t know who did. Eli may have hinted at things and flat out told me his mother drank too much, but he never talked about his dad cheating. And why would I tell Jake any of that?
There’s no way I ever would.
So who did?
I make my way to the backyard to find my entire family is gone. Glancing toward the kitchen windows, I see they’re inside. Waiting for me. My parents and Jake, who’s sitting on a barstool at the counter with a glower on his freshly abused face. It serves him right that Eli got a few punches in. I don’t even feel bad that it happened, though I suppose I should.
Mom catches my gaze and raises her brows, the look on her face plainly telling me, get in here.
If I could turn around and run away, I would. I’d run and run and run until I was out of breath and so, so far, no one could find me again.
But I don’t move. I definitely don’t go inside. Not yet. Dad says something to Mom, and I can tell they’re having a minor argument. About me? I wonder if she told Dad about our little secret. How she knew about Eli and I dating.
My gaze sweeps over the scene of the crime, AKA the spot where Jake and Eli fought. The moonlight catches on something on the ground, making it glint and I kneel down, reaching toward the shiny piece. My fingertips touch cool metal and I grasp it between my fingers.
A gold #1 pendant. Eli’s. I feel around for the chain, almost desperately, on my hands and knees, but I don’t see it. I wonder if he knows he lost it. I’m sure he’ll be upset. He loves this necklace and the fact that his father gave it to him.
But would he want to know I have it?
Maybe.
Maybe that’ll be my one way to reach out to him. I have something he wants.
Unfortunately, from the way everything just went down, it’s not me.
“Ava!” I lift my head to find my mother standing in the open doorway of the kitchen, her expression somber. “Come inside. Now.”
Rising to my feet, I clutch the pendant in my palm and march toward my punishment. I hang my head as I enter the kitchen, not wanting to look at any of them. Especially Jake. His anger radiates off of him, all of it aimed straight at me. Mom closes the door but, otherwise, says nothing. Neither does Jake. Or Dad.
It’s a very uncomfortable silence full of thick tension that seems to last ten minutes, but is probably more like thirty seconds before my dad can’t take it any longer.
“Ava.” His tone is firm, yet gentle. He’s mad, but he doesn’t want to show it. “Tell me what Eli Bennett was doing at our house at this time of night.”
Jake snorts. “What do you think—”
“Enough,” Dad says, silencing my big brother.
This gives me immense satisfaction. Lifting my head, I meet my father’s gaze head on. “We’re together. Well…we were.” 


 

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

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Addicted to Him (The Callahans 3) by Monica Murphy-Review Tour

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Addicted (The Callahans 3) to Him by Monica Murphy-Review Tour

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca /

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fx9RZ0

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date September 8, 2020

Eli Bennett.

Quarterback at our biggest rival high school.

My brother’s worst enemy.

So why can’t I stop thinking about him?

For one, he’s totally gorgeous and boy, does he know it. He’s an arrogant trash talker who brings drama wherever he goes.

And for some reason, he’s set his sights on me.

The more I get to know him, the more I realize he’s actually kind of…sweet. Deep down, he’s broken. Hurting. He’s dealing with a lot, but he also puts on a major front so no one can tell. I want to be there for him. I want to be with him. But because everyone in my life hates Eli, we have to keep our relationship a secret.

The problem with secrets is they never stay secret for long..

•••••••

REVIEW:ADDICTED TO HIM is the third instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, young adult THE CALLAHANS romance series focusing on the Callahan siblings –a spin off from the author’s ONE WEEK GIRLFRIEND series. This is high school quarterback Eli Bennett, and high school cheerleader Ava Callahan’s story line. ADDICTED TO HIM can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous instalment is revealed where necessary.

NOTE: ADDICTED TO HIM runs parallel to, and crosses over with most of the events of book two FALLING FOR HER.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Eli and Ava) ADDICTED TO HIM follows the forbidden romance between high school quarterback Eli Bennett, and high school cheerleader Ava Callahan. Eli Bennett is Jake Callahan’s nemesis both on and off the football field. As the quarterback for a rival high school Eli Bennett has mocked Jake Callahan throughout their high school careers but falling for Jake’s younger sister Ava, finds our hero struggling between head and heart. Ava Callahan knows that her relationship with Eli Bennett is forbidden by both her parents, and her brother Jake. Keeping their friendship and romance on the DL, Ave battles to keep their secret while Eli must contend with the fall-out at home. As the homecoming game draws nearer, Eli and Ava’s relationship steps up to the next level, a level that is now threatened when secrets are revealed. What ensues is the building romance and relationship between Eli and Ava, and the fall-out as their relationship, and Eli’s troubles at home become public knowledge.

The relationship between Eli and Ava began two years earlier while family were guests at a high school football camp. Ava had known that Eli was her brother’s enemy; his arch-nemesis and an unlikely boyfriend but that didn’t stop Ava from fantasizing about a boy she couldn’t have. Eli Bennett’s home life imploded two years earlier, and in this Eli struggles to find his place at school, on the field, and in the arms of the young woman he loves. The $ex scenes are passionate and intense without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful and energetic secondary and supporting characters including Jake and Hannah (Falling for Her), Fable and Drew (One Week Girlfriend), Ava’s best friend Ellie; Jake’s ex-girlfriend Cami, and rival football players Diego, Wyatt and Caleb. The requisite mean-girls are all up in Ava’s face.

ADDICTED TO HIM is a story of family, friendships, relationships and rejection; of bullies and dysfunction; of hopelessness and loss. The premise is engaging; the romance is captivating and seductive; the characters are dynamic and edgy. ADDICTED TO HIM ends on a cliff hanger-you have been warned.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Close To Me
Falling for Her

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

FOLLOW: Goodreads/ Website/ Facebook/ Twitter / Newsletter Sign Up

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Rate A Date (Dating #5) by Monica Murphy-Review tour

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Rate A Date (Dating #5) by Monica Murphy-Review tour

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Google Play /
Apple

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3gZnemN

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 14, 2020

Eleanor Murray is tired.

Tired of going on awkward dates. Tired of meeting men who just aren’t that into her. Tired of being set up on blind dates by her well-meaning friends.

She is a believer of true love, of finding that happily ever after, and she wants it. She deserves it. But at the rate she’s going, she’s pretty sure it’s never going to happen.

Until a friend creates a profile for Eleanor on a new dating app. At first, she’s reluctant. Dating apps aren’t the way to finding true love, are they? But then she makes a connection on Rate a Date, and this gorgeous, confident guy almost seems too good to be true…

Mitch Anderson has a secret.

He’s just moved to Las Vegas for his high profile job and after years of playing the field, he’s looking for a serious relationship. He wants to find a woman who likes him for who he is, not what he does. Meeting Eleanor on the dating app, he’s intrigued. Meeting her in real life while she’s in town for a bachelorette weekend, he completely falls for her. Now he’s in way over his head.

Their chemistry is combustible. They can’t keep their hands off each other. But will Eleanor forgive him when she finds out who he really is?

••••••••

REVIEW:RATE A DATE is the fifth instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, adult DATING erotic, romance series. This is hair stylist Eleanor Murray, and professional football player Mitch Anderson’s story line. RATE A DATE can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Mitch and Eleanor) RATE A DATE follows the building relationship between hair stylist Eleanor Murray, and professional football player Mitch Anderson. Mitch and Eleanor are tired of the dating scene. Eleanor Murray soon discovers that her best friend has signed her up on the Rate a Date dating app, and her first ‘date’ doesn’t go too well. Meanwhile, professional football player Mitchell Anderson, bored with the one-night stands, and the stream of women only looking for fame and money, finds himself ‘talking and texting’ to Eleanor Murray, a woman who is quickly stirring something within our story line hero. A bachelorette weekend in Vegas for Caroline Abbott (Save the Date #1) finds Eleanor meeting the man who is currently starring in all of her fantasies and dreams but a man whom she will discover is keeping secret his true identity.What ensues is the quick building romance and relationship between Eleanor and Mitch, and the potential fall-out as Mitch’s professional life is about to be exposed.

Mitchell Anderson wants to fall in love. He wants a woman to call his own, and meeting Eleanor Murray gives Mitchell a hope for the future but a future that is currently predicated upon a lie. Mitchell knows he has to come clean but our hero struggles with revealing the truth to a woman who only knows that the man with whom she is falling in love, is an ordinary man. Eleanor Murray is lonely. One of the two remaining single women in her group of friends, Eleanor battles between head and heart when her friend sets up a dating profile in an effort to find Eleanor someone to love.

The relationship between Mitch and Eleanor begins as a meet and greet in Vegas having spent days and nights texting and talking. Now that Mitch and his team have moved to Vegas, our hero spends with weekend getting know the woman with whom he will fall in love but a lie of omission threatens their potential happily ever after. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and intense without the use of over the top,sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful and energetic secondary and supporting characters-most of the women we have me in the previous instalments.

RATE A DATE is a story of secrets and lies; friendships and love. The premise is heart warming, uplifting and fun; the romance is sexy and seductive; the characters are animated and sassy.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Save the Date
Fake Date
Holidate
Hate to Date you

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

 

“You’re just saying that.”“Not really,” I tell her truthfully. “You’re gorgeous.”

“Mitch.” She draws my name out, like she’s all embarrassed. “You really think so?”

“Oh, I know so.” I lean back, taking her in. “I can’t wait to meet you in person this weekend.”

“Wait a minute. You’re not some secret serial killer, are you?” She asks this with such seriousness, I start to laugh all over again.

“Even if I was, do you think I’d tell you?” I grin, unable to contain it. “I’d keep it a secret, right?”

“True.” She smiles. Laughs a little. “It’s just…my friends don’t want me to meet you by myself. They want to come with me.”

“Swear to God, I’m not a serial killer, Eleanor,” I say solemnly, holding my hand up and making the peace sign. “Scout’s honor.”

“That’s not what you do when you say scout’s honor,” she says quickly. Little Miss Smartypants. “You do your fingers like this.” She holds up her hand, the first three fingers up and pressed close together.

“How do you know that? Were you a secret Boy Scout? Have a brother who was one?”

“I, um, dated a guy who was an Eagle Scout.” Her expression turns sheepish. “He was really into the Boy Scouts.”

“Was that in high school?”

“Uh. No. College.”

I’m frowning. “College?”

“Well, he got his Eagle Scout status his senior year, but was still involved with the scouts through college. And—beyond.” She presses her hand against her forehead and briefly closes her eyes. “Fine, I went out with him after he graduated college. I never really went to college. I went to beauty school.” She drops her hand, sending me a meaningful look.

“So you went out with a guy who was still excited about being an Eagle Scout…and he was a grown man.” I start to laugh. “Sounds fun.”

“I’ve not had the greatest luck when it comes to dating guys,” she admits.

“Oh yeah?” I’m rubbing my chin again, contemplating her. Wondering what the hell is wrong with all the men in her life that they don’t know how to treat her.

And then I realize how lucky I am that they all blew it so now I have my chance.

“Yeah. I’m just—I don’t pick well. And I always get really awkward around guys.” She rolls her eyes. “I can say really dumb things. Or I just act all nervous and weird. I start to ramble.”

“Like now?”

“Yes.” She laughs. “Like now. I’m rambling. I’m totally rambling and you don’t look bored, so I take that as a good sign.”

“I think the rambling thing is cute. I like your awkwardness.”

“Wait until you see it in person.”

“I can’t wait to see you in person,” I tell her with a sly smile, making her blush. “I can’t wait to give you a hug. See what you smell like.”

“Mitch.” Her cheeks look on fire.

“What? I’m serious. You wear perfume?”

“Of course.”

“Use scented shampoo?”

“Duh. I’m a hairstylist.”

“Then I can’t wait to see how all those scents mix and create the essence of you.” Oooh, that was a good one. I didn’t even mean to say that. It just spilled out of my mouth.

“Aw, you’re being so sweet.” She sends me a heated glance. “Kind of sexy.”

“You think me talking about how you smell is sexy?”

“Honestly, Mitch? I think everything about you is sexy,” she says with a little sigh, right before she claps her hand over her mouth. “I probably shouldn’t have said that.” Her voice is muffled behind her palm.

“I love that you said that,” I say, warming up to this conversation big time. “I think you’re pretty fucking sexy too, Eleanor.” Hesitating, I wonder if I should tell her what I did in the shower.

Maybe not.

“Have you ever sexted with someone before?” she asks, sounding genuinely curious.

“I guess.” I shrug, not really wanting to answer her. Makes me feel like a slimy shit to admit that yes, I have. Lots of times. “Sort of. I’ve made plenty of  booty call messages. DTF, stuff like that.”

She frowns. “DTF?”

“Down to fuck.”

“Oh.” Her eyes are wide. Her mouth is formed in this perfect O. “Oh.”

“Back when I wasn’t big on relationships,” I add. “But I’ve changed.”

“You have?”

“Yeah. I’m looking for a special girl.”

“Really?”

“I want a long-term relationship.”

“It’s too bad you’re moving,” she says, sounding sad.

I don’t want to focus on that right now. I don’t even know if this girl is the one. She has great potential. But we need to meet in person first. Test it out.

“We’ll see each other this weekend,” I remind her.

“I know!” Her face brightens. “And I’m excited.”

“So am I, Eleanor.”

So am I.

 


 

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

FOLLOW: Goodreads/ Website/ Facebook/ Twitter / Newsletter Sign Up

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Falling For Her (The Callahans #2) by Monica Murphy-Review Tour

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Falling For Her (The Callahans #2) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt Tour

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 2, 2020

Jake Callahan. Prince of the popular crowd.

My mortal enemy.

Gorgeous. All the girls want him.

Quarterback. All the boys want to be his friend. He’s the most popular boy in the senior class.

And he hates me.

Or so I thought.

What I mistook for hatred turns out to be…interest. There’s that thin line, right? It makes me crazy. I can’t stand it. Attraction, chemistry, whatever it is, I also can’t resist it.

And neither can he.

Together, we make no sense. The odds are against us. His friends definitely don’t approve. I’m not a part of their crowd. Not one of the cool kids. I don’t fit in, or so they say.

But that doesn’t stop him from falling for me.

And it won’t stop me from fighting for him.

•••••••

REVIEW: FALLING FOR HER is the second instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, young adult THE CALLAHANS romance series focusing on the Callahan siblings- a spin off from the author’s ONE WEEK GIRLFRIEND series. This is high school students, quarterback Jake Callahan, and Hannah Walsh’s storyline. FALLING FOR HER can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous instalments is revealed where necessary.

Told from four first person perspectives (Jake, Hannah, Drew, Fable) FALLING FOR HER covers a few weeks in the life of high school students, quarterback Jake Callahan, and Hannah Walsh. Jake Callahan is the all-star quarterback; leader of the popular crowd but a young man struggling with his direction in life. His previous relationship was full of turmoil and angst, and in this Jake wasn’t looking for anyone or anything to tie him down until his friends and fellow football players pushed him in the direction of our story line heroine-Hannah Walsh- a senior student who stuck mostly to herself but became the target of ridicule and bullies as soon as Jake focused his attention on her. What ensues is the building friendship, romance and relationship between Jake and Hannah with the approach of homecoming, and in the face of mockery and taunting from the school’s popular crowd.

The relationship between Jake and Hannah begins as a big of a dare. Jake is hoping that Hannah will wear his football jersey but all Hannah sees is a set up by the ‘in crowd’ to take her down. Jake is persistent in his attempts to persuade Hannah to be his friend regardless of the mockery and teasing he faces from his own teammates and the hatred from his ex-girlfriend. The $ex scenes are passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

The animated cast of secondary and supporting characters include Jake’s parents Drew and Fable (One Week Girlfriend series), as well as his sister Ava; fellow teammates and friends Diego, Caleb and Tony; Hannah’s best friend Sophie; Jake’s ex girlfriend Cami, and his arch-rival Eli Bennett.

FALLING FOR HER is a story of bullies and mean girls; family and friendships; love and relationships; the have and the have-nots. The premise is entertaining ; the characters are dynamic, energetic, flawed and real; the romance is sweet, tender and impassioned. FALLING FOR HER is a delightful and frustrating, yet familiar look at the cliques of high school and how they affect everyone they touch.

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one CLOSE TO ME

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Hannah settles into the chair closest to mine, a sketchpad in her hands. She flips through it, and I can see page after page of drawings, some of them so realistic I want to tell her to stop so I can really check them out, but I keep quiet. I’m not about to bring attention to myself again. I don’t want to get kicked out of the class.
I freaking need this class.
By the time Sanborne is done talking and telling all of us to try our hand at drawing, I feel like I’m about to burst with my need to talk to Hannah. “You mad at me?”
Her head bent, she’s concentrating on the movements of her pencil across the paper. “What?” she asks distractedly.
“Hannah.” She glances up at me when I say her name, those pretty blue eyes extra wide. “Are you mad at me?”
She frowns. “Why do you think I’m mad at you?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it’s the way you’ve avoided me since class started,” I tell her. “I was the last person you gave a sketchpad to.”
“Maybe I saved the best for last?” she says weakly.
I don’t smile. I don’t say a word. This usually works for me.
But Hannah’s quiet too. And stubborn. I can tell by the jut of her chin. The way she studies me, her expression blank.
Damn. She’s good.
“Are you only going to talk to me on Snap, but not at school?” I ask, my voice low.
She blinks rapidly, like she can’t believe what I just said. “No.”
“That’s what it seems like.”
A sigh escapes her and she drops her head, refocusing on the sketchpad. “I don’t know how to talk to you.”
“Huh?”
“In person.” She looks up, then immediately looks away. “I’m an idiot.”
A smile starts to curl my lips and I immediately tell myself to stop. “You’re not an idiot.”
“I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings,” she murmurs morosely.
“You’re forgiven.”
She lifts her head when I say that, her plump lips turned upward, and I’m hit with a sudden flash of wanting to kiss her.
Yeah. No. Not going to happen.
“Great, thanks so much,” she returns, then gestures toward my blank sketchpad. “You better get started. She’s going to want to check out your technique.”
“I’ve got the best technique in this school, don’t you know?” I can’t help but say, and Hannah’s cheeks turn pink again.
She’s really cute when she blushes.
“Don’t be a perv,” she says, grabbing my discarded pencil and pointing it toward me. “Start drawing.”
“Do I have to?” I slide my fingers onto hers, my thumb curling around hers before I pluck the pencil from her grip.
“Y-yes. You do.” Her voice is shaky, and I wonder if my touch affected her.
I hope it did. All I have to do is look at her and she affects me.
Whatever’s happening between us is confusing as hell.
“I didn’t listen to a word the teacher said,” I tell Hannah, and she scoots her chair closer to mine, launching into the same lecture Sanborne did, almost word for word.
I listen to the rhythm of Hannah’s speech, the excited way she speaks. She loves art, I can tell, and she genuinely wants to help me. I stare at her mouth, the way it moves, how her front teeth protrude the slightest bit, giving her this sexy overbite. I’m fucking entranced, caught up in her spell and when she finishes lecturing me with the faintest smile on her face, all I can do is smile in return.
“Oh. So you do smile,” she says softly.
I turn it into a frown. “No I don’t.”
She laughs, and I soak up the sound.
It’s just as pretty as I thought it would be.

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

FOLLOW: Goodreads/ Website/ Facebook/ Twitter / Newsletter Sign Up

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HATE TO DATE YOU (Dating 4)by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt Tour

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HATE TO DATE YOU (Dating #4) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt Tour

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

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 7 , 2020

Stella Ricci is bored.

Her overprotective family barely let her out of their sight, despite the fact she’s a grown woman. Yes, she loves her job at her family’s café and she’s the best barista in the entire Monterey Peninsula, but is that enough? She’s thinking no. But what else can she do?

Enter Carter Abbott. Burnt out after the never-ending grind of selling high end real estate in Los Angeles, he’s returned home, unsure of what to do next. He needs someplace to crash temporarily until he gets back on his feet.

It’s easy for Stella to suggest Carter move in. Temporarily of course. It’ll give her someone to talk to. The only problem?

That one night stand Stella and Carter had about a year ago. They never talked about it. They still don’t really talk about it. Despite the fact that the old chemistry has come back full force. Living together has made that obvious. Should they admit that one night wasn’t enough? Or will dating each other turn into an epic fail?

Only one way to find out…

••••••••••

REVIEW: HATE TO DATE YOU is the fourth instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, adult DATING romance series. This is café owner Stella Ricci, and real estate agent Carter Abbott’s story line. HATE TO DATE YOU can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Stella and Carter) HATE TO DATE YOU follows the best friend’s brother relationship between thirty-one year old real estate agent Carter Abbott, and twenty-something café owner Stella Ricci. One year earlier Stella and Carter had a drunken one-night stand but when Stella woke up Carter was gone, and ghosted our heroine for close to one year. Fast forward to present day wherein Carter has returned to his home, having quit his position in Los Angeles, and desperately needs a place to stay. Enter Stella Ricci, his one-night stand; his sister’s best friend, and the woman with whom Carter will fall in love. What ensues is the building but secret relationship between Carter and Stella, and the potential fall-out as Stella is unwilling to commit to something more.

Stella Ricci has always been attraction to her best friend’s brother but struggles with their relationship and their one-night stand. With Carter her new roommate, Stella finds herself willing to accept a friends with benefits relationship but refuses to admit to something more. Carter Abbott knows he screwed up one year before but hopes to convince Stella to give him a chance. Falling for Stella was easy, but Stella refuses to settle down, and in this, pushes Carter out of her life.

The relationship between Stella and Carter is a sister’s best friend or best friend’s brother (however you want to see it 😉 ). Stella is fearful of revealing the truth to her best friend Caroline but Stella’s Nonna sees something between our couple that everyone else is struggling to see. As Carter begins a slow seduction of our story line heroine, Stella begins to pull away fearing losing her friends, her family and her independence. The $ex scenes are intimate and passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including Stella’s friends Caroline (Save the Date #1), Sarah (Fake Date #2) Candice (Holidate), Eleanor, Kelsey and Amelia; Stella’s parents Vera and Lorenzo Ricci, brother Michael, their grandmother Graziella ‘Grace’ Ricci.

HATE TO DATE YOU is a story of family, friendships, indecisions, and second chances. The premise is engaging and inviting ; the characters are flirty and feisty; the romance is spicy but struggles in the face of Stella’s reluctance for something more.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Save the Date
Fake Date
Holidate

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

 

 

I’m in the bathroom applying one last coat of mascara to my eyelashes when Carter suddenly appears behind me, his gorgeous face looming over my shoulder. Of course, like the dork that I am, I yelp with a jolt when I first spot him, stabbing myself in the eyeball with the mascara wand.
And like some sort of romcom hero, he rushes for me, his big hands curling around my shoulders and turning me around so I have no choice but to face him. Though I can’t even look at him, considering I’m bent over and holding both hands over my wounded eye.
“Are you all right? I didn’t mean to scare you.” He sounds troubled. Which is good. He should definitely feel bad for causing my injury.
Though really, I’m the one who overreacted and stabbed myself in the first place.
“I’m okay.” I stand up straighter, still cradling my watery, stinging eye. “It only hurts a little.”
“Drop your hand.” He turns away from me, snagging a tissue out of the Kleenex box that’s perched on the back of the toilet, then faces me once more. “Drop it,” he repeats when I still haven’t removed my hand.
Reluctantly I remove my hand from my face, my eyelashes practically stuck together. I’m sure I look a mess and I swallow hard, reaching up to dab at the tender skin beneath my eye, but Carter bats my hand away.
“Let me,” he murmurs as he brushes the tissue underneath my eye, picking up all the excess mascara. “Does it still hurt?”
“A little.” He’s so close. I can see all of his eyelashes, and they’re thick and dark and don’t need a lick of mascara on them, the jerk. He’s freshly shaven, his face nice and smooth, and I sort of want to rub against it. Like a cat.
“I’m sorry I startled you,” he says with the utmost sincerity. “I didn’t mean for you to try to take your eye out.”
A soft laugh escapes me. “I’ve stabbed myself in the eye before with a mascara wand. I’m sure this won’t be the last time.”
He finishes cleaning up the mess I made and then turns me so I face the mirror once more. “Now you’re perfect,” he says, squeezing my shoulders for the briefest moment before he lets go and exits the bathroom, heading straight into his bedroom.
I’m shaken by the encounter and it takes me a minute to get moving again. Since the afternoon at my nonna’s house, we’ve been friendlier. Not so friendly that we fall into bed together, but friendly enough. Which is…nice. I don’t like having hostile feelings toward Carter. What exactly did he ever do to me anyway?
Oh, he just rocked your world and turned you into a firm believer in multiple orgasms, then left you in the dust and never talked to you again.
Right. He did that. And it sucked.


 

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

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CLOSE TO ME (The Callahans #1) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt tour

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CLOSE TO ME (The Callahans #1) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt tour

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

About the book: Release Date February 11, 2020

Asher Davis. My first crush.

My first kiss.

The boy who ripped my heart out of my chest again and again. Over and over. I let him have it every single time.

Willingly.

We are that toxic high school couple you hear about, the one you witness in the hallway avoiding each other. You laugh at them in class when they’re forced to work together, their gazes full of hatred. We are the couple you gossip about when they win homecoming prince and princess their sophomore year…

The back and forth is what kills me the most. I’m not his princess, I’m the girl he toys with when he’s bored. And he’s definitely not my prince, no matter how badly I want him to be.

Our senior year and we’re months away from never having to see each other again when disaster strikes—and brings us closer together. All it takes is one touch, and I’m burning for Ash. Hotter than I ever have.

But will that burn turn into a devastating fire? Or can we actually make it work this time?

•••••••••••

REVIEW: CLOSE TO ME is the first instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, young adult THE CALLAHANS romance series focusing on the Callahan siblings-a spin off from the author’s ONE WEEK GIRLFRIEND series. This is high school students Asher Davis, and Autumn Callahan’s story line.

Told from several first person perspectives including Asher and Autumn CLOSE TO ME covers four to five years in the life of high school students Asher Davis, and Autumn Callahan. Autumn Callahan is the eldest child and daughter of former NFL quarterback Drew Callahan and his wife Fable, and as such finds herself often on the outside looking in but her four year, love/hate relationship with high school quarterback Asher Davis pulls our heroine into the vortex that is about to suck Asher Davis into the depths of h*ll. When trouble at home finds Asher living with Coach Callahan, his relationship with Autumn is stepped up to the next level, no longer a love/hate relationship but a teenaged love affair wherein Asher’s past is determined to destroy them all. What ensues is the building friendship, relationship and romance between Asher and Autumn, and the potential fall-out as Asher’s home-life, and previous relationships affect everything going forward.

The relationship between Asher and Autumn begins acrimoniously as Asher’s attempts to befriend Autumn are met with derision and scorn. Autumn struggles to accept everything that Asher represents without ever truly understanding the totality of the darkness that controls his world. As Autumn and Asher dance around one another throughout their entire high school career, Asher’s life begins to implode leaving our hero a shell of his former self. The $ex scenes are intimate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

The colorful and energetic cast of characters include Drew and Fable Callahan (One Week Girlfriend series), as well as their children Jake, Ava and Beck; Autumn’s friend Kaya; several high school students, mean girls and wanna-bes. Jake’s story is next in Falling For Her.

CLOSE TO ME is a story of family, dysfunction, betrayal, secrets and lies; of one boy’s struggle to survive against the odds; of one girl’s need to love a boy who believes he is not worthy of love. The premise is heart breaking and emotional; the romance is passionate; the characters are charismatic, broken, struggling but strong.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

“Do friends give each other hugs? The friends I have do. Sometimes.”
“There is no way I’m hugging you.” I roll my eyes.
“A truce hug then? Come on.” He lets go of the door handle and faces me fully, stretching his arms out in invitation. “I’ll leave you alone after this, okay? I promise.”
I’m not sure if he’s the type who keeps his promises. I’m guessing no.
This could be the last time I hug him. This entire encounter has been weird. Confusing. We’re a mess. We would never work, and us going ’round and ’round in circles tonight just proves that.
So what’s the harm in getting one last hug from Ash? It’s just a hug. A brief moment of bodily contact and then I’ll send him away. He won’t bug me again. He’ll get over his so-called feelings for me. He’ll give his heart to someone else or even better, he’ll discover he actually has one, and he’ll forget all about me. He’ll give it to someone else, and he’ll finally leave me alone forever.
Why does that thought make me feel so empty inside?
Deciding it’s do or die time, I walk right into his hug, my arms sliding around his waist, my head resting on his chest. I can feel the steady thump-thump of his heartbeat and I close my eyes when his arms come around me. Slowly. Enfolding me into his body so that we’re snug tight.
He holds me with a desperation, almost as if he’s afraid to let me go, and when I lift my head, tilting it back so I can stare into his eyes, I find he’s already watching me.
“Friends don’t make each other feel like this,” he says, his voice a gravelly whisper.
The hairs on the back of my neck rise. “Feel like what?”
“Like you could be my everything.”
My shoulders sag. “Ash—”
“Stop talking.” He presses two fingers to my lips, silencing me. When he’s seemingly assured I won’t speak, he lightens the pressure, gently caressing my lips. Back and forth. Making me tingle.
Making me want him to do more than touch my mouth.
I want him to kiss me.
“You have the sexiest lips,” he murmurs, and the blush returns, setting my face on fire. No one has referred to me as sexy before. “What we’re doing is fucking crazy. You know this right, Callahan?”
I ignore his question. “How could I be your everything when you told me you don’t know how to feel?”
“The only time I seem to feel is when…” He presses his fingers into the corner of my mouth, so gentle, I could almost think he never actually touched me. “I’m with you.”

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

FOLLOW: Goodreads/ Website/ Facebook/ Twitter / Newsletter Sign Up

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Holidate (Dating #3) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt Tour

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Holidate (Dating #3) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt Tour

HOLIDATE
Dating #3
by Monica Murphy
Release Date: October 15, 2019
Genre: adult, contemporary,sweet, romance

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

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date October 15, 2019

Candice Gaines loves Christmas. Not only does she bask in the twinkling lights, sing Christmas carols and go crazy with the decorations, she’s also in the giving spirit, donating much of her time and wealth to various charities in the local area.

Charlie Sullivan despises Christmas. Though it keeps his family afloat, considering they own Sullivan Family Christmas Tree Farm, the main provider for Christmas trees on the Monterey peninsula. He’d much rather work among the trees versus have to deal with people.

But Charlie’s parents are taking on more philanthropic projects—and as their oldest child, they want him to be their official public representative. He just has to play nice and convince everyone he’s not a total holiday hater.

When Charlie’s mom asks Candice to accompany him to a variety of holiday parties and events, she reluctantly agrees. She thinks Charlie is a big ol’ Grinch, but is determined to change his mindset and help him spread Christmas cheer. Charlie finds Candice too chatty, too sweet, too much. Do people like her really exist?

Why yes, yes they do. The more time they spend together—along with a few kisses under the mistletoe—the more they start to like each other. Hopefully Charlie can convince Candice he doesn’t have a heart that’s two sizes too small before the ball drops on New Year’s Eve.

••••••••

REVIEW: HOLIDATE is the third instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, adult DATING romance series. This is Christmas tree farm owner Charlie Sullivan, and philanthropist and fund raiser Candice Gaines’ story line. HOLIDATE can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Charlie and Candice) HOLIDATE follows the building romance and relationship between Christmas tree farm owner Charlie Sullivan, and philanthropist Candice Gaines. The holidays are about to get busy and Candice finds herself the ‘victim’ of a lie when she is asked by a well-meaning mother to accompany her son to a variety of holiday parties. Candice, with a holiday scheduled filled to the brim, isn’t exactly thrilled to be holding hands with the local Grinch but discovers there is more to Charlie than meets the eye. What ensues is the building relationship between Candice and Charlie, and the potential fall-out when the truth is revealed.

The colorful secondary and supporting characters include Candice’s friends Kelsey, Eleanor, Caroline (Save the Date #1) and Sarah, her brother Jared’s girlfriend (Fake Date #2), Joyce Rothschild, as well as Charlie’s mother Isabel Sullivan, his sister Victoria; and tree farm employee Isaac Jones.

HOLIDATE is a cute holiday themed story; a ‘Hallmark-esque’ sweet romance where the push and pull of enemies to friendship quickly escalates with each encounter. The premise is endearing; the romance is sweet (no $ex scenes, a few kisses and limited physical touching); Candice is energetic and over the top, almost childlike in her love of Christmas; Charlie struggles with the season and everything it represents. HOLIDATE is a light-hearted and delightful read.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Save the Date
Fake Date
Holidate

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

 

I go chasing after Charlie, thankful he hasn’t hopped back on that ATV and torn out of here. He’s headed straight for the giant red building, and I follow behind, having to pick up my step since one of his long strides equals about three of mine. He’s just so stinkin’ tall.
And handsome.
And gruff.
And he smells good. Have I mentioned that? He smells like a pine tree, of course, and his scent is mouth-wateringly delicious.
Ugh. I hate myself sometimes.
He pushes open the door of the building almost violently, sending it swinging wide, and I sneak in behind him, causing him to turn and practically snarl at me when he realizes I’m standing in front of him.
But I forget all about his snarl when I see how enchanting this room is. It’s not an office, but an actual store, filled to the brim with holiday decorations and knickknacks for sale. Candles are burning—I can smell cinnamon and spice wafting in the air. The scent of the real pine trees laden with ornaments standing in the room also lingers, and I breathe deep, closing my eyes for a moment so I can take it all in.
When I open my eyes, it’s to find Charlie standing there, his hands on his hips, his brow lowered. “Are you okay? That head injury still flaring up and giving you trouble?”
I roll my eyes. “No, you idiot. I’m enjoying the festive atmosphere.”
Oh, that was mean. I shouldn’t have said that.
But I don’t think he even noticed.
I slowly turn in a circle, pure delight flowing through my veins. I don’t know what to look at first, it’s all so beautiful. And there are layers upon layers of decorations. On the walls, cluttering shelves and tabletops, overflowing giant baskets. And of course there are the trees. They almost sag with their bounty of sparkling ornaments and twinkling lights. It would probably take me hours to explore it all, and I’m dying to start my exploration right at this very moment. “This store is so adorable!”
“My sister Victoria runs it.” He glances over at the counter where the register sits, but no one’s there. “I don’t know where she’s at, though. Maybe you could talk to her about—whatever it is you want to talk about.”
No way is he pushing this agenda onto his sister. Isabel wants Charlie to do this, and no one else.
“We’ve wasted the past five minutes with you huffing and puffing and refusing to speak to me.” I reach into my large bag and pull the folder out I wanted to show him. “Give me ten minutes. That’s all I need to talk about what we’re going to do over the next few weeks.”
He grimaces. Sighs. Tugs the cap off his head, all that gorgeous hair spilling across his forehead, and my fingers literally itch at the chance to push it out of his eyes.
But I restrain myself. Barely. 


 

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

FOLLOW: Goodreads/ Website/ Facebook/ Twitter / Newsletter Sign Up

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Fake Date (Dating #2) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt tour

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Fake Date (Dating #2) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt tour

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Google Play /ibooks

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date September 17, 2019.

Working at Bliss Lingerie, Sarah Harrison deals with all sorts of—interesting clientele. Yet no one sparks her interest more than Jared Gaines, the ultra-rich, ultra-sexy businessman who frequents her shop, buying delicate little “gifts” for the women in his life.

But one day, Jared sends her a gift from Bliss. Then another—and another. So when Sarah walks into his office demanding to know why he can’t stop sending her gifts, he makes her an offer she somehow can’t refuse: be his fake girlfriend for the weekend while attending his brother’s engagement party.

Next thing Sarah knows, she’s in San Francisco, pretending to be in love with Jared. Not that it’s a hardship. Once you get the man away from the office, he’s much more relaxed. Sweet. Funny. Even…thoughtful? Oh, and sexier than ever, of course.

Their pretend relationship feels very real, very quickly. Soon Sarah’s in over her head. Could what she and Jared share turn into something real? Or is it all actually…fake?

•••••••••

REVIEW: FAKE DATE is the second instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, adult DATING romance series. This is thirty four year old, acquisitions billionaire Jared Gaines, and twenty four year old, lingerie sales clerk Sarah Harrison’s story line. FAKE DATE can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story line is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Jared and Sarah) FAKE DATE focuses on the building relationship between thirty four year old, acquisitions billionaire Jared Gaines, and twenty four year old, lingerie sales clerk Sarah Harrison. For close to six months Sarah Harrison has been the go-to personal shopper for businessman Jared Gaines, a man whose taste in lingerie is exquisite and expensive. Believing Jared is nothing more than a manwh*re with numerous mistresses Sarah remains overly professional in the face of her unwanted attraction to a man she doesn’t like. When gifts of lingerie, expensive shoes and flowers arrive at Sarah’s door, our heroine battles between head and heart believing Jared is treating her no better than the women he leaves behind but Jared need a plus-one for his brother’s engagement party, and Sarah is the perfect woman for the job. What ensues is the fake girlfriend but building romance and relationship between Sarah and Jared, and the potential fall –out when Jared’s secrets all but destroy Sarah’s faith in a possible happily ever after.

Jared Gaines doesn’t do relationships; having been burned in the past, Jared refuses to fall in love, having hardened his heart to romance and love. Meeting Sarah Harrison sparks something deep within our story line hero, something Jared struggles to accept or acknowledge. Sarah Harrison has raised her younger brother and sister since the death of their parents four years earlier. Having spent no time on herself Sarah battles with Jared’s offer of a fake relationship knowing that her heart has already started to fall for the man who struggles with family and friends. Watching Jared falter with basic social skills, Sarah quickly discovers that Jared has closed himself off from said family and friends.

Jared’s personality and actions will be difficult to accept for many romance readers. Oft-times immature and cold, Jared struggles with ordinary and everyday social encounters including his treatment of our story line heroine. Demanding and petulant, almost child-like in nature, Jared steps over the line on one too many occasions, and Sarah must remind him about his poor behaviour, and treatment of other people, and herself.

The relationship between Jared and Sarah begins as a business arrangement wherein Sarah becomes Jared’s personal shopper at Bliss Lingerie. Jared’s attraction to Sarah finds our hero ‘using’ Sarah to ‘shop’ for his many ‘women’, only for Sarah to discover that she has been the only woman for several months. The $ex scenes are passionate and intimate but mostly implied, without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful secondary and supporting characters including Sarah’s sister Andie, and their brother Brent; and Sarah’s co-worker Bethany, and boss Marlo; Jared’s brother Kevin and his fiancée Rochelle, their sister Candice, their father Marcus Gaines, and his wife Mitzi. We are reintroduced to Sarah’s friends: Caroline Abbott ( Save the Date #1), Stella, and Kelsey.

FAKE DATE is a story of family, grief, acceptance and love. The premise is entertaining; the romance is seductive; the characters are energetic but Jared’s actions and behavior are questionable and problematic.

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one Save the Date

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

 

“Mr. Gaines,” I say, pasting on my best customer smile when he lifts his gaze to mine.
His dark brown eyes flash with an unfamiliar gleam and my breath catches in the back of my throat. “Back so soon, I see.”
“You know I can’t resist you, Miss Harrison.” His smile is slow. Wolfish, if that’s really
a thing. I read it in a romance novel once, thought it was kind of silly, but right now, it’s working for Jared.
His entire demeanor right now reminds me of a predatory creature. His face is all hard lines—stern, straight nose, granite jaw, sharp cheekbones, steely eyes. Yet his mouth, his lips are soft. Full. Lush.
Kissable.
Shaking my head at the wayward thought, I return his smile, trying my best to remain
polite. Professional.
“Is there anything in particular you’re looking for this afternoon?” I’m surprised by how steady my voice is, considering I feel like my insides are sloshing back and forth, like I’m on a boat in the middle of the ocean.
“You don’t have anything pulled aside for my appointment?” He raises a single brow, the expression on his face practically daring me to say no.
Well, guess what? I’m about to say it.
“No, I didn’t pull anything aside.” I shrug when he glares at me. “You never told me the nature of your visit.”
He glances about, making sure no one is around, I’d assume. And lucky for him, there’s no one in the store currently. It’s the middle of the week, early afternoon. We normally don’t get too many customers at this time.
We are the only two people in here. Even Marlo has disappeared.
“Perhaps you can show me some of your newer items,” he suggests.
“I can do that.” All new arrivals are at the front of the store, so we’re in the right spot. I lead him to a table showcasing our latest bra and panty design. “Celestial is the theme for spring into summer.”
I point to the bras made of thin, sheer netting and pink silk, tiny pale pink stars stitched in a scattered pattern across the tulle fabric. They leave nothing to the imagination, and the panties are the same.
“They hide nothing.” He holds up a pair of brief-cut panties, turning them this way and that. Every time he holds underwear in those big hands of his, I melt a little inside. I don’t know why he affects me like this.
“You’re right. They don’t,” I agree, grabbing a thong and flipping it over to the thin
string of lace that makes up the backside. “But they’re terribly sweet.”
“Sweet?”
I glance up to find him watching me. “Sweet yet sexy,” I counter, my cheeks going hot
from the way he’s studying me so carefully.
“You like the celestial theme?”
I nod. Press my lips together so I don’t say something I regret. Like, I love this theme, or Do you want me to model the panties for you?
Yeah. That’s a bad idea.

 


 

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

FOLLOW: Goodreads/ Website/ Facebook/ Twitter / Newsletter Sign Up

 

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