Love in a Pickle

de L.B. Dunbar (2021) Smartypants Romance

Résumé : When a mysterious silver fox becomes intrigued with this small town’s most disliked society woman, he finds she’s more than a little trouble and possibly a whole lot of heart.

Scotia Simmons. The name says it all—ornery, judgmental, mean—but underneath a woman like that is typically a shattered heart. Locked within her secrets, this fried pickle princess has used her unkindness as a shield of protection against the loneliness. However, menopause and a one-night stand can change a woman’s perspective on things. Who knew it would take a man the likes of him to push her strong will to its limits?

Chester Chesterfield. The name has more than one meaning—generous, quiet, private—but within one man is a multitude of personas. The gruff oil mogul has a wounded heart (and a big secret) that holds him hostage from the man he’s meant to be. His past defined him, or so he thought. He never imagined it’d take a woman like her to push him over his carefully constructed edges and show him love has no boundaries.

When you’re in a pickle, it’s time to relish what—or rather who—stands before you and accept that even over forty, a second chance at love can be a big dill (every pun intended).

Surement la romance qui m'a le plus laissée perplexe. Je l'ai pas détesté, mais je l'ai pas aimé non plus. Je l'ai lu en étant plus détachée qu'avec d'autres, je pense que c'était plus en raison du style de l'auteur et des personnalités des héros auxquels je n'ai pas vraiment accroché.

J'ai trouvé leur histoire un poil compliquée, et plusieurs fois quand l'un fait un pas vers l'autre, l'autre fait 2 pas dans le sens opposé. Je me suis demandée si vraiment ils allaient finir ensemble parce que c'était pas gagné...

Scotia est une langue de vipère, elle n'est pas forcément la personnalité la plus aimé de Green Valley, elle commence à renouer du lien avec ses soeurs mais ce n'est pas chose facile. Clairement, elle s'est ensevelie elle-même dans une masse de "Qu'en dira-t-on ?", une façon de se comporter en société et un système de défense au cas où quelqu'un oserait lui dire quelque chose, c'est elle qui frappe la première... Les seuls moments où elle m'a touché c'est son lien avec les enfants du foyer de Chester et surtout avec le petit Malik.

Chester, tient, personnage presque schizophrène avec 3 identités en 1... Qu'on ne soit pas pareil au boulot et à la maison d'accord, mais avoir 3 versions de soi est assez perturbant, même Scotia dit à un moment ne pas savoir à qui elle a à faire : Chester, Chet ou Big Popy... D'autant que le Chester homme d'affaire, on sait pas vraiment ce qu'il fait comme boulot xD (nan mais c'est vrai).

Donc autant la romance ne m'a fait ni chaud ni froid, autant j'ai plus apprécié l'intrigue autour de Malik, ce petit garçon trouvé que personne ne cherche. Ce bouquin est extrêmement bien documenté sur le système des familles d'accueil aux USA, c'est pour moi le point le plus intéressant du livre.

Surely the romance that left me the most perplexed. I didn't hate it, but I didn't like it either. I was more detached than others books I read, I think it was more because of the author' style and who the characters were and I didn't really get hooked on.

I found their story a bit complicated, when one takes one step towards the other, the other takes two steps in the opposite direction. I wondered if they were really going to end up together because it was not an match made in heaven...

Scotia is a vicious gossip, she is not necessarily the most beloved woman of Green Valley, she is starting to reconnect with her sisters but it's not easy. Clearly, she has buried herself in a mass of "What will they say ?", a way of behaving in society and a defense wall and in case someone dares say something to her, it's her who strikes first... The only moments when I liked here was because her bond with the children of Chester's foster home and especially with little Malik.

Chester, by the way, an almost schizophrenic character with 3 identities in 1... If you are not the same at work and at home it's okay, but having 3 versions of yourself is quite disturbing, even Scotia said at one point that she doesn't know who she's dealing with : Chester, Chet or Big Popy... Especially since Chester is a rich businessman, we don't really know what he does for a living xD (but it's true, I 've no idea).

So as much as the romance leaves me completely indifferent, I enjoyed the intrigue around Malik, this little boy is found and no one is looking for him. This book is extremely well documented on the foster care system in the USA, it's for me the most interesting point of the book.

 

Find L.B. Dunbar online
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2kkGqTy
Twitter: http://bit.ly/2lzEmHo
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2kvIEiS
Instagram: http://bit.ly/2k1Rk0d
Website: https://www.lbdunbar.com/

Connect with Smartypants Romance
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2kvDnb4
Twitter: http://bit.ly/2lzyduO
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2lGdIMQ
Instagram: http://bit.ly/2kwKsYK
Website: https://smartypantsromance.com/
Newsletter: https://smartypantsromance.com/newsletter/

Hopelessly Devoted

par Piper Sheldon (2021) SmartyPants Romance

Résumé : Skip has one goal: retrieve his romantically reckless best friend from Green Valley, Tennessee and get back to their normal life. Then Skip meets Jack. The handsome and caring stranger is just another distraction from his careful plans.

Jack has dealt with more than his fair share of troubled men and is done with letting his guard down. When he meets walking red flag, Skip, he knows he should run the opposite direction and ignore their chaotic attraction.

Only, fate seems to have other plans when they are stuck on a camping trip together. Jack and Skip are convinced they can put their attraction aside and focus on helping their friends.
One quick trip, one shared tent, what could possibly go wrong?


Pourquoi les romances les plus hot et sexy sont des novella qui ne font qu'une centaines de pages xD ? Pourquoi ???

Skip et Jack, on les croise dans les tomes précédents chacun de leur côté (le 1er dans le tome 3 juste avant et le 2e dans le tome 1). Alors que Sanders court après Roxie (The One That I Want), Skip le suit de mauvaise grâce, sûr qu'il devra réparer les pots cassés après le passage de cette tornade... Un soir dans un bar gay, il va faire une crise d'angoisse ; et Jack qui l'avait repéré de loin, va l'aider à passer ce mauvais moment. Puis les étincelles fusent, et ça se fini en bisous torrides dans dans la ruelle sombre.

Quelques jours plus tard, ils se retrouvent tous accompagnateurs d'un groupe d'adolescent pour une virée camping. Entre faire leur boulot et lutter contre leur attraction mutuelle, ils ne s'en sortent plus xD...

Piper Sheldon a un don pour rendre des scènes d'une sexitude pas possible, alors qu'il se passe pas grande chose xD. Le MM n'est pas forcément le genre vers lequel je vais aller, mais quand c'est aussi bien écrit, ça fait encore plus swooner que d'autres romances FM...

Seul regret de ne pas avoir eu un livre à part entière plutôt qu'une novella, mais quand on a un nouveau Piper Sheldon, on le prend ^^

Why are the hottest and sexiest romances, novellas that are only a hundred pages long xD ? Why ???

We've meet Skip and Jack in the previous books, each on their own (the 1st in Book 3 just before and the 2nd in Book 1). As Sanders runs after Roxie (The One That I Want), Skip reluctantly follows him, sure that he will have to mend the damage after the passage of the tornado... One evening in a gay bar, he is having an anxiety attack ; and Jack who had spotted him from afar, help him through this bad time. Then the sparks fly, and it ends up in hot kisses in a dark alley.

A few days later, they find themselves accompanying a group of teenagers for a camping trip. Between doing their job and fighting against their mutual attraction, they don't see the end of it...

Piper Sheldon has a knack for making very sexy scenes, when nothing much is going on xD. MM is not necessarily the genre I'm reading, but when it's this well written, it's even more swooning than other FM romances...

My only regret is not having had a full-fledged book rather than a novella, but when you have a new Piper Sheldon, you take it ^^

 

Find Piper Sheldon online
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2lAvr8A
Twitter: http://bit.ly/2kxkioK
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2kx2RVn
Instagram: http://bit.ly/2lxxV7H
Website: http://bit.ly/2kitH3H

Connect with Smartypants Romance
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2kvDnb4
Twitter: http://bit.ly/2lzyduO
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2lGdIMQ
Instagram: http://bit.ly/2kwKsYK
Website: https://smartypantsromance.com/
Newsletter: https://smartypantsromance.com/newsletter/

Key Change

de Heidi Hutchinson (2021) Smartypants Romance

Résumé : Before Hannah was a 9-5 working, dinner making, homebody, she was Ashton James: a paparazzi-stalked pop star with more enemies than friends. These days she has one priority: keeping her sister safe and away from the public eye. Hannah was doing a great job, until the pesky little brother of an ex-fling discovers where she is, and wants her help launching his career.

Now she has to trust Johnny—whom she betrayed in more ways than one—to protect her whereabouts. Johnny may have an infuriating moral compass and the timing of a storybook hero, but is he immune to the temptation of revenge?

Johnny’s focus has always been his music business, and a bad influence like Hannah is the last thing he needs at work, or around his brother. But some things are too powerful to be stopped. For someone like Hannah, second chances—in life and in true love—don’t exist. She didn’t think so, at least.

Johnny is about to prove her wrong, and being wrong has never felt so right.


Ici nous avons une romance de deuxième chance avec deux héros qui ont chacun touché le fond avant de reconquérir leur vie pour en faire quelques chose de bien. Enfin ça c'est surtout du côté d'Hanna.

Hannah a été une rockstar surdouée de la musique, mais un scandale filmé a stoppé net sa carrière. 2 ans plus tard, Hannah a boulot un dans un SAV client par téléphone, c'est pas terrible mais ça l'aide à subvenir au besoin de sa jeune soeur dont elle a la garde. Sa sécurité passe avant tout, alors quand un jeune ado chante une de ses chansons dans le métro, la première réaction d'Hannah est de trouver qui il est et de lui proposer un pot-de-vin pour son silence. Grâce à son service de sécurité (Quinn et Alex huhuhu), elle arrive à savoir qui il est se pointe chez lui.

Mais là, quand la porte s'ouvre, c'est Johnny le grand-frère qui l'accueil. Et Johnny, lui aussi la connait... et Hannah ne semble pas se rappeler de lui. Il y a quelques années, il était musicien sur son premier album, ils ont eu une aventure, des promesses non tenues, il s'est fait remercier... Hannah ne se rappelle pas, car à cette époque elle était à moitié alcoolisée...

Bref, Johnny n'accepte pas le pot-de-vin, et par un concours de circonstance, va demander à Hannah de travailler avec lui dans son studio d'enregistrement sur l'album du nouveau rappeur du moment. Hannah va reprendre goût à la création musicale, Johnny va retomber amoureux. Ces deux là n'ont plus rien à se prouver, ils savent les erreurs qu'ils ont commis et se donnent une 2e chance parce que la 1ère s'est finie avant même de commencer.

Mention spéciale aux petits frère et soeur de nos héros qui se mêlent de la vie de leur aîné.e respectif ^^

Je pense que ça doit être hyper dur d'écrire sur la musique et fait imaginer au lecteur le talent des personnages. Autant, j'applaudis Heidi Hutchinson pour avoir très bien décrite son héroïne avec la musique dans son ADN, autant j'ai pas trouvé très crédible le fait qu'Hannah qui est un genre de Beyoncé/Lady Gaga, puisse passer à l'anonymat le plus complet (car même ses collègues de boulot de la reconnaissent pas...) mais bon c'est un détail xD

Here we have a second chance romance with two heroes who hit rock bottom before reclaiming their lives to do something good. Well, that's mostly the story of Hanna.

Hannah was a gifted music rockstar, but a filmed scandal brought her career to a halt. 2 years later, Hannah has a job in a customer after-sales service by telephone, it's not terrible but it helps her provide for her young sister, whom she has care for. Her safety comes first, so when a young teenager sings one of her songs in the subway, Hannah's first reaction is to find who he is and offer him a bribe for his silence. Thanks to her security team (Quinn and Alex huhuhu), she manages to find out who he is and shows up at his house.

But there, it is Johnny the big brother who welcomes her. Johnny knows her... and Hannah doesn't seem to remember him. A few years ago, he was a musician on her first album, they had an affair, some broken promises, he was fired... Hannah does not remember, because at that time she was half drunk most of the time...

In short, Johnny doesn't accept the bribe, and through a chain of events, will ask Hannah to work with him in his recording studio on the album of the new rapper of the moment. Hannah will regain a taste for musical creation, Johnny will fall in love again. These two have nothing more to prove to each other, they know the mistakes they made and give themselves a second chance because the first one ended before it could even start.

Special mention to the little brother and sister of our heroes who are involved in the life of their respective eldest ^^

I think it must be super hard to write about music and make the reader imagine the talent of the characters. As much, I applaud Heidi Hutchinson for having described her heroine very well with music in her DNA, but I did not find very credible the fact that Hannah who is like a Beyoncé/Lady Gaga, can go to being a nobody (because even her colleagues at work do not recognize her...) but hey it's a detail xD

 

Find Heidi online
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/heidirhutchinson
Website : https://www.heidih.net/
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/heidi_hutchinson/

Connect with Smartypants Romance
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2kvDnb4
Twitter: http://bit.ly/2lzyduO
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2lGdIMQ
Instagram: http://bit.ly/2kwKsYK
Website: https://smartypantsromance.com/
Newsletter: https://smartypantsromance.com/newsletter/