GRR Reviews A Lot Like Christmas by Kait Nolan

Special Forces Medic Ryan left Wishful a long time ago to be all he can be. But when he heard that his cantankerous great uncle Percy's health may be failing, yet refusing help, he took his leave and went back. Meeting a sweet waitress wasn't a part of his plan... // Hannah had to retire from her interior decorating job due to health reasons. She's helping out her sister as a waitress, and offering to decorate houses in Wishful to get back into her true love, when someone offered to be secret Santa to decorate Percy's place. Meeting Ryan wasn't in her plans. // The two are opposites, yet fit so right. Ryan is cool and professional, Hannah is warm and cheerful. But Ryan is going back to the army soon... right?

Good contrasts, using Percy and the town to tie them together, at least temporarily, which also added a time limit. I'd thought a special forces soldier would know better than let just a phone call to destroy his mood, but it works for dramatic purposes. 4/5

GRR Reviews The Billionaire's Generosity by April Murdock

Gabrielle is a mostly-not-working model trying to raise her son, but younger and prettier models have overtaken her, that she works as a waitress to get by. When she was picked as the main model of a jewelry line, she can't pass it up. Her son's bone cancer treatment needed money ASAP. But meeting the CEO, Zach, left her frustrated. Zach may be gorgeous, but he's also rude, probably expecting her to be a shallow golddigger. // Zach runs his company like a well-oiled machine, and passion doesn't fit his equations. When an Industry veteran mistook Gabrielle as Zach's wife, and thus believed he now has "the passion" to design couple's jewelry collection, he chose not to correct that mistake, and enlisted Gabrielle's help to lie in exchange for more money. Gabrielle went along reluctantly, needing the money for her son's treatment. But does Zach really have no feelings for Gabrielle?

Pretty good character arc, though resolution at the end seems to be a bit too... serendipitous? (Zach's a compatible donor? Really?) 4.5/5

GRR Reviews Her Billionaire Cowboy's Fake Marriage by Hope Moore

Wade found that his grandpa's will requires him to marry someone within 90 days, for at least 90 days, to keep the family ranch, else he and his brothers can kiss their inheritance goodbye.  And with only a few days left, he did not expect to find any one good enough... Until he ran into a waitress named Allie... // Allie is down and out, working multiple jobs to keep her mother's care funded, but she can't abandon her mom after death of her dad. Accepting his outrageous proposal may solve all her problems... but is this a con? or just the miracle she had been hoping for?

Typical fish out of water, different worlds, but with a good polish on the tale. 4/5

GRR Reviews Signature Sweethearts Boxset Books 1-3 by Kelsie Rae

Note; 3 book collection

Liv: Liv's humble yet perfect life ended when her husband died in a car accident, leaving her alone and pregnant. She was so close to making it. Her husband's family never really liked her, but they eloped and went their own way. Now she has nowhere to turn to...  Except Luke, childhood friend, until she fell for the other boy and married him... Will the reunion be sweet... or salty? Will he still love her? What about the baby?

Good second chance romance with the complication of "left-over baby". 4/5

Breezy: Her name is Bree, but she's always known as Breezy, sort of a joke about her no-nonsense personality. Oh, and she's Luke's sister (see book 1: Liv) Breezy has an HR degree, but she's waitressing in a sports bar. She met Derrick when she spilled nachos on him. She later got a job at Derrick's company as the new HR assistant and wanted Derrick, now her boss, but Derrick's been hurt before and used the no-fraternization policy to refuse to date her... Until Jude decided to help them out by pretending to date Breezy...

The "spilled food" meet-cute had been done gazillion times. But the subsequent dialog may be a classic. Breezy's forthrightness is a delightful change from the meek female who can't speak their mind (it's never the right time). 4.5/5

Jude: Jude used to be an online gaming champ and when the company decided to sponsor a gaming team, he was assigned as the assistant coach for his name recognition and talent. He found himself drawn to Q (real name: Quincy), the only female player on the team, extremely quiet away from the keyboard. Turns out her father is having dementia and her gaming is the only thing keeping a roof over their heads. Jude wanted to help her, but he's much older, and even he can see that she doesn't trust easily, either in or out of the game. Can he teach her that men can be trusted, both for himself and the game, with the championship coming up soon?

Good use of the gaming world as a backdrop, with the championship sort of a parallel to their love life. 5/5

Overall, 4.5/5

GRR Reviews Worth the Risk by Heather B Moore

Alicia moved back to Pine Valley, putting her own plans on hold, to help her mom through an addiction problem. However, the only job in town was waitressing... and imagine the awkward moment when her first love, Jeff, someone she hadn't seen in ten years, came into the restaurant with a date. Alicia knew Jeff's family was rich, and he's doing well for himself. But she wasn't ready for Jeff looking at her in a way that indicated what they had wasn't over...

Not bad, but nothing THAT extraordinary, just good polish on an old trope. 4/5

GRR Reviews Mud Pies & Family Ties by Dylann Crush

Motorcycle stuntman Dustin just became a national embarrassment when his stunt on a late-night talk show went wrong and sent the host to the ER. His agent told him to go stealth, so he went home... where he hadn't been back for 15 years. He met Harmony in town at the Lovebird Cafe, where she worked as a (very inept) waitress. The two had one awkward encounter after another, but he helped her out, and she temporarily adopts three baby raccoons (found inside her truck), and agrees to help him with his injured shoulder as she's much better as a licensed massage therapist. Dustin will even help her build her wellness studio, even as they rescue even more menagerie of animals (a de-scented pet skunk, and later, an injured emu). But when Dustin got a chance to be a star again, will he go... or stay?

Somehow, the final resolution didn't quite grab me. I understand WHY Dustin felt he had to go, but the reason he gave to abandon his career to be just a small town... what? Construction worker? Handy-man? It seems a bit vague. Rom-com is fine though. Emotional beats work great, with a proper darkest hour and grand gesture. But motivation felt a little lacking. 4/5

GRR Reviews My Billionaire Roomie by Tilly Pope

Julia is a hostess at a top-end casino, serving the high rollers. She had to sex-up herself a bit, but tips are good. Until she twisted her ankle serving a drink, and get to meet the boss Derek... She'd do ANYTHING to save her job, and she'd finally found a place to live... Imagine her surprise to find that her new roommate is none other than her boss Derek...

Frankly, this feels like a porn script.

SPOILER WARNING

REPEAT SPOILER AHEAD

Julia offers to be spanked on Derek's desk to save her job. WTF?! Several time references are completely screwed up. And a toddler was talking in full complete sentences at 2 year old? There really was no plot, but one huge quasi-sensual spank erotica.

2/5

GRR Reviews Delicate Balance by Brooke St James

Henry, one of the four Blair Brothers, is a rock star of the band Delicate Balance. He left the hometown of Astoria to seek his fame years ago. And Aiden always had a thing for Henry. So when Henry and the entire Blair family came to the restaurant Aiden waitressed at, she was both surprised and delighted... and this time... Henry noticed her...

Aiden is a bit self-effacing and backbone-lacking, at least, until she accepted that Henry really does want to love her, not just to bed her. This is clean and spiritual, no sex, but more subtle kind of love and support that clean romance readers can appreciate.  4/5

GRR Reviews The Billionaire of Friar's Lake by Carrie Ann Hope

Zack is a billionaire dubbed by the media as the "matchmaker"... he can put someone in a company for the perfect position to maximize efficiency, and he can turn a failing company around. But his wandering life, from one spot of the world to another, left him yearning for something more permanent. He wanted a family, settle down somewhere. // Marcy is a waitress in the tiny town of Friar's Lake, and after multiple dating disasters, she's not ready to try again. But when she brought the stranger in town his drink, and their eyes met, it's clear her life won't ever be the same... But he's not really staying, and she's not really leaving... right?

Not too sure about this one. I honestly didn't feel much of a spark from this meet-cute. 3/5

GRR Reviews Fresh Temptation by Reeni Austin

Victor, one of the Barboza brothers, is rich, powerful, and tired of his ex-fiancee Alexis, who's forever scheming to get him back. When Cara caught Victor's attention as a waitress at one of the fundraiser galas, Alexis is steaming mad.  Cara is a single mom raising a young son, working three part-time jobs, and has a few extra pounds (not a BBW), nothing like Alexis. But Victor wants Cara. Cara is weary. While she'd welcome a man in her life, she's not sure of Victor's intentions... Was it just to make Alexis jealous? Does he want her just for sex? And what would Alexis do to break them up, which only makes Victor more determined to woo Cara?

Good triangle, with a good nemesis. 4/5

GRR Reviews Even Still by Hannah Jo Abbott

Paige had to abandon all her plans when her parents died. She was the oldest, and she ended up raising five siblings, working as a waitress at twenty-two. She has no time to rest, much less find love... Until Russell came into her life. // Russell is back in his hometown and was excited to be the new country club manager. Meeting Paige was unexpectedly good, and she's unforgettable. And talks with the staff shows that Paige definitely deserves a promotion and raise to restaurant manager... she's already doing most of the job. AND he wanted to help her in other ways. But she's resistant... she's afraid of him pitying her... and more. But when a project forced them to work together, can she let God and love back into her heart?

Eh... the religious message is a bit overt here. We're talking about she talked to God, and He talked back (in one-word answers). Darkest hour and more made good sense. However, Russell is really bland as a character. 3.5/5

GRR Reviews The Billionaire's Obsession - Simon by J S Scott

Tech billionaire Simon has an obsession with Kara, a waitress in his mother's restaurant, taking a full course load AND working a full-time job. When Kara suddenly found herself homeless (turns out her roommate had been stealing her portion of the rent, then stole most of her possessions while she's out and they were evicted. When she found her possessions dumped in the street, she just about broke down. But Simon is there to save her. He'll provide for her, give her a place to live, pay her so she doesn't have to work, all for a chance with her. And when she's ready, he'll make love to her... with her tied down and blind-folded... For he's damaged, and he doesn't want anyone, much less her, to see him that way...

NOTE: "Mine for Tonight" is a teaser excerpt from this and frankly it reads creepy as ****. Once you read the whole book, it's less creepy, but it's still weird.

The author doesn't understand how a game is created nowadays. Games are created by TEAMS, esp. triple-AAA titles, not a single person, and if he's a billionaire, he's at best, game designer, not a programmer. And the list of people on a AAA title rivals that of a Hollywood production (credits roll would be about as long, hundreds of people).

AND I thought Kara is too busy working and studying to be playing ANY games? And how can a person game and not know what company made the game?

The romance just doesn't come across that much. Kara basically gave in to the only guy that was nice to her so far in life. Sorry, the whole thing just doesn't add up. 2.5/5

GRR Reviews Not Quite Dating by Catherine Bybee

Jessie is a single mom and waitress. She has no time to date, but a charming sorta-broke cowboy is starting to wear her down. She already shot him down several times, but he's persistent. But Jack is not who he seems... // Jack is the heir of a hotel empire, but so far he's finding one golddigger after another. So when Jessie didn't know who he is, he decided to pretend to be "just" a humble cowboy / waiter, and pretend to help her find her a rich husband. But it's that pretense that would come to bite him in the rear later...

Awwww, that's cute. While we've seen the plot before, rich guy pretend to be normal to woo normal woman, this one has excellent polish and enough twists to keep you reading. 4.5/5

GRR Reviews The Executive's Secret by Kimberley Montpetit

Caleb and his partners have built a billion-dollar enterprise in the past decade. But he had never forgotten Kira back in a Denver high school, the pianist that he admired... from two rows back. Back then, he's the invisible geek with the greasy hair and acne. But now, he's gorgeous, rich, and if he wanted to be, irresistible. In the very evening when he and his team returned to Dever, Colorado, he found Kira, as one of the waitresses there... // Kira had to quit school after an auto accident crippled her father and now, her mother had gotten dementia. She's barely scraping by, helping her parents with the medical bills. She did not remember Caleb, but when a handsome and rich guy pays attention to you, you can't ignore it... And Caleb wanted to help Kira... and have a relationship with her, if possible. But Caleb has a secret that can destroy EVERYTHING...

Ah, the geek gone gorgeous, sorta genderbent ugly duckling, and rich as sin. There's gotta be a downside, and it's that secret he'd been hiding. Let's just say it's NOT QUITE as bad as you'd expect it to be, even though it was very selfish of him, even though it's also kinda sweet if you look at it a different way.  I guess the problem is Caleb is almost a bit TOO good and ideal. And Kira a little TOO selfless.  4.5/5

GRR Reviews Hot in the Kitchen by Olivia Burke

Natalie came home to Crystal Springs to take care of her family, putting her own veterinary school plans on hold. Taking a temp job as waitress at LUSH restaurant, she did not expect to see Seth, the heartbreaker, as the sous chef. Still setting back into town, she swore she'll NEVER go back to Seth, the man who left her. // Seth was determined to learn all he can from the famous chef at LUSH and nothing will deter him from his goal, and that includes Natalie, not that he ever expected to see her ever again. But "as friends", he can't let the infamous playboy bartender date her either... and his own plans may be in jeopardy...

It's clearly they aren't over each other, and the whole short novel (just over 100 pages) is sweet. I don't quite like the darkest hour though... It's cliche. (Emotionally distraught MC lashes out at anyone within reach)  4/5

GRR Reviews Ante Up by Christina C Jones

Asha lives in Las Vegas... but it's no dream. She's a waitress earning tips the hard way, trying to save enough to enter the 50K poker tournament. She wins a few K's here and there on the poker table, mainly to keep food on the table. With no parents, she practically raised her brother, who had been nothing but trouble and she had to bail him out more than once. Having a douchebag ex-BF doesn't help. One night, after winning a great hand from a powerful and charming guy, she indulged herself and had a one-night-stand with the man. Who turned out to be the great danger of them all... // King knew Asha was special, when her poker face won that hand, and her body was sinfully delicious. Only later did he knew she actually worked for him. When he asked to be seated in her section, then insulted her, she gave him a bad clue that resulted in him losing a 40K hand, and she got fired. But she won the job back... by playing poker. And now King's definitely smitten. But when her baby brother ended up owing 70K to a loan shark, who works for her ex-BF, King will protect her... whether she wanted it or not...

Proper poker terminologies, and good cast of characters. And King actually does have a character arc of sorts... He actually became a bit more sensitive.

Category: Contemporary

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Just Say You Love Me by B Love

Jaxon has a governor for dad and a judge for mom, and he wants to do public service by becoming the next mayor, having made his fortune as an investment company owner. But he needs to soften his image with a wife... and he can't stand the woman his mother approves of. When he saw his waitress Luana, and later, also found her working for his social media campaign, he realized who he wanted... // Luana is about to become the first college grad in the family while working two part-time jobs AND an internship, and she wanted to go to law school. She knew how her brother, Lucas, sacrificed his own future for her when their parents abandoned them, and Lucas abandoned his own chance at college to raise her. When Lucas found himself even deeper in the financial hole, and had resorted to crime to stay afloat, Luana cannot abandon her brother... So she agreed to be Jaxon's fake wife in exchange for Lucas to be spared. // Jaxon and and Luana are nothing alike... but they have a common goal, and she believed in his vision. But can they love?

Nice, very nice. Occasionally the book got very... preachy, with some serious social message that can be somewhat controversial, but the push-pull between Jaxon and Luana is quite powerful. It's just that despite being 250 pages, the pace just feels... slow.

Category: Contemporary

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Once In a Lifetime by Jayne Nichols

Samantha, a waitress, was kind to an Irishman. Later, she was surprised to find that the Irishman had died and left her a seaside cottage in Ireland on the island of Inish Mor. When his son Kieran came to see her, she sold him the cottage for one Euro, having no reason to visit Europe. // Kieran was angry and believed the waitress conned his dying father, but Sam was nothing like he imagined. After returning to Ireland, he wondered if he made a mistake. He decided to invite her to a full week of Irish experience, including a plane ticket, to see if she really wanted to give it up. In the meanwhile, he's trying to revive his FastTrack farm by training a racehorse. Sam's arrival not only charmed the horse, she also charmed Kieran. But does a poor waitress girl have any chance, when Kieran is obviously going places, and have a beautiful (but possibly evil) ex?

The darkest hour was too trope, IMHO, and the "extra loan" came out of nowhere. But otherwise, the book is good, with a hint of Cinderella at the ball feel.

Category: Contemporary

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below. 

GRR Reviews Fake Marriage With Her Cowboy Billionaire by Hanna Hart

Jack has plenty of money, but when his father died, he learned that unless he marries within 60 days, the majority of his inheritance is going to his dad's old high school, not to him. Jack already endured a divorce, so he's not eager to try again... Until he met waitress Taylor. // Taylor had to take up waitressing when her boyfriend suddenly moved out, taking all the money in the bank account and most of the furniture with him... and left her with 4 months unpaid rent (i.e. no place to live), AND he blamed her for "stifling him". Jack's "fake marriage" proposal (get fake married to him until he gets the inheritance, then he'll pay her a nice big number) may be enough for her to start over. But as they live together, could they actually be falling for each other? Or are they too different?

Seen this plot before, nothing TOO special about this one other than decent polish and push-pull.

Category: Contemporary

Overall Rating: 3.5/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Quinn Security Box Set by Dee Bridgnorth

NOTE: This is a collection of 5 books, which balloons the page count of over 1800 pages.

This review will be a little different from my typical reviews, as I'm trying to evaluate the entire series, instead of one book at a time.

Despite the name suggests it's about a bunch of bodyguards falling for their protectee, it's not. This is really a werewolf series. Really. Paranormal shifters.

Devil's Fist Wyoming is right on the border of Yellowstone National Park, and home to the Quinns, five brothers: Troy, Kaleb, Shane, Conor, and Dean. But they are keeping a huge secret... they are all wolf-shifters had that lived hundreds of years, and Troy is the clan Alpha, the wolf king, of the area, after passing of his father. The town has many wolf-shifters living amongst the populace, who's not aware of their existence.

Then one full-moon night it all changed... a young librarian's colleague was brutally killed by a beast. An ambitious sheriff is determined to get to the bottom of it, and runs into Troy, as Troy sensed the attacker was NOT a wolf... and he found, after piecing together clues... the conclusion is inevitable... He's up against a rogue shifter... with unimaginable mind powers of compulsion. And Troy realized that the young librarian may be his one true mate...

The series goes on to feature each brother falling for another female... but each has his or her own secrets and ambitions.  Kaleb fell for the waitress who had a surprising heritage she's not aware of. Shane was paired with sheriff's fiery daughter who refuses to be protected by her father or be cowed by him. Conor found himself drawn to the deputy Rachel who's determined to get a promotion... by finding out more about the shifters. And Dean ended up falling for a city slicker girl, who has her own surprise for the entire town...

There is definitely a bit of world-building, as the shifter lore here is quite different from the typical shifter lore, but more of a mix between shifter and vampire lore. (Shifter blood turns a normal to a shifter with ties to the original shifter) And there is quite a bit of sex. The UBG does make his appearance from time to time. usually with a dastardly plan that was barely thwarted with some hard fought battles.

All in all, I liked the series, but it seriously needs a new title to tell the readers it's NOT a typical security tale.

Category: Contemporary / Shifter

Overall Rating: 4/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.