Reviewer: Rowena
Torch by Karen Erickson
Series: Wildwood Series #3
Also in this series: Ignite, Smolder (Wildwood Series #2)
Publisher: Avon Impulse
Publication Date: August 16th 2016
Pages: 336
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Series Rating:

Tate Warren has never met a woman he couldn’t charm—until now.

Wren Gallagher won’t give him the time of day and it’s making him crazy.

But he won’t give up without a fight… because there’s one thing he knows for sure:

Enemies make the best lovers.

Most women swoon over Tate’s devilish grin and firefighter uniform. But Wren couldn’t be less impressed by his good looks and flirtatious banter—in fact, she seems to downright despise him. She thinks he’s a player, but his attraction to her is no game. Wren is unlike anyone he’s ever known and he isn’t about to let the feisty, gorgeous woman slip through his fingers.

Wooing Wren would be so much easier if she didn’t hate him…
Or does she?

Torch is the third book in the Wildwood series and it features the third Gallagher sibling, Wren. Wren is the last man standing in her family and in her circle of friends. It really sucks that her circle of friends went and got paired up with her brothers so there’s no escaping the love bug that has bitten everyone.

It’s hard to be happy for her friends and her brothers when she wants what they have and she feels so …lost. She isn’t living the life that she thought she’d be living when she was younger and she is feeling unfulfilled. The very last person she needs sniffing around her is the guy that gets on her hot damn nerves but Tate Warren isn’t going anywhere.

He’s made no qualms about letting her know that he wants her but because he hasn’t been tied down, he’s got the playboy reputation thing going for him and Wren isn’t interested in becoming one of his girls. Things take a turn when the arsonist that’s been hanging around, burning shit down since the first book gets to her house. She’s got no home and she doesn’t want to be a thorn in her brothers and friends lives and she doesn’t want to deal with her parents so when Tate offers her a home with him, she grudgingly takes it.

This book was a quick read and I really liked that the romance didn’t feel rushed or forced. Erickson does a great job of pulling the reader along with what’s going on with Wren and Tate, the arsonist, Levi coming back into town and she did it all without a lot of page time but everything fit together and the story didn’t suffer for it.

I knew that I was going to like Tate from the earlier books and I’m glad that he lived up to the Tate I was hoping he’d be. He was hot, strong and extremely sweet with Wren and I loved getting to know him. Wren was a great heroine too but there were times when I wanted to smack some sense into her. Like the way that she treated Tate when he took care of her or the whole thing with Levi coming back but in the end, I thought this was a solid story and I’m hoping that we’re not through with these folks because the story isn’t done. We don’t know everything yet.

Overall, this book was great and while I was a little frustrated with that abrupt ending, I still enjoyed the book and have my fingers crossed for more.

Grade: 3.75 out of 5

Reviewer: Rowena
Smolder (Wildwood Series #2) by Karen Erickson
Series: Wildwood Series #2
Also in this series: Ignite, Torch
Publisher: Harper Collins, Avon
Publication Date: June 21st 2016
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 336
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Series Rating:

Lane Gallagher wants Delilah Moore—bad.

He’s imagined the sexy brunette in his bed more times than he can count.
She’s everything he’s ever wanted, but the only problem is . . .

She’s his brother’s ex.

For years, the stoic sheriff’s deputy has fantasized about the sweet, bubbly dance teacher who stirs his deepest desires. But Lane’s too loyal to ever move in on forbidden territory and he knows that while he can look, he definitely can’t touch. Fighting his attraction to Delilah is nearly impossible, but the infuriating—and incredibly sexy—woman seems determined to drive him crazy.

And she’s bringing him to his knees. One smoldering kiss at a time.

This was a really quick read, a quick but satisfying read.

We met Lane and Delilah in the first book in this series, Ignite. Lane is West’s older brother and Delilah is Lane’s younger sister’s best friend. She’s also West’s ex-girlfriend from high school. They both want each other but Lane is being a butthead and steering clear of any kind of romantic entanglement with Delilah and nobody knows why.

They’ve been circling each other for a while now. Delilah has not made it a secret that Lane is it for her but Lane’s got some internal issues that he’s struggling with and at every turn, I wanted to bean him in the head with a baseball because seriously dude? You don’t want to be like your Dad? Then don’t be like him. You think Delilah deserves better? Then be better. I felt every single frustrating emotion that Delilah felt while reading this book. The hot and cold attitude that Lane was sporting made me want to kick him in the nuts. Good thing he got his shit together. LOL.

It speaks highly of an author who can write characters that drive me up the wall and yet keep me invested in what happens to them. As much as I wanted to knee Lane in the balls, I still enjoyed this book. I wanted so badly for Delilah to get her man in the end that when she finally does, the relief tore through me like a bunch of firecrackers going off and I loved it. I loved the support system that Delilah had and I loved how she never gave up on what she wanted and what she deserved. Her take charge attitude impressed me because I don’t think I would have put up with a bunch of the shit that she did with Lane.

The romance was steamy and worth the drama you had to go through to get to the end of the tunnel. Karen Erickson did a great job of pulling the reader into Lane and Delilah’s story and I’m not at all ashamed to say that I would really like to take one of Dee’s hip hop dance classes. Ha!

Despite this story being on the shorter side, I didn’t feel like anything was rushed or left out. It was a great quick read that is perfect for a lazy day at the beach. If you haven’t checked this book out, you should because it’s a fun read with hot firefighters and an even hotter policeman!

Grade: 4.25 out of 5

Reviewer: Rowena
Ignite by Karen Erickson
Series: Wildwood Series #1
Also in this series: Smolder (Wildwood Series #2), Torch
Publisher: Avon Impulse
Publication Date: March 15th 2016
Pages: 336
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Series Rating:

Weston Gallagher is falling hard—for the wrong woman.

One night of passion has haunted him for years.

Now he’s got a second chance to get the girl of his dreams…but there’s just one problem:

She hates him.

Eight years after he stormed out of Wildwood, California, West has returned to his hometown as a firefighter. His friends and family are thrilled he’s back—with the exception of Harper Hill. His sister’s best friend is all grown up and in all the right ways. He knows she’s going to do everything she can to protect her heart and keep him at arm’s length, but West has other ideas.

He will win the girl that got away. No matter what it takes…

Weston Gallagher is back in his hometown of Wildwood, CA for the first time in eight years. The first chance he got to skip town, he took and he never looked back. He left his family, his friends and the girl. A promotion brings him back home and he realizes that it’s time to fix things with his siblings and to fix things with the girl.

Harper Hill was born and raised in Wildwood, CA. She’s got a great family, a great best friend and a boyfriend who is steady. She may not feel any passion toward her boyfriend and that is made all the more evident when Weston Gallagher shows up again. Thinking about West brings back a lot of memories, especially the last memory she has with him. No one has ever come close to making her feel the way that West made her feel all those years ago but he left without a word and without turning back so she’s determined to keep her distance.

The heart has a different agenda and sometimes your heart just wants that one person. West is that person for Harper. Damn.

This was a really quick read and even though I felt that Harper should have made West grovel a bit more before she took him back, I didn’t mind too much since I liked them both together. West didn’t pretend that he didn’t do her dirty and he was sorry for his actions and they had big time feelings for each other so I forgave her for forgiving him so soon and enjoyed their romance.

I haven’t read anything by Karen Erickson or Monica Murphy but after this one, I’m definitely open to try more. I’m pretty excited about the next book in this series. Lane and Delilah? Yay!

Grade: 4 out of 5