Welcome to the Rusty Nailed Blog Tour! My stop includes my review and a giveaway. Thanks for stopping by!
Series: Cocktail #2
Genre: Contemp. Romance
Publisher: Gallery Books
Publication Date: 6/24/14
Format: eARC
Pages: 320
Source: Publisher
Rating: 4 stars
In this sequel to Wallbanger, the second book in the Cocktail series, fan favorites Caroline and Simon negotiate the rollercoaster of their new relationship while house-sitting in San Francisco.
Playing house was never so much fun—or so confusing. With her boss on her honeymoon, Caroline’s working crazy long hours to keep the interior design company running—especially since she’s also the lead designer for the renovation of a gorgeous old hotel on Sausalito. So with her hotshot photographer boyfriend gallivanting all over the world for his job, she and Simon are heavy-duty into “absence makes the heart grow fonder” mode. Neither has any complaints about the great reunion sex, though! Then Simon decides he’s tired of so much travelling, and he’s suddenly home more. A lot more. And wanting Caroline home more, too. Though their friends’ romantic lives provide plenty of welcome distraction, eventually Caroline and Simon have to sort their relationship out. Neither wants “out of sight, out of mind,” but can they create their own happy mid-ground cliché?
USA TODAY bestselling author Alice Clayton delivers another delicious, frothy cocktail of a book, shaking up her characters, stirring in laugh-out-loud humor, and serving sizzling romance straight up!
Review
Oh, Simon and Caroline, how I've missed you two! I loved Wallbanger - smile every time I think about how it made me laugh, and was excited when I learned we would get more of this ridiculously witty, sexy couple. But I will say outright, I was very worried when it came time to pick up Rusty Nailed. I was happy that the two had gotten their happily ever after and wasn't too keen on seeing them go through whatever trials I assumed would come their way.
Rusty Nailed is what-happens-next story, what comes after the happy ending. How Simon and Caroline's lives change, and how they stay the same in so many ways, as they become more established. Like all real relationships, some aspects are smooth (such as wallbanging) and some take a adjustment (brutal work hours and the need for space). The pair had a lot to work through in this installment. Caroline is moving on up in the design world, and it's up to her to discover whether she can do it all, or if she even wants it. Simon, he melted me heart. I like that we get to see him deal with his losses, and though it killed me to see it, his willingness to expose his vulnerabilities to and with Caroline are what made Rusty Nailed shine. I appreciate that Clayton always keeps it real, and that she explores the true issues real couples go through as they evolve. I also love the fact that it didn't feel like Rusty Nailed was thrown together to just have another story, with forced issues used to drive the story. Any problems or struggles Simon and Caroline faced? They're the same issues real couples go through. Miscommunications and immaturity didn't drive this story. Love did.
And you know what? Rusty Nailed was really freaking romantic. I mean, I know it's a romance, but I feel like Clayton is an old soul, as are her characters, and she infuses that romance into her stories. It's a kind of charm I don't often find in novels, which of course makes these stand out. It's also, you guessed it, hilarious. I love witty people, in real life and in my romance. This must be some of the wittiest group of fake humans I've ever come across. The best friends were great comic relief,
especially Sophia and Neil who were freaking insane. I loved it.
Oh yeah...Rusty Nailed was also damn sexy. Simon Parker and his wallbanging hips can whoa me any day. Hypothetically, of course.
The Cocktail series is one filled with friendships, wit, sexy times, and a love story that just won't quit. I'm happy that I've had the opportunity to experience this series and am more than happy to recommend.
Favorite Quotes
Not all men can handle to P-word. And boy, is that a mouthful. Ahem. Some say it all the time, some use it in common conversation. But a good P-word is all about the placement: when to say it, where to say it, how to say it. Dirty talk is an art. Do it too often, it becomes routine. Never do it, and you're missing something. Simon did it just right. He was like a perfect bowl of smutty porridge: just right.
When you were in a long-distance relationship, of course you made the most of the time you were together. But sometimes, it was the unexpected that really made the difference. The unexpected emotions you were hit with when you saw that face, looked into those eyes, felt those lips. The unexpected reminder of why you fell in love with this person could hit you so powerfully. And this was that time. I memorized his face, felt every line and every pattern, drew his temple, his nose, his dimple, the bow of his lip, drew it all with my fingertips and memorized it once more.
"I love you, Simon. Love you, love you, love you so much," I chanted as he laid me down, peeled the clothes from my body and his own, and entered me.
His gaze grew wistful, and he looked so young. "I don't want to put things off, even though we haven't been together a really long time. I don't want to wait--you never know what can...Look. I adore you, and I want a home. Again. With you."
The Cocktail Series
(covers lead to GoodReads page)
One winner will receive a copy of Wallbanger! US only; must be 18+ years of age to enter.
About the author
Novelist Alice Clayton makes her home in St. Louis where she enjoys gardening but not weeding, baking but not cleaning up after, and is trying desperately to get her long-time boyfriend to make her an honest woman–and please buy her a Bernese Mountain dog.
After working for years in the cosmetics industry as a makeup artist, esthetician, and educator, Alice picked up a pen (read laptop) for the first time at 33 to begin a new career: author. Having never written anything longer than a grocery list, she soon found writing to be the creative outlet she’d been missing since walking away from the theater 10 years before.
She has a great time combining her love of storytelling with a sense of silly, and she was shocked and awed to be nominated for a Goodreads Author award in 2010 for her debut novels, the first two installments of The Redhead Series–The Unidentified Redhead and The Redhead Revealed. Her latest novel Wallbanger is a return to her trademark comedic erotica, or funny smut, that Alice has become known for.
Additionally, Alice loves spending time with her besties on Not Your Mother’s Podcast (check them out on iTunes) and has recently partnered with actor Greg Grunberg, blogger Brittany Gibbons, and actress Keili Lefkovitz on a new travel show that will begin filming in January.
Alice enjoys pickles, Bloody Marys, eight hours of sleep and a good pounding
