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kathydavie's review against another edition
3.0
First in the Animal Magnetism romance series revolving around a group of friends involved in helping animals in Sunshine, Idaho. The couple focus is on Lilah Young and Brady Miller.
My Take
This is a cute, very white bread, and fluffy read with no real tension or drama. I did enjoy Lilah's battle with sweets and her idea of bribing herself away from them.
The story is primarily an opportunity for Shalvis to introduce the cast of characters for this series and set up the background for it, making sure we understand how intimate a small town such as Sunshine is and how incredibly attractive Brady, Adam, and Dell are. I suspect we've already met the other two romantic interests for Adam and Dell.
I recommend this for anyone who simply wants a non-confrontational read with a bit of a rescue and a fun romance with a warm set of characters.
The Story
Lucky Lilah runs into Brady, literally, and has an odd idea about payback. Brady has his own ideas, but they certainly don't include a lapdog named Twinkles! It's cool, though as Brady has no intention of sticking around. He'll get the chopper up and running and then so is he.
The Characters
Lilah Young is struggling to hang onto her home and the animal shelter she runs with Cruz Delgado's help (he plays in a band in his off-hours). She's also a struggling driver...sigh...too tired out from her online studies. Estelle is the grandmother Lilah gave up school to nurse.
Brady Miller, a.k.a., Doctor Death, is struggling to readjust to being in a friendly countryside. One that's not Afghanistan. He's home between assignments to help Dell and Adam who opened Belle Haven to care for animals. Dell is a veterinarian and Adam trains and breeds dogs for search-and-rescue. They're also Brady's foster brothers. All three were taken in by Sol Anders, a big animal vet. Jade is their model-perfect receptionist.
Abigail can be an obedient duck. With Brady. Lulu is a lamb who thinks she's a puppy and "she's a 'ho for TLC". Sadie is a three-legged cat who got lost. Toby and Twinkles are two sweet dogs Lilah rescues.
Nick McFarlan runs the hardware store and would like to be more than a friend to Lilah. Dee runs the bakery. Celia Ayala had been her grandma's frenemy. Holly thinks her new golden retriever puppy is defective. Newberry is a reckless, clueless ranch owner.
The Cover
The cover certainly conveys the emptiness of the land. If we can focus our eyes past Brady's naked back and our view of the sad-eyed Twinkles and look down that lonely road.
I'm not sure if the title refers to Brady's Animal Magnetism, Twinkles', or Lilah's absorption in her critters.
My Take
This is a cute, very white bread, and fluffy read with no real tension or drama. I did enjoy Lilah's battle with sweets and her idea of bribing herself away from them.
The story is primarily an opportunity for Shalvis to introduce the cast of characters for this series and set up the background for it, making sure we understand how intimate a small town such as Sunshine is and how incredibly attractive Brady, Adam, and Dell are. I suspect we've already met the other two romantic interests for Adam and Dell.
I recommend this for anyone who simply wants a non-confrontational read with a bit of a rescue and a fun romance with a warm set of characters.
The Story
Lucky Lilah runs into Brady, literally, and has an odd idea about payback. Brady has his own ideas, but they certainly don't include a lapdog named Twinkles! It's cool, though as Brady has no intention of sticking around. He'll get the chopper up and running and then so is he.
The Characters
Lilah Young is struggling to hang onto her home and the animal shelter she runs with Cruz Delgado's help (he plays in a band in his off-hours). She's also a struggling driver...sigh...too tired out from her online studies. Estelle is the grandmother Lilah gave up school to nurse.
Brady Miller, a.k.a., Doctor Death, is struggling to readjust to being in a friendly countryside. One that's not Afghanistan. He's home between assignments to help Dell and Adam who opened Belle Haven to care for animals. Dell is a veterinarian and Adam trains and breeds dogs for search-and-rescue. They're also Brady's foster brothers. All three were taken in by Sol Anders, a big animal vet. Jade is their model-perfect receptionist.
Abigail can be an obedient duck. With Brady. Lulu is a lamb who thinks she's a puppy and "she's a 'ho for TLC". Sadie is a three-legged cat who got lost. Toby and Twinkles are two sweet dogs Lilah rescues.
Nick McFarlan runs the hardware store and would like to be more than a friend to Lilah. Dee runs the bakery. Celia Ayala had been her grandma's frenemy. Holly thinks her new golden retriever puppy is defective. Newberry is a reckless, clueless ranch owner.
The Cover
The cover certainly conveys the emptiness of the land. If we can focus our eyes past Brady's naked back and our view of the sad-eyed Twinkles and look down that lonely road.
I'm not sure if the title refers to Brady's Animal Magnetism, Twinkles', or Lilah's absorption in her critters.
yodamom's review against another edition
4.0
It all starts with a chocolate covered doughnut, a doughnut fiend, and an abandoned dog.
Brady, pilot and single to the end of time man finds himself stuck in this crazy town straddled with a crazy little dog named Twinkles. Yes, big tough man has a dog named Twinkles. Of course he thinks the dog is the devils spawn, it does have some really bad habits. It seemed cruel to laugh at his pain but I did anyway.
He is there to help his two brother's out and leave asap and has serious commitment issues. Still Lilah, the dog rescuer manages to keep him off balance and attached to the evil little guy. She unbalances him in other ways too. Let's just say he is one lusty horn dog himself.
Lilah, was raised in this town and runs her own rescue/kennel center. She is over worked, underpaid, and a bit distracted. Which might be why she ran into Brady's truck while driving with a pig, duck and other beasties in her jeep. That turned into a ride and a shared moment of doughnut chocolate covered lust. Lick your lips good feelings all around. She is friends, nearly family with his brothers and they are protective of their friend. She is a force of nature, she strives to be the savior and to do it alone. Yes, that does cause some trouble later in the story. The two go back and forth in a semi part time relationship he is only there for a month. But don't fear this author is great at HEA's.
I really like this author. I have a couple feel good authors I like to go to when I need to lighten things and this is one. She writes about good people trying to do good things and not harm others. I finished the book feeling good, happy and smiling. Damn good work !
olivia_martins's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Limited plot. Nice lighthearted pallet cleanser
zaza_bdp's review against another edition
3.0
Aujourd'hui j'avais envie d'une lecture doudou, une romance douce et légère sans prise de tête et Animal magnetism a répondu à mes attentes.
Brady a tout ce qu'il faut pour nous faire rêver, il est bourré de charme, sexy, attentionné et sa relation avec Twinkles (le chiot) est vraiment adorable ! Les passages où il apprivoise (enfin il essaie) ce petit chien sont vraiment mignons, et son côté bougon, son côté "monsieur sans attaches" renforce cela.
Lilah n'est pas mal non plus dans son genre, l'enfant chérie de la ville, qui prend soin de tout le monde, mais ne laisse personne s'approcher trop près. Elle s'attache très vite à ses petits protégés à 4 pattes, ce qui la rend vulnérable.
Les personnages secondaires donnent envie de poursuivre la série, ce que je ferai bien sûr ! Dell et Adam sont prometteurs, je me demande ce que Jill Shalvis leur réserve !
Elle et Brady forment un joli couple, leur histoire évolue en douceur. Leur attachement mutuel est progressif et ni l'un ni l'autre ne veulent une relation à long terme, mais vous vous doutez bien que les choses ne vont pas être si simples.
Voilà donc une douce romance, sans drames ni heurts, mais pas transcendante non plus.
Brady a tout ce qu'il faut pour nous faire rêver, il est bourré de charme, sexy, attentionné et sa relation avec Twinkles (le chiot) est vraiment adorable ! Les passages où il apprivoise (enfin il essaie) ce petit chien sont vraiment mignons, et son côté bougon, son côté "monsieur sans attaches" renforce cela.
Lilah n'est pas mal non plus dans son genre, l'enfant chérie de la ville, qui prend soin de tout le monde, mais ne laisse personne s'approcher trop près. Elle s'attache très vite à ses petits protégés à 4 pattes, ce qui la rend vulnérable.
Les personnages secondaires donnent envie de poursuivre la série, ce que je ferai bien sûr ! Dell et Adam sont prometteurs, je me demande ce que Jill Shalvis leur réserve !
Elle et Brady forment un joli couple, leur histoire évolue en douceur. Leur attachement mutuel est progressif et ni l'un ni l'autre ne veulent une relation à long terme, mais vous vous doutez bien que les choses ne vont pas être si simples.
Voilà donc une douce romance, sans drames ni heurts, mais pas transcendante non plus.
melly2966's review against another edition
5.0
I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!!! Absolutely loved brady and lilah and everyone else. loved the fact that it was surrounded by animals!!!
steph01924's review against another edition
1.0
Geez, this cover is embarrassing. Book was fine, sort of...boring? I skipped through parts and there didn't seem to be a lot to fill up the book. Some of the internal dialogue the characters had was a little corny.
I could do without every single chick book constantly commenting on how the main character loves sweets but knows they're so bad for her, so she'll off-set it with some broccoli for dinner. Yeah, maybe many people think this way...but really, why this is the trait constantly being used to make females 'relatable' and oh-so-cutesy in these types of books? There were at least six or seven separate occasions where Lilah had this thought process - I'm reading a freaking romance book. I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU EAT.
I may check out the next one to see if Shalvis improved at all in this series, but I'm not super eager to see what's next.
I could do without every single chick book constantly commenting on how the main character loves sweets but knows they're so bad for her, so she'll off-set it with some broccoli for dinner. Yeah, maybe many people think this way...but really, why this is the trait constantly being used to make females 'relatable' and oh-so-cutesy in these types of books? There were at least six or seven separate occasions where Lilah had this thought process - I'm reading a freaking romance book. I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU EAT.
I may check out the next one to see if Shalvis improved at all in this series, but I'm not super eager to see what's next.
charms1976's review against another edition
4.0
After getting hooked on the writing by author Jill Shalvis, I have been snatching up as many books as I can find by her! I recently read Animal Attraction is ARC format, and desperately wanted to read the first book to catch up on the town of Sunshine.
In Animal Magnetism, we get to learn about Brady and Lilah. Brady is the foster brother of Dell and Adam. He never really has claimed a "home base" to put down roots. He comes to Sunshine to help out his brothers by rebuilding a helicopter to help in the aid of animal rescue. Lilah is such good friends with Dell and Adam that they feel she is like a little sister they never had. Lilah is owner of the local animal kennel and she is also working on getting her degree through online school. When she goes into town one morning, she accidentally runs her Jeep into Brady's truck. This is the beginning to their wonderful and delightful romance.
I fell in love with Brady just as fast as Lilah did. He was sexy and very Alpha in personality that made me swoon whenever he got protective of Lilah around other men in town. I also loved how Brady and Lilah interacted with Dell and Adam. They were playful and the dialogue was witty and had me laughing out loud several times.
If I had one complaint about the book, it was the fact that there weren't many obstacles for the couple to over come to be together. Lilah had a life that was pretty much set in knowing what she wanted and where it would go. Brady had the only real obstacle of having a job somewhere other than Sunshine, but he also had one he could have at a drop of a hat with Dell and Adam. While it is mentioned that Brady doesn't like to stay in one place for too long, I felt that this wasn't enough of a conflict to keep the book going. Yet, even with the lack of conflict, I still enjoyed reading about the couple. I also enjoyed the blossoming relationship between Dell and Jade who will be featured in the next book in the series.
If it is a sweet romance with lovable characters you are looking for, author Jill Shalvis delivers in her Animal series! I have said it before and I will say it again that I am thrilled to have found the works of Jill Shalvis. If you haven't read any of her works before, you really need to jump on the bandwagon of fun romance!
In Animal Magnetism, we get to learn about Brady and Lilah. Brady is the foster brother of Dell and Adam. He never really has claimed a "home base" to put down roots. He comes to Sunshine to help out his brothers by rebuilding a helicopter to help in the aid of animal rescue. Lilah is such good friends with Dell and Adam that they feel she is like a little sister they never had. Lilah is owner of the local animal kennel and she is also working on getting her degree through online school. When she goes into town one morning, she accidentally runs her Jeep into Brady's truck. This is the beginning to their wonderful and delightful romance.
I fell in love with Brady just as fast as Lilah did. He was sexy and very Alpha in personality that made me swoon whenever he got protective of Lilah around other men in town. I also loved how Brady and Lilah interacted with Dell and Adam. They were playful and the dialogue was witty and had me laughing out loud several times.
If I had one complaint about the book, it was the fact that there weren't many obstacles for the couple to over come to be together. Lilah had a life that was pretty much set in knowing what she wanted and where it would go. Brady had the only real obstacle of having a job somewhere other than Sunshine, but he also had one he could have at a drop of a hat with Dell and Adam. While it is mentioned that Brady doesn't like to stay in one place for too long, I felt that this wasn't enough of a conflict to keep the book going. Yet, even with the lack of conflict, I still enjoyed reading about the couple. I also enjoyed the blossoming relationship between Dell and Jade who will be featured in the next book in the series.
If it is a sweet romance with lovable characters you are looking for, author Jill Shalvis delivers in her Animal series! I have said it before and I will say it again that I am thrilled to have found the works of Jill Shalvis. If you haven't read any of her works before, you really need to jump on the bandwagon of fun romance!
nitzanschwarz's review against another edition
4.0
Jill Shalvis is one of my favorite authors when it comes to romance. So it came as no surprise to anyone that I loved this novel. What all her stories have in common is a strong, fierce heroine (and not necessarily in the I-can-kick-your-butt way), charming and sweet heroes and quaint and picturesque settings. No one does small-town and the closeness of it quite like her.
And this first book in her Animal Magnetism checks all those boxes in just the right way.
And this first book in her Animal Magnetism checks all those boxes in just the right way.
Meet Brady Miller. Brady is new to town. Or maybe that's not the right way to put it, as he has no intention of staying in town for long. A couple of days, tops. On second thought, after a chance encounter with Lilah young and his brothers' enticing him with a plane to fix, maybe a month. But nothing more.
Of course, a lot can happen in a month, as Brady finds out, as the undeniable chemistry between him and Lilah explodes and sends them reeling. But is a no-string-attached relationship gonna cut it for these two?
Honestly, they were just so great together. They felt like they fit, like two pieces of a puzzle. This is one of those couples that from their first meeting on page, felt right. They brought each other up, they supported each other, they were a source of strength for each other... for me, these types of relationships are the best.
And, of course, the characters surrounding them were fantastic. I adored Brady's adoptive siblings, and I can already tell which direction the next books are going to take, at least with one of the couples. And let me tell you, I am looking forward to it so much!
And, of course, we can't forget THE ANIMALS. So many cute, adorable or darn right wacky animals in this book, and I loved every single one of them!
And, of course, the characters surrounding them were fantastic. I adored Brady's adoptive siblings, and I can already tell which direction the next books are going to take, at least with one of the couples. And let me tell you, I am looking forward to it so much!
And, of course, we can't forget THE ANIMALS. So many cute, adorable or darn right wacky animals in this book, and I loved every single one of them!
rebroxannape's review against another edition
2.0
Jill is a whiz with funny cute dialogue and descriptions. Unfortunately this one was lacking a plot, and the heroine is a little too adorable and quirky. Skipped through the last 2/3rds. But will give her another shot, because she is quick, snappy and funny. I did like her voice, but nothing happened and it was very repetitive and predictable.