Undeniably Yours - Review

Exclusively Yours (Kowalskis #1) by Shannon Stacey

Publication date: 24 January 2012 by Harlequin

ISBN 10/13:  0373776853 | 9780373776856

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Category: Adult Romance
Keywords: Romance, family, contemporary
Format: Mass market paperback, eBook (e-ARC received from Netgalley)

Thuy's Review:

Undeniably Yours is the second book in Shannon Stacey’s Kowalski series. If you read my review on the first book, you’ll know that I wasn’t crazy about the female lead and that the story, though it had potential, fell a little flat for me. While I actually liked Undeniably more than Exclusively, the book still suffered from the same problems as the first book which prevented this one from getting a higher rating from me.

Kevin Kowalski is introduced in the first book as the younger, playful brother of Joseph Kowalski. After suffering through his wife’s affair with his boss, Kevin quits the police force and buys a sports bar. Kevin is content to play the field, never going for the serious relationship. After his divorce and the devastation of the affair, he isn’t after any kind of serious relationship. Bet runs into Kevin again at his brother’s wedding after an altercation at his bar. The attraction is immediate and Beth and Kevin end up spending the night together. Beth leaves before Kevin wakes up but finds herself in a predicament a few weeks later when she realizes that she is pregnant with Kevin’s child. A wanderer by nature, Beth definitely doesn’t want to settle down, especially with a player like Kevin. But she decides to keep the baby and she and Kevin begin their seemingly friends only “neighbors who happen to to be having a baby together” relationship.

Like the last book, my main problem was that the female lead seemed to be way less into than the relationship than the male. In this case, we get a little more background to Beth so her reluctance to tie herself down is somewhat understandable. While she describes her parents as “smothering,” we do not get a lot of insight into why it was so terrible or overbearing. Her adopting a transient lifestyle because of it doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense. I just felt like there was more to the story I was missing that would have helped me understand her better. It’s obvious that she cares about Kevin but she keeps pushing him away. She was so frustrating at times when she would fight Kevin and herself just to prove a point about being independent and not needing anyone. I felt bad for him because he clearly wanted more than she was willing to give him.

And Kevin, oh Kevin. Boyishly charming and good natured despite Beth’s issues, Kevin takes the news of his impending fatherhood in stride. He was just too adorable most of the time and I totally have a crush on him. His patience with Beth is commendable and it eventually pays off. Even though I didn’t love Beth at first, it was nice to see her finally admit her feelings for Kevin and allow herself and Kevin the happy future that they both deserve. Despite its flaws, I enjoyed this book and would definitely read another book by this author in the future.

One other small note about the Paulie and Sam storyline. I loved Sam and Paulie! They are hot together and Paulie is pretty awesome. I think I could have read a whole book just about them.

I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.

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Visit the author online at http://shannonstacey.com and follow her on Twitter @ShannonStacey 

Exclusively Yours - Review

Exclusively Yours (Kowalskis #1) by Shannon Stacey

Publication date: 20 December 2011 by Harlequin

ISBN 10/13:  0373776780 | 9780373776788
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Category: Adult Romance
Keywords: Romance, family
Format: Mass market paperback, eBook (e-ARC received from Netgalley)

From goodreads:

When Keri Daniels' editor finds out she has previous carnal knowledge of reclusive bestselling author Joe Kowalski, she gives Keri a choice: get an interview or get a new job.

Joe's never forgotten the first girl to break his heart, so he's intrigued to hear Keri's back in town--and looking for him. Despite his intense need for privacy, he'll grant Keri an interview if it means a chance to finish what they started in high school.

He proposes an outrageous plan--for every day she survives with his family on their annual camping and four-wheeling trip, Keri can ask one question. Keri agrees; she's worked too hard to walk away from her career.

But the chemistry between them is still as potent as the bug spray, Joe's sister is out to avenge his broken heart and Keri hasn't ridden an ATV since she was ten. Who knew a little blackmail, a whole lot of family and some sizzling romantic interludes could make Keri reconsider the old dream of Keri & Joe 2gether 4ever.

Thuy's review:

This is my first full length Shannon Stacey novel. I’d previously read her short shorty,  Mistletoe & Margaritas, in the Holiday Kisses Anthology which I really enjoyed. I was excited to see that Stacey was coming out with a new series. Exclusively Yours is the first in the Kowalski family series and is the story of Joe Kowalski and his high school sweetheart Keri Daniels. Once the golden couple of their high school, Keri breaks it off with Joe after graduation and moves to California to pursue a career in journalism. Fast forward twenty years later and Keri’s moving up in the ranks at a gossip-y but popular entertainment magazine and Joe is a world famous fiction author. When Keri’s crazy obsessed boss learns of her former connection with Joe, she sends Keri off to get an exclusive interview with him, on pain of losing her job.

Joe hasn’t seen Carrie since the day she left and is as surprised as everyone is when she shows up back in town looking for him. Joe doesn’t want to make this easy on Keri and convinces her to go on the annual Kowalski camping trip in exchange for the interview. Keri’s not really the outdoors type but will do anything to get the interview. But the attraction and chemistry between Joe and Keri hasn’t gone away after all these years and both Keri and Joe start wondering if they have a future together.

This book was hard to rate for me. On one hand, I really enjoy Stacey’s writing style. The book was well written, funny and had a large cast of interesting and quirky characters. The chemistry between Joe and Keri is hot and their banter is fun and filled with sexual tension. Unfortunately the biggest problem I had with the book was Keri’s character. For most of the book she came off a superficial and ambitious, only trying to get what she wants from Joe before going back to her life in California. She makes light of serious topics and keeps reminding Joe and everyone else that she won’t be sticking around for long. I don’t actually believe she is this callous character but we get very little insight into her feelings. Late in the book we get a little peek into what she’s thinking and why she may have left Joe originally but it goes by quickly and isn’t fully explored. I just didn’t get the feeling for most of the book that she was as invested in the relationship as Joe.

On the other hand, I really liked Joe. Even though he sets out to take her camping as a bit of fun and petty revenge, it soon becomes obvious that his feeling for Keri haven’t gone away since they’ve been separated. He was devastated after she left and it look him a long time to pick up the pieces. He’s caring, sweet, and has a dark sense of humor. I loved how patient he was with Keri when she was freaking out about the camp facilities and riding on an ATV. I wanted to give him a big hug and take him home with me.

Joe and Keri’s romance isn’t the only thing going on in the book though. Since the whole Kowalski gang is there, there’s bound to be some other family drama. Joe’s sister Terry and her husband, Evan, are going through a separation. I wasn’t a huge fan of the Terry/Evan storyline. Terry’s been holding a grudge against Keri since they stopped being friends in high school and then Keri broke Joe’s heart, putting her at the top of Terry’s sh*tlist. Terry is unpleasant to Keri every chance she gets and has a pretty bad attitude most of the time and I just didn’t find myself caring for her marriage all that much. On the flip side, the story with Joe’s brother Mike and his wife Lisa ended up being super sweet. Even though I think both of these stories were meant to show the family dynamic, I found them at times to be a little overly involved, taking time away from Joe and Keri’s developing relationship.

I ended up giving this one 3 stars because I really do think this series has potential. Stacey has an easy to read style and I enjoyed the banter between the two leads. By the end of the book I was really rooting for Joe and Keri to get their happily ever after. The end of this book has a little tidbit into the next book, featuring Joe’s younger brother Kevin, and I am looking forward to reading his story.

I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.

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Visit the author online at http://shannonstacey.com and follow her on Twitter @ShannonStacey 

Holiday Kisses: A Holiday Romance Collection - Review

Holiday Kisses: A Holiday Romance Collection
  by Alison Kent, Jaci Burton, HelenKay Dimon, Shannon Stacey

Publication date: 05 December 2011 by Carina Press
ISBN 10/13: B005Z18F60

Category: Adult Romance
Keywords: Romance, contemporary, realistic, holidays, Christmas
Format: eBook, Kindle (e-ARC received from Netgalley)

From goodreads:

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like...Love!

A man gives the gift of trust and receives a second chance at love in return. A woman helps to heal the wounded heart of a soldier. A couple finds that true love knows no distance. And a young widow learns that there can be two great loves in a lifetime. Love, romance and passion come together in this collection of four seasonal shorts.

Anthology includes:
This Time Next Year by Alison Kent
A Rare Gift by Jaci Burton
It's Not Christmas Without You by HelenKay Dimon
Mistletoe and Margaritas by Shannon Stacey

Stories also available for purchase separately.
103,000 words

Thuy's Review:

I am on a total holiday reading train right now. I've read lots of holiday themed stories (that I still need to write reviews for). I picked this one up on Netgalley a couple of weeks ago hoping for some fun holiday romance and that's exactly what I got. I had a lot of fun with this one and hope you enjoy my review.

This Time Next Year by Alison Kent – 4 stars

I really enjoyed this story story about two very different people who find each other during the holidays . Dillon’s a true hero, a doctor who spent a good deal of time healing people during the war in Afghan. Retired now, he continues taking care of the people on his mountain, which is how he finds Brenna after her car crashes in the snow. Dillon still has a lot of guilt over what happened and what he saw in the war and has closed himself off emotionally. Brenna’s funny and compassionate and, as the week goes on, she gets Dillon to open up about himself. With her help, Dillon begins to realize that he needs to stop blaming himself for the decisions he made and the people he couldn’t save. Only then can he get over the guilt and move on with his life. An endearing and touching romance that had me sighing at the ending, This Time Next Year was a great read.

A Rare Gift by Jaci Burton – 3 stars

I am usually a fan of Jaci Burton but this one didn’t have quite the impact that her stories usually have for me. I liked Calliope a lot. She’s strong and independent and I loved watching her interact with the children at the day care center. Wyatt’s extremely closed off emotionally which isn’t unusual for males in romance novels but, in this case, Calliope’s relationship as his ex’s sister has made him even more wary of pursuing a relationship with her. Wyatt was also extremely stubborn and I wanted to smack him in the head several times. I am sure Calliope felt the same way. When they finally to succumb to their attraction, it’s hot like only Jaci Burton can write it. Though ultimately satifying, this story just wasn’t as compelling as what I usually expect from Burton.

It’s Not Christmas Without You by HelenKay Dimon – 4 stars

This is probably my favorite story in the anthology. Funny, sweet and totally endearing, I fell in love with both Austin and Carrie in this holiday tale about two people finding each other again. Austin is adorable as the (ex)boyfriend with a plan to woo Carrie back to their hometown. I loved his flirty and unapolgetic attitude and he had my laughing with his attempts to win Carrie back. I loved that Carrie didn’t give in to Austin right away and that she fought for her dreams and her career. There are no easy answers but Carrie and Austin work to understand each other in order to have a future together. A story about hope, understanding, and a love worth fighting for, It’s Not Christmas Without You is a wonderful story for the holidays.

Mistletoe & Margaritas by Shannon Stacey – 4 stars

This is my first Shannon Stacey story but it definitely won’t be my last. Mistletoe & Margaritas is fantastic story about love and second chances. Justin’s been in love with Claire for years but kept silent because she fell in love and married his best friend Brandon. A widow of several years now, Claire still misses her husband but finds comfort in her friendship with Justin. Suddenly Claire finds her feelings for Justin veering towards a more romantic nature. I loved watching their relationship at the beginning of the story – the pizza dates and holiday traditions. It’s obvious that they both love each other but they have to deal with the guilt they have about Brandon and moving on. This emotional story about two best friends falling in love really pulled at my heartstrings and I was really rooting for Claire and Justin to find their happily ever after.

I was really pleased with this collection of holiday romances. Anthologies are a great way to find new authors and that was definitely the case with this one. If you’re in the mood for a few fun, sexy and heartwarming stories to read this holiday, Holiday Kisses would make a great gift to yourself or anyone else.

Total Rating

  

I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.

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Visit the Alison Kent, Jaci Burton, HelenKay Dimon and Shannon Stacey online.