Liv and Audrey own a floral shop and are the go-to place in Ramble. Audrey's old friend, Jenny, comes in with her mother to arrange the flowers for her wedding to Derek Rawlings, son of the socially prominent family of Ramble. Jenny comes back later to tell Audrey the wedding is cancelled. Later that night Derek is found dead. Now Audrey must find out who did or Jenny could face life in prison.

I enjoyed this story. The world building is good. The story drags as the beginning but there is more action after the murder so it picks up. I only could remember who the killer was when I realized I had read this before--before I used Goodreads.

I liked the characters. Some of the secondary characters will be recurring ones. Others are one and done. I like the way the recurring characters have created a family for themselves. I appreciated how none of them wanted to listen to gossip but it was necessary to find the killer. I hope I can get the other books in the series.

This is book #2, in The Mixed Six Pack series.  This book can be read as a standalone novel.  For reader enjoyment, and to understand the series, I recommend reading the series in order.

This absolutely slow burn begins with the lawyer meeting the Psych student under what is supposed to be false pretenses.  Then it isn't.  Dylan is already enamored with Kama from the beginning, despite the warning from his client.

Kama is this close to getting her degree. She is finishing her thesis, and Dylan is probably going to be the last bit of research.  Her head warns herself, says she should stay away.  But there is just something about him.....

Lots of surprises in store for the reader.  With an excellent story, incredibly deep and rich characters, this story starts out so slow but with each chapter builds more pieces.  I will not give spoilers.  Each thread of this book builds and builds.  I give this book a 3/5 Kitty's Paws UP!

***This early copy was given in exchange for an honest review.

This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.

I really had a great time with this audiobook! This is the second book in the Snow Sisters trilogy which really would be best when read in order. This book picks up shortly after the events of the previous book and focuses on the same group of characters. I thought that it was kind of fun to watch these two couples move on to the next stage of their relationships. I found this to be a very enjoyable listen.

Kaylie and Chaz are very much in love as they await the birth of their baby. It has taken a lot fo these two to get to this point and they still have a few obstacles to overcome. Kaylie not only has the pregnancy to deal with but she is also finding it to be increasingly difficult to book new performances. Chaz has a few issues to deal with as well including one old flame determined to make things difficult.

I really liked Kaylie and Chaz together. Neither character was perfect but they seemed to fit together very well. I really enjoyed getting to see them learn to open up to each other and be honest. I never doubted how much they cared for each other at any time during the story and it was great to see everything come together. Danika and Blake were also great in this book and I thought that the progression of their romance was equally important to the overall story.

B.J. Harrison did a fantastic job with this story. I thought that he handled all of the different character voices extremely well. I thought that he added a lot of excitement and emotion to the story. I found his voice to be very pleasant and I believe that his narration added to my overall enjoyment of the story.

I would recommend this book to others. I thought that this was a very well done contemporary romance filled with characters that I cared about. I cannot wait to continue with the series!

I received a copy of this audiobook from the author/publicist.

Wylde by Sawyer Bennett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Audio Review: Wylde (Arizona Vengeance #7) by Sawyer Bennett, Narrated by Teddy Hamilton, CJ Bloom


A smooth operator with an angel's face and a bruised heart. Wylde is all of those things and more. Bennett continues to be as unpredictable as the characters that she writes. One minute, she goes full blast when it comes to naughty and the next she plays the strings of the heart like it's her own personal violin. This time around Bennett gives emotions quite the work out with a little help from her friends. Through the eyes of heartache, Hamilton and Bloom tear down the masquerade and expose Erin and Clarke for the work in progress they are. Friendship, family and what looks a lot like love, makes for a temptation that is not to be missed.

Zum 49. Geburtstag erwartet Eva Hitz eine besondere Überraschung: Nach 22 Jahren Beziehung macht ihr Lebensgefährte Arne der Restauratorin einen Antrag. Die Mutter der gemeinsamen Tochter Frida (15) ist zunächst einmal überfordert. Wieso kommt Arne nun nach all der Zeit noch mit dieser Frage? Hat er etwas zu verbergen? Eva ist nicht nur angesichts seiner Motive skeptisch, sondern hat auch Zweifel, ob die Ehe wirklich eine gute Idee ist. Schließlich ist der Partnerschaft im Laufe der Zeit die Leidenschaft abhanden gekommen. Ihre Tochter hingegen ist begeistert von dem Hochzeitswunsch. Was soll Eva jetzt tun?

„Die Mitte ist ein guter Anfang“ ist ein Roman von Franka Bloom.

Meine Meinung:
Der Roman besteht aus vier Teilen, die sich wiederum in 40 Kapitel mit einer angenehmen Längen gliedern. Erzählt wird in chronologischer Reihenfolge in der Ich-Perspektive aus der Sicht von Eva. Der Aufbau funktioniert gut.

Der Schreibstil ist einfach und unspektakulär, aber locker und anschaulich. Er wirkt – dank viel wörtlicher Rede – recht lebhaft. Der Einstieg fällt sehr leicht.

Im Fokus der Geschichte steht Eva, eine sympathische Protagonistin, deren Verhalten authentisch und verständlich ist. Ihre Gedanken und Gefühle lassen sich gut nachvollziehen. Auch die übrigen Charaktere erscheinen lebensnah und ausreichend detailreich dargestellt.

Inhaltlich ist der Roman tiefgründiger und vielschichtiger als erwartet. Die Geschichte dreht sich nämlich nicht ausschließlich um die Liebe, sondern auch um Lebensträume, Sehnsüchte, Unabhängigkeit und ähnliche Themen. Somit gibt der Roman durchaus Impulse, über sich selbst und sein Leben nachzudenken. Der Geschichte ist außerdem anzumerken, dass die Autorin damit Erfahrung hat, wenn nach 20 Jahren Partnerschaft plötzlich die Ehe doch noch zum Thema wird.

Die mehr als 400 Seiten sind recht kurzweilig geraten. Dafür sorgen mehrere Wendungen und Zwischenfälle. Das macht die Handlung zwar nicht durchweg realistisch. Dennoch habe ich mich gut unterhalten gefühlt, was unter anderem auch an vielen humorvollen Passagen liegt.

Das Cover schafft Aufmerksamkeit. Allerdings erschließt sich mir der inhaltliche Sinn des Flamingos leider nicht. Andererseits passen Optik und Titel gut zu den anderen Romanen der Autorin und erzeugen einen Wiederkennungseffekt.

Mein Fazit:
„Die Mitte ist ein guter Anfang“ von Franka Bloom ist ein unterhaltsamer Roman. Eine Lektüre, die mich nicht in allen Punkten begeistert hat, aber für schöne Lesestunden sorgt.