contemporary

Dance With Me by Heidi Cullinan

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

11488260
Grade: B+
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary, m/m
Published: 7/6/11
Reviewed by Anne
240 ebook pages

Ed is adjusting to his new life just fine, thank you very much!  His semi-pro football career may have been ended by an injury, but he’s just fine with his desk job and teaching weight lifting at the community center.  The only thing that bothers Ed is the obnoxiously loud music from the aerobics class that Laurie teaches.

Laurie’s career as an acclaimed dancer veered off track a few years ago, but he’s totally fine with the new life he’s built.  Despite his undeniable talent, he’s never appeared back on stage.  He’s very, very happy teaching dance to kids and aerobics at the community center.  If only Ed would stop bothering him about his music!

When Ed crashes Laurie’s class yet again complaining about the music, Laurie is surprised when Ed offers to do anything to get him to give it a rest.  Laurie surprises himself by asking for help with the ballroom dance class he’s teaching.  When the two of them start to enjoy each other’s company they start to realize they’ve been lying to themselves about how fine they are.  Together and separately they have to work through their issues.

I went into this story expecting something lighter.  Because it involved dance, and because I’d just read a couple lighter Cullinan books (Love Lessons & Fever Pitch) I just expected this to be a fun and simple read.  It turned out to be heavier and more complex, and I’m so glad it did!  This is definitely not just a love story, but almost a coming of age story for two men well past 20!

Ed was pretty unaware of himself and in denial about his injury and life changes.  Cullinan did such a good job writing this.  Ed’s also a pretty straight forward kind of guy, and that somehow makes the way he lies to himself more wrenching.  Laurie seems to be more prone to drama at the core, but is in a more emotionally stable place in his life.  They were very good together!

I really enjoyed this story!  I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys m/m romance!

Make Believe Wedding by Sarah Mayberry

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

22840300
Grade: B
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Series: Montana Born Brides #9
Published: 7/28/14
Reviewed by Kate
160 pages

Andie has had a secret crush on Heath, her boss and her brother’s best friend, for years.  Unfortunately, other than on the job site, Heath doesn’t really know she exists.  One night, while drunk at a party, Andie fills out an application for a dream wedding and lists Heath as her fiancée.  She uses all her dreams of Heath as the basis for her entry.  Then, promptly forgets about it until she discovers that she and Heath have been chosen as finalists in the competition.

I really enjoyed the unrequited love angle here, but I’m kind of a sucker for that kind of story line.  And Sarah Mayberry does a beautiful job with it.  Heath decides to go along with the whole scheme to help Andie save face, but of course he quickly falls for her.  If you’re looking for a quick, low-conflict, light hearted read give this one a try.

He’s So Fine by Jill Shalvis

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

19291271
Grade: B
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary, small town
Series: Lucky Harbor #11
Published: 9/30/14
Reviewed by Anne
233 ebook pages

Olivia runs the “vintage shop” in Lucky Harbor.  She and her friend Becca enjoy watching the guys who run a charter boat company and enjoy surfing.  So when Olivia sees one of them fall in the icy cold water off his boat, she jumps in to save him – never mind that she’s not a strong swimmer and he didn’t really need saving.  Olivia and Cole each have their own baggage.  Cole hasn’t dated since his fiancée left him two years earlier.  Olivia left behind a rough childhood and adolescence, even changing her name before settling in Lucky Harbor.  Neither is looking for a relationship, or even a hookup, but their attraction to each other is strong – and so are their matchmaking friends.

You just can’t go wrong with Jill Shalvis.  Even when she’s writing a “pretty good” story, which is how I’d rate this one, it’s still a step above most other contemporary romance authors.  Seriously.  “Pretty Good” for Jill Shalvis ranks even with the best of other romances I read.  Shalvis’ humor is sprinkled throughout the book.  As my teens would say, I LOLed!  Several times!  I enjoyed the chemistry between Olivia and Cole, and I believed they belonged together.

On the other hand, I was severely annoyed at how stupid Olivia came across in the opening scene.  Who jumps in to rescue someone when they’re not a strong swimmer themself?  How about running on the boat and throwing out a life vest?  Or calling for help?  Thankfully, this turned out to be an out of character move for Olivia, who is otherwise very intelligent and independent.  In fact, she has a hard time accepting help from Cole.  This turns out to be a new thing for Cole, who seems to be the fix it guy for the entire town, including his family.

I have one other nit picky detail.  There’s a side story about two little girls who spent some time in foster care before their father stepped in to take care of them.  So, now we’ve got this little family with no money to spare, so the characters in this book are stepping in to lend a hand with the little girls occasionally.  The girls, who are around 6, I think, mention that they’ve never celebrated Halloween before – like foster parents don’t celebrate Halloween?  I’m sure there are foster homes where that happens, but as a former foster parent, pretty much every kid I knew celebrated Halloween, in foster care or not.  In fact, the only kids I knew of who didn’t celebrate were those whose religion was a factor against it.  Maybe the back story of these girls is more fully explained in the previous book (which I haven’t read yet) but I sure do get tired of reading foster homes as the source of all childhood suffering.

Ok, so, stepping off my soapbox… this was a very enjoyable read.  The angst factor was low and humor factor was high.  I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys contemporary romance.   I’ve read most of the Lucky Harbor series, but not every book.  Even without having read the previous story in the series, this one was enjoyable.  So, read in which ever order you’d like, but do read it – it will make you smile and LOL!