A gorgeous former Marine with a tortured soul.
The beautiful, compassionate therapist living next door.
A meddlesome grandma determined to get them together.
SQUEEEEEE!!!! OH MY SWOON!!!! I absolutely love this book!
I’m gonna be honest with you guys, I feel like in the last little while I’ve been in a bit of a book funk — I have many awesome books on my TBR list but I was having trouble finding that right book to fit my mood. Y’know what I mean? My mood strongly dictates what kinds of books I enjoy in the moment so sometimes I want something swoony, sometimes mushy, sometimes I want a book that’ll tear my heart out, sometimes I want something angsty, but sometimes it’s just hard to tell what’s the right fit so I end up playing what I like to call “Reader Roulette” where I just go through my eReader and read the first bit of all the books I’ve bought recently to see what “sticks” to my mood and I probably went through about 10 books today before I started this one and I totally connected with it!
I’ve read and enjoyed several books by Melanie Harlow over the years so it was no surprise to me that this turned out to be another winner!
“I was expecting a proposal on my birthday, and I got dumped instead.
How could I have been so clueless?
Grams knew exactly how to distract me.
The gorgeous former Marine next door who’s been helping her with yard work clearly needs a little therapy. Who better to call than her newly single therapist granddaughter?
She even fakes dementia to get me to visit, and now that I’m here she’s doing everything in her power to throw us together.
Not that I’m complaining. Ryan is the sexiest man I’ve ever met–I mean the full package, from the chiseled jaw to the massive shoulders to the rippling abs. (And yes, his package is full, and he knows exactly how to deliver it.) He makes me want to get out of my head and follow my heart. He makes me want to take chances I never thought I’d take.
He also makes me want to take my clothes off. A lot.
But he’s moody and challenging–one minute he’s an open book, and the next he’s completely closed off. He holds me like he’ll never let go, but insists he wants to be alone.
Some wounds are so deep, only love can heal them.
How can I convince him to let me try?”
Admittedly though, I’ve always had a soft spot for damaged heroes and this hero was absolutely the kind I wanted to read about — strong, silent, brooding, and emotionally wounded. Call me crazy, but that’s just the kind of hero I love seeing a heroine come along and heal!! Yes, I’ve read similar storylines before, but they get me every time when they’re well done and I just get lost completely in the story and without a doubt, this book stole my heart!
As for being happy myself, I’d given up on that idea years ago. When I closed my eyes at night, all I craved was the dark.
But she made me want to dream again.
Buuuuuut the true star of this book was the heroine’s grandma. OH MY GOSH she MADE this book!!! I actually really loved that there were 3 POVs in this book — the heroine, the hero, and dear old match-making grams!!
I can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner.
If ever I had a magic spell for making a man fall in love, it was baked into my apple crumble pie.
No less than three of my friends had made it for their fellows who were dragging their feet, and the next thing you know, they were down on one knee. We used to call it Cupid Pie! I felt confident that if anything could get Mr. Woods to open up to Stella, that was it. So we were going to make him one, and she was going to bring it to him.
But I wasn’t going to tell her that.
I’d tell her I always baked two pies, and then I’d tell her I didn’t have any room in my freezer for the second one, so why didn’t she just take it next door?
Clever, wasn’t I?
LOL you guys that woman was brilliantly hilarious. She was sharp as a tack but so innocently played the ‘little old lady’ role while expertly creating scenario after scenario that threw the hero and heroine together. I seriously highlighted every scene she was in!!
“So, Grams, what is the secret ingredient in the meatloaf?” Emme asked. “It was delicious.”
Her eyes sparked. “Oh, you silly girl. I put the same secret ingredient in everything I make.”
“Vodka?” I guessed.
“Love, of course,” she said, touching her heart. Then she paused. “But there is whiskey in the glaze. Everything’s better with booze in it.”
…
“Are you still ‘just friends’?” Emme demanded.
“No, actually. We’ve decided we’re more than just friends.”
“I knew it,” Grams said, looking pleased with herself. “Mark my words, girls, that meatloaf can work wonders.”
Another thing I loved about this book was there was NO stupid! Mistakes were made to be sure, and with a hero as tortured and damaged as this one there were bound to be rough patches, but everything that happened was understandable and always made me sympathetic to them so it really created just a wonderful reading vibe.
Grams clucked her tongue. “I knew men like that. They came home after the war with such tortured souls. So heartbreaking.”
“It is,” I went on, feeling protective of him…
“But it’s not hopeless, Stella. He just needs someone who can make him feel loved unconditionally.”
If you’re looking for a SEXY, SWOON-FILLED, ADDICTIVE new book to read, definitely try this!!!
Rating: 4.5 STARS!! Contemporary Adult Romance. Can standalone.
