I have read my share of age-gap romances and Bossy Silverfox by Ruby Wilde is probably the first one I have read where I really saw/felt the age gap. It isn’t just the vague notion of their actual age. There are also all the references in the story that gives us the reader, and Maggie, a hint of the 20-year gap.
Maggie is possibly around 25 and an editor for Wrought Iron Publishing. While many people her age are still unsure of what they want to do Maggie is already at her dream job.
Leo is possibly in his mid-40s, like 45. He is the boss at Wrought Iron and has secretly had a crush on Maggie from the moment she joined the company years ago. Instead of showing his affection like a grown-up, he acts like a child and bullies her, lol!
It takes a weekend conference out of town to get these two on the road to romance which does not develop as fast as I initially thought. There were a few obstacles that were not easy to overcome and in the end, they did get their happily ever after.
If there was one thing specifically that bothered me it was their love scenes. Very little happened in the way of foreplay and before even two paragraphs end he’s inside her. After they climax instead of spending time cuddling in the aftermath, Leo and Maggie immediately stand and get dressed then do other stuff like cook or read. I can only speak for myself but I think foreplay, cuddles, and aftercare are important.
Bossy Silverfox by Ruby Wilde is not a bad story, mind you. It just left me wanting more. Some parts were slow and at times it felt like the story jumped drastically or there was a story arc that could have been worked more. And, definitely, I think their sex life leaves much to be desired as it was like it was simply sex and nothing else.
You can find this book on Amazon for $0.99 but if you have Kindle Unlimited, it’s free. I would recommend using KU to read it first then if you like it, you can opt to buy it.
As romance novels go Claimed by My Brother’s Best Friend by Ella Sloane starts a little differently as our opening perspective is from the POV of Chris, the male lead character. I actually found it a little weird at first because I felt like I was reading from the middle of the story … until I read it as a flashback, then it made sense.
Reading on I was exasperated with Chris (short for Christopher) and Sav (short for Savannah) because it was obvious (to us) that they were totally into each other. Which begs the question … what is getting in the way of their being in a relationship? The obvious answer would be Sean, Sav’s brother and Chris’ best friend. While Sean has not expressed anything against their getting together, they just assumed it would be taboo.
But there is a bigger reason than that which stems from Chris’ past. Poor Sav!
This story is a slow-burn HEA so while their recovering friendship happens within the first few chapters, the romance takes a while to develop and titillating enough to get us hooked to keep reading. Promise, they get there! Another good reason to read Claimed by My Brother’s Best Friend by Ella Sloane … it is only $0.99 on Amazon! If you have Kindle Unlimited, it is free.
If you like a slow-burn HEA, go ahead and pick up a copy of this book. I had fun reading it and, yes, I am a victim of Chris’ smiles.
If watching reality TV shows is one of your guilty pleasures then you will likely enjoy reading Bachelor and the Geek by Sofia Aves. The main characters are contestants in a reality TV show called Geekily Yours where the men are “The Beauties” and the women are “The Geeks”.
Sirius Weston is a retired military man with a business providing security to celebrities, rich folk, and politicians. With a name like Sirius, you can expect a lot of puns that play with his name. Joining the show/competition was not his choice. His brother, Mitch, submitted his entry and then blackmailed coerced him into pushing through with it when he got accepted with the promise of a possible national security contract if he makes it to the end. He is older than the other men in the competition so is often the recipient of the dad/grandpa jokes.
Annie Pillingston is an astrophysicist (you can’t geekier than that!) and spends her days looking at photos of outer space. She is also the daughter of a senator and does not fit into the mold her family wants to put her in. She ended up in this competition because of her boss. She isn’t involved with him so to be honest I’m not sure how he could have forced her to join.
As I was reading, the mechanics of the show was not clear to me. Are they supposed to create a love connection? The show begins with the men being paired with a permanent geek partner and the challenges they work through are not even done together. Meaning the men have challenges and the women have challenges and when they occur, their opposite is just the audience. There are no challenges that require them to work together and it appears that any connection made is organic. At the end of the show, 5 couples will remain and 1 couple will be declared a winner where they win a cash prize and the man gives the girl a ring that implies romance.
But let’s skip past that and focus on Sirius and Annie. Their first meeting was not what they expected! Tiny spoiler, Annie faceplants on Sirius’ crotch while trying to hide from him. What follows is us following their budding attraction and romance that is rife with funny moments and lots of heat!
I almost forgot to tell you about Sirius’ roommate who puts some glitter on this whole thing. Leon is a yummy-looking engineer but also a drag queen. How the production didn’t know that is still a mystery.
Bachelor and the Geek by Sofia Aves is fun to read! You should really check it out. It is available on Amazon for $2.99 or free with Kindle Unlimited.
I’ve read quite a few books written by Nicole Casey and Five Country Singers’ Betrothed is not my favorite. First of all, the title gives away the ending. Second, the five men in the story are actually the five members of a country music band called Amos and the Collectibles and the one who is actually a (famous) country singer is the female lead character, Delilah. In the band, Amos is the lead vocalist and the others occasionally do backup so we can’t really call the band “country singers”.
A good story always has a conflict of some sort and in this story, the conflict is with one of the members of the band, Ryder, who is Delilah’s first love who broke her heart. In the present timeline, Ryder has a girlfriend and their love is unrequited. In the meantime, Delilah finds herself attracted to the other gorgeous men in the band … Amos (lead vocals), Carson (rhythm guitar), Jesse (bassist), and Wyatt (drummer). Thankfully for her, her feelings are returned.
We can more or less know how the story will develop at this point as Nicole Casey’s books are always HEA. You know what they say, though … the journey is more important than the destination. Delilah’s love journey could be more exciting.
As far as the love scenes are concerned, it didn’t seem to matter which man she was with they all had the same pattern that it does not seem like she is with 5 different at all. I would have assumed each one would have even a slightly different approach depending on personal preference. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not expecting acrobatics, but probably a little more creativity in how she could conceivably be with 3, 4, or 5 men at the same time.
The redeeming factor of this book is how it spent a lot of time showing us the creative process of collaborating on a song … music, lyrics, and laying down the tracks. I thought that was a good insight into how the recording industry works that does not focus on the glamour of the job.
Five Country Singers’ Betrothed by Nicole Casey is the 4th book of the Love by Numbers 2 series which you can find on Amazon for $2.99 or free with Kindle Unlimited.
Compared to other books I’ve read from these authors, Pacey and his Unicorn Professor by Colbie Dunbar and Lorelei M. Hart is more chill. The most hair-raising/stressful thing happened in the first chapter and only Pacey was in it. Their first meeting was admittedly high adrenalin but after that everything was more or less smooth sailing.
The title misled me at first because I had the impression that Pacey was a student and Sable was his professor. It turns out that Sable is a professor in a community college, yes, and is Pacey’s “his anything” by virtue of being his mate. A better title would probably have been Pacey and THE Unicorn Professor. I confess to being a little disappointed only because I thought there would be a little taboo thrown in there to spice things up.
I also felt a little incomplete by some characters being mentioned, like Stallone, for example, and nothing more is said about him except “family friend”. Up to the end Sable never introduced him to Pacey. We also never met Sable’s brother or found out his name. Bowell is a shifter midwife but aside from the initial checkup, he had no part in the birthing, so what was he “midwifing”?
According to https://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au: A midwife is a health professional trained to support and care for women during pregnancy, labor, and birth. They help you to stay healthy during pregnancy and, if no complications arise, to give birth with little intervention. Midwives also care for you and your baby in the first few weeks following the birth.
Therefore, should Bowell be even called a midwife? Why not just call him a healer? This also brings to mind Stedman, the bear shifter who, besides helping Pacey clean his house in anticipation of his return, is also a healer, or I guess an apothecary. So confusing.
That aside, it’s a HEA story so if light reading is what you are after then Pacey and his Unicorn Professor by Colbie Dunbar and Lorelei M. Hart is a good book to get into. It’s on Amazon for $3.99 or free with Kindle Unlimited. If you are into paperbacks, that is available, too!
I have read my share of age-gap romances and Bossy Silverfox by Ruby Wilde is probably the first one I have read where I really saw/felt the age gap. It isn’t just the vague notion of their actual age. There are also all the references in the story that gives us the reader, and Maggie, a hint of the 20-year gap.
As romance novels go Claimed by My Brother’s Best Friend by Ella Sloane starts a little differently as our opening perspective is from the POV of Chris, the male lead character. I actually found it a little weird at first because I felt like I was reading from the middle of the story … until I read it as a flashback, then it made sense.
If watching reality TV shows is one of your guilty pleasures then you will likely enjoy reading Bachelor and the Geek by Sofia Aves. The main characters are contestants in a reality TV show called Geekily Yours where the men are “The Beauties” and the women are “The Geeks”.
I’ve read quite a few books written by Nicole Casey and Five Country Singers’ Betrothed is not my favorite. First of all, the title gives away the ending. Second, the five men in the story are actually the five members of a country music band called Amos and the Collectibles and the one who is actually a (famous) country singer is the female lead character, Delilah. In the band, Amos is the lead vocalist and the others occasionally do backup so we can’t really call the band “country singers”.
Compared to other books I’ve read from these authors, Pacey and his Unicorn Professor by Colbie Dunbar and Lorelei M. Hart is more chill. The most hair-raising/stressful thing happened in the first chapter and only Pacey was in it. Their first meeting was admittedly high adrenalin but after that everything was more or less smooth sailing.
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