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drey72's review
3.0
Katie Lane’s Hunk for the Holidays features a workaholic heroine, a mistaken-identity hero, and a lot of misunderstanding.
Cassie McPherson doesn’t have a date for her company’s holiday party, so she arranges for an escort to keep her family out of her personal affairs. Bad enough she’s a woman in a man’s world, but does her family have to keep reminding her of that fact? When James shows up, dressed to the nines, Cassie is so unsettled by his looks that she forgets to check that he’s who she thought he was.
Of course, hunky James isn’t the escort she’d arranged for. Instead, he’s her family business’ biggest rival, carving out chunks of winning bids against them. He’s there to meet with Cassie’s father, who happened to be home sick. Before you know it, he’s heading to the party with Cassie, wondering why he didn’t just say something from the beginning.
Well, duh. Because if he had, he wouldn’t be spending time with her now, would he?
Anyway. Lust ensues, followed by falling-in-love, all up til the big reveal. Then Cassie’s furious, because he could’ve told her. James is furious too, but I don’t think he has a leg to stand on. I mean, really. What did you think was going to happen, doofus?
Well, this is a romance novel — and that means Cassie and James get their happily-ever-after, eventually. It takes a while though, and I wasn’t that invested in their journey because I’m not a fan of lying-by-omission, especially when James knows well enough just who Cassie is. Other than that, the story was pretty enjoyable so take a peek between these covers and let me know what you thought!
drey’s rating: Pick it up!
Cassie McPherson doesn’t have a date for her company’s holiday party, so she arranges for an escort to keep her family out of her personal affairs. Bad enough she’s a woman in a man’s world, but does her family have to keep reminding her of that fact? When James shows up, dressed to the nines, Cassie is so unsettled by his looks that she forgets to check that he’s who she thought he was.
Of course, hunky James isn’t the escort she’d arranged for. Instead, he’s her family business’ biggest rival, carving out chunks of winning bids against them. He’s there to meet with Cassie’s father, who happened to be home sick. Before you know it, he’s heading to the party with Cassie, wondering why he didn’t just say something from the beginning.
Well, duh. Because if he had, he wouldn’t be spending time with her now, would he?
Anyway. Lust ensues, followed by falling-in-love, all up til the big reveal. Then Cassie’s furious, because he could’ve told her. James is furious too, but I don’t think he has a leg to stand on. I mean, really. What did you think was going to happen, doofus?
Well, this is a romance novel — and that means Cassie and James get their happily-ever-after, eventually. It takes a while though, and I wasn’t that invested in their journey because I’m not a fan of lying-by-omission, especially when James knows well enough just who Cassie is. Other than that, the story was pretty enjoyable so take a peek between these covers and let me know what you thought!
drey’s rating: Pick it up!
emilyhei's review
4.0
Cassie McPherson is used to being resourceful, especially with a family of brothers and working for her fathers construction company. With a Christmas party looming and matchmakers at her heels, Cassie hires an escort to fend off the busybees and allow her to enjoy the evening. When she meets her escort for the night, James, just James, she is a little thrown by his good looks and seductive nature. Even though she lays out the rules ahead of time, she can’t help be tempted to imagine what he would be like in bed.
Full review on Single Titles
http://singletitles.com/?p=7838
Full review on Single Titles
http://singletitles.com/?p=7838
sarah1984's review
3.0
26/12 - Somewhere between 'meh' and 'reasonable'. Best parts were that it was a Christmas romance perfect for Christmas Eve and that it was a very easy and quick read - I started reading it with dinner, intended to put it down after eating to watch some telly but found I couldn't and had it finished before midnight (5-6 hours altogether).
Cassie, the heroine, was a bit unlikeable. On the night she met her hero she drank so far to excess she had to vomit out the door of his car as he drove her home - really attractive. Then the next morning, after he's been a total gentleman, she wakes him up with surprise oral sex and then jumps on top of him without having any kind of discussion with him about what he wants (just because he showed interest the night before doesn't mean he's willing the next morning, the outrage would be loud and clear if the man had been the instigator here) and that left a bad taste in my mouth. They use a condom during that first sexual encounter, but in each subsequent sex scene condoms aren't brought up again. They didn't even bother with the 'Are you clean faux discussion?' that often passes for 'safe sex' in contemporary (especially NA) romances these days. And at 28 and 35 these guys didn't have the excuse of being naïve or inexperienced.
James, the hero, was okay except for the fact that he found himself incapable of telling Cassie the truth about who he was. Whenever he 'made' the decision that he was going to tell her something would just happen to interrupt him (often Cassie groping him) and then he'd put it off till a better time came up, except he left it too late and she found out on her own.
The plot was completely predictable. From the moment we're told that Cassie has hired an escort for her office Christmas party I knew exactly what was going to happen. From her mistaking him for the escort, to how she would uncover his real identity it was all absolutely transparent. This was my third Katie Lane book, and my second three star rating (I gave Going Cowboy Crazy four stars). It looks like I wasn't a fan of the heroine in that other three star rating, either, so maybe I'm just not a fan of Lane's heroines. Would still read another of her books if I came across one of them, but I won't be making an effort to find any.
Cassie, the heroine, was a bit unlikeable. On the night she met her hero she drank so far to excess she had to vomit out the door of his car as he drove her home - really attractive. Then the next morning, after he's been a total gentleman, she wakes him up with surprise oral sex and then jumps on top of him without having any kind of discussion with him about what he wants (just because he showed interest the night before doesn't mean he's willing the next morning, the outrage would be loud and clear if the man had been the instigator here) and that left a bad taste in my mouth. They use a condom during that first sexual encounter, but in each subsequent sex scene condoms aren't brought up again. They didn't even bother with the 'Are you clean faux discussion?' that often passes for 'safe sex' in contemporary (especially NA) romances these days. And at 28 and 35 these guys didn't have the excuse of being naïve or inexperienced.
James, the hero, was okay except for the fact that he found himself incapable of telling Cassie the truth about who he was. Whenever he 'made' the decision that he was going to tell her something would just happen to interrupt him (often Cassie groping him) and then he'd put it off till a better time came up, except he left it too late and she found out on her own.
The plot was completely predictable. From the moment we're told that Cassie has hired an escort for her office Christmas party I knew exactly what was going to happen. From her mistaking him for the escort, to how she would uncover his real identity it was all absolutely transparent. This was my third Katie Lane book, and my second three star rating (I gave Going Cowboy Crazy four stars). It looks like I wasn't a fan of the heroine in that other three star rating, either, so maybe I'm just not a fan of Lane's heroines. Would still read another of her books if I came across one of them, but I won't be making an effort to find any.
ipross's review
5.0
Absolutely loved the chemistry between Cassie and James. It's obvious from the first moment they meet that they will either spend the entire time at each other's throats or they will spontaneously combust. I opt for combustion. Main characters were great but the secondary characters were hilarious. I absolutely love Wheazy. Don't we all wish we had one of those in our family. One more thing I have to say is "I want a Christmas Tree too!"
jaimereadsromance's review
4.0
4.5 Fantastic Stars
I reading this series out of order since I read Unwrapped over a year ago and didn’t even pay attention to the fact that it was the third in a series. I’m so in love with Katie Layne’s writing and want to pick up all of her books now. I love the McPherson family and can’t wait to see what’s in store for me with Mattie’s story.
I reading this series out of order since I read Unwrapped over a year ago and didn’t even pay attention to the fact that it was the third in a series. I’m so in love with Katie Layne’s writing and want to pick up all of her books now. I love the McPherson family and can’t wait to see what’s in store for me with Mattie’s story.
allingoodtime's review
4.0
3.5 stars
I am really on a holiday romance reading kick lately. Now that it’s November I guess I can really say ‘tis the season. And I’m loving it!
Katie Lane is a new-to-me author…I think. The thing is, I thought I had read a short story of hers in a compilation and that was how I even thought to look into her books. But I can’t find a record of reading anything by her. Which makes me wonder where I heard of her. Hmmm. Whatever way I came across her works, I thoroughly enjoyed this story.
Cassie is a heroine that, although she’s tough and focused, is easy to relate to. As tough as she is, she still wants to keep her parents happy and doesn’t speak up for herself with them. She seems to have no issues keeping her brothers in line, yet turns to a little girl when her parents are involved. That need to please them is holding her back, professionally and emotionally.
James seems to instinctively understand Cassie and instantly becomes protective of her, even when he knows the deeper in he gets with her the more he may end up being the person she needs to (emotionally) protect herself from. To his credit, he does try more than once to set things straight.
See my full review at https://allingoodtimeblog.wordpress.com/2017/11/08/hunk-for-the-holidays-book-review/
I am really on a holiday romance reading kick lately. Now that it’s November I guess I can really say ‘tis the season. And I’m loving it!
Katie Lane is a new-to-me author…I think. The thing is, I thought I had read a short story of hers in a compilation and that was how I even thought to look into her books. But I can’t find a record of reading anything by her. Which makes me wonder where I heard of her. Hmmm. Whatever way I came across her works, I thoroughly enjoyed this story.
Cassie is a heroine that, although she’s tough and focused, is easy to relate to. As tough as she is, she still wants to keep her parents happy and doesn’t speak up for herself with them. She seems to have no issues keeping her brothers in line, yet turns to a little girl when her parents are involved. That need to please them is holding her back, professionally and emotionally.
James seems to instinctively understand Cassie and instantly becomes protective of her, even when he knows the deeper in he gets with her the more he may end up being the person she needs to (emotionally) protect herself from. To his credit, he does try more than once to set things straight.
See my full review at https://allingoodtimeblog.wordpress.com/2017/11/08/hunk-for-the-holidays-book-review/
taradwyatt's review
Great holiday read. Super sexy hero, great setting and hot sex. I didn't love the heroine's family--I found them a bit over the top and not quite believable. But, this book really worked for me. Fun, sexy and Christmassy.
scorchingnix's review
4.0
Really 3.75 Stars
Reviewed at http://scorchingbookreviews.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/a-nix-arc-review-hunk-for-holidays-by.html
Life for Cassie involves going to work and going home; there is very little room for anything in-between! Since her Father had a heart attack, it’s gotten so bad she has taken to hiring men to take her to functions to keeper match-making family at bay. When it comes to the latest function, it seems that the escort agency has outdone themselves. He’s suave, gorgeous and very charming.... he’s even putting her “no-sleeping with the escort” rule to the test. He really does seem too good to be true....
James Sutton is due to meet a legend in his business, Al McPhereson. When he arrives for his meeting he sees no sign of the man, but a gorgeous brunette approaches him, assuming he is escort. Fascinated as to where this is going, and realising that she is the daughter of the man he is there to meet, he decides to pretend that he is exactly who she thinks he is and see where the evening takes them.
Sparks start to fly within minutes but only one of them knows who the other really is. What will Cassie think when she realises the competition she is so attracted to is the man she blames for putting her father in the hospital with a stress related heart attack? And once they give in to the heat between them, will it be easy to wash away any feelings as she realises what a mistake she has made.
I love Katie Lane’s books so I immediately requested this book on netgalley. It wasn’t what I expected and, although I enjoyed it overall, there were problems that stopped me giving this four stars. It didn’t have the comical characters that I loved with the other books in the series but it did have a comical setup with the mistaken identity trope. I loved the set-up, loved the main characters but the side characters took away from the main plot and dampened my excitement for this book.
When I think of Katie Lane books, I think of sweet love stories with a lot of heat. This one certainly fits that bill! The main love story was so cute but you could see the crap hitting the fan from a mile away. Cassie has had a downer on men since the last man she had a serious relationship with and since then has paraded an endless assortment of young escorts to her family’s shin-digs. James is definitely the best of the bunch but, as cute as he is, there is no way she will carry on their liaison when she finds out who he is. The initial party scenes are the funniest in the entire book. With an elderly aunt who tries to put James through his paces to see if he is worthy of her niece to the scenes where a very drunk Cassie tries to convince James he wants to sleep with her, I chuckled with every page turn.
As they grew closer, I couldn’t understand why he didn’t tell her who he was. It was obvious that they were going past the initial feelings of lust and it would have been the ideal time to fess up but he didn’t. I knew it was going to be bad when he did find out...it was like a car crash waiting to happen and I couldn’t look away. You’ll have to read it to see what happens, but I liked it!
The side story with Amy and Rory was pretty interesting up until its resolution. I enjoyed the tension and the back story between the two of them and it had the potential to be one of the best part of the story. Unfortunately, the resolution really didn’t work for me as I found it rushed and a little bit twee. I was a little disappointed and its probably for this reason that it didn’t quite make 4 stars.
Overall, this is a sweet book with some genuine comedy moments and a steamy love story at its core. With crazy aunties, mistaken identities and the holiday blues all around, it’s clear this will be a crazy ride.
Reviewed at http://scorchingbookreviews.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/a-nix-arc-review-hunk-for-holidays-by.html
Life for Cassie involves going to work and going home; there is very little room for anything in-between! Since her Father had a heart attack, it’s gotten so bad she has taken to hiring men to take her to functions to keeper match-making family at bay. When it comes to the latest function, it seems that the escort agency has outdone themselves. He’s suave, gorgeous and very charming.... he’s even putting her “no-sleeping with the escort” rule to the test. He really does seem too good to be true....
James Sutton is due to meet a legend in his business, Al McPhereson. When he arrives for his meeting he sees no sign of the man, but a gorgeous brunette approaches him, assuming he is escort. Fascinated as to where this is going, and realising that she is the daughter of the man he is there to meet, he decides to pretend that he is exactly who she thinks he is and see where the evening takes them.
Sparks start to fly within minutes but only one of them knows who the other really is. What will Cassie think when she realises the competition she is so attracted to is the man she blames for putting her father in the hospital with a stress related heart attack? And once they give in to the heat between them, will it be easy to wash away any feelings as she realises what a mistake she has made.
I love Katie Lane’s books so I immediately requested this book on netgalley. It wasn’t what I expected and, although I enjoyed it overall, there were problems that stopped me giving this four stars. It didn’t have the comical characters that I loved with the other books in the series but it did have a comical setup with the mistaken identity trope. I loved the set-up, loved the main characters but the side characters took away from the main plot and dampened my excitement for this book.
When I think of Katie Lane books, I think of sweet love stories with a lot of heat. This one certainly fits that bill! The main love story was so cute but you could see the crap hitting the fan from a mile away. Cassie has had a downer on men since the last man she had a serious relationship with and since then has paraded an endless assortment of young escorts to her family’s shin-digs. James is definitely the best of the bunch but, as cute as he is, there is no way she will carry on their liaison when she finds out who he is. The initial party scenes are the funniest in the entire book. With an elderly aunt who tries to put James through his paces to see if he is worthy of her niece to the scenes where a very drunk Cassie tries to convince James he wants to sleep with her, I chuckled with every page turn.
As they grew closer, I couldn’t understand why he didn’t tell her who he was. It was obvious that they were going past the initial feelings of lust and it would have been the ideal time to fess up but he didn’t. I knew it was going to be bad when he did find out...it was like a car crash waiting to happen and I couldn’t look away. You’ll have to read it to see what happens, but I liked it!
The side story with Amy and Rory was pretty interesting up until its resolution. I enjoyed the tension and the back story between the two of them and it had the potential to be one of the best part of the story. Unfortunately, the resolution really didn’t work for me as I found it rushed and a little bit twee. I was a little disappointed and its probably for this reason that it didn’t quite make 4 stars.
Overall, this is a sweet book with some genuine comedy moments and a steamy love story at its core. With crazy aunties, mistaken identities and the holiday blues all around, it’s clear this will be a crazy ride.
fromjesstoyou's review
2.0
2 out of 5 stars. DNF. I gave this novel 2 stars because I got so bored with the novel by chapter 10 that I had to give it up. If I read it when it first arrived on my TBR pile it might have been different but alas I can't turn back time. Also, I gave this novel 2 stars because it has some fun quirky characters making me see that it has lots of potential.
I recommend it to those who'd enjoy reading a contemporary holiday romance.
I recommend it to those who'd enjoy reading a contemporary holiday romance.
mslizalou's review
4.0
3.5 out of 5 stars.
I requested Hunk for the Holidays from NetGalley after a friend told me how much she loved it. This is the first book I’ve read by Katie Lane, but won’t be my last since I really enjoyed her voice.
I loved Cassie from the moment she appeared on the page. She is such a strong character yet still hires an escort to take to her company Christmas party to avoid having to deal with sympathetic looks and matchmaking from family and family friends. When James shows up in her office she mistakes him for the escort she has hired for the night, and for the first time ever, she is thinking about sleeping with her paid escort. Unknown to Cassie, James is actually James Sutton, her family’s biggest business rival. He was only in her office because he had an appointment scheduled with her father.
Cassie and James had really great chemistry. While I myself have never experienced love at first sight, I kinda got that feel with Cassie and James…maybe lust at first sight is more appropriate. They really did have great chemistry together and I was really cheering for them to make it the whole time I was reading. I knew Cassie wouldn’t be very understanding when she found out who James really was, and she reacted as I expected. I totally understood how Cassie felt but also had seen James try and tell her a couple of times who he really was. I knew part of the reason Cassie was so mad was because for probably the first time ever, she had real feelings for a man. James had the same problem once he and Cassie argued over their situation. He really fell hard and fast for Cassie, and wasn’t ready to accept less than everything from Cassie.
I also loved the secondary love story between Cassie’s brother Rory and Cassie’s best friend Amy. Amy and Rory had been attracted to one another since they first met when she came to work for the company. However, due to a lack of communication between the two, they hadn’t ever acted on said feelings. While I could see they would get a quick resolution to their love story, I really wish they had been given a book of their own. I would have loved to see Rory romance Amy to win her over.
I really enjoyed Hunk for the Holidays. While the entire romance took place over the course of 3-4 days, I liked it. Made me laugh out loud a few times, fan myself and others, and even tear up a couple of times. I really like when a book makes me feel a wide range of emotions. For more about Katie Lane, check out her website.
I requested Hunk for the Holidays from NetGalley after a friend told me how much she loved it. This is the first book I’ve read by Katie Lane, but won’t be my last since I really enjoyed her voice.
I loved Cassie from the moment she appeared on the page. She is such a strong character yet still hires an escort to take to her company Christmas party to avoid having to deal with sympathetic looks and matchmaking from family and family friends. When James shows up in her office she mistakes him for the escort she has hired for the night, and for the first time ever, she is thinking about sleeping with her paid escort. Unknown to Cassie, James is actually James Sutton, her family’s biggest business rival. He was only in her office because he had an appointment scheduled with her father.
Cassie and James had really great chemistry. While I myself have never experienced love at first sight, I kinda got that feel with Cassie and James…maybe lust at first sight is more appropriate. They really did have great chemistry together and I was really cheering for them to make it the whole time I was reading. I knew Cassie wouldn’t be very understanding when she found out who James really was, and she reacted as I expected. I totally understood how Cassie felt but also had seen James try and tell her a couple of times who he really was. I knew part of the reason Cassie was so mad was because for probably the first time ever, she had real feelings for a man. James had the same problem once he and Cassie argued over their situation. He really fell hard and fast for Cassie, and wasn’t ready to accept less than everything from Cassie.
I also loved the secondary love story between Cassie’s brother Rory and Cassie’s best friend Amy. Amy and Rory had been attracted to one another since they first met when she came to work for the company. However, due to a lack of communication between the two, they hadn’t ever acted on said feelings. While I could see they would get a quick resolution to their love story, I really wish they had been given a book of their own. I would have loved to see Rory romance Amy to win her over.
I really enjoyed Hunk for the Holidays. While the entire romance took place over the course of 3-4 days, I liked it. Made me laugh out loud a few times, fan myself and others, and even tear up a couple of times. I really like when a book makes me feel a wide range of emotions. For more about Katie Lane, check out her website.
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