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Each week Stephanie, Lillian and I will be featuring a SUMMER OF LOVE review on our blogs.  If you missed Stephanie’s post from yesterday, check it out at Once Upon a Chapter.  And look for Lillian’s review this Thursday at Mom With a Reading Problem.

Welcome to my first review for the SUMMER OF LOVE!  I actually already read a lot of contemporary romance, but there’s just something about summer reading that screams contemp for me.  I often gravitate towards certain categories of contemporary romance as well, so over the next 12 weeks I’m going to read and showcase books in different categories!  Since it’s June, the first category is:

Wedding

There doesn’t actually have to be a wedding in the book, but usually there’s something on the cover or in the blurb that screams wedding to me.  I guess because June is considered “Wedding Season”, it just gets me in the mood.  In the end neither of the books I read were too wedding-y, but sometimes you can’t tell until you dive in.  And they both still felt like great summer reads.

Recommendations:

• Getting Hitched in Dixie series by Cindi Madsen
• The Wedding Belles series by Lauren Layne
• Not Your Average Engagement by Cassie Mae (previously titled Doing It For Love)
• Bridesmates by Sydney Smyth

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Title: Ready to Run
Author: Lauren Layne
Series: I Do I Don't #1
Published by: Loveswept
Release Date: August 22, 2017
Format: Kindle Book
Pages: 215
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Source: NetGalley
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's 2021 Backlist Reader Challenge, Lenoreo's 2021 Netgalley and Edelweiss Challenge
Find it: Goodreads ✩ Amazon ✩ B&N ✩ Google ✩ Kobo ✩ iBooks
My rating:

Blurb:

The Bachelor meets The Runaway Bride in this addictive romance novel about a reality TV producer falling for her would-be star: a Montana heartthrob who wants nothing to do with the show.

Jordan Carpenter thinks she’s finally found the perfect candidate for Jilted, a new dating show about runaway grooms: firefighter Luke Elliott, a known player who’s left not one but three brides at the altar. The only problem? Luke refuses to answer Jordan’s emails or return her calls. Which is how she ends up on a flight to Montana to recruit him in person. It’s not Manhattan, but at least the locals in Lucky Hollow seem friendly . . . except for Luke, who’s more intense—and way hotter—than the slick womanizer Jordan expected.

Eager to put the past behind him, Luke has zero intention of following this gorgeous, fast-talking city girl back to New York. But before he can send her packing, Jordan’s everywhere: at his favorite bar, the county fair, even his exes’ book club. Annoyingly, everyone in Lucky Hollow seems to like her—and deep down, she’s starting to grow on him too. But the more he fights her constant pestering, the more Luke finds himself wishing that Jordan would kick off her high heels and make herself comfortable in his arms.

The I Do, I Don’t novels each have their own enchanting HEAs, and can be read in any order.

My Review:

4.5 stars — OK, I will admit I’m NOT much of a reality TV fan.  Usually they showcase the worst of humanity in my opinion, and trade ratings for abominable behavior.  BUT, I have watched the Bachelor and Bachelorette a time or two (before I got tired of the antics), so I was curious how this book was going to play out.  And I was worried for a few moments about how I would end up liking Jordan, but she won me over pretty quickly, and in general surprised me in good ways.

Which is not to say she was a perfect heroine, not by any means.  But she was solid.  She had a good head on her shoulders, she had some things in her past that had shaped who she was now, and honestly?  While I was already pretty sold on her, it really did help to get that deeper dive into her character.  I appreciated that she was sassy, tenacious, bold…and extremely likable.

Luke was a bit of a different animal.  Yet again, learning about his past definitely helped me get past some of his more boneheaded moments, but I was a bit disappointed with him in the climax.  And yet, he mostly turned it around for me.  He was human, and he had some great friends to smack him when he needed it.  Mostly, he was damaged, and that damage had made him wary.

While the conflict made my heart ache more than once, I did actually like them together when they were letting themselves be with one another.  They were fun, and sexy, and had great chemistry.

This book had an AMAZING secondary character cast, it was the perfect small town read.  From members of the town, to friends, to exes, to the hilarious Simon, to even Winston and Luna — they made a great book even better.

I was surprised by all the emotions I felt in this one.  I wasn’t expecting it, but it wasn’t out of place.

All in all, it delivered what I always love from Ms. Layne’s books, and I have no idea why it took me so long to get to it.

Title: Runaway Groom
Author: Lauren Layne
Series: I Do I Don't #2
Published by: Loveswept
Release Date: January 30, 2018
Format: Kindle Book
Pages: 217
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Source: NetGalley
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's 2021 Backlist Reader Challenge, Lenoreo's 2021 Netgalley and Edelweiss Challenge
Find it: Goodreads ✩ Amazon ✩ B&N ✩ Google ✩ Kobo ✩ iBooks
My rating:

Blurb:

For one charming playboy, getting cast on a Bachelor-esque reality TV show is the shock of a lifetime—until he finds love where he least expects it. And now the chase is on!

Gage Barrett’s reputation as a ladies’ man has been greatly exaggerated, but none of that matters after a drunken bet lands him on Jilted, a reality TV show that matches runaway grooms with wannabe brides. Now he’s stuck at a Hawaiian resort with nineteen women competing to drag him back to the altar—and one contestant who’s even more miserable than he is. Gage has no idea how feisty, independent Ellie Wright wound up in the cast, but it’s obvious she hates his guts. And if there’s one thing Gage likes, it’s a challenge. . . .

Ellie can’t believe she let her best friend talk her into exchanging her dignity for a glorified bikini contest. Still, she could use the exposure—her business is struggling—and she’ll probably be one of the first to get eliminated anyway. But Gage isn’t the shallow jerk Ellie anticipated—and he’s in no rush to send her home. As stolen kisses turn into secret trysts, she finds herself losing track of what’s real and what’s for the camera. With the wedding finale looming, this runaway groom is tempting Ellie to start believing in storybook endings.

My Review:

4.5 stars — Dudes, this book was made for me.  It was almost a perfect Lenore story, and I was just sucked right in and didn’t want to put it down.

Honestly, the ONLY thing preventing a full 5 stars was that I got annoyed with Ellie and the way she treated Gage sometimes.  I know it came from a place of self-protection, and I got it a few times in the beginning, but there was a point where I was disappointed in her.  She did the age old stereotypical female habit of wanting the guy to read her mind and give her what she wanted when she asked for the opposite.

Despite that, I actually really enjoyed Ellie.  She was snarky and sassy — some of her one-liners back to Gage just had me laughing out loud.  Even though she was cautious, she was hardworking.  And despite being in a reality show whose goal is drama, she wasn’t too hard on the other girls…I wouldn’t have been happy about that.

In a weird way, Gage was the star for me — even though we generally got less POV time from him.  But I honestly can’t believe how much Ms. Layne got me to feel for him.  I cried for his secret hopes and dreams…and how incompatible that could be from his career dreams.  He was cocky, yes, and arrogant…and some of that was a front, but some of it was just confidence.  He made me laugh and he made me feel.

I really enjoyed the two of them together.  From their hilarious banter, and secret meetings, to their tangible chemistry.  Despite them both having moments where they lashed out at one another, they really did fit well.  I wanted to see them find a way.

And even though I totally saw a lot of the ending coming, I was okay with that…especially because I was satisfied with how it all wrapped up.

Some crazy secondary characters, as expected, but some fun and delightful ones as well.

I don’t know.  The ratings don’t necessarily reflect how perfect a book is, but how much I enjoyed myself reading it.  And I mega enjoyed myself with this one.