Tools of Engagement by Tessa Bailey

Summary:
Hair, makeup, clothing, decor… everything in Bethany Castle’s world is organized, planned, and styled to perfection. Which is why the homes she designs for her family’s real estate business are the most coveted in town. The only thing not perfect? Her track record with men. She’s on a dating hiatus and after helping her friends achieve their dreams, Bethany finally has time to focus on her own: flip a house, from framework to furnishings, all by herself. Except her older brother runs the company and refuses to take her seriously.
When a television producer gets wind of the Castle sibling rivalry, they’re invited on Flip Off, a competition to see who can do the best renovation. Bethany wants bragging rights, but she needs a crew and the only member of her brother’s construction team willing to jump ship is Wes Daniels, the new guy in town. His Texas drawl and handsome face got under Bethany’s skin on day one, but the last thing she needs is some cocky young cowboy in her way.
As the race to renovate heats up, Wes and Bethany are forced into close quarters, trading barbs and biting banter as they remodel the ugliest house on the block. It’s a labor of love, hate, and everything in between, and soon sparks are flying. But Bethany’s perfectly structured life is one kiss away from going up in smoke and she knows falling for a guy like Wes would be a flipping disaste

Review:
Tools of Engagement follows Bethany who wants more responsibility when it comes to the family business. She wants to do a whole house, from demolition to decorations. But her father and brother don’t take her seriously. Enter HGTV jumping in and creating a sibling house flipping competition. Bethany is working with Wes while flipping the house and things get busy at the job site.
I still think the second book in this series is my favorite, but I did really enjoy this one. I liked the family aspects that were involved with Wes and his niece. I also liked seeing Bethany make an effort to show and be more herself.
I can totally understand why this series is so popular. I really had a fun time reading all three of these books. I read them back-to-back so I really got to enjoy the friendships and the romantic relationships all together. I will definitely be recommending this series in the future.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

Love Her or Lose Her by Tessa Bailey

Summary:
Rosie and Dominic Vega are the perfect couple: high school sweethearts, best friends, madly in love. Well, they used to be, anyway. Now, Rosie’s lucky to get a caveman grunt from the ex-soldier every time she walks in the door. Dom is faithful and a great provider, but the man she fell in love with 10 years ago is nowhere to be found. When her girlfriends encourage Rosie to demand more out of life and pursue her dream of opening a restaurant, she decides to demand more out of love, too. Three words: marriage boot camp.
Never in a million years did Rosie believe her stoic, too-manly-to emote husband would actually agree to relationship rehab with a weed-smoking hippie. Dom talking about feelings? Sitting on pillows? Communing with nature? Learning love languages? Nope. But to her surprise, he’s all in, and it forces her to admit her own role in their cracked foundation. As they complete one ridiculous – yet surprisingly helpful – assignment after another, their remodeled relationship gets stronger than ever. Except just as they’re getting back on track, Rosie discovers Dom has a secret… and it could demolish everything.

Review:
Love Her or Lose Her is the second book in the Hot & Hammered series. I really enjoyed Fix Her Up so I was very excited to read the sequel. We follow Rosie and Dominic who are high school sweethearts. The story starts and Rosie is finally leaving Dominic. She doesn’t feel like they have a salvageable relationship, but Dominic doesn’t want to give up and agrees to therapy (which surprises Rosie). I don’t know what it is, but I really love romance novels about already married couples and this one continued that trend. I really liked Rosie. She has goals and dreams that she’s actively working on making reality. She has things that she wants and she’s not going to wait to get them any longer. But when things between her and Dominic start to get better, Rosie’s not sure if leaving him is the right thing to do anymore.
I loved this book. I think it’s my favorite in the series. I loved seeing Rosie and Dominic find their way back to one another emotionally. I think the book was totally steamy, just like the first one. I was easily invested in the chahracters and the romance. I rooted for them and felt the ups and downs alongside them.
Overall, I loved this one. I will be reading move from Tessa Bailey as soon as I get the chance.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey

Summary:
After an injury ends Travis Ford’s major league baseball career, he returns home to start over. He just wants to hammer out his frustrations at his new construction gig and forget all about his glory days. But he can’t even walk through town without someone recapping his greatest hits. Or making a joke about his… bat. And then there’s Georgie, his buddy’s little sister, who is definitely not a kid anymore.
Georgette Castle has crushed on her older brother’s best friend for years. The grumpy, bear of a man working for her family’s house flipping business is a far cry from the charming sports star she used to know. But a moody scowl doesn’t scare her and Georgie’s determined to show Travis he’s more than a pretty face and a batting average, even if it means putting her feelings aside to be “just friends.”
Travis wants to brood in peace. But the girl he used to tease is now a funny, full-of-life woman who makes him feel whole again. And he wants her. So damn bad. Except Georgie’s off limits and he knows he can’t give her what she deserves. But she’s becoming the air he breathes and Travis can’t stay away, no matter how hard he tries…

Review:
Fix Her Up follows Georgie and Travis. Travis is a baseball player whose career ended early due to an injury (though I don’t ever remember being told what the injury was and he never really talked about it). He’s a player, nicknamed ‘Two Bats’ (yes, this is about his penis. Yes, this is a stupid nickname.) But when a new job opportunity arises, he must shed the ‘play boy’ image and show that he can be wholesome and family network approved. Enter Georgie. Georgie has had a huge crush on Travis her whole life. He’s her older brother’s best friend. So, she’s always been Stephen’s kid sister. This is an image she’s trying to shed. She feels like no one takes her seriously (which I mean, she’s a professional clown so…). She and Travis ‘fake date’ to make Travis seem more wholesome and to get people to stop thinking of Georgie as a kid.
I liked Georgie. I could relate to her with her family dynamic. My dad owns his own business and it’s always been planned to be passed on to my older brother. So, I was sort of left to wonder what the heck I wanted to do since my life wasn’t planned for me since birth. I was left to make my own way, like Georgie. Though, I didn’t become a professional clown. I liked how Georgie was persistent and stubborn. She was determined to help Travis at the beginning and she really did help him.
Travis was interesting because we see him pretty down at the beginning of the story. But we also see things turn around for him. His character growth was really enjoyable. I loved being in his head while he can’t seem to stop thinking about Georgie. I thought the struggle of ‘but she’s my best friend’s sister’ was a good one. Especially since he couldn’t ever really manage to stay away from her.
Now, I have to mention this. If you like romance without explicit sex scenes, this series is not for you. Because these books are hot. They’re explicit and incredibly steamy. I loved it. I loved the positive talk about masturbation. I also loved the communication between the two whiles being intimate. Some reviewers have said there’s too much talking, but damn that dirty talk was absolutely excellent.
Overall, I had a lot of fun reading this book. The sex scenes were steamy and the romance was one that I could get behind. I liked the growth and development of the two main characters. I also liked the growth of the side relationships. Georgie betters her relationship with her sister and makes a new friend, Rosie, and I loved these three women together. The only thing that I would have liked to be different was that I wanted more of Georgie expanding her entertainment business. We see her talk a bit about getting more performers, but the story focuses more on the romance and on Travis’s future than Georgie bettering her business.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.