Quick Hits: How to Handle a Heartbreaker by Marie Harte & A Single Kiss by Grace Burrowes

How To Handle A Heartbreaker | The McCauley Brothers 2 | Marie Harte

Contemporary Romance | August 5, 2014 | Sourcebooks Casablanca

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Bloggy Friend Reviews: Guilty Pleasures & Christy's Love of Books

HOW TO HANDLE A HEARTBREAKER was recommended to me by Bookish Babe Andrea (I miss you, beech!). I read this a while back and realized I have yet to review it so better late than never!

Anyway, Marie Harte is now one of my go-to authors for romcom. I still have to read the rest of the books but I'm sure it'll be worth reading and very entertaining to boot! What I loved about HOW TO HANDLE A HEARTBREAKER is how Marie Harte executed the dual POV brilliantly! Brody Singer's chapters are very playful and stupidly "male" while Abby's are more romanticized and very girly. Also these two started as fluck buddies with Brody serving as Abby's "research specimen" for her erotic novels. The progression of their story was filled with lots of sexy flirting, hot sex, and ridiculous bickering. And even when it got to the heart of things, when Abby and Brody were hashing out their baggage and transitioning from friends with benefits to a committed relationship, it still felt light and sincere. I love the family dynamics and the very light drama, this series is my kind of contemporary romance.

A Single Kiss | Sweet Kisses 1 | Grace Burrowes

Contemporary Romance | January 6, 2015 | Sourcebooks Casablanca

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Grace Burrowes is a highly recommended author by my SW, Grace of Books of Love, she loves Ms. Burrowes' historical romance novels and as I don't read much histrom, I thought this new series would be a better fit for me. So trust me, I'm very disappointed that I didn't like A SINGLE KISS. 

A SINGLE KISS to me was like a cross between The Good Wife and Law & Order: SVU, family drama meets the courtroom. There was a lot of legal jargon that flew over my head and at times I feel like I'm reading the story midway (I checked the prequel novella and it's independent from this). Now these are all minor things compared to the overall picture, something I would dock a cauldron for for subjective reasons. I disliked A SINGLE KISS because: 

1. Hannah Stark was very standoffish, mysterious, and very defensive for the first half of the book for reasons that are revealed later on in the story and in hindsight, I understand why her demeanor was so. However it took too long for her to warm up and by the time she was showing vulnerability, I was way past the mark where I could've connected with her


2. Trent Knightley does honor to his name because he's sweet, thoughtful, protective, and just embrace Hannah, secrets and all, from almost the beginning. Unfortunately his loving manners got too much where I found it corny. Braiding Hannah's hair? Cute but not for me


3. The conflict was shallow


4. The resolution was so convenient rainbows and unicorns are jumping off the pages in pure joy! It's too neat, too pretty and without preamble except for giving us readers a happily ever after. 

I'll still read the next one because it features a different couple, different story, and I'm hoping A SINGLE KISS is just a one time thing and the rest of the books sweeps me off my feet.