I'm excited to share an excerpt and review from The Day He Kissed Her, by Juliana Stone. Thanks to Sourcebooks for the excerpt. Check it out!
Series: Bad Boys of Crystal Lake #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Publication Date: 4/1/14
Format: eARC
Pages: 384
Source: Publisher
Rating: 3.5 stars
He can’t wait to leave…
Mac Draper finally has everything he’s always wanted: An amazing career. A New York City apartment. He’s this close to being free of his past forever. But a mind-blowing encounter with the sexy yet tough-as-nails Lily St. Clare has him delaying his plans to put Crystal Lake in his rearview mirror for good.
She’s finally found a place to stay…
For Lily St. Clare the charming small town of Crystal Lake is her haven – a place she can hide from her famous, back-stabbing family. It’s as close to happy as she’s ever been. Until an unforgettable night with tall, dark and tortured Mac Draper gives her a glimpse of what true happiness feels like.
Lily can’t help but melt a little under the sizzling heat of Mac’s touch. But Mac’s scars run deep, and Lily’s afraid she may be falling for the one man who can never return her feelings...
Excerpt
It’s one of the first things a smart girl learns when she’s younger. One of the first things that said smart girl vows never to do again.
But sometimes fate or stupidity intervenes and those life lessons are forgotten in the heat of the moment—life lessons that are there for a reason. And a smart girl is faced with the uncomfortable situation that arises when your one-night stand—the one-night stand you were hoping never to see again—suddenly pops up on your radar.
As of five minutes ago, Lily St. Clare’s one-night stand was back in town, and as of five minutes ago, Lily St. Clare’s ass was in danger of being bitten.
"You’ve got to be kidding me," she muttered, ducking behind a large fern tilted at an odd angle from the wind as it swung from the pergola overhead. She was on the back deck at Steven and Marnie Edwards’s place, the one that overlooked Crystal Lake, and there were a few other ferns swinging in the wind if she needed them.
I knew this would happen.
Just not today. Not without warning. And definitely not with such an intimate crowd to witness the entire god-awful thing. Awkward situations were always worse in close quarters. And Lily hated awkward almost as much as she hated a scene—unless it was one that she orchestrated.
And Lord knows she’d orchestrated a few whoppers in her day, but this was different.
A quick glance over her shoulder told Lily that no one had witnessed her idiotic attempt to hide herself, but with Mac Draper making his way across the beach, that would soon change.
Review
I've been a fan of the Bad Boys of Crystal Lake since the beginning. I like the Michigan/lake setting, these (not so) Bad Boys, and author Juliana Stone's writing. The Summer He Came Home was a sweet and sexy romance with a rock star Bad Boy (Cain) coming home for one of his best friend's funeral, only to fall in love with a single mom. The Christmas He Loved Her was a painful, angst-filled story of another Bad Boy (Jake) finally letting himself all in love with his twin's widow. That book was so painful yet so gorgeous; my favorite of the series.
With The Summer He Loved Her, we have the last single Bad Boy, Mackenzie "Mac" Draper's story. By most appearances, Mac is a successful man with a fantastic life. If you've read the first two books you know that personally, Mac is a hot mess. At the end of book two it is implied that Mac had a one night stand with a stranger, Lily, who happens to be a friend of Jake's. Months later, Mac comes back home to visit, and finds his one night stand is still in Crystal Lake and he decides that they are so not finished.
There really isn't a lot of conflict between Lily and Mac. The two quickly decide to continue their physical relationship while Mac is in town. This is one steamy, sexy pair. I loved that Mac's nicknamed Lily "Boston", the skinny-dipping in the lake, and the dance in the dark. Of course, things can't stay simple for long, and the two begin to develop stronger feelings. Mac is very reluctant to give in, though. He grew up in an extremely abusive home, and he doesn't want to hurt anyone the way he's been hurt. In order to protect others from what he's afraid is inside him, Mac is certain he will never marry or have kids. Naturally, this is the big conflict between Mac and Lily, especially when their (lack of) plans are thrown off course. Though I could see where he was coming from, Mac really disappointed me throughout parts of the story. Thank goodness his friends were there to help him straighten out. The friendship between the three is my favorite part of the story.
Though this installment lacked a dynamic that pulled me totally in, I did really like The Summer He Loved Her. The Bad Boys of Crystal Lake has been a very enjoyable series, and I highly recommend it.
Favorite Quote
They moved slowly to the sounds of "Wicked Game", a song that was sex and candy and seduction--perfect really. If Mackenzie was paying attention, he would have heard the sad lament of a broken heart. He'd have heard the warning.
But Mac wasn't paying attention to anything other than how amazing the woman in his arms felt.
(covers lead to GoodReads)
My Reviews
About the author
Juliana Stone's love of the written word and 80s rock, have inspired her in more ways than one. She writes contemporary romance, paranormal romance and will debut a young adult novel in 2014. She spends her days navigating a busy life that includes, a husband, kids, a dog and a cat.
Ooooh, I love these kind of stories. I'm also glad that there isn't a big conflict on do we or do we not. And it's cute when a nickname means something :) Obviously they make up by the end of the story, but I'm sorry this issue with Mac somewhat brought the book down in your eyes. I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed this as a whole :)
ReplyDeleteI haven't heard of this series before, but I love the sound of it. I especially need to read book 2 because that one especially sounds like something I will enjoy.
ReplyDeleteThis one doesn't seem to be as great as the other books, but I'm glad that you still enjoyed it overall, Andrea.
Great review!
I remember your reviews for the first books and thinking I should pick them out.. and then I forgot but this review has reminded me to check this series out. I love bad boys that aren't really bad boys. Great review.
ReplyDeleteWas this the book you were voxing me about the other day? This sounds good
ReplyDeleteSometimes it's nice to have less stress between the characters. Sounds like a nice read.
ReplyDeleteSkimmed as I have yet to read this. I'm curious with said dynamic though, these two sound "ritzy" and the previous two books were very down home/small town. Did she give a clue on who's book will be next? All the living Bad Boys stories are done, I hope this isn't the last...
ReplyDeleteThe setting and the not so bad boys sound like something that I could enjoy as well
ReplyDeleteAwww, these sound fun. I would have to read them in order, though. I want to get to know that side of Mac in the other books so I can fully appreciate his character. Lovely review! :)
ReplyDeleteI loved this excerpt and your review is wonderful. Definitely adding this to my list. I would have never picked it without reading this.
ReplyDeleteIt is a good thing Mac had his friends to keep him straight. I like the sound of this one, Andrea and I definitely enjoyed your reviews of the previous books in the series. I'll have to make sure I have the whole series on my tbr. Nice review! And thanks for sharing that excerpt, too. ;)
ReplyDeleteI have never read a book about New Orleans but I bet it would be insightful.
ReplyDeleteI would give a fair and honest review
Great Excerpt! This sounds like an awesome series! I love steamy and sexy stories where the characters end up developing stronger feelings for one another. Wonderful Review Andrea!
ReplyDeleteI like the excerpt. I think I added the other book on the tbr. I'll have to try them at some point.
ReplyDelete