by Jill Shalvis
Series: Heartbreaker Bay #2
Genres: Contemporary
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: September 27th 2016
Source: ARC received for review
Rating: ★★★★
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If she has her way ...
Willa Davis is wrangling puppies when Keane Winters stalks into her pet shop with frustration in his chocolate-brown eyes and a pink bedazzled cat carrier in his hand. He needs a kitty sitter, stat. But the last thing Willa needs is to rescue a guy who doesn’t even remember her ...
He’ll get nothing but coal in his stocking.
Saddled with his great-aunt’s Feline from Hell, Keane is desperate to leave her in someone else’s capable hands. But in spite of the fact that he’s sure he’s never seen the drop-dead-gorgeous pet shop owner before, she seems to be mad at him ...
Unless he tempers “naughty” with a special kind of nice ...
Willa can’t deny that Keane’s changed since high school: he’s less arrogant, for one thing—but can she trust him not to break her heart again? It’s time to throw a coin in the fountain, make a Christmas wish—and let the mistletoe do its work ...
This series by Jill Shalvis is easily turning out to be a favorite. I adored Sweet Little Lies and I was very eager to dive into The Trouble With Mistletoe. I thought this was even better than the first book. This is the kind of book that has you smiling all throughout and in the end, leaves you with warm, light and fuzzy feelings.
Willa, with her adorable little pet shop, made me so happy. I loved being inside her head and getting to know her throughout the book. She had a cheerful personality and she was the kind of girl who just spread happiness wherever she went. With her love for animals and her giant heart, she was a delight as a character and I have no doubt that readers will fall as easily for Willa as I did. She finds her perfect match in Keane, a boy who broke her heart in high school. Keane doesn't remember Willa and while I thought I'd be annoyed by that, it was very understandable because he didn't realize she was being serious when she asked him to a dance. Keane is no longer that arrogant teenage boy though and he has grown to become a much better person. I loved him so darn much! His charm, his sexiness and his gentleness had my heart racing. I dare you to not fall for Keane, especially after him deciding to help his aunt care for her devil cat. I mean talk about swoon!
From their first meeting, these two were just so adorable. Sparks flew whenever they were together and they were just so good together. Both were a little lonely, but also unwilling to let anyone in and while that could have been written in a frustrating way, I thought it was done well here. I actually liked that Willa took her sweet time to agree to any kind of relationship with Keane because that gave him the perfect opportunity to woo her and work to gain her affections. No matter how hard she tried, Willa found it impossible to resist this sweet guy. Together as a couple, Keane and Willa were so ship-worthy and they had me internally dancing around in glee. I also love the way that Jill Shalvis writes her sexy scenes. They are steamy, and tender without being overly descriptive. I love it when an author can make you see both the physical and emotional connection a couple shares in a bedroom scene and Jill Shalvis definitely knows how to do that.
I was also eager to be back with the rest of the gang in The Trouble With Mistletoe. My love for these friends continues to grow by leaps and bounds. They are hilarious and protective and make me so envious that I don't have such a friend group in my life. You also can't have a Jill Shalvis book without a pet and the animals here were just as delightful as I was expecting. Keane's aunt's devil cat was hilarious with her dislike for him and how perfectly well-behaved she was with Willa. Not to mention, I adored the beach town setting here. It makes me want to move to Hearbreaker Bay!
The Trouble With Mistletoe is the kind of book that you should read if you're looking for some cute feels, swoony kissing and characters you want to root for. I highly recommend this one!
Excerpt
A guy stood on the other side of the glass, mouth grim, expression dialed to Tall, Dark and Attitude-ridden. He was something too, all gorgeous and broody and –hold up. There was something familiar about him, enough that her feet propelled her forward out of pure curiosity. When it hit her halfway to the door, she froze, her heart just about skidding to a stop.
“Keane Winters,” she murmured, lip curling like she’d just eaten a black licorice. She hated black licorice. But she was looking at the only man on the planet who could make her feel all puckered up as well as good about her decision to give up men.
In fact, if she’d only given them up sooner, say back on the day of the Sadie Hawkins dance in her freshman year of high school when he’d stood her up, she’d have saved herself a lot of heartache in the years since.
On the other side of the door, Keane shoved his mirrored sunglasses to the top of his head, revealing dark chocolate eyes that she knew could melt when he was amused or feeling flirtatious, or turn to ice when he was so inclined.
They were ice now.
Catching her gaze, he lifted a cat carrier. A bright pink bedazzled carrier.
He had a cat.
Her entire being wanted to soften at this knowledge because that meant on some level at least he had to be a good guy, right?
Luckily her brain clicked on, remembering everything, every little detail of that long ago night. Like how she’d had to borrow a dress for the dance from a girl in her class who’d gleefully lorded it over her, how she’d had to beg her foster mother to let her go, how she’d stolen a Top Ramen from the locked pantry and eaten it dry in the bathroom so she wouldn’t have to buy both her dinner and his, as was custom for the “backward” dance.
“We’re closed,” she said through the still locked glass door.
Not a word escaped his lips. He simply raised the cat carrier another inch, like he was God’s gift.
And he had been. At least in high school.
Author Biography
Any resemblance to the quirky characters in her books is, um, mostly coincidental.
Look for Jill’s sexy contemporary and award-winning books wherever romances are sold and click on the blog button above for a complete book list and daily blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures.
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