Review: "Playing for Fun" by Tracey Alvarez

Synopsis:

PLAYING FOR FUN is the sixth story in Tracey Alvarez’s best-selling Due South books set against the stunning backdrop of Aotearoa, New Zealand. If you like Jill Shalvis, Marie Force, or Bella Andre, then you’ll enjoy diving into these heart-warming, sexy & seductive small-town romances with authentic men and women struggling to find their special someone.

Wanted: A woman for Ford.

Ford Komeke can’t deny he could use an up-skill in the dating arena. It’s a local in-joke that his game, as far as women go, sucks. Thanks to the meddling of New Zealand’s worst octogenarian matchmaker, he’s got an online dating profile, a new wardrobe, and a haircut from Stewart Island’s sexy hairdresser, Holly Parker. But since he’s well and truly mired in the friendzone with Holly, what’s the harm in exploring his options? A little jealousy could work wonders.

Offered: Dream job with a catch.

What do you say when you’re offered an un-turn-downable career opportunity? You say, hell-to-the-yeah! Only there’s a problem. To get the dream job Holly must leave Stewart Island and her two best friends, Shaye and Ford. But if Holly can distract Shaye with wedding planning and set Ford up with a nice girl so she can stop imagining him naked, neither will notice if she exits stage right. Neither will notice if her feelings for Ford stop being strictly platonic.

Warning: One kiss is never enough.

As addictive as the chocolate stash Holly hides in her fridge, one kiss forces them out of the friendzone—way out of the friendzone. Heat and hunger explode, but the ugliness in Ford’s past hold his heart hostage. Playing for fun or playing for keeps? Holly and Ford must decide because the consequences of falling in love means that someone’s heart or someone’s dream will ultimately end up shattered.

Genre: Contemporary Romance

My Review:

In all honesty, I struggled with this book at the beginning. It moved way too slowly for a long time at the beginning. Almost to the point that I considered putting the book down. It took a lot longer than I thought it should have to get to the meat of the story. There was just too much back and forth between Ford and Holly with "Ford this" and Holly that" But once it finally did, I enjoyed the book.

One thing I really enjoyed was Maori and New Zealand language and traditions. They were well placed in the story and really added to the depth of the story. I also really enjoyed the interaction with previous residents of Oban that we've met in former "Due South" books. It's great to check in and see how their lives how progressed, and what's happening in their lives affects the hero and heroine of the current story.

I also loved the octogenarian input into their lives. Adding a comic component like that in a book always adds to the richness of it.

The love story between Ford and Holly, once it finally got started, was sweet and wonderful and I was happy to see they finally worked through what were easy communication issues to dig to the root of what they needed to do to make themselves happy. Together.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Links:

Goodreads • Amazon • Barnes and Noble • Kobo • iBooks • Google Play

About the Author:

I live in the Coolest Little Capital in the World (a.k.a Wellington, New Zealand) where I’ve yet to be buried under my to-be-read book pile by our infamous wind—my Kindle’s a lifesaver! Married to a wonderfully supportive IT guy (who doesn’t mind cooking dinner while his wife mutters to herself and hammers away at the keyboard), we have two teens who would love to be surgically linked to their electronic devices.

As a teenager I devoured novel after novel in my maths class, which explains why I still don’t understand using the alphabet in equations. I discovered a stack of tattered paperbacks hidden in my mother’s wardrobe featuring scantily clad women wrapped around bare-chested hunks. Who needs a pimply-faced teenage boyfriend when you can have book boyfriends, right? So as a child I got my first taste of Happily Ever After in fairy-tales, but after reading romance—I was hooked.

Fuelled by copious amounts of coffee, I’m now the author of contemporary romantic fiction set predominantly in New Zealand. Small-towns, close communities, and families are a big part of the heart-warming stories I love to write. Oh, and hot, down-to-earth heroes—real Kiwi men, in other words.

When I’m not writing, thinking about writing, or procrastinating about writing, I can be found reading sexy books of all romance genres and nibbling on smuggled chocolate bars. What? You were expecting me to say free-dive training, hiking the world-famous Rakiura track on Stewart Island, and restoring classic cars? Nope, sorry. I’ll leave such excitement to my characters as they explore their worlds and find the love of their lives.

Website: http://traceyalvarez.com/

Review: "Ready to Burn" by Tracey Alvarez

Synopsis:

Love small-town romance with an unforgettable cast of characters? The Due South series will transport you to an unspoilt, wild island of the coast of New Zealand. Meet Shaye and Del...

Take one sassy Harland girl…

Shaye Harland, sous chef de-awesome, desperately wants the role of Due South’s head chef. Though a little out of her depth, she can totally cope with the extra demands if she can resist her future brother-in-law when he muscles in on her kitchen. The Hollywood wannabe is nothing but a troublesome distraction and he fries her sexometer to a crisp. But as far as romance? Forget it. Love, when she finds Mr. Perfect, will be as sweet as her to-die-for cookies.

Add a bad-boy from LA…

Del Westlake swore he’d never again set foot on the island he calls the “ass end of New Zealand.” With his reputation as a sous chef in one of LA’s hottest restaurants trashed, and his estranged father’s restaurant needing a head chef, Del wants nothing more than to go in, get the job done, and get out. Except his feisty second-in-command carves herself a spot in his heart and completely incinerates his plans.

Watch the sparks fly as they burn it up in the kitchen… 

Winning a spot on a TV reality show is just what Del needs to jumpstart his career back in the States. Nothing can get in the way of him winning—not even the woman whose trust he’d destroy if she discovers his secrets. But with a film crew capturing the explosive kitchen chemistry between them, will his bad-boy ways rear up and ruin his shot at becoming Shaye’s Mr. Perfect?

Genre: Contemporary Romance

My Review:

What a wonderful visit back to Stewart Island and a chance to catch up with old friends, and make some new ones. We first meet Del as a brooding man who is clearly unhappy with the direction his life has taken, and is contemplative about his past, and his future. Throughout the book, we see many complexities to Del but at the root of it, we see a little boy who is yearning for acceptance from his father. Everything he has done in his life, from being a chef, to seeking love and acceptance but not commitment, can be tied back to his need for acceptance and love from his father. He feelings of isolation run deep and he is continually reminded of his feelings of rejection each time he sees his childhood friends as adult, in the places he longed to feel belonging in. He was a wonderfully-endearing character and despite his broodiness and often boorish behavior, you can't help but root for him to get the love and acceptance he needs in his life - from his father, and from a good woman.

Shaye feels the need to take care of everyone and everything. Her caring nature is often translated into her relationships, and her feelings of desire for Del become intermingled with her need to help him through his troubles with his father and his issues with previous relationships. A broken man and a nurturing woman - what could be more perfect! And you would think so, but of course, love is never that easy. Shaye's deep held feelings for her home on Stewart Island are constantly offended by Del's immense need to protect himself from continued hurt at home by expressing disdain for the island and everything about it. His need to leave and her need to stay create a conflict you aren't sure, as the reader, they will be able to overcome. We aren't just talking about leaving a small town for the big city here - we're talking about one of them needing to be halfway around the world!  The twists and turns the author produces with that conflict (and it's SO not what you would have expected) creates a situation where you the reader can't predict whether these two will get the happily-ever-after you know they both deserve.

The book is well written and I appreciated the balance of dialogue and narrative presented by the author. There are sex scenes but they do not overwhelm the story and are included in such a way that they contribute to and enhance the story. And, as an American, I love the taste of New Zealand that I get each time I read a book by this author, who even includes some fun pokes at Americans with her jabs at Del's adoption of American words and pronounciation of words over their New Zealand counterparts. Its a fun visit back to Stewart Island and I enjoyed catching up with old friends such as West and Piper and Kezia and Ben, and seeing what's been happening since we last saw them!

Links:

Goodreads - Amazon - Barnes and Noble - Kobo - iBooks

About the Author:

I live in the Coolest Little Capital in the World (a.k.a Wellington, New Zealand) where I’ve yet to be buried under my to-be-read book pile by our infamous wind—my Kindle’s a lifesaver! Married to a wonderfully supportive IT guy (who doesn’t mind cooking dinner while his wife mutters to herself and hammers away at the keyboard), we have two teens who would love to be surgically linked to their electronic devices.

As a teenager I devoured novel after novel in my maths class, which explains why I still don’t understand using the alphabet in equations. I discovered a stack of tattered paperbacks hidden in my mother’s wardrobe featuring scantily clad women wrapped around bare-chested hunks. Who needs a pimply-faced teenage boyfriend when you can have book boyfriends, right? So as a child I got my first taste of Happily Ever After in fairy-tales, but after reading romance—I was hooked.

Fuelled by copious amounts of coffee, I’m now the author of contemporary romantic fiction set predominantly in New Zealand. Small-towns, close communities, and families are a big part of the heart-warming stories I love to write. Oh, and hot, down-to-earth heroes—real Kiwi men, in other words.

When I’m not writing, thinking about writing, or procrastinating about writing, I can be found reading sexy books of all romance genres and nibbling on smuggled chocolate bars. What? You were expecting me to say free-dive training, hiking the world-famous Rakiura track on Stewart Island, and restoring classic cars? Nope, sorry. I’ll leave such excitement to my characters as they explore their worlds and find the love of their lives.

"Melting into You" by Tracey Alvarez

Love small-town romance with an unforgettable cast of characters? The Due South series will transport you to an unspoilt, wild island off the coast of New Zealand. Meet Kezia and Ben...

Big, sexy men who don’t relate well to kids need not apply…

Kezia Murphy plays her widow card well. When you don’t trust people not to let you down, it’s easier to not get involved—and getting involved with a man who makes her skin sizzle just by looking at him would be una pazzia—crazy! Four years ago while Kezia’s daughter, Zoe, battled leukemia, a tragic accident stole her husband’s life. Starting over in the little town of Oban where she’s adopted into the close knit community on Stewart Island, Kezia and her daughter are all the family the other needs. Except Zoe yearns for more.

New Zealand’s worst candidate for instant fatherhood…

Ben doesn't do gooey emotional stuff. He doesn't do cozy home and family. And he sure isn't the big teddy-bear Kezia Murphy, the woman he secretly fantasies about, thinks he is. So when Jade, his surprise eight-year-old daughter arrives on his doorstep, he’s a D-minus student struggling to pass a crash-course in parenting.

They’ll either melt or raze their lives to the ground…

When the sparks of attraction between Kezia and Ben fan into an inferno, Ben doesn't know how much longer the layers of resistance around his heart can resist melting into the gooey mess he fears. The more he fights it the harder it is to make the choice that will destroy the family he now longs to claim.

My review:

After meeting Ben in the first book in the Due South series, In Too Deep, and seeing how the book teased a relationship between Ben and Kezia, I was looking forward to reading Melting Into You.  The book didn't quite start as I expected.  Ben was gruff and onery in Due South, but I really didn't like him at the beginning of Melting Into You.  I've read many stories of instant fatherhood and I was really hating Ben as he was first introduced to Jade.  I felt like he was trying to prove everyone's opinion that he was a bastard with women and no business being with children.  Perhaps that was the author's intention and if so, she nailed it because I REALLY didn't like him.  But, he grew on you.  As he grew into his role as a father, he also grew into his role as a man.  While he may have been the "support system" and "fixer" for the family since his father's death, he hadn't really been emotionally part of his family. In addition to growing as a man and a father over time with Jade, he also demonstrated that he grew as a son and a brother and began to develop a better / deeper relationship with his sisters!

Kezia was definitely hesitant to get involved with someone again.  That was clearly understood.  I really enjoyed watching her struggle with her growing feelings for Ben warring with her desire to protect her heart, and her child.  I loved the little bits of Italian thrown into the story - it made me picture her showing these emotions very clearly in my head.

Another reason I struggled at the beginning of this book is that I felt that the writing and the dialog at the beginning was juvenile.  Ben may have been an emotionally challenged man, but the early parts of the book read like he was barely out of his teens, and we know that isn't true.  As the book progressed, the writing and dialog was definitely more mature and I felt the intimacy scenes were well written.  I loved it when Ben's ears would turn red when he was embarrassed! 

The addition of Jade's dyslexia was a nice addition to the story, but I wish the author would have teased us with that challenge in Ben prior to just springing it on us in a parent/teacher conference.  A few tips about Ben struggling with reading to Jade, or helping her with homework, or working with paperwork, etc, would have been a nice way to lead up to Jade's diagnosis - it would have given a bit of insight into part of why Ben is the way he is, because he "felt" dumb.

Despite Ben's challenges with his ability to emotionally connect with Kezia, in the end, I loved how the author allowed Ben to express his feelings to Kezia.  He didn't talk about the sex or her body - he said that he missed her voice.  He said that he liked to talk to her and he'd missed that - and he'd missed her.  Cue the tears - a very romantic declaration of love.  I also love that he knows enough about himself to warn Kezia about how it will be in their relationship.  About how he'll mess up and say stupid things, but that he'll never stop loving her and she'll never have to be alone again!  It showed that he was fully committed to his love with Kezia and Zoe. 

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