Sweet and sexy; an ideal beach read.
In this small town, two colleagues butt heads and hearts.
Mia Sparks loves Shell Grove, South Carolina, almost too much. She grew up there, has deep ties to the community, and found respite in her hometown after her divorce from her high school sweetheart. But Mia is restless; despite a college degree, she’s never had a career that sticks, and so far, her guest-relations position at The Sapphire, Shell Grove’s new resort, has involved fishing dead squirrels out of the pool. Enter sexy-as-sin Aiden Beaumont, with whom Mia has an eventful first meeting and can’t stop thinking about. The only problems? Aiden is Mia’s boss’s boss, and, as owner of The Sapphire, he’s public enemy No. 1 among the Shell Grove old guard, who are convinced a high-profile resort will ruin the simplicity of their beloved beach town. When Mia sees the potential in increased tourism and proposes creative solutions to get the entire town onboard, Aiden sees the potential in her—in both the boardroom and the bedroom. But for a small-town girl and a high-powered businessman, love can be complicated—even more so when a burgeoning new venture is also on the line. Can Mia and Aiden truly have it all? This is the first in the Shell Grove romance series from prolific author Munton, and there’s a lot of potential here. Quirky characters abound, from a trio of 60-something gossips who run the Southern Sisters Salon to Mia’s pals Maggie and Finn, best friends with romantic tension that everyone but them can sense. Shell Grove is a character in and of itself, with beautiful beach settings, Southern charm, and a clear sense of community. It’s no wonder businessmen like Aiden want to capitalize on the locale and why its loyal residents are so resistant to a big resort. Finally, Mia and Aiden have sizzling-hot chemistry, demonstrated many times over the course of the book, as well as their own believable personal and relationship obstacles to overcome.
Sweet and sexy; an ideal beach read.Pub Date: May 24, 2022
ISBN: 979-8-8158-0102-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Independently Published
Review Posted Online: June 23, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
PERSPECTIVES
Sink your teeth into this delightful paranormal romance with a modern twist.
A vampire and an Alpha werewolf enter into a marriage of convenience in order to ease tensions between their species.
As the only daughter of a prominent Vampyre councilman, Misery Lark has grown accustomed to playing the role that’s demanded of her—and now, her father is ordering her to be part of yet another truce agreement. In an effort to maintain goodwill between the Vampyres and their longtime nemeses the Weres, Misery must wed their Alpha, Lowe Moreland. But it turns out that Misery has her own motivations for agreeing to this political marriage, including finding answers about what happened to her best friend, who went missing after setting up a meeting in Were territory. Isolated from her kind and surrounded on all sides by the enemy after the wedding, Misery refuses to let herself forget about her real mission. It doesn’t matter that Lowe is one of the most confounding and intense people she’s ever met, or that the connection building between them doesn’t feel like one born entirely of convenience. There’s also the possibility that Lowe may already have a Were mate of his own, but in spite of their biological differences, they may turn out to be the missing piece in each other’s lives. While this is Hazelwood’s first paranormal romance, and the book does lean on some hallmark tropes of the genre, the contemporary setting lends itself to the author’s trademark humor and makes the political plot more easily digestible. Misery and Lowe’s slow-burn romance is appealing enough that readers will readily devour every moment between them and hunger to return to them whenever the story diverts from their scenes together.
Sink your teeth into this delightful paranormal romance with a modern twist.Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9780593550403
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
PERSPECTIVES
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
Hoover’s (November 9, 2015, etc.) latest tackles the difficult subject of domestic violence with romantic tenderness and emotional heft.
At first glance, the couple is edgy but cute: Lily Bloom runs a flower shop for people who hate flowers; Ryle Kincaid is a surgeon who says he never wants to get married or have kids. They meet on a rooftop in Boston on the night Ryle loses a patient and Lily attends her abusive father’s funeral. The provocative opening takes a dark turn when Lily receives a warning about Ryle’s intentions from his sister, who becomes Lily’s employee and close friend. Lily swears she’ll never end up in another abusive home, but when Ryle starts to show all the same warning signs that her mother ignored, Lily learns just how hard it is to say goodbye. When Ryle is not in the throes of a jealous rage, his redeeming qualities return, and Lily can justify his behavior: “I think we needed what happened on the stairwell to happen so that I would know his past and we’d be able to work on it together,” she tells herself. Lily marries Ryle hoping the good will outweigh the bad, and the mother-daughter dynamics evolve beautifully as Lily reflects on her childhood with fresh eyes. Diary entries fancifully addressed to TV host Ellen DeGeneres serve as flashbacks to Lily’s teenage years, when she met her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy she found squatting in a neighbor’s house. When Atlas turns up in Boston, now a successful chef, he begs Lily to leave Ryle. Despite the better option right in front of her, an unexpected complication forces Lily to cut ties with Atlas, confront Ryle, and try to end the cycle of abuse before it’s too late. The relationships are portrayed with compassion and honesty, and the author’s note at the end that explains Hoover’s personal connection to the subject matter is a must-read.
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of the survivors.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5011-1036-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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