Rowena’s review of the Writers series by Rachel Gibson.
Hero: Quinn McIntyre
Heroine: Lucy Rothschild
What’s a homicide detective to do when tracking down a female serial killer who targets her victims via online dating sites? In Gibson’s breezy, formulaic new romance set in Boise, Idaho, said detective—handsome Quinn McIntyre—logs online and goes out on numerous first dates until he pinpoints the woman wacko enough to have committed the crimes. So begins the relationship between Quinn and Lucy Rothschild, a well-educated, 30-something professional who fits the killer’s profile. Quinn isn’t the only one with an agenda, however.
Lucy, a mystery writer, is doing research for her next novel, which coincidentally features a female serial killer and Internet dating. Mutual lust impedes both Quinn and Lucy’s plans, and mis-communication and the real serial killer serve as speed bumps on their path to love. While Gibson fast-paced romp is mildly entertaining, her flimsy plot doesn’t hold up to scrutiny, and her protagonists—the capable detective who’s married to his work and the smart female who’s been burned by a parade of Mr. Wrongs—never grow beyond their prescribed roles.
This is the first book in the writers series by Rachel Gibson and it’s a great beginning to a series that shaped up to be a great series. Quinn and Lucy were both interesting characters that kept me invested in their story straight through to the end. In this story, we’ve got the hero and the heroine both doing research and then meeting online, pretending to be someone they’re not. Sparks fly and before you know it, they’re banging each other and the fun is just beginning.
She’s a writer doing some research for her book and he’s a cop trying to nail the bad guy. They meet in an online chat room and are not prepared for what comes next. I love it!
Rachel Gibson does a great job of making you fall in love with her characters. She writes such engaging characters that keep you coming back for more and more. Quinn and Lucy are no different. Their story was cute, fun and enjoyable. This is the book where you meet Lucy’s writer friends and Gibson does a great job of making the reader curious about them so of course, you’re going to want to continue this series.
Grade: 4 out of 5
Hero: Sebastian Vaughan
Heroine: Claire Wingate
What is Clare Wingate doing? One minute she’s suffering in a pretty-in-pink gown she’ll never wear again, and the next thing she knows it’s morning . . . and she’s lying next to Sebastian Vaughan, her girlhood crush turned sexy, globe-hopping journalist.
After finding her own fiancé in a compromising position with the washing machine repairman, Clare had the right to go wild. But Clare is in no mood for love—not even for lust—and wants to forget about Sebastian and his six-pack abs ASAP. But he isn’t in the mood to go away, and his kiss is impossible to forget.
Out of all of the books in this series, this book is my favorite. I loved everything about it. The childhood crush storyline is a storyline that I absolutely adore and if it’s written well then I can lose myself into the story each and every time. It’s exactly like that for me with this story every time that I read it.
So Clare catches her fiance’ in a compromising position which makes her get rip roaring drunk and flee for her life and then the next morning she wakes up and sees that she’s in Sebastian Vaughan’s hotel room and Sebastian Vaughan just happens to be her childhood crush. When they’re thrown together after all these years, things heat up and the story totally takes off.
I loved Sebastian. I thought he was the right amount of asshole and thoughtful sweetheart to make my heart go pitter patter. There was something about the way that he simply was that I eat up every time that I read this book and it’s like the more that I read this book, the more that I love Sebastian.
Clare was a great heroine, she was one of those heroines that you want to hang out with and she’s one of those heroines who isn’t perfect and that’s just the way that you like her. You like her despite how unperfect she is.
This book was cute and fun and had the right amount of everything to keep me one happy camper. The romance that blossomed between Sebastian and Clare was fantastic. I loved getting to know the both of them and by the end of the story, I was so damn happy for the both of them that I wanted to do a little happy dance. If you’re in the mood for a light, fluffy and totally enjoyable contemporary romance then you should definitely check this book out.
Grade: 4.75 out of 5
Hero: Mick Hennessy
Heroine: Maddie Dupree
Maddie is determined to uncover the untold story about the town’s sordid past—her past. As a child, Maddie lost everything, and now she’s back at the scene of the scandal—a local establishment that’s always belonged to the Hennessys—determined to uncover the truth, and nothing is going to stand in her way. Especially not a black-haired, blue-eyed Hennessy.
Everyone in Truly knows that the Hennessy men are irresistible, and the current owner, Mick, is no exception. His late father was a skirt-chasing heartbreaker who ended up causing disaster for two families. So far, Mick’s managed to keep the ladies in line, but when he claps eyes on Maddie, with her luscious curves and tempting lips, he can’t resist getting tangled up with her.
But Maddie is keeping secrets, not the least of which is her true reason for being in town. And when Mick discovers what‘s really going on, there is going to be a whole lot of trouble in Truly.
This is the third story in the writers series by Rachel Gibson and it’s another winner for me. While there were plenty of times when I was reading this that I thought that Maddie should have just manned up and told Mick who she was, I didn’t let that bother me too much. Yes, Maddie was dumb for not telling Mick the truth about her identity but for me, Mick more than made up for that.
He was so hot damn yummy that I could probably have forgiven the story anything just because he was in it. Rachel Gibson does such a great job of writing these heroes that I feel like such a little whore bag because I want them all.
In this story, Maddie goes back to the small town of Truly to uncover the truth about her past. She’s been gone for several years and she’s gone off to become a successful author and when she gets back to Truly, nobody recognizes her. While she’s there, she runs across Mick Hennessy and because he’s full of all kinds of yumminess she can’t help that her pants keep falling whenever he’s around.
Rachel Gibson makes it very easy to fall into these stories. They’re not perfect but they’re so entertaining that you just zip right through the book and this one’s no different. It’s a great addition to a series that shaped up to be a delightful series and I enjoyed it a great deal.
Grade: 4.5 out of 5
Hero: Zach Zimaitis
Heroine: Adele Harris
What does a gal have to do to get a good date in this town?
Adele Harris can’t even begin to answer that question. She’s had so many lousy dates that she’s sure she’s cursed. Why else would every man she goes out with suddenly act like he’s lost his mind—and his manners? Adele thought life couldn’t get any more confusing . . . until she learns the marriage of her seemingly Miss Perfect sister is on the rocks. So she goes back to their hometown to give her a shoulder to cry on, only to run smack into Zach Zemaitis . . . the one who got away.
Texans love God, family, and football, though not always in that order
Zach, a former pro star, knows all about football. As for the other two, well, he’s doing his best. But when Adele comes charging back into his life—still all lush curves and beautiful, big blue eyes—he wonders if his best is good enough. After all, he did her wrong. Can a woman with her track record ever really believe that he’s serious this time . . . or is he destined to be another bad date?
Adele Harris is the last man standing in her circle of friends. All of her writer friends have gone and got themselves snagged and she’s left all alone at the Single’s table. When her sister’s husband leaves her for a woman named Stormy Winters (seriously?), she moves herself and her daughter back to their hometown and Adele follows them there to help her sister get on her feet again.
This is one of those, the one that got away stories and I love those story lines. I can marry those storylines and it doesn’t matter how many times I’ve read the storyline, if it’s done well, I love it each and every time.
When Adele sees Zach Zimaitis again after all these years, she’s kind of blown away. Seeing him brings back a lot of memories and really, she could do without those memories if you ask her but because they keep running into each other around town, it’s hard to not get all lustful, especially since Zach has grown up to be hella fine! Watching Adele struggle through trying to keep her family together and happy made me feel for her. She kept her composure through most of it and I totally admired her dedication to her family.
I loved the interactions between Zach and Adele. I adored the romance that grew between them. That bathroom scene at the high school was steamy and filled with all kinds of goodness. But while I adored Zach and Adele together, this go around with the book, I was bothered with Zach’s infidelity in his first marriage a lot more than I was before. So much so that I harped on it for a while and though I ended up forgiving him, I do remember that it bugged when I was reading.
This book was another good addition to the series and I was content with the way that it ended the series. I thought both the hero and the heroine belonged together and their story was very enjoyable. I definitely recommend it to finish off the series.
Grade: 4.5 out of 5
This is one gem of a series in my opinion. It’s full of fun, laughs and steamy romances. The heroes are hot and the heroines are crazy but still likable. I think fans of the contemporary romance genre would enjoy this series and I recommend the heck out of it!
Overall Grade for entire series: 4.5 out of 5
These books are available from Avon.
