Review: In a Jam by Cindy Dorminy

Andie Carson has to do three things to inherit her grandmother’s lottery winnings—sober up, spend a month running her grandmother’s Georgia coffee shop, and enter homemade jam in the county fair. If she can’t meet those terms, the money goes to the church, and Andie gets nothing. She figures her tasks will be easy enough, and once she completes them, Andie plans to sell the shop, take the money, and run back to Boston.

After a rough breakup from his crazy ex-fiancée, Officer Gunnar Wills decides to take a hiatus from women. All he wants is to help make his small town thrive the way it did when he was a kid. But when wild and beautiful Andie shows up, Gunnar’s hesitant heart begins to flutter.

Gunnar knows that Andie plans to leave, but he’s hoping to change her mind, fearful that if her coffee shop closes, Main Street will fold to the big-box corporations and forever change the landscape of his quaint community. But convincing her to stay means getting close enough to risk his heart in the process. Even though Gunnar makes small-town life seem a little sweeter, Andie has to decide if she’s ready to turn her world upside down and give up big-city life. One thing’s for sure—it’s a very sticky situation.


My Review:

Fantastic writing skills really bring this story to life. 

Andie Carson is a well-known party girl living in Boston with a habit of drinking too much and waking up in jail.  Even the police officers know her by name.  Andie’s life changes when she finds out she has inherited her grandmother’s lottery winnings, but she has placed stipulations on the money.  Andie must move to the small town of Smithville, Georgia, and work in her bakery, In A Jam, live in her apartment, go to church and fit in with the people in town.  The toughest rule of all was Andie needs to give up her drinking.  Andie’s plan was to stay the six required weeks to get the money, sell the shop and then she would head back to Boston.  But she didn’t expect to fall for the little town and to make so many new friends.

Officer Gunner Wills was done with women.  His last relationship did him in.  It’s been years since he has dated, but as soon as he saw Andie he knew there was something about her and he needed to know her better.  Little did he know, Andie would be the one to bring him out of his dating slump and teach him to love again.  But when Gunner’s ex shows up in town to stir up some trouble, will Andie and Gunner’s new relationship be strong enough to stand up to the wrath of Willow?

I really enjoyed this book.  The author’s writing style really drew me into the story.  She wrote the characters so well that they began to feel like friends and I was part of the story.  Not a detail was missed.  I just didn’t want the book to end when it did.  It felt like I was saying goodbye to old friends.  This is the first book I have read by this author and it won’t be the last.    

Review: It's Complicated (Undeniable Book 1) by Nikki Prince

Ashton Locke has had a thing for Keiko Jarrett since college. So when she proposes adding friends with benefits to the mix, he's intrigued, but wary. Sure, he’s always wanted her, and is definitely not ready to settle down with anyone, but what happens if one of them crosses the line?

Keiko is ready to take her flirty friendship with Ashton to the next level of hot. But she never bargained for feelings to intrude and cause complications. She laughed at Ashton's hesitation and promised she'd remain heart-whole.

Some promises are meant to be broken and as Keiko and Ashton's "benefits bleed in all aspects of their lives, Keiko needs to convince Ashton that love is worth the risk.


My Review: 

Would you take a friendship to the next level, to one with benefits?

When Keiko Jarrett gets tired of the men she is meeting, she turns to one of her best friends, Ashton Locke, and suggests they become friends with benefits.  It didn’t take much convincing on Ashton’s part as he has been attracted to Keiko for a long time.  But is it really worth putting a good friendship in jeopardy if it doesn’t work out?  Keiko and Ashton find out in this exciting and sensual story.  And, what happens when a jealous ex-girlfriend tries to come between them?

I was intrigued by the story line and was anxious to read this book to see how Keiko and Ashton make their new relationship work.  Most people that I know who have tried friends with benefits didn’t seem to have much luck with it.  So, it was fun to see how it worked in the fictional world.  The author did a good job telling the story and keeping it exciting.  I look forward to checking out some more of her books in the future.    

Review: The Texan's Wedding Escape (Heart of Stone) by Charlene Sands

From friendship to passion…to forever?

Only if she doesn’t marry the wrong man first…

Lauren never got over her childhood crush on Cooper, but she’s grown up now and ready to settle down. She even agrees to plan her upcoming wedding at his ranch, but in close quarters, she’s second-guessing her groom and yearning for Cooper’s forbidden embrace… Then she discovers the rancher’s ulterior motive. Will she walk down the aisle with the wrong man?


My Review:

It’s been a year since the death of Copper Stone’s best friend, Tony Abbott, and he still blames himself for the accident that took his life.  When Tony’s mother, Loretta, asks Cooper for help stopping her daughter Lauren, from marrying Tony’s corrupt business partner, Cooper agrees to help her.  He will do anything for that family.

Lauren has finally found true love and is in the process of planning her wedding when her mother realizes Roger isn’t being honest.  She can’t let Lauren marry him.  Loretta comes up a plan to get her out of the house and them both living at Cooper’s ranch where they can work together to keep Lauren from making a big mistake.  Lauren has never gotten over her crush on Cooper and staying together brings up some confusing thoughts, especially as time gets closer to the wedding.  Will Cooper be able to pull the plug on the wedding before it’s too late?

This was a really good story.  When I got near the end of the book, I had wondered how Lauren and Cooper would get their happily ever after because it sure looked like they wouldn’t be granted it.  But, Lauren took care of Roger in the end, and boy did she do it in a memorable way. 

Review: Resisting the Doctor (Marietta Medical #2) by Patricia W. Fischer

After being hired as the temporary director of Marietta Medical ER, Dr. Lucy Davidson meticulously plots the course she wants the quickly growing facility to take. She’s laser-focused, determined to prove herself worthy to become the permanent director. No distraction will sway her…not even the brilliant and disturbingly handsome new Emergency Room physician, Thomas McAvoy.

Fulfilling a promise, Thomas has come to Marietta to help the woman who saved his life then leave as soon as possible. Still sustaining injuries from the near fatal attack, he realizes how much he appreciates the slower pace of his temporary assignment at a rural hospital. It’s a soothing balm after years in an hectic urban ER.

The charm of Marietta and the friendliness of his colleagues lure Thomas into thinking he might like to make his temporary position permanent, especially since he and Lucy have become closer. As their relationship begins to heat up, Thomas realizes Lucy is everything he dreamed of in a life partner, and he can’t imagine letting her go. But when they both realize they are up for the same promotion, will they be able to keep their personal and professional lives separate?

My Review: 

Two new doctors, Dr. Lucy Davidson and Dr. Thomas McAvoy, start out butting heads in Marietta Medical ER when it comes to a drunk driving accident victim.  But they soon find themselves becoming attracted to each other which might not be the best idea since they work together.  

Lucy and Thomas are both working temporary positions at Marietta Medical.  Lucy is working as the temporary director and if everything goes as planned, she could soon see herself in a permanent position.  But it seems someone is out to make her job more difficult.  Thomas is the new emergency room physician.  He is only in town until he finishes helping his friend Jade make repairs to her father’s house before she sells it.  When things start heating up with Lucy, Thomas just might change his plans and stay in Marietta.  

This was a good story, but in the beginning, during the ER scene, I spent a lot of time googling words.  I don’t know anything about doctors, hospitals or medical terminology.  So, it did slow me down a little bit.  But once I got past that part the story started to flow really well.  I can tell the author has a lot of medical knowledge or did thorough research to get details like that.  I liked how Lucy and Thomas were both stubborn and set in their ways and how they eventually found a way to put their differences aside to get to know each other.  There are also some very steamy intimate scenes in this book too.  I look forward to reading the rest of this series.