Review: Holiday in the Hamptons

Holiday in the Hamptons
Holiday in the Hamptons
Author: Sarah Morgan
Genre: Romance
Publisher: Harlequin
Expected Release Date: August 29 2017
Rating: ★★★★☆

Synopsis: Professional dog-walker Felicity Knight loves everything about New York...until her ex-husband starts working at her local vet clinic. She hasn't seen Seth Carlyle in ten years, but one glimpse of him--too gorgeous, and still too good for her--and Fliss's heart hurts like their whirlwind marriage ended yesterday. So when her grandmother in the Hamptons needs help for the summer, it seems the ideal way to escape her past.

Their relationship might have lasted only a few scorching months, but vet Seth knows Fliss--if she's run away to the Hamptons, it's because she still feels their connection and it terrifies her. He let her go once before, when he didn't know any better, but not this summer! With the help of his adorable dog, Lulu, and a sprinkling of beachside magic, Seth is determined to make Fliss see that he's never stopped loving her...


I haven't had the chance to read the other books in Sarah Morgan's From Manhattan with Love series, but right away, this book intrigued me. Reunited couple? Check. Dogs playing semi-important roles in the plot? Check. Felicity Knight escapes to the Hamptons when she spots her ex-husband in her local Manhattan vet clinic. Little does she know that Seth's vet practice is actually based in the very community she's escaping to, and he's determined to win her back after ten years apart.

I thought that this was the cutest summer beach read. It certainly had it's fair share of emotional baggage - especially on the heroine's part. To be quite honest, it seemed like a tad too much at times -- daddy issues, getting married and divorced at 18, along with a few other surprises - but I appreciated the fact that Morgan had all of Fliss's issues be interconnected. It at least felt like these issues were logical occurrences after a previous event. I also thought that the emotional baggage Fliss carried was an important ingredient to eventually making her relationship with Seth work. With as much drama as Fliss was bringing, it was a relief to know that Seth was the steady, calm rock throughout. I love how open and honest he was with Fliss, but also how clear and steadfast he was when telling her that their relationship wasn't going to work unless she could give back in kind.

As cute and fluffy as this was, one big drawback for me was the confusing timeline. At one point, Fliss's narration laments that she feels like the entire summer flew by and that she stayed in the Hamptons for much longer than she planned, and then the next section she's talking about plans for the fourth of July. Huh? Girl, that's the sign that summer is just beginning!

Overall, I really enjoyed Holiday in the Hamptons. It was cute, but not too cutesy, and showed emotional character growth of the heroine and a logical reunion of exes. I look forward to more in this series, and I can't wait to catch up on the others already out.

This title was provided by Harlequin and Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Beauty Like the Night by Joanna Bourne

Spymaster series by Joanna BourneBeauty Like the Night
Author: Joanna Bourne
Publisher: Berkley
Genre: Historical Romance
Publication Date: August 1, 2017
Rating: ★★★☆☆

Synopsis: Sèverine de Cabrillac, orphan of the French revolution and sometime British intelligence agent, has tried to leave spying behind her. Now she devotes herself to investigating crimes in London and finding justice for the wrongly accused.
 Raoul Deverney, an enigmatic half-Spaniard with enough secrets to earn even a spy's respect, is at her door demanding help. She's the only one who can find the killer of his long-estranged wife and rescue her missing fourteen-year-old daughter. Sèverine reluctantly agrees to aid him, even though she knows the growing attraction between them makes it more than unwise. Their desperate search for the girl ​unleashes treason and murder. . . and offers a last chance for two strong, wounded people to find love.

When I first read Joanna' Bourne's The Spymaster's Lady many years ago, I had no idea that lumbering giant William Doyle would feature so prominently in the series to such a degree that we've now been able to meet a large portion of his children. And yet here we are, in Beauty Like the Night, meeting four of his children, with his eldest Severine serving as the novel's heroine. As with many of Bourne's novels, this book moves fast and serves up her distinct writing style. 

Review: Devil's Own by Megan Crane

Devil's Own by Megan March
Title: Devil's Own
Author: Megan Crane:
Expected Publication Date: May 16, 2017.
Publisher: Loveswept
Rating: ★★★☆☆

Summary:
Lara Ashburn hates bikers. She watched a motorcycle club destroy her hometown, bringing her brother down with it. That’s a life she put far in her rearview. So the last person she wants to see walking into her classroom is the top enforcer of the Devil’s Keepers. Big, mean, and gorgeous, all tattoos and leather, Chaser is everything Lara should avoid. Yet the insane chemistry sparking between them tempts her to break all the rules. Ryan “Chaser” Frey has his hands full with a teen daughter in need of tough love, and he doesn’t have time for prissy teachers who want to tell him how to raise his kid. But Chaser never could resist a chick who gives as good as she gets. Lara is sexy as hell, and she’s not afraid of him. Plus, her links to a California club could provide the Devils with leverage against their enemies. But that would mean mixing business with pleasure—and risking the one woman Chaser can’t afford to lose.