Bayou Sweetheart by Lexi Blake

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Title: Bayou Sweetheart
Author: Lexi Blake
Series: Butterfly Bayou #5
Published by: Berkley
Release Date: July 26, 2022
Format: eARC
Pages: 330
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Source: NetGalley
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's 2022 COYER Summer, Lenoreo's 2022 Netgalley and Edelweiss Challenge
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My rating:

Blurb:

Sparks fly in Louisiana's Butterfly Bayou when a Hollywood starlet falls for a local deputy in a small-town contemporary romance from New York Times bestselling author Lexi Blake.

After leaving the military, Major Blanchard moved to Papillon, Louisiana, to be with his aging father, where he's taken a deputy position with the sheriff’s department. Now that he’s settling into life on the bayou, he’s trying out the dating scene. Every single woman in town seems to be pining after the handsome newcomer. But so far, nothing’s worked out, and he’s had some spectacularly bad dates. Major’s getting ready to give up on love when a new lady roars into town to film a movie and turns his world upside down.

Actress Brynn Pearson is trying to make a successful transition from child star to leading lady. Now that she’s landed her first lead in a major film, nothing can stop her. She's committed to focusing solely on her work, so romance is the last thing she needs—too bad she can’t get her mind off the dreamy deputy she keeps running into. He’s gorgeous, and something about him makes her feel safe. As Brynn’s feelings for Major deepen, she starts to wonder if maybe there’s more to life than her career.

When a family crisis throws Major’s life into a tailspin, he turns to Brynn for support, and hopes their budding relationship will shine brighter than Hollywood lights.

My Review:

I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.

4.5 stars — Man, I love this series.  I love that I can always count on Ms. Blake to give me all the eccentric townspeople, all the truly good and caring friends, and new people to learn to love.  As with any series, I always end up having my favourites, but no matter what I’m thoroughly entertained and full of squees.

Major and Brynn had the most hilarious meet cute.  Not only did I fall in love with them, but who could resist the wildly different Duke and Dolly?

Brynn was so sweet and kind and could be really sunny.  It was her career and anything Hollywood that dimmed that sunshine.  Unfortunately, that included some of her family.  Wow, that was a dysfunctional bunch.  And because of the way she grew up, and her strange family dynamic, Brynn could be a bit of a doormat as well.  The thing is, I actually genuinely got where it stemmed from.  I wanted better for her, it was frustrating, but it made sense for me.  And her growth was realistic and so satisfying as a result.

Major was somewhat dichotomous himself.  He could be so sweet, but he was also the grumpy in this grumpy/sunshine story.  There were times he was so thoughtful, but he was also filled with a lot of fear and anxiety about being alone.  He made some seriously fucked up decisions as a consequence, both with his Dad, and with Brynn.

In a twist, I really appreciated how Major fucked up in the end.  1) It was realistic.  Sometimes people make huge mistakes, and it takes them a long time to learn and grow.  2) It shows just how powerful fear and anxiety can be.  3) It gave us the opportunity to see how much Brynn had grown throughout the book, and we got to root for her as she put her foot down and didn’t accept less than she deserved.  I know that seems like a conundrum, because I’m cheering Brynn growing but Major not growing…but Major was actually really close…this was like his last fuck up in a way.  I don’t know, it worked for his character.

They were definitely not perfect characters, and they weren’t even a perfect couple.  BUT they were a couple you rooted for, because the good between them was GOOD.  I loved seeing them connect, seeing them care about one another.  And the steamy scenes were both sweet and steamy — my favourite kind.

As always, the town was hilarious.  I love these characters, and can’t wait to read more.

Major’s situation with his Dad was so complicated, and I appreciated the glimpse into that situation.  His Dad was also a sweetheart teddy bear.

Brynn’s family was…well, as I said, complicated.  I have mixed feelings about them, but in the end I could see them being early versions of the Rose family from Schitt’s Creek — definitely potential for good.

So yeah.  Another hit.  Someday I’ll go back and reread from the beginning, but for now I’m impatiently waiting for the next book to find out if Brian’s life of crime continues.  😛