I'm so excited to kick of the Falling For Max Blog Tour, with Shannon Stacey. The tour is hosted by Book Trib/Media Muscle. My stop includes a review and giveaway. Thanks for stopping by!
Series: Kowalski Family #9
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Carina Press
Publication Date: 7/29/14
Format: ARC
Pages: 288
Source: Publisher
Rating: 3-3.5 stars
Max Crawford has reached the point in life where he's starting to think about settling down. Unfortunately, he's always been a little awkward when it comes to social interactions, and working from home doesn't help. He spends so much time alone, painting beautiful, historically accurate model trains that half of Whitford has begun to joke that he may be a serial killer. Not exactly prime husband material.Tori Burns has found happiness in Maine, thanks in large part to her shifts at the Trailside Diner. She likes the work, and she loves the local gossip. When shy, geeky Max Crawford becomes a regular, she's intrigued. When she finds out he's in the market for a wife, she's fascinated…and determined to help.Molding Max into every woman's dream turns out to be much easier than expected. But has Tori's plan worked a little too well? As she turns his comfortable life all sorts of upside down, she'll have to find a way to show just how she's fallen for him…the real him.
My Review
Falling For Max is my first step into the Kowalski Family series. I have to admit that at nine books deep, it's a bit daunting! I know a lot of readers who adore this series, set in small town Maine. I enjoy big small-town series as well, even more when there is a center like the Kowalskis.
I'm going to admit straightaway that I did find the large cast of supporting characters in Falling For Max to be a bit overwhelming. The author did a very good job of briefly conveying which couples were paired together and how they all interconnected. I still struggled to keep everyone straight, but that's on me. Since I had to connect the dots so often, I did have a harder time connecting to the characters. Looking back, if you're a reader who needs to know those connections, I would probably suggest not jumping in at book nine.
That aside, I found Falling For Max to be a very sweet, very straightforward romance. Max Crawford was an interesting romantic lead, not one I encounter often. Whereas a lot of leading men are self-assured and not looking for love, Max was shy, a bit of a loner, and ready to settle down. I found his organization, over-analytical thoughts, and always logical answers to be cute, at least on paper. It's no exaggeration to say that Max was awkward, but he was also really endearing. And apparently hot.
So Max is in search of a lady, but doesn't know how to land one. That's where Tori Burns comes into the story. Tori is a graphic designer (mostly book covers, yay!) who fills in at the local diner in an effort to socialize. Okay, I don't know that I bought that. If I'm going to socialize it's going to be over food and drinks that I'm not serving. But hey, I'm notoriously lazy. Tori and Max form a sweet, honest friendship and she agrees to help him find a date. But it's not going to be her since she has parent issues and professes she will never settle down.
Of course, we all know this means that Tori and Max will probably fall in love while she's helping him find all the right moves. And that's where my straightforward romance assessment comes in. Falling For Max has a fairly linear plot, with no surprises jumping out to change the course. It was sweet and very slightly spicy in the romance department.If you're okay with that, seek the comfort of a sweet, easy romance, then this will likely fit the bill.
Favorite Quote
"You're like my favorite book. I linger turning the pages because I don't want to reach the end, and I want to read passages over and over. Savoring the words."
"Turn the damn page," she said, her voice pleading.
Kowalski Family Series
(covers lead to GoodReads pages)
I have one copy of Falling For Max to give away, courtesy of the publisher. Must be 18+ years of age; open to US only.
About Shannon Stacey
Aw, this cover looks so adorable! Sometimes a bit smaller cast who's thoroughly developed works better for a book, I must agree. I'm glad you enjoyed this a tad awkward yet sweet and adorable romance.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a cute read! I would love to have a guy like Max. :)
ReplyDeleteThat is such an adorable cover! I really like it. :)
ReplyDeleteI can see how the large cast can be overwhelming, especially if you're reading the series out of order. That would be a bit frustrating for me as well. I'm still glad you liked this overall though, Andrea! Sometimes, straight forward romances are exactly what we need.
Lovely review, Andrea!
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ReplyDeleteStarting series that are nine+ books long really is intimidating but sometimes so worth it (plus, you can binge if you want, rather than waiting a year or so between books). Sounds like a strong romance -- and good to read even if you haven't read the others!
ReplyDeleteIt does sound kind of straightforward and predictable but I enjoyed the first few books of the series and have the rest on my Kindle. I
ReplyDeleteSweet and a little spicy sounds like the makings of a good read.
ReplyDeleteA socially awkward guy for once? Awesome! This one sounds cute. I like jumping into series too but do find it overwhelming sometimes when there are so many characters I don't know of.
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised you didn't make a flow chart for the characters lol. Sounds cute
ReplyDeleteI haven't heard of this series, but yeah when a book has so many characters I have troubles with it too. Especially as I'm really bad at remembering names. I really hope that this series gets better for you. Great review, Andrea :)
ReplyDeleteI haven't started the series yet, but it's on my TBR list. I love socially awkward characters!
ReplyDeleteHaven't read this series yet.
ReplyDeleteThat's a sweet cover. It's good to read something nice with no surprises every now and then. Great review.
ReplyDeleteI have read the whole series & I cannot wait for this book!
ReplyDeleteI've not read anything from this series yet. Sounds cute.
ReplyDeleteI jumped in at book 3 and loved it. But when I went back and read some of the others, not so much. I haven't read past book 3 so I'm not sure about reading book 9. I did meet the author at BEA.
ReplyDeleteMax sounds a bit like my hub. LOL I think I'd have to start this series from book 1 - because I'm like that. I know readers love this series, so I'll probably check it out at some point. Great review, Andrea!
ReplyDeleteI think I might have a few of these. 9 books in though...oy. Sounds sweet though.
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