Susan Mallery

This book was . . . almost endlessly frustrating, and particularly Sadik, the male lead, made me want to stab him frequently. I get quite frustrated at conflict that relies on mutual miscommunication, and that conflict was the heart of this book.

The first line Sadik voiced that did not make me want to stab him was on page 230 of 377 (61% of the way through) and while it was very sweet, it did not make up for the prior jackassery he displayed - or the continuing jackassery for that matter.

I spent at least half of the book waiting uncertainly for Sadik to get better, and eventually wondering if he would before the end. As it happened, the resolution was rushed and therefore felt rather unsatisfying, taking up less than half of the final chapter, and the epilogue was brief and did not build on that improvement but only a brief glimpse to answer a final question or two.

I am curious about the stories hinted at for one or two other characters, and may look into which of the books in the Desert Rogues series focus on them, and check them out.… (more)

The free-spirited owner of a booming chocolate emporium, Allison Thomas is out to save the world—one truffle at a time. Everyone adores Ali—who wouldn’t love a lady who sneaks midnight chocolate deliveries to the local health spa? And even if her love life is on hold, Ali’s perfectly content with her high-flying career.
That is, until the mysterious Matt Baker arrives. New to town, Matt quickly gets under her skin and leads her into temptation. But neither love nor chocolate seems to melt Matt’s icy heart. So Ali has no choice but to pull out all the stops in this “unforgettable combination of humor and sizzle” (… (more)

This is my second Susan Mallery book and I enjoyed it even more. Big books usually intimidate me, especially, mmpb with small print, but this was fast moving.

Harper, who's divorced, and Stacey, who's married and pregnant and scared to tell her mother for some reason probably because she was 40 and she was worried about her mother judging her since she was already 40. She was 6 months pregnant! Well, we knew that wasn't going to go over well at that stage.

Harper and Stacey have totally different lifestyles but they seem to get along fine. Their mom Bunny lived in the garage apt at Harper's. Harper never did anything right and she thought she was a “bad” mom for working and not being Suzy Homemaker.

Becca was a typical teenage girl, worried about her schooling and her social life. But of course her busy mom had no time for her, neither did her father.

A lot of good characters to help the book along, especially Lucas, the cop, who was one of Harper's clients. I'd want him as a friend. He was good to Becca and didn't treat her like a child.… (more)