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My Review:Title: The Kissing Contract
Author: Amy Andrews
Published by: Entangled: Amara
Release Date: July 15, 2019
Format: Kindle Book
Pages: 342
Genres: Romance, Contemporary
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's COYER Quarantine Edition
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My rating:
Blurb:Marshall Dyson wants one thing and one thing only: to raze his grandfather’s island to the ground. Everything is ready to go––except for the freakin’ bunnies! Hundreds of the furry critters hopping about and multiplying before his eyes. And then there’s the American Bunny League, along with one distractingly beautiful veterinarian, taking him to court to save them...
Dr. Augusta “Gus” North can’t believe the grumpy–and annoyingly hot–builder she’s facing in court cares more about demo-ing some cabin than the lives of 200 bunnies. But when the judge orders Marshall to stay on the island and help her rehome the rabbits – the entire month – she knows they’re going to need to lay some ground rules.
Like, for example, absolutely no kissing. Might as well go ahead and get that in writing. Sure it’s on a napkin, but that still counts.
How hard could it be to keep their hands off each other amidst all the fighting? Surprisingly, harder than wrangling 200 bunnies...
4 stars — There were parts of this book that were like 5+ stars incredible. So much great humour at times, and in general I found Marshall to be super swoony. Plus, bunnies. Unfortunately, Gus frustrated me on *many* occasions, lowering my final rating.
I know it was probably a bad idea to read a book so heavily featuring rabbits, but I just couldn’t help myself. And in general it felt like the author got a lot right, and actually depicted them as rabbits, instead of like cats and dogs (which I have seen before). I mean, they were picked up a lot more than many like to be, but I’ll give some grace. In general they were just ridiculously adorable, and as expected just made me long for another bunny of my own….
Marshall was actually pretty hilarious — his humour surprised me on many occasions, and I kind of loved how laid back he was, but also how in touch with wanting to grow and learn. That’s hella sexy. The funny thing is my very first impression of him in the courtroom was meh, but he just got better and better with time. I loved the way he teased Gus, I loved the way he really got into the bunny rescue and made connections with some of the bunnyguard. And obviously I loved that he connected with Thumper too… I appreciated that there was a lot going on inside him, and that his past had shaped him dramatically. And I really loved that when taken to task about his decisions in the past, he took the time and put in the effort to try to figure himself out.
Gus, on the other hand, was a mixed bag for me. I loved how passionate and dedicated she was about her job, and the bits of her personality we got to see through there. It was the way she dealt with her past heartbreak and with Marshall that left me wanting. For all that she talked about being haughty, she truly was a prissy heroine. I never quite connected with her heartbreak over Rick, it’s like I didn’t see it but was merely told it. As such, I truly didn’t understand her reactions to her attraction to Marshall. I just didn’t get her. I hated the way she pushed him away, and tried to minimize things. I hated the way she put so much of it on Marshall (which, he had his problems too), instead of owning up to her own problems. I hate that somehow she got over her heartbreak, but it just sort of happened without the reader seeing it — it was super unsatisfying to not get to see her learn and grow. *sigh*
The two together had pretty good chemistry, when Gus could get out of her own way. I mostly enjoyed their comradery though. *shrugs*
I loved seeing Marshall’s relationship with his brother Jeremy, and how close they were. I also really enjoyed some of the characters in the bunnyguard, particularly Ray.
All in all, Marshall and the bunnies made this book. It easily could have been a book I gushed over if Gus had gotten the same depth and leeway that Marshall did. Ah well, I will still look back at my highlights and laugh!
Why did Gus have to do this to you??? Ugh.