Aimee Carson

The Dance Off by Ally Blake

I liked the baggage these characters carried, Ryder and his dad, the responsibility he felt towards his sister (they shared a couple truly touching scenes), and the issues Nadia has with her mom, there was a lot of potential there, but it wasn’t explored to quite the degree that maybe it could have been, like for instance, such a big deal is made of Nadia’s mom being this looming figure over her, affecting her career choices, so it was disappointing that you never actually see their toxic dynamic in action, you just hear about it.

Even if the story maybe didn’t have quite enough going on at times, I thought Ryder and Nadia were strong on chemistry, there was a nice bit of urgency towards the end, and most memorably, there were the apples that became a recurring theme. The apples were just what I’ve come to expect and love from this author, her work always includes some unique detail in the romance that will stay in my mind and bring a smile when I think of it.

Don’t Tell The Wedding Planner by Aimee Carson

While I found the steamy scenes between Matt and Callie well-written, it just seemed like there was so much emphasis on the physical side of their relationship that the emotional and romantic sides felt somewhat underdeveloped.

My favorite thing about this story ended up being the relationship Matt had with his younger brother and future sister-in-law. Drug addiction isn’t subject matter I’ve encountered very often in romances, and I liked how it was handled here, Matt’s feelings towards his brother, the constant fear of relapse, taking the burden of sobriety on himself even though he really has no control over what his brother, it felt like an honest, realistic depiction.… (altro)

I'm not sure what I was expecting when I downloaded this one from amazon, but it wasn't what i got.

Amber isn't your typical character, as I have noticed most of them are blondes. She's a feisty redhead who owns her own bridal shop and has been in love with her best friend's brother since she was 8.

Parker is almost your typical bad boy, though he is a cop; so that is mostly just the image he wants everyone to see.

Amber and Parker see each other for the first time in years at a party for Parker's sister. He flirts with Amber not exactly realizing who she is, but Amber has fun with it none the less. After a tense moment with Reese, the sister, Parker leaves and Amber is recruited to try and convince him to actually attend his sister's wedding.

We get a little background on Parker's life as a child and most of that is from Amber's point of view, but it is enough to make you want to love Parker despite his stand-offish attitude. Without giving away the good parts, just know that there is a happy ending in there, though I wish it had gone a little more into it!… (altro)

Callie Labeau is a wedding planner who does themed weddings in New Orleans. Matt Paulson needs Callie to plan his younger brother’s wedding, which is to be based on an online game--Dungeons of Zhorg. Matt’s brother Tommy, and Tommy’s bride-to-be Penny, are both recovering drug addicts. Matt feels a responsibility towards Tommy since their parents’ death when Tommy was still a teen. Since Tommy almost died from an overdose, Matt keeps a very close eye on Tommy. He still lives in his hometown in Michigan with Tommy, and is a doctor in the small town’s E.R. when he’d much rather work in a big city E.R. When things begin to heat up quickly between Matt and Callie as they work together planning the wedding, both decide to put the brakes on their relationship since neither is willing to make the move from their home bases, and they don’t think that a long-distance relationship would work out.

This was a really cute and sexy story, but also with some serious undertones concerning drug addiction. It featured an endearing cast of characters, and the planning of the medieval themed wedding was a lot of fun. I only wished that we got to know Tommy and Penny better and that they had been featured more throughout the story, since after all, it was their wedding that the story was primarily revolving around. I also would have liked to have felt more a sense of place in the story, with it being set in New Orleans. Besides that, I still enjoyed it.… (altro)