“That’s how I want to be loved—big and crazy. Because that’s how I love.” - Winnie

This book was selected for the March 2022 read in my Facebook reader groups DRINK GOOD WINE, READ DIRTY BOOKS that's hosted by author Samantha Baca. The theme was romance with the subgenre grumpy/sunshine.

Ignite is listed as book #6 in the Cloverleigh Farms series. I am a serial series reader. My OCD forbids me from completing tasks out of order. So, you can imagine the panic attack that I experienced when I saw that this was book #6 less than 48 hours to the discussion. The idea of reading out of order was painful but despite being a fast reader, I knew there was no way I could finish all 6 books prior to the discussion date. Thankfully, after some digging it was discovered that while this is considered book 6 in that series, it's technically book #1 in the Next Generation series and can be read as a standalone. The author does a fantastic job giving brief summaries of the couples that we missed which are all the parents to this generation, so I personally did not feel like I missed anything which was a huge relief and kept my eye twitch to a minimum.

Okay, enough preface, I feel like I'm writing my life story before sharing a jello recipe. Sorry about that.

Ignite by Melanie Harlow was a spicy, funny, read. I gave it 4 stars which for me means, I really liked it. However, our grumpy sexy fireman was kind of an asshole and not in a sexy alpha way.

34-year-old, divorced dad, former Navy SEAL, and current firefighter Dex has anger and communication issues. I feel like he was a diva and when he lost his cool, he just let whatever come out of his mouth with little care as to who it hurt. This douche personality flaw hurt numerous feelings not just the female main character but his sister, ex-wife, and daughters. I get the appeal to this love story is that he's supposed to be a grump and Winne's sunshine happy personality is expected to bring him to the land of Love and Sunshine, but I really think he needed therapy to resolve his emotional baggage and would have liked that written in. I did however like how relatable his parenting style was. He is a good dad, and it was good to see.

Dex's daughter's Hallie age 8 and Luna age 5 were freaking GOLD. I hate it when you read about a single parent and the children are barely mentioned. Or the author writes their presence in but other than a few catch phrases they aren't really a focus in the love story. Luna and Hallie were very much a part of this story. They were cute, rebellious, pushy, sassy, and their love for that dad and friendship with Winnie was everything.

22-year-old Winnie is a rehabilitating love addict who has been to therapy UNLIKE Mr. Grump, recognizes her attachment issues and just living her life. She has her own emotional baggage but has learned to work through it and is a great support to both Dex and his girls. I really liked her. She has a kind heart, is very thoughtful, has a good head on her shoulders, hardworking, has a strong family/friend support system, and was very mature for her age.

I thought this was a solid read. Very funny, relatable, and believable. Not Lifetime movie worthy, definitely recommendable.