Carries Book Reviews

Text Me by Erin Bevan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Erika’s ex-boyfriend had broken up with her via test message so being very hurt and frustrated she doesn’t want to have anything to do with him. Unfortunately, Grayson works for the same company as Erika and takes a promotion to become Erika’s new boss as he still has feelings for her. When the upcoming company Valentine’s party is mentioned both Erika and Grayson find themselves looking for dates.

A cute little romantic read featuring a couple with a history together. Grayson made mistakes but was still a great guy overall and Erika was pushing everyone else away because they didn’t measure up. A bit of humor thrown in and a lovely couple that seemed destined to be together make this short little novella a wonderful read. Would definitely recommend to the romantic fans.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Landlocked by Marilyn Baron
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Amelia Rushing recently broke up with a cheating fiance. She hasn’t been able to find a job with her art history major so she’s trying to break into real estate but having no luck yet with that career either. When her grandmother asks her to go to the mountains of North Carolina to try to sell some land that her grandfather had purchased years before Amelia sees nothing to keep in her Florida and thinks it might be her first big sale.

Alec Brady is a local lawyer in the town of Confrontation, NC who’s family has owned most of the surrounding land and also he and his mother have been living on Amelia’s grandmother’s land. When approached about selling Alec claims that possession is nine tenths of the law and that Amelia wouldn’t be able to sell regardless as the land is landlocked, meaning there isn’t any access to it without traveling on the surrounding properties.

Amelia being determined to help her aging grandmother sell the property informs Alec that she is not going to leave until the deal is complete and she will be moving in the cabin that he lives in with him. As the two battle over the sale the sparks fly but they also uncover a decades old mystery that took place on the property.

I have to say I started off this little novella thinking that it was going to easily be a four or five star read. The story was unique to anything I have read and the characters and their interactions were hilarious. There was a wonderful quirkiness to both the story and the characters involved that drew me in and wanted to continue reading.

The problem I found was about halfway through the book when the mystery aspect starts getting introduced it got a tad repetitive kind of telling the same story over and over. There actually wasn’t much mystery to be solved either as you are told what happened which would be fine as you still await finding how it will all turn out but it just seemed to fizzle out of new ideas so the second half just started losing my interest. Not too bad of an ending though so three stars overall.

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Christmas with the Vampire by Shay Roberts
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Traveling alone in Europe during her Christmas break, Beatrix, gets really lost and ends up getting trapped in her rental car from an avalanche. A police officer shows up and gets her out and to the nearest small town. After the storm lets up the small town comes to life with Christmas activities so Beatrix ventures out to explore but ends up finding more than she bargained for.

For such a short little novella this story certainly packed a lot into it. The one thing I didn’t quite like was that Beatrix seemed to have a guide book stating what not to do while traveling alone and completely ignored all the advice but I suppose the story wouldn’t have gone anywhere if she hadn’t.

Otherwise, an interesting read with touches of the vampire world that added a nice bit of Christmas spirit of giving that warms the heart.

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Always For You by Tawdra Kandle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

All during her college years Maureen Evans had a crush on her friend Smith Harrington but both were sure that the other only wanted to be friends. Ten years after they met, Maureen invites Smith to come to her hometown and become her new partner in her veterinary clinic. She also has just purchased a new home that has a separate apartment on the second floor and offers to rent it to Smith too. With the two living and working together will they finally be able to admit to each other their true feelings?

A lovely little romance read about two people who just never had the right timing in life coming back together as adults. The book takes place in a lovely little small town in the south, Burton, Georgia. It’s one of those feel good, everyone cares for each other towns were all are close and friends and family are always there for one another.

Enjoyed all of the characters in the story. Maureen did go a bit overboard with her self-doubt which had held up their relationship for years so I couldn’t give it quite five stars but still a really nice romance I’d recommend checking out. Would definitely pick up more by this author as she’s written several books taking place in Burton, Georgia but this is the first I’ve read.

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Destiny by Cait Jarrod
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

When Autumn Wilcox’s friend and mentor passes away Autumn sets off to fulfill a promise to head to Montana to climb a mountain and find an elusive rainbow. Autumn’s friend suggests she hitch a ride with a local search and rescue pilot, Travis Carson, that is headed to Montana himself. The two have one thing in common as they neither want a relationship or to get close to others.

Destiny is the second book in the Montana Dreams series but the first of which I’ve read. Most romance reads are fine to be read as a standalone but with this particular novella I found that I felt a bit lost in the first moments of reading as it was hard to figure out what was really happening with Autumn needing to run off as soon as her friend passed away.

Once the story got going I thought I was going to like it a bit more but then it just seemed like all the characters were too immature for my taste. Autumn and Travis were behaving like two kids who needed to be mean to each other because they were attracted but then Travis’ brother and sister in law seemed a bit off themselves. The sexual scenes in the story were also far from steamy and just really rather awkward in my opinion. Along with some kind of far fetched actions I really just never got into the story or characters at all.

Overall, not really one I’d recommend as the characters and story just never grabbed me.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.