Showing posts with label McKenna Series. Show all posts
Showing posts with label McKenna Series. Show all posts

Thursday, August 17, 2017

NetGalley REVIEW - Where I Need to Be (McKenna, # 3) by Jamie Hollins

How can their relationship survive when it’s built on half-truths?
Where I Need to Be
McKenna, # 3
by Jamie Hollins
Releasing July 18th 2017
Self-Published
The Book Junkie Reads . . . Review of . . . WHERE I NEED TO BE (McKenna, #3) . . . I loved the hard bodied, sexy hot single dad mechanic, James and the slightly scarred, ex-pampered princess Megan. She lost it all. She had to start over. She only had one option. She just wasn't expecting to find that option leading to James. Together the to had a chemistry that was good and bad. Raw and smooth. To get the perfect mix they both had to be honest and open with themselves. Cade was the glue that helped them along the way. 

I loved the depth of the read. The intensity. The chemistry. The conflict. There was much there including the secondary character and the previous main characters from the previous books in the series. This one with James and Megan felt more raw, real, solid. There were more emotions. 

McKenna series:
The Best Part of Me – McKenna, #1
Not In My Wildest Dreams – McKenna, #2
Where I Need to Be – McKenna, #3

BlurbWhen heroin stole James Foley’s wife and destroyed his marriage, he poured all his energy into raising his young son and running his auto garage. There’s no room in his life for anything else until Megan McKenna walks into his shop. He finds it impossible to resist the sexy school teacher.
After an ugly divorce, Megan lost her home, her job, and a big chunk of her self-respect. With her posh lifestyle now a memory, she starts over by indulging in an unexpected fling with a hard-bodied mechanic.

What begins as something casual turns into something meaningful. But how can their relationship survive when it’s built on half-truths? 
James and Megan soon discover that being honest with themselves is just as important as being honest with each other. Only then will their relationship fire on all cylinders.
DON'T MISS ANY OF THE 
MCKENNA SERIES

Megan handed her overused credit card to the woman. Spending money on her shitty car was like spending money on dental work. She’d pretty much rather spend it on anything else.
As Janie ran the card, Megan glanced through the large windows that separated the office from the garage. Her breath caught when she spotted James talking with two other guys. She hoped she didn’t sigh out loud so his office manager could hear her, but she almost melted into the counter she was leaning against. He looked just as gorgeous as she remembered.
He was holding a grimy black piece of metal and pointing to something attached to it. It must have been heavy because his bicep bulged, and she could see the thick cords of muscles strain in his forearm. The two guys he was talking to were nodding in agreement with whatever he was saying. She stopped herself from nodding too.
Boy, did she have it bad for James Foley.
“Alrighty,” Janie said, bringing Megan’s attention back to the present. “Just your John Hancock on this work form and on this receipt please.”
Megan scribbled her signature where Janie indicated and returned her credit card to her wallet. “Anything else you need from me?”
Janie shook her head and handed over the car keys. “Nope, you’re all set. I think James brought your car around front.” The woman looked beyond Megan and pointed out the door. “Yep, she’s right there.”
“You refer to cars as girls too, I see,” Megan joked.
“Yeah, these guys rub off on me. Some of them even name their cars.”
Janie’s smirk made Megan laugh. She was just about ready to ask Janie to let James know that she needed a word with him when the man himself walked into the front office.
“Hey,” he said, his smooth voice rumbling as he finished wiping his hands with a rag.
He sounded slightly rushed, like he’d run over to catch her before she left. Maybe he was just as anxious to see her as she was to see him.
“Hi,” Megan replied.
She was glad to hear her voice didn’t shake like the rest of her. Not more than five days ago, she’d added this man to her very short list of sexual partners, and being in the same room as him now was causing all sorts of abnormalities in her body. Primarily, weak knees and a racing heart rate.
“I’m glad I caught you,” he said. “Do you have a minute for me to show you something on your car?”
“Yeah, sure.”
She hoped this was just a ploy for the two of them to have some privacy. He pushed open the door and ushered her through.
As they walked side by side to her car, he asked, “How have you been?”
“Good.”
She looked over at him, hoping to catch that sparkle in his eye that warmed her from the inside out. But instead of making eye contact, he just nodded and looked straight ahead.
When they reached her car, he rounded to the opposite side and bent down next to her front right tire. “See this?” he asked, pointing to her tire.
She shuffled closer and bent forward, thinking he wanted to get out of view of his gawking co-workers. She watched his face, which lacked any sort of readable emotion.
“Yes.”
He looked up at her and frowned. “Megan, you’re not looking. Look here.”
Her eyes moved to where his finger was pointing. He actually wanted her to look at her tire. Dear Lord. Suddenly embarrassed, she bit her lip and nodded.
“The tread on these tires is worn down to the point where they’re not safe for winter conditions. You’ll slip and slide all over the street with even a trace of ice or snow.”
Bristling with embarrassment, she stood up. “It seems like every time I come here you’re telling me something else is wrong with my car.”
He rose from his crouch and turned toward her, crossing his arms over his chest. “That’s because there is always something wrong with your car.”
James’s tone was one she recognized easily. It was the same tone she used every day in her classroom when she was talking to a student who wasn’t paying attention. Her earlier embarrassment quickly turned to irritation.
Her car was becoming—had become—a money pit. It wasn’t worth all these repairs she was making. She needed to get from her apartment to school. That’s it. She’d only bought a car because it would be more convenient in winter. Maybe she should rethink taking the bus.
On top of that, it was pricking her pride that James was acting like they hadn’t fucked each other five days ago. His words, not hers. Megan didn’t know what she’d been expecting, but it sure as hell wasn’t a matter-of-fact conversation about the tread on her tires.
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Jamie Hollins was born and raised in rural Northeast Ohio.  After graduate school, she embarked on a perilous career in Human Resources where she met plenty of real life characters.  When she’s not writing or chasing after her toddler, she enjoys reading and golfing.  Jamie lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, son, and their dog, Winston.

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Friday, February 10, 2017

NetGalley REVIEW - Virtual Tour - Not in My Wildest Dreams (McKenna Series, #2) by Jamie Hollins

Not in My Wildest Dreams
McKenna Series, #2
by Jamie Hollins
Releasing February 7th 2017
Self-Published

From The Book Junkie Reads . . . Not in My Wildest Dreams (McKenna Series, #2) . . .

I got me so funny moment of embarrassed shame from one Darcy Owens. She was shameless, fun, serious, and real. She knew her heart and knew what she wanted but she didn’t dare to dream it would ever be possible. Sean McKenna was a dream that was beyond a dream. It could never, ever, ever happen. That was until it did. But by them she had already steered her interest in a different direction.  To say this was a surprise that Sean did not like this.

Sean and Darcy were friends for years. Darcy has seen women come and go in Sean’s life. She was just a fixture that was there. Sean was just a typical guy that saw only what he wanted to see until the day he saw more than he thought he could handle.

This was a slow rise to the friends-to-lovers relationship that I usually find. There was no looking that just said jump now. Right now. They worked together and spent more time together and things just felt right.

I did not read the first book of the series and I did not feel like I missed anything. I did however feel like I would like to know more about the McKenna’s as a whole. That would push me to go back and read book one of this series. It was something about Ewan that had me wanting to know what it was like for him and Quinn.

McKenna Series:
The Best Part of Me – McKenna Series, #1
Not in My Wildest Dreams – McKenna Series, #2

BlurbIt really sucks to be in love with someone who sees you as nothing more than a friend.  Darcy Owens knows this from personal experience. From the moment she met Sean McKenna as a wary ten-year-old, he’s owned her heart. So when he asks for her help with an important construction project, she can’t say no.

Building a boutique hotel on Boston’s waterfront is a career-making opportunity, and Sean needs Darcy’s interior design expertise. She’s incredibly talented, and there is no one he trusts more. He knows he can always count on his childhood friend, but doesn’t know why he’s thinking about her tight skirts and blue eyes instead of tight deadlines and blueprints.

When Sean and Darcy’s excitement about their work turns into an entirely different kind of excitement, it’s a sexy surprise. But they soon realize that building a new relationship is more challenging than building a new hotel, especially when life-long habits and old insecurities create cracks in the foundation.
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          Mallory dug her hand into the mug and pulled out the next question. Her eyes scanned the paper and she laughed.
          “What is your preferred shape when shaving your pubic hair?”
          Quinn spit her beer back into her glass, almost choking on it. “Darcy!”
          “You first, Quinn,” Darcy smiled.
          Quinn’s eyes were as big as saucers, the whites totally surrounding her light gray irises.
          “Pass!”
          “Figures,” Darcy teased. “Okay, I’ll go first again. I try to keep it mostly in a little triangle shape. But I trim it pretty short so it doesn’t get too out of control down there.”
          Quinn was turning three shades of purple. Mallory and Jessi both laughed hysterically, covering their faces with their hands.
          “You are shameless!” Quinn yelled, looking like she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
          “Who’s shameless?”
          All heads turned to see Ewan and Sean McKenna walk through the front door. Darcy’s smile froze on her face as she stared at the two cousins who looked absolutely nothing alike. One was dark and one was fair. Both were tall, fit, and drop-dead gorgeous. Ewan was a usual suspect on the weekends. Sean, however, was not.
Damn, I’m not drunk enough to handle this.
          “Darcy’s shameless,” Quinn said, now with a little grin on her face.
          “Of course she is,” Sean said, smiling his million-dollar smile. “She’s Darcy,”
          Nope. Definitely not drunk enough to deal with Sean McKenna.
          That smile was one of Sean’s many highly effective and deadly weapons in his arsenal against the opposite sex. It had been eighteen years, and Darcy’s breath still caught every time she laid eyes on him. Strong, sculpted shoulders and a chest that narrowed into a lean and muscled abdomen.
No matter what he had on, his body looked amazing. Long, toned legs, shapely ass. His list of sexy and virile attributes could go on and on.
Combine that list with his sunny blond hair and his nonstop sense of humor, and he was a one-man woman-eater. And she didn’t mean that as an innuendo, although she could guess it was fairly accurate if the rumors served him right.
He had the confidence and charisma to charm Mother Teresa’s panties off. He was just that good.
          Not that Darcy knew what it was like for Sean to charm her panties off, even though she’d been dreaming about it ever since she’d met him on her first day of school in Ballagh, a sleepy village south of Boston. She’d seen all his tricks and moves. But only because she’d helplessly watched him work them on other girls.
          Sean had been the reason several lucky girls had given up their hymens. Ironically, he was and remained to be the reason she still had hers.
Call it sad. Call it impossible. Call it an abomination. Darcy was a twenty-eight-year-old virgin. It was hard to have a physical relationship when all she did was compare other men to Sean. She didn’t mean to do it. She just did.
          And if that didn’t fucking split her heart in two, the fact that he considered her one of his best friends did the trick. No guy ever fucked his best gal pal. It was in the guy code of conduct or something.
          Ewan pushed by his cousin, bent down, and gave Quinn a hard kiss on the lips before whispering something in her ear that made her giggle. His smile for his girlfriend was warm and made promises that told Darcy she’d likely need to sleep with the TV on. Not that they were ever loud when the darkly handsome and brooding Ewan was getting it on with her roommate. But Darcy didn’t want to risk hearing anything.
          Quinn smiled up at him. “We’re almost done.”
          “Done with what?” Sean asked, pulling up a chair to the table.
          “We’re playing Dirty Dozen.” Mallory’s words were slightly slurred.
          Sean looked over at her and raised his brows. “Dirty Dozen? Sounds scandalous. Do tell.”
          Darcy noticed the way Sean’s eyes lit up. He would be the only guy she knew who would use a word like scandalous.
          “We have to answer twelve questions,” Jessi answered him. “The naughtier the better.”
          “Jesus,” Ewan muttered, shaking his head as he started toward the living room to watch TV.
          “Naughty questions, huh?” Sean replied. “And why haven’t I been invited to join in on the fun before?”
          “Because you don’t have a vagina,” Darcy deadpanned.
          Sean twisted his lips at her and raised a brow.
          “I have intimate knowledge of vaginas. That should count for something.”
          Darcy rolled her eyes. Before she could tell Sean that no dicks were allowed at their Girls’ Night In, Jessi chimed in. “Of course you can play with us. It‘ll be fun to get a guy’s perspective.”
          With the exception of Quinn, Darcy’s friends didn’t know about her feelings for Sean. Jessi and Mallory, no doubt, thought he was the hottest thing since Tabasco.
Pretty much everyone did.
Her friends had met him a few times over the years through parties someone or other had thrown. Sean very rarely ever came down to Providence, where Darcy had just finished her graduate degree and Quinn was still trudging through hers. He lived in Boston, where he had earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees, and was now partner in a general contracting firm.
“Okay, hit me,” Sean invited. “What’s this shameless question of Darcy’s?”
“What shape do you shave your pubic hair?” Darcy challenged. She should have known that he wouldn’t even bat an eye.
“Great question,” he immediately answered. “Personally, I just trim my pubes. However, if you want to know my preference for how a woman should shave hers—”
“We don’t,” Darcy quickly said.
“Yes, we do!” both Mallory and Jessi yelled at the same time.
Sean smiled at them both before continuing. “It’s gotta be tidy down there. Shaved is okay, but waxed is better. And it needs to have some shape. I think it’s unnatural for a woman to be completely bare. I personally prefer something I like to call the Martini Glass, right above the—” He stopped suddenly and frowned. “I should illustrate. Can I get a pen and paper?”
“No!” Darcy cut in.
Sean shrugged, clearly loving how uncomfortable she was.
“My turn to ask a question.” He reached in to pull out a piece of paper. Sean smiled as he read it to himself before turning that blinding grin on the rest of the table.
“God, this is a great game,” he laughed. “Okay, the question is: When, where, how, and to whom did you lose your virginity?”
All the blood seemed to drain from Darcy’s head.
She’d been surprised that this question hadn’t come up the first few times they’d played the Dirty Dozen. It wasn’t that she was trying to keep her virginity a secret. She just never talked about it. Why the hell did it have to come up now, when Sean was here, for Christ’s sake?
Fuck, she was nowhere near drunk enough for this.
Buy Links:
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Author Info
Jamie Hollins was born and raised in rural Northeast Ohio.  After graduate school, she embarked on a perilous career in Human Resources where she met plenty of real life characters.  When she’s not writing or chasing after her toddler, she enjoys reading and golfing.  Jamie lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, son, and their dog, Winston.
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