Quick Reads and Quick Reviews, 24

  

• Sweet Revenge, River Laurent
• The Alpha's Vow: Iriador Chronicles Book 1, Colbie Dunbar
• Falling into Love: Family Found Book 1, Kris T. Bethke and Nell Iris

There's no good reason to cheat and when Dawn's no-good ex blames it on her body shape and lack of bedroom prowess she's good and hurt.  And then she's pissed.  But the best revenge is being happy with yourself so Dawn makes the remarkably adult choice to go back to her real self, the one that got lost trying to hold onto a man who never truly appreciated her.  On the way there she meets Ace, someone who seems genuinely interested in all that she is...well, physically at least at first.  One night of indulgence paves the way to her own happily-ever-after but not until she comes to terms with accepting herself before she can accept what Ace seems to be offering.

We get one chapter from Ace's POV and I'll be honest, it's shallow and just not enough.  I like Ace, actually, but the first impression we get of him is an unsatisfied man who's tired of temporary but quickly gets distracted by luscious curves and then his inner monologue devolves into a lot of superficial dirty thoughts.  There's nothing wrong with dirty thoughts and being physically attracted to someone, but when it becomes the only thing on your mind, we're left to wonder if there's anything of substance to hold the interest.  Thankfully that changes and he shows his heart.  We get it all through Dawn's POV, which is mostly fine because it's about her and her transformation and moment of revenge, but I would have liked something a bit more balanced.  Aside from that, it was equally hot and sweet for a short story about a curvy girl and her vanilla bean-flavored revenge.  3.5 stars.

An alpha determined to avoid claiming an omega for himself, an omega determined to steer clear of any and all alphas, and an adorable piglet determined to steal the show and bring the two men together...this has all the makings of something quite interesting.  The reality, however, was disappointing to say the least.  I have so many questions that go unanswered.  What vow?  Why did Seb feel so inadequate?  And why the eff will no one let Seb speak?!  The way Seb reacted the morning after was pretty bad, definitely, but Max's reaction and subsequent actions were over the top, forced, and so childish I couldn't stand it.  Max was impulsive, cowardly, vindictive, and juvenile.  I also felt like I was missing something from the very start.  Waking up in jail with a hangover would feel like that since we start with Seb's POV, but it's like the haze never lifts.  Then there's all that confusing drama with Max's father, the vague references to Seb's family, and being run off Seb's land.

This is my first book by this author and I have a feeling that further stories from this series will redeem the first book as they fill in the details, expand on those details, and introduce a solid cast...but as it stands right now, I'm not loving it.  I feel like I do want to read more because I think I could love these characters, I just feel so distant from them in addition to the character flaws that are so very glaring.  Overall, I'm not a fan.  But I could definitely be convinced to finish the series.  2 stars.

An accident-prone ginger and a radiology tech...seems like a match made in medical-visit heaven, right?  Well, actually, yeah, you're right.  But not like you'd first think.  Avery is a sweet and earnest man who finds himself on a hike with the hottie he's been subtly eyeing while x-raying.  Liam is just as interested and while their first non-medical office interaction turns into another of Liam's "incidents", it sparks a small flame for both of them.  Though I will say that Liam is probably in the wrong profession and should stick to running the office.

They are both direct and honest right from the start.  I appreciated Liam's honesty with himself and Avery about his feelings and intentions.  There was no angst, just a little hesitation on Avery's part.  Avery's lack of swearing is cute at first but becomes cheesy in its repetitiveness -- mostly because of the multiple times he says "holy [insert pasta name here]".  If it were a little more creative it would seem far less gimmicky.  The whole overall feeling was giddy, sweet, and a bit adolescent in its emotional expression.  Neither man felt as old as they were described as being.  Steam-wise, however, it was absolutely not lacking.  The table parts were my favorites.  Even better than the gooey-sweet confessions.  There was also just enough background information and interactions with the side cast to make me incredibly interested in their own stories.  Hints were dropped effectively so they weren't too vague, they created interest and not frustration or drama.  3.5 stars.

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