The Honeymoon Trap

The Honeymoon Trap by Kelly Hunter

Calling Eli Jackson the "shy" Jackson brother is not a difficult stretch, considering how loud and boisterous his two older brothers are.  But there is something more reserved and cautious about Eli that "shy" doesn't even begin to cover.  So when Cutter and Calder gift Eli a "honeymoon" trip to a gaming convention with his "game wife", Eli is not thrilled.  After finding out his "wife" is outgoing and sexy, he is ready to call the whole thing off.

Zoey Daniels lives life in the moment.  She touches everyone she meets, both literally and figuratively.  When she is invited to spend a weekend at a gaming convention with the man she has been gaming with for two years, but has never met, she jumps in with both feet.  Now she finds herself falling hard for a man who has cut himself off from the world, and happiness in general.  Can she touch him deep enough to make a difference and open him up to the possibilities of life?

This one started out very fun and light-hearted.  There was a lot of back and forth bantering that actually does happen when gamers congregate (I know because I am married to one and have hosted my share of game nights).  I loved the brotherly interaction as well.  Ironically, that is another one I have first hand knowledge of.

The light-heartedness turned a little emotional toward the middle though, with both characters discovering each other's challenges.  The way those challenges were dealt with were very really.  I didn't feel cheated, as though the author was trying to find an easy fix to some major issues.  The reactions were raw and well timed, and the resolution was fun, but with that little bit of brevity that makes it special.

As always, I need to consider the supporting characters.  The only real supporting characters in this book were the brothers.  And their antics were both fun and endearing.  They obviously love their little brother and are genuinely worried about him, but they also like to take the mickey out of him...a lot.

Overall, this was an awesome and insightful story that will have readers admitting that they might just be gamers at heart.

Ratings:

(1=unacceptable, 2=poor, 3=acceptable, 4=good, 5=excellent)

Continuity/Flow – 5

Sex – 5 

Language – 3

Storyline – 5

Overall – 5

What A Bride Wants

What A Bride Wants By Kelly Hunter

Ella Grace Emerson’s father is fed up.  Ella works too hard, never travels, and nowhere near close to giving him grandkids.  So he decides to take an ad out on Ella’s behalf:  for a house husband.  Furious at his interference, Ella responds with an ad of her own:  for the perfect lover.

When Cameron Sawyer first sees Ella walk into Grey’s Saloon he definitely likes what he sees.  When he discovers that she is the subject of the ad that is making waves in town, and that she has just posted another, he sees nothing but warning signs.

Can the two of them work around Sawyer’s nomadic lifestyle and shady past, as well as Ella’s tendency to shy away from relationships?

I think many people would want to stand up and cheer for Ella’s response to her father, but I cheered for her father.  He totally knew what he was doing.  Samuel T provides a definite comedic element that is needed to lighten the heavier topics.

I enjoyed the family-centric theme to this story more than anything else.  Between Ella’s love for her father despite her frustrations with him, both Ella and her father still mourning the loss of her mother, and Sawyer’s apparent feelings of betrayal toward his own family, the family-induced emotions run the gamut here.

I was not a big fan of Ella’s friend Jo, so I hope she becomes more likeable (less annoying) in future books.  However, I am looking forward to both Mardie’s and Reese’s respective stories.

Overall this story was a great read.  Very quick, to the point where I think it could have been longer, but still very well told.

Ratings:

(1=unacceptable, 2=poor, 3=acceptable, 4=good, 5=excellent)

Continuity/Flow – 4

Sex – 3 

Language – 3 

Storyline – 4

Overall – 4