Isn't It Romantic?

Now or Never
Victoria Denault
Series: San Francisco Thunder, #4
Age/Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Forever Yours
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

From the bestselling author of the Hometown Players series comes a sexy romance about a bad boy hockey player who wants a second chance to win the heart of his high school crush.

All Winnie Braddock wants is a quiet place to be alone and time to heal her battered heart. But the refuge she'd hoped for in her family's summer cottage is destroyed when she gets there to find Holden Hendricks literally camped out in the driveway. He made her life hell when they were kids, and despite what he says, it doesn't look like much has changed. She doesn't care if her brother hired Holden to renovate the house this winter; she wants him gone.

You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take. Holden knows that hockey saying all too well. After all, he could have gone pro if he hadn't messed up so much as a kid. But now he's desperate to prove he's changed for the better, especially to Winnie Braddock. As the two work together to fix the cottage piece by piece, they realize that perhaps they can give each other the new beginning they've both been waiting for-if they're just willing to take the shot.

I have nothing but love for the Braddock family, and am sad to see it all end, but I am also glad to see Winnie taking back her life and finding her happy.

It appeared, that Winnie's withdrawal began with her father's illness, but it seems like she had problems in other areas of her life as well. It was advice from her father, which finally made her stop, take a hard look at herself, and start making decisions to get out of her rut and back to the land of the living. I am not going to say she went head-on into this whole new adventure. In reality, Winnie made a big decision, and then sort of wallowed in her grief, but then a little blast from her past gave her a push in the right direction.

Holden had been the resident bad boy. He had a mean disposition and knew how to push Winnie's buttons. He was back in his hometown looking to atone for his past and rebuild those relationships he had broken, back when he was an angry teen. Holden learned from his past, he learned from his mistakes, and he was ready to begin anew. He just needed the other people to believe that he had changed too.

Holden was definitely the star of this story for me. I have a special place in my heart for people, who have to fight back from the bottom, and Holden sort of had to do it all on his own. I could tell how hard he was working to earn back the trust and friendship from all those he alienated as he grappled with his grief and pain in his younger years. A stint in juvie and years of hard work made him a different man, and it pained me that so many people in his life couldn't believe he could change. It was quite gratifying to see so many things fall into place for him, and I especially loved that he got his HEA.

This book had so many elements, which made me happy. It was a hate-to-love-romance with a whiff of second-chance thrown in there. Winnie and Holden shared quite a past, and I adored all their history. Attraction is always great to see in a romance, but it was seeing something real and meaningful develop between Holden and Winnie, which really warmed my heart. Both had some past experiences, that cut them deeply, and this allowed them to see each other in a way many hadn't.

Other things I loved:

• Finding out why Holden called Winnie "Larry" ❤️
• Duke and Uncle Holden
• The Braddock siblings
• A wedding!!! 
• Being in Maine

I have grown to love this family so much, and I will miss them, but I am really happy with the ending Denault gave them.

99 Percent Mine
Sally Thorne
Series: n/a
Age/Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: William Marrow
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads

Crush: a strong and often short-lived infatuation, particularly for someone beyond your reach…

Darcy Barrett has undertaken a global survey of men. She’s travelled the world, and can categorically say that no one measures up to Tom Valeska, whose only flaw is that Darcy’s twin brother Jamie saw him first and claimed him forever as his best friend. Despite Darcy’s best efforts, Tom’s off limits and loyal to her brother, 99%. That’s the problem with finding her dream man at age eight and peaking in her photography career at age twenty—ever since, she’s had to learn to settle for good enough.

When Darcy and Jamie inherit a tumble-down cottage from their grandmother, they’re left with strict instructions to bring it back to its former glory and sell the property. Darcy plans to be in an aisle seat halfway across the ocean as soon as the renovations start, but before she can cut and run, she finds a familiar face on her porch: house-flipper extraordinaire Tom’s arrived, he’s bearing power tools, and he’s single for the first time in almost a decade.

Suddenly Darcy’s considering sticking around to make sure her twin doesn’t ruin the cottage’s inherent magic with his penchant for grey and chrome. She’s definitely not staying because of her new business partner’s tight t-shirts, or that perfect face that's inspiring her to pick up her camera again. Soon sparks are flying—and it’s not the faulty wiring. It turns out one percent of Tom’s heart might not be enough for Darcy anymore. This time around, she’s switching things up. She’s going to make Tom Valeska 99 percent hers.

I had a lot of emotions as I read this book, and in the end, if Darcy had taken my portrait, it would have looked a lot like this:

Many of the things, which made me love Thorne's previous book, The Hating Game, were present in this book. Great chemistry, snappy banter, some serious heat - it was all there, but what I really adored was the history the couple shared.

Darcy and Tom were childhood friends. I mean, Tom was practically her family's third child, and he remained close to Darcy's parents and her twin brother, who was considered Tom's best friend. It was love at first sight for Darcy, but she always felt that Tom belonged to her brother, and he was only about 1% her's. When Tom finally became a possibility, Darcy fled. She led this vagabond life, never letting herself love someone, because that "someone" would never be Tom. And THEN, fate intervened. Once again, Tom was a possibility, and this time, Darcy was determined to make him 99% her's, and I know I was rooting for her to make it happen.

I think my heart physically hurt, when I learned Darcy's thoughts regarding her unrequited love for Tom. Her feelings of longing and loss, when it came to him, were palpable. Imagine having to maintain contact with the one you will forever long for, the one you think you could never have. It was heartbreaking, and because of that and the fact that I grew to love both Darcy and Tom, I NEEDED them to finally act upon their feelings for one another.

I won't lie. It wasn't insta-love for me when it came to Darcy. She was quite hard and brash, and I was sort of buying into the picture her family painted of her. However, as the story played out, I learned a lot about her and started to understand why she was the way she was. She was sort of wild with many, many quirks, but, I will admit, her impulsiveness and lack of filter created some of the most hilarious moments in the book.

Now, Tom I loved from page one. Remember, I was seeing him through the eyes of a women, who has adored him for decades, so he definitely came across as a unicorn-man via Darcy. But, his actions backed up what Darcy was seeing, and let me tell you, he was all sorts of wonderful.

Why 4 instead of 5 stars? Once again, I would have loved to have the hero's point of view. I did feel like there was a lot of honest discussions between the two, so we weren't totally in the dark about how Tom felt, but his POV would have help present a clearer picture, when it came to certain things. I also felt like some of the side drama was detracting from the central focus, which was the push-and-pull romance between Darcy and Tom. However, I had the opportunity to share enough really special moments with those two, that more than made up for any wee thing that bothered me.

And, the ENDING! I was crying and smiling and I loved it so much. In fact, I have a huge grin on my face and some tears in my eyes, right now, as I relate this to you (see picture above). It was a good ending, and it has me wondering if maybe we will revisit this world. It seemed like there could be a story brewing for Darcy's brother, Jamie. Pssst, Sally Thorne, I would love to read that story.

Overall: Another solid romance from Thorne, which made me laugh, cry, swoon, and smile.

**ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

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